Great Florida Homes Blog

Throughout our many years as Coral Springs, FL real estate agents, we can’t tell you how many people we have come across who don’t think that they need professional help during their real estate transaction.  We’re not saying that buying or selling a home on your own is impossible, but there are so many benefits to using a Broward County real estate professional that we hate to see people go to unnecessary measures to complete their home sale or purchase. Making the decision to buy or sell a Coral Springs home is an exciting one; however it can also be incredibly stressful if you don’t know how to navigate the local real estate market.

In order to help you avoid unnecessary headaches, stress and anxiety during your Coral Springs real estate transaction, we thought that we’d take a little bit of time to explain some of the benefits of using a Coral Springs real estate agent. After reading through these, we think that you’ll realize that doing these sorts of large transactions on your own is feasible, but it may not always be the best choice.

You’ll have knowledge and experience on your side. Unless you have bought and sold a property every few years for the past decade, chances are you’re relatively inexperienced when it comes to this sort of transaction. A Coral Springs real estate agent helps others buy and sell homes for a living, and they know the ins and outs of the local real estate market. When you embark on a process as difficult as buying or selling a home, you’re going to want that level of knowledge and experience on your side, particularly if difficulties arise.

Someone will always be acting on your behalf. Your Coral Springs real estate agent will know what questions to ask, how to negotiate during the transaction and can help you avoid costly mistakes and less-than-beneficial scenarios. The right professional will care about your needs and your best interests, and they will do everything they can to ensure that the outcome of the transaction reflects that.

Instant access to a community expert is always a plus. We pride ourselves on being incredibly involved in the Coral Springs, FL community. We make it a high priority to know everything that there is to know about our area, and whenever someone is new to town, we always offer ourselves up as a resource or guide for community information. Many other real estate agents are the same. If you use an agent, they can help you find the home in the right area, near the best schools, and in the location that will best suit your needs and lifestyle.

Of course, these three benefits are just the tip of the iceberg. Using a Coral Springs real estate agent could also help you avoid costly and dangerous mistakes, as the right professional will have an eye for details and guide you through every stage of the transaction. While taking on the challenging task of buying or selling a home is possible to do on your own, the costs of using an agent are well worth it when you factor in stress, anxiety and the possibility for costly errors.

If you have any questions about buying or selling a home in Coral Springs, FL, don’t hesitate to contact us! We’d be happy to answer any of your questions and help you get started on your journey through the Broward County real estate market. We hope to hear from you soon!

Joy Carter and Jeff Booker
Great Florida Homes Team
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MARK YOUR CALENDARS TO JOIN US AT THE WALK!!!!

March 17th and 18th for 8th Annual The Coral Springs Festival of the Arts!

Over 175 booths of Arts, Crafts and loads of Entertainment to be Enjoyed!!

Come out and CELEBRATE St. Patrick's Day weekend at the Festival of the Arts!

Joy, CRS, SFR, e-PRO, 

Chair, Chamber of Commerce Trustees                                                        

Jeff Booker, Relocation Specialist   

Prudential Florida Realty

Coral Springs, Florida

954-369-0253 Office  954-755-0384 Fax

Team@GreatFloridaHomes.com

www.GreatFloridaHomes.com

TRUST YOUR FAMILY'S MOVE TO OUR FAMILY'S EXPERTISE!

If you’ve been paying attention to real estate news over the past couple of years, then chances are you have seen the words “short sale” over and over again. For those of you who don’t know, the term “short sale” refers to what happens when a homeowner falls behind on mortgage payments and the lender agrees to accept less than what is owed.  From there, the homeowner sells their property and gives whatever it sells for to the lender, and all other debt is forgiven. This is seen as a more attractive option to foreclosure. So when we encounter people who are underwater in their Coral Springs home, we make it a priority to see if they qualify for a short sale.

As your Coral Springs real estate agents, we have a lot of experience in dealing with people who are in danger of losing their home. Should you choose to go through the Coral Springs short sale process, you could avoid some of the stresses and pain that accompany foreclosure. It’s important to consult with the right Coral Springs real estate professional in order to determine whether or not you qualify for this process. Here are a few of the things that need to be in place in order to proceed with a short sale transaction.

•    Your Coral Springs home’s market value has dropped. When you hear of “underwater” homeowners, it refers to the scenario that takes place when the home itself is worth less than the unpaid amount on the mortgage. In this case, you would qualify for a short sale because your home is no longer worth the amount that you need to pay for it.
•    The mortgage on your Coral Springs home has to be near or at default status. You need to be behind at least three mortgage payments before it is considered to be “default” status. If you’re far behind on payments or know that you will be in the future, you may want to seek the help of a Coral Springs real estate agent now. They can counsel you on whether or not a short sale is the right course of action.
•    The Coral Springs homeowner has fallen on hard times. In order for a lender to consider accepting a short sale, you need to have proof that you have fallen on hard times and can not pay your mortgage each month. “Hardship” is a term that includes scenarios such as unemployment, divorce, medical emergency or illness, bankruptcy and death. It does NOT include bad purchase decisions, pregnancy, unhappiness or the desire to buy another home. Really evaluate your financial situation and whether or not is possible for you to stay in your home before deciding to go through a short sale.
•    The Coral Springs homeowner shouldn’t have any assets. If your lender feels that you have the financial assets to pay whatever amount is owed on your mortgage, then you will not be granted a short sale. You need to have copies of your tax returns and financial statements in order to prove that you don’t have the means to pay the difference of what you owe.

Going through a Coral Springs short sale is not a decision that should be taken lightly, as these transactions will ruin your credit and make it more difficult to get a mortgage loan for a few years. However, if you decide that you qualify to go through this process, then it will save you the pain of the foreclosure. As your Coral Springs real estate agents, we are sympathetic to the fact that for many homeowners, times are difficult, and we would love to guide you in any way that we can.

If you have any questions about whether or not you would qualify for a Coral Springs short sale, don’t hesitate to contact us! We’re here to guide you through all of your real estate needs. We hope to hear from you soon!

Joy Carter and Jeff Booker
Great Florida Homes Team
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MARK YOUR CALENDARS TO JOIN US AT THE WALK!!!!

March 17th and 18th for 8th Annual The Coral Springs Festival of the Arts!

Over 175 booths of Arts, Crafts and loads of Entertainment to be Enjoyed!!

Come out and CELEBRATE St. Patrick's Day weekend at the Festival of the Arts!

Joy, CRS, SFR, e-PRO, 

Chair, Chamber of Commerce Trustees                                                        

Jeff Booker, Relocation Specialist   

Prudential Florida Realty

Coral Springs, Florida

954-369-0253 Office  954-755-0384 Fax

Team@GreatFloridaHomes.com

www.GreatFloridaHomes.com

TRUST YOUR FAMILY'S MOVE TO OUR FAMILY'S EXPERTISE!

I have a disco- themed party to go to this month, so I have been building an outfit.  I have everything but the perfect top, so I keep coming home with various choices and then returning them.

Found a sparkly one that I thought would be perfect but it looked lousy.  Not wanting to keep another top, I did not need, I announced to my Mother that I was returning it!

My Mom and I have lived together for 25 years (she was widowed, so she raised my girls, so I could work these unpredictable real estate hours). She said, WHY?   It's really nice and you have lots of things it will go with.

I came out with the top and slacks and I still thought it looked just awful!  Mom flippantly said, "Oh put a better bra on and you will be fine!"  As I pout to my room and change the said under garment, I was AMAZED!  I hate when she is right, which is the majority of the time.  The top was fabulous with the right bra!  My perspective was changed by her giving me the right direction.

As I pranced back to my closet, I had my "Oprah", AH Ha moment!   This must be what our clients go through when shopping for the right house.

·    Yeah, that might work.

·    Well I'm not sure about this one.

·    Maybe the neighborhood just isn't right.

·    The house is missing....

·    And so on and so on....

This is where our expertise comes in.  We've seen it all, well most of the scenario's.  It is our job, as Realtors, to frame what will work, when something does not work (unless it truly doesn't).  Often, I have returned a client back to one of their first choices only to have them love it and not remember why they didn't like it in the first place.  Shopping for a home can be traumatic so we need to assist our clients in keeping the focus on the possibilities.

So, Listen to your Mother, or in our case, it is up to us as real estate professionals, to help our clients get past the frustration and get them to take our advice. 

Prescription Drug Collection at City Hall on Saturday, February 11

As part of the City's initiative to target and deter the use of illicit prescription drug use within our City, the Coral Springs Police Department is hosting a prescription drug collection on Saturday, February 11 from 9 to 11 a.m. Residents are asked to drop off any unused, unwanted or expired prescription medication at City Hall, 9551 W. Sample Road. For more information, please call 954-344-1833.

It’s that time of year again! You have to sit down with your tax return forms and financial documents and go through the long and arduous process of filing your taxes. As Boynton Beach real estate agents, we always emphasize the tax benefits that come with owning a home. We think that it is part of our responsibility to help aid our clients and local homeowners throughout the home buying and selling process, but we also like to give a few tips around tax time in order to ensure that our community gets the best returns possible. The problem is that the confusing nature of tax forms these days causes many Boynton Beach homeowners to make costly mistakes.

In the interest of helping all of you file your taxes correctly, thereby giving you more money to enjoy living in Boynton Beach, we thought that we’d point out some of the more common homeowner tax mistakes and tell you how to avoid them. As your Boynton Beach real estate agents, we want to make sure that you have no problems filing your taxes this year, and we want to help!

Make sure that you’re deducting the correct year for property taxes! On your federal tax forms, deduct the amount that you actually paid for the year, not the amount on your tax bill. Some taxing authorities work a year behind, so this method is the best way to claim the correct amount.

Make sure you don’t confuse escrow amount for actual taxes paid. If your lender escrows funds to pay your property taxes, you want to make sure that you deduct the amount that you paid into your escrow account over the entire year, not the amount your lender escrowed. The reason for this is because your lender may have escrowed an amount above or below what you paid. In order to claim the right amount, you need to make sure that you’re deducting the actual taxes paid, not what your lender escrows each month!

Don’t forget to deduct your PMI payments! If you put less than 20% down on your property when you took out a mortgage, then you had to purchase Private Mortgage Insurance, or PMI. You pay these PMI payments monthly as well, so you need to make sure you deduct that on your tax return. Remember this: once your income reaches $100,000, this deduction begins to phase out.

Keep track of all home-related expenses. From home office to maintenance and repair expenses, it’s incredibly important to keep detailed records of all home-related costs over the course of the year. Filing away documents as you go will allow you to have proof of payment if or when anything on your filed tax return gets questioned.

If you avoid these common mistakes when filing your taxes, we’re certain that you will get an accurate return this year! As your Boynton Beach real estate agents, we feel that it’s important for every homeowner to pay attention to the details when filing their tax returns. After all, owning a home in Boynton Beach comes with many tax benefits, and you want to make sure that you take full advantage of everything that entails!

If you have any questions about buying a home in Boynton Beach or what tax benefits you qualify for, don’t hesitate to contact us! We’d love to help you in any way that we can. We hope to hear from you soon!

Joy Carter and Jeff Booker
Great Florida Homes Team
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Car enthusiasts won't want to miss the City's Car Show on Saturday, February 4 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. The show, sponsored by Project CS Teen Car Club and co-sponsored by Auto Works Collision and Paint, Inc.,
will be held at the Sportsplex, across from the Tennis Center.

Admission is $2 for adults and $1 for students and children. The show will feature cars of all types
and models. There will be vendors, bounce houses, Miami Food Trucks,
Teen Cook-Off competition, demonstrations by our Fire and Police Departments,
face painting and carnival games and entertainment throughout the day, including a DJ.

Anyone who thinks his or her car has what it takes and would like to enter it in the show should call
954-345-2204. Cost to pre-register vehicles is $15 or $20 the day of the event.
Participants can pre-register at the Coral Springs Gymnasium, located at 2501 Coral Springs Drive.
Trophies will be awarded to winners in multiple categories.

Any business interested in setting up a 10' x 10' booth for $40 should also call 954-345-2204.
Non-profits and students groups are also welcome to set up booths at the event for free.
All proceeds from the eventwill go toward Project CS
and the group's efforts toward customizing confiscated vehicles.

The Sportsplex is located at 2575 Sportsplex Drive. For more information, please call 954-345-2204.

REAL ESTATE UPDATE FOR BROWARD COUNTY & PALM BEACH COUNTY
January 2012

Broward County includes well known cities of Coconut Creek, Coral Springs, Deerfield Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Highland Beach, Hillsboro, Lighthouse Point, Parkland, Plantation, Sunrise, Tamarac and Weston.

There are currently ­­­­­5904 Single Family Homes LISTED FOR SALE in Broward County.

­­­2828 priced under $250,000
1566 priced between 250,001 and $500,000
532 priced between $500,001 and $750,000
298 priced between $750,001 and $1,000,000
271 priced between $1,000,001 and $1,500,000
105 priced between $1,500,001 and $2,000,000
304 priced over $2,000,000

For the month of January, 1032, Single Family Homes SOLD in Broward County. 

451 were sold under $250,000
179 were sold between 250,001 and $500,000
376 were sold between $500,001 and $750,000
13 were sold between $750,001 and $1,000,000
7 were sold between $1,000,001 and $1,500,000
1 were sold between $1,500,001 and $2,000,000
5  were sold over $2,000,000

There are currently 6968, Multi-Family Homes LISTED FOR SALE in Broward County.  Multi-Family Homes include condos, town homes, villas, coops, all attached and or unattached as well as single story to multi levels.

5209 are priced under $250,000
1077 are priced between 250,001 and $500,000
293 are priced between $500,001 and $750,000
175 are priced between $750,001 and $1,000,000
115 are priced between $1,000,001 and $1,500,000
50 are priced between $1,500,001 and $2,000,000
49 are priced over $2,000,000

For the month of January, 830 Multi-Family Homes SOLD in Broward County.

Note that many of the lower priced multi family homes are located in Adult only communities with a over the age of 55 requirement to live there.

766 were sold under $250,000
44 were sold between 250,001 and $500,000
10 were sold between $500,001 and $750,000
4 were sold between $750,001 and $1,000,000
6 were sold between $1,000,001 and $1,500,00
0 were sold between $1,500,001 and $2,000,000
0 were sold over $2,000,000

Palm Beach County includes well known cities of Boca Raton, Boynton Beach, Delray Beach, Greenacres, Lake Worth,  Wellington and West Palm Beach.

There are currently 5762 single family homes listed For Sale in Palm Beach County.

­­2175 priced under $250,000
1670 priced between 250,001 and $500,000
583 priced between $500,001 and $750,000
382 priced between $750,001 and $1,000,000
113 priced between $1,000,001 and $1,500,000
189 priced between $1,500,001 and $2,000,000
450 priced over $2,000,000

For the month of January, 516 Single Family Homes SOLD in Palm Beach County.  (Selected Cities Referenced). 

370 were sold under $250,000
103 were sold between 250,001 and $500,000
14 were sold between $500,001 and $750,000
10 were sold between $750,001 and $1,000,000
11 were sold between $1,000,001 and $1,500,000
4 were sold between $1,500,001 and $2,000,000
4 were sold over $2,000,000

There are currently 2717, Multi-Family Homes LISTED FOR SALE in Palm Beach County.  Multi-Family Homes include condos, town homes, villas, coops, all attached and or unattached as well as single story to multi levels.

1377 are priced under $250,000
814 are priced between 250,001 and $500,000
245 are priced between $500,001 and $750,000
134 are priced between $750,001 and $1,000,000
50 are priced between $1,000,001 and $1,500,000
29 are priced between $1,500,001 and $2,000,000
68 are priced over $2,000,000

For the month of January, 771 Multi-Family Homes SOLD in Palm Beach county. (Selected Cities Referenced). 

715 were sold under $250,000
38 are sold between 250,001 and $500,000
10 were sold between $500,001 and $750,000
5 were sold between $750,001 and $1,000,000
2 were sold between $1,000,001 and $1,500,000
0 were sold between $1,500,001 and $2,000,000
1 are sold over $2,000,000

To see specific details on a specific category of homes actively for sale or sold, please email us at Team@GreatFloridaHomes.com and we will forward the information for your reference or review.

Information deemed reliable as provided by the Realtor Association of Greater Fort Lauderdale
and the Realtor Association of the Palm Beaches.

In Broward County, Single Family Listings and Sales were down slightly and Multi Family Listings were up just slightly and down in sales.  Single Family in Palm Beach was up in listings and  sales over December 2012.  In mutli-family for Palm Beach both Listings and Sales were down.