Linda Flack's Southwest Florida Blog | Cape Coral and Fort Myers Updates

Title Company States - No Attorneys!!!

Linda Flack- Cape Coral, Fl (Royal Shell Real Estate) — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 17:03:25 -0700

I do understand the need for attorneys but not for every closing. Just closed on a beautiful home with buyers from out of state. It was cash. The Title Company, Best Title Solutions, Cape Coral, Fl. as usual did a fantastic job of making sure all the paperwork was in tact and that clear title was being awarded the buyer.

They commented that their last closing in their home state where lawyers must officiate and attend were hours long with negotiations still going on. Seriously? I just don't know how anyone can actually plan a move and make it happen when attorneys make all the plans around their schedule.

I just think that closings should be about the buyer and the seller and all other services that they are paying for should be at their beck and call.

We here in SW Florida try to accomodate our customers and we try not involve attorneys to muck it up.

Cape Coral 2nd safest large city in Florida

Linda Flack- Cape Coral, Fl (Royal Shell Real Estate) — Fri, 20 May 2011 11:15:35 -0700

Congrats Cape Coral. We moved to Cape Coral in 1992 and the low crime rate was on the top of the list for good reasons to move to a community. The Cape has had some growing pains and continues that struggle but the bottom line is we live in Paradise. It’s nice to know the safety is still very good. While our friends and relatives from the NE have struggled with one of the coldest, snowiest winters ever we have enjoyed sunshine, blue sky and great weather. This spring the trees that flower have been dramatic, the boganvilla, royal Poinciana, orchid tree (it’s so cool to see these large trees covered with orchid flowers).

“Yo this is Jo”. Could this be your voicemail?

Linda Flack- Cape Coral, Fl (Royal Shell Real Estate) — Sun, 20 Mar 2011 09:29:15 -0700

I have heard some silly voicemails, but this? Come on! Sometimes we struggle for respect in our business. There are agents that bring it on themselves.

We took extensive licensing courses where we learned that this is a serious profession. I pride myself on a high level of professionalism. After all we are advising people on investing in their most valuable investment. Since we are all mobile now, our answering machine or voicemail message should be professional and please identify yourself.

When I call an agent, Please don’t just say Hello. Answer all your calls with your name.

I have been a “professional “ realtor for 30 years and I answer the phone,” Hi, This is Linda”. The person calling knows they have the right person if they are calling off an advertisement or from the web. My voicemail says the same thing “This is Linda, Please leave your name, number and anything else I might need to have before I call you back. I will call you back as soon as possible.”

Another issue is the voicemail that doesn’t stop. Less is more. No one wants to listen for 5 minutes to blah, blah, blah until you can leave a message. “Just saying”.

It comes down to thinking about what you as a consumer want and expect. If you want respect act accordingly.

Condo's Are Like Lepers

Linda Flack- Cape Coral, Fl (Royal Shell Real Estate) — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 17:59:07 -0700

I don't get it. I have a condo in Cape Coral that is going to the court house steps next week. They are in a great area.The price is under $70k; only a couple of years old. They don't have defective drywall. The complex has a pool and the complex is located in a high end neighborhood.

Yet, even the two foreclosures haven't sold. This is my first short sale that I haven't been able to rescue and get to a successful closing. I don't even know what to say to my seller except I'm sorry, I really thought we could get this accomplished. I'm bummed like it's my fault. I know it isn't but I don't take failure very well. I'm just saying.

The Wealthy Moving to Lee County

Linda Flack- Cape Coral, Fl (Royal Shell Real Estate) — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 09:02:03 -0700

I had an eye opening 4th of July. One of my friends asked if I had seen the Forbes article on where the wealthy were moving? I said no. She said the rich are moving to Lee County and Collier county. WOW! I decided to do my own research and checked out how many over $1,000,000 homes have sold in the past 3 months. Are you ready? According to the state site there were 103 homes SOLD in Lee County. WOW again!

It seems that the sales are spread evenly among Cape Coral, Fort Myers, Sanibel and Bonita.

They are moving to be taxed less. We all know the story of New York taxes being outrageous. Also no income tax is a huge draw. Apparently the wealthy are heading to sunshine and palm trees.

What happened to spring?

Linda Flack- Cape Coral, Fl (Royal Shell Real Estate) — Tue, 04 May 2010 22:46:45 -0700

We are finally warm but we seemed to skip past spring. We went from the longest, coldest winter in many, many years to hot. Weird weather. Just no easying into summer. It seems to be here. Ok, Let's go to the beach. Gators are on the move looking for love. The birds are on the move.

Cape Coral's Rotary Art Festival

Linda Flack- Cape Coral, Fl (Royal Shell Real Estate) — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 22:46:37 -0800

It was another success dispite the cold. Sat. had few customers due to the cold and rain. Sunday brought everyone out. It worked. Great day and I had my yearly Little Joe's Chees Steak. It is fabulous. Besides the food the idea is the art. As usual the artist had beautiful displays. It seemed there were buyers and fun was had by all.

Cape Coral Frost has Not Chilled our Market

Linda Flack- Cape Coral, Fl (Royal Shell Real Estate) — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 22:27:04 -0800

We bundled up and were complaining like crazy, but we are in SW Florida and we are not supposed to have a freeze. Then we had days of the same. I've been here for 17 years and have never seen weather like this. Well, the frost has done some heavey damage. All the leaves fell off my boganvelia and even palm fronds are falling off. The grass has turned brown all over town. We are looking crispy.

The real estate market is still hot and moving very quickly. Dec. numbers were another huge number. These deals just keep coming and so do the buyers. Yeah. There are suttle signs that the economy is recovering. You can almost feel the energy.

New Year's Eve Mortgage "Surprise"?

Linda Flack- Cape Coral, Fl (Royal Shell Real Estate) — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 08:55:30 -0800

The mortgage crisis is still a nightmare. As a real estate agent for 29 years I try not to have surprises for my customers but, it seems that this market keeps them coming. My client was putting down $90,000 on a $134,000 home. Wouldn’t anyone think that was a slam dunk? Wrong: Turned down because the house to be purchased was a flip only purchased 93 days before contract.

Yes it appraised. The owner had purchased it on the court house steps, fixed it up and put it back on the market for market price. But, because it was a “flip”, the new underwriting rules were not to approve any “flip”. They consider a flip if owned for less than 6 months (Not FHA guidelines).

The bank had no risk with that huge down payment but because of the “rule” they couldn’t sell the loan. Therefore, the buyer was turned down the day before closing Dec. 30^th. We scrambled and the buyer came up with cash to close on the 31^st.

Buyers, The Old Rules Are Out!

Linda Flack- Cape Coral, Fl (Royal Shell Real Estate) — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 07:54:48 -0700

I just received another call from a buyer prospect looking for the listing agent. The OLD story of I will save money with the listing agent is really so laughable.

Buyers, PAY ATTENTION! Many of the REO (Bank owned property ) listing agents don't work with buyers. They don't have time. They usually refer you to a buyer's agent. Some think a buyer can get a better price and the listing agent will take less commission. Not in this market. Brokers are not permitting this practice. Commissions have nothing to do with the buyers. SW Florida's market is moving at lightening spead because of the foreclosures and short sale deals.

These properties are selling quickly and if you don't have a buyer's agent working for you and looking to meet your wants and needs, you will be too late to the party every time. You really need someone who is paying attention, has many contacts and avenues to find you your best deal. If you are shopping for a particular item, you don't just wait for that item to go on sale at one store. You look at all of the stores. The best bet is to Google the price for that item. Having a good buyer's agent is like having Google. Now you will get the best deal.

Cape Coral is "On Fire"

Linda Flack- Cape Coral, Fl (Royal Shell Real Estate) — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 20:45:20 -0700

The News is "property IS selling!

Housing is a hot commodity in Cape Coral. The stock market have you scared? I don't blame you. It scares me to death. What kind of interest are the banks paying? 2%-2.5%. Yipee!

My advice is not free but it is priceless.

Come on folks. Don't miss this bus. I don't think we will ever see this again. We have people flying in from all over the world to buy these deals. We have multiple offers on most everything. Who wouldn't? Prices are far below anything you could build. There is still plenty of inventory, but those who hesitate... .

Have you dreamed of your vacation home in Florida or your permanent residence; blue sky, crystal white clouds, palm trees swaying in the breeze and the occasional pelican cruising by. What are you waiting for?

Looking to make money on rental property? Well, get off that fence. I have investors taking their money out of the bank and buying as much property as they can. They have the five year plan. The rent alone makes good interest on your money. Now, factor in the market increase in 5 years. Now we're talking a real investment.

As of today 8/22/2009 these are the statistics on single family homes in Cape Coral.

Foreclosures 236

Short Sales 691

Regular Listings 1081

Total Listings 2008 homes

Pending 937

Active Contingent Short 1126

Ready to close 2063 homes

Closed past 60 days 1205 homes

You tell me, is this market hot? I certainly think so.

Foreclosures should help new homeowners?

Linda Flack- Cape Coral, Fl (Royal Shell Real Estate) — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 08:12:39 -0700

We had one bright spot in the foreclosure mess. Folks that couldn't afford their first home have had an opportunity to buy an affordable home at the bottom of the market. GREAT! We also have had a run of folks buying their second dream home. Again because it is affordable. GREAT!

Enter the banks into the scenario:

First, they were the greedy culprits that led us into this huge mess. Can you say "predatory lending"?

Second, we the people of the USA bailed them out. In plain English, the kids were very bad but let's give them tons of money because not doing that would be worse. Now they are trying to work quickly thru their losses but they are giving the homes to investors over new homeowners for less money. Time and time again buyers that are very qualified for a new mortgage are being rejected for cash buyers. I've seen the difference as much as $10,000 less from the cash buyer. That just makes me MAD! That also continues to drive prices down along with appraisals.

Finally, is this a good business decision? NO it isn't. It's just easier. It seems they don't care about their losses. We give them money on the back side with free money. It's like a garage sale at the end of the day. "Just take it, I don't care."

Just when you think this mess could get cleaned up with some benefit to real people, big business ruins it. We gave the banks huge amounts of money. We need to insist those same banks encourage lending to real homeowners and let these same people get a leg up ahead of investors in buying these foreclosures. That's good business. That's good for the economy.

Fake Chinese Drywall in Lee County

Linda Flack- Cape Coral, Fl (Royal Shell Real Estate) — Wed, 20 May 2009 06:43:24 -0700

Imagine that! Just when you think you have heard it all, someone comes up with a new scam for their personal gain.

Investors are making some serious money in the bid for homes at auction. At the auction you would hear some big investors making disparaging remarks about a particular property in order to gain the bid themselves. Now some investor has come up with a new scheme.

When the list comes out with new homes going to auction, prospective bidders go and look at these properties to see the condition to know how much to bid. Well, some genius put up an "official government looking" fake sticker stating the building has Chinese drywall. That would discourage other bidders from bidding for that home. By the way, this practice is illegal. Lenders own these homes and they would not be happy knowing someone has falsely devalued their property. They want to recoup as much money as possible.

It is certainly challenging out there. Please comment on any and all bogs. Thanks.

The Train Has Left The Station

Linda Flack- Cape Coral, Fl (Royal Shell Real Estate) — Tue, 19 May 2009 07:50:12 -0700

Inventory is continuing to reduce. That is great news for the economy. If you are looking for your piece of paradise, it is time to BUY! Hesitate not! The word has spread and folks from all over the world have come to buy their dream in SW Florida. The national news talks about the amount of foreclosures in our area. They are such amazing deals.

Plus, First time buyers can snag $8,000 in government money. This is huge!

The builders are looking to come back to the marketplace. That is the sign of recovery. Don't despair, the deals are still there. I imagine the super deals will be around at least till the end of the year, but the prices are starting to creep up and there is competition in snagging that deal.

MOTHER'S DAY!

Linda Flack- Cape Coral, Fl (Royal Shell Real Estate) — Thu, 07 May 2009 07:25:01 -0700

I'm a daughter, a mother and grandmother. Wow, when you get to this point I have such gratitude to my mother who I lost to breast cancer when I was just 22 years old. I am so grateful for the years I had my Mom in my life. She was such a rock and such a class act. She had a wonderful sense of humor. She was a great best friend to all her friends; she had high expectations for me and my brother. She adored us and we knew unconditional love.

I then became a mother and aspired to be even better. My girls were the joy of my life and I reveled in their achievements. I was so blessed to have loads of involvement in their lives as they grew up. They have growth to be amazing women.

Now that I have two granddaughters it is the icing on the chocolate cake. Their mother has raised the bar once again and I only see beautiful futures for two beautiful girls. Building sandcastles with your granddaughters; It doesn't get any better than that.

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY! Go to the Beach.

Headlines Say It All in SW Florida

Linda Flack- Cape Coral, Fl (Royal Shell Real Estate) — Thu, 07 May 2009 06:31:06 -0700

We were first in, first to drop and first to recover. The numbers say it loud and clear. In April, Cape Coral had nine new building permits and there is a large increase in remodeling permits. These permits are for pools, docks, commercial and other fix ups. The deals of neglected homes are being snapped up and fixed up. These homes are fulfilling lots of dreams. It is a 27% increase since the beginning of 2009. That is huge.

Folks bemoan the loss of property values and the foreclosures. This news made national media attention and has brought buyers from all over the world. One mans trash is another mans treasure.

Even Jim Cramer of MSN Money stated this morning housing has stabilized, banking nightmare over. Banks are starting to pay back the tarp.

It is that intangible positive attitude that can be felt everywhere. Buy SW Florida NOW. Prices are starting to rise.

Buyers are giddy with their deals.

Linda Flack- Cape Coral, Fl (Royal Shell Real Estate) — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 07:39:31 -0700

Buyers are giddy with their deals. I won another one but we had to up the ante to get it. Was it worth it? You bet it was. We looked at 25 homes. 20 homes were in need of much repair. Unfortunately you can't tell that on the MLS. There is no smell-o-vision as yet. Plus agents don't necessarily take pictures of the bad stuff. Those homes will be great for the fixer upper contractor guy.

Now that we had 5 to pick from, they needed to pick the one that best suits them. One went pending that day. Now we are down to 4. I called all the agents to see if there were any other offers. There were of course. I now council prospective buyers before we go out to look at property with a CMA of sold homes like this; listed at $80,000 and sold for $86,000. This is the trend because so many buyers have shown up in our market place. These are still amazing deals. It looks like the bottom has been found; at least in this lower price range. YEAH!

The home we put a bid on was listed at $109,000. My folks bid $120,000 and got it. They are ecstatic. The home is large and in pristine condition. The only big ticket needed are appliances. For $3K you can get a really nice appliance package. They just closed and are busy cleaning and finding furnishings.

Don't you just love a good story?

Challenging Foreclosures

Linda Flack- Cape Coral, Fl (Royal Shell Real Estate) — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 21:36:44 -0700

We were supposed to close a bank owned home today. Last week I checked with the bank's title company which is out of the area. They said the County was slow to record the title, but they expected it soon. I checked Monday with the county and found that the bank had bought the property back 6 weeks ago. My question was who dropped the ball. Why wasn't this title changed to the bank? After some digging I found out that the transfer tax of $.70 (yes the number is seventy cents) was not paid so it was just sitting there not being recorded. If I had not takent the initiative we could wait a long time until someone figured it out. I'm told there are tons of these properties just sitting there waiting for their $.70. I know someone that works in the court house. She did me a favor and paid the $.70. We now have to wait another week to close. My buyers bought airline tickets, reserved a hotel and took a eeks vacation to come down and get their new purchase in order. To say the least they are upset. Just one more thing to check on.

Waterfront Steals and Deals

Linda Flack- Cape Coral, Fl (Royal Shell Real Estate) — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 09:22:39 -0700

Waterfront Steals and Deals in Cape Coral

As of today Cape Coral has 26 Gulf access homes that are bank owned. These foreclosures range in price from $159,600; a 3 bedroom 2 bath direct access to a luxury home over 3000 sq ft offered at $664,500. This home sold for $1,050,000 in 2005. These are deals.

They aren't making any more waterfront. It is irreplaceable. Since Feb 1, 2009, 89 gulf access homes in Cape Coral have gone under contract and 88 gulf access homes have closed.

You decide. Is it time to buy? You bet it is! Be informed. Be smart. Don't wait. You could be too late for the best deals. The Numbers speak for themselves.

Chinese Drywall update

Linda Flack- Cape Coral, Fl (Royal Shell Real Estate) — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 09:17:48 -0700

Wow, just another thing to make you crazy. Upon hearing the report my husband and I went out immediately to check out some of our listings. Thank goodness we were safe. The home inspector I have used for years was telling me that there was a ton of it out there. He is finding it all the time. So, be careful. Make sure your inspectors are checking for this stuff.

He did a home inspection for me yesterday and I called him to see how it was going and he said "You know about the Chinese drywall?" My heart stopped. Oh No! Then he said "You don't have any". Funny man! I guess even home inspectors need to get you now and again.

I TOLD YOU SO!

Linda Flack- Cape Coral, Fl (Royal Shell Real Estate) — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 06:53:44 -0800

Last night Lee County Market Watch confirmed what we in the real estate business already new. The market is hot. Ask any seasoned real estate agent and they will tell you this; " I've had these buyers out for 2 days from 9-5. Every time we go to write an offer I find the listing agent has 5 to 10 offers already in on the property." This story is being played out all over town. Buyers are frustrated. Realtors are exhausted. Buyers come in with the preconception that prices are still falling. Frankly, I don't see that. There are just too many people looking to cash in on these amazing deals. There is a buying frenzy being created.

The numbers speak for themselves. Inventory is shrinking and sales are skyrocketing. Home pricing is running at 2001 and 2002 pricing on most inventory.

So Gus, Hop on the bus or you've missed it again and folks listen to your real estate agent. They really do know what their talking about. They are in this crazy market every day. They work in real time. Numbers that you read about are already old news.

The perception that it is time to buy if you are looking for that great deal is now. Cape Coral and Lehigh have the most inventory and therefore the best prices.

Looking for comments from you.

Obama is Coming to SW Florida

Linda Flack- Cape Coral, Fl (Royal Shell Real Estate) — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 08:00:55 -0800

Obama is coming to SW Florida. Is this a good thing or more bad? He is trying to sell his stimulus package. Is he using us or helping us?

People are lining up for tickets to see the man of change. Well, I doubt he is handing out checks like "The Millionaire"; Remember that TV show? He is coming to highlight just how bad things are in Lee County. More focus on bad. The New Yorker this week and the New York Times are just continuing a slam on SW Florida. I know that disaster sells news.

This is OLD News. Bad can be a perception. People from all over the world are coming to SW Florida to buy these exceptional deals. Housing is flying off the shelf in Cape Coral and Fort Myers. Opportunities abound and word has spread. This should be our headlines. The bottom has hit! I have two different buyers a day. They are ecstatic with the deals I have found them. A quote from another Broker in town; "You know when the bottom was here when you see it in your rear view mirror. People in the know realize that this time is an opportunity that they won't see again in their lifetime.

So change is happening in SW Florida and it is happening Now! Let's get on that bus!

As the real estate is purchased; (and it is going as fast as it comes on the market) those people are the new blood of our community. They are the shoppers, diners, movers and shakers of the community. This doesn't happen overnight, but it is happening and I'm excited.

It is like the yard sales. What is one man's trash is another man's treasure. You could say we are on a treasure hunt. The mother load is SW Florida.

New Year and New Attitude in Cape Coral, Fort Myers

Linda Flack- Cape Coral, Fl (Royal Shell Real Estate) — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 07:50:42 -0800

Real Estate in Cape Coral and Fort Myers is moving very well. The buyer inquiries are tremendous! It seems the word is out that HOT properties can be found is SW Florida. I know that is true. I had a buyer put the amazing pricing like this; "What I'm buying is just the supplies to build a house. I'm getting the land and construction cost for FREE. I know I wont be able to duplicate this again." So if if you are thinking of waiting, that could be missing the opportunity. You know the old saying. "Should of, could of, would of".

Mowing the Abandoned Homes in Cape Coral

Linda Flack- Cape Coral, Fl (Royal Shell Real Estate) — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 12:49:13 -0800

What a daunting task to mow all the lawns that have been left in Cape Coral. I applaud the city of Cape Coral in utilizing the youth for yard maintenance having to do community service. This improves the look of the community, and is a great outlet of exercise for youth that have strayed and hopefully an eye opener to be educated and stay out of trouble.

Now that it is winter and the dry season it will be easier to control the yards.

Pine Island Road widening

Linda Flack- Cape Coral, Fl (Royal Shell Real Estate) — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 06:49:31 -0800

Pine Island road, the sentrum of Cape Coral, is an expensive road to success. I am glad the city council of Cape Coral has asked for the money from the State. I'm not sure the state has this money, but I'm glad. It would be good to see this happen and as the market turns around be in position to really take off on the corrider. It will come and the businesses will come. It is just going to take some time to get where we need to be. Economically we are so hurt the clean up of foreclosed properties will be longer than I expected, but I am the eternal optomist. I'm hoping that this year coming up will be the catalyst that sends us forward.