Avon Park is gonna be the next big boom! - 07/23/07 02:10 PM
I was thrilled when I saw WalMart sign announcing their new location in Highlands County, right on US 27 as you enter Avon Park. I was thrilled because it would save me 30 minutes in time and gas as I live in Avon Park Lakes, just 2 minutes away from the WalMart construction site.Then I heard people starting to speculate: "My home value is going to increase, double, triple etc. as soon as WalMart opens its doors." I don't believe this is very likely to happen because generally WalMart doesn't employ rocket scientists or celebrities able and willing to pay $500,000 for … (4 comments)

Sellers: Why do I need to remove clutter? - 07/23/07 01:52 PM
Why do I need to remove clutter?
"I'm only selling my home, not my personal belongings. The buyer knows that, so why do you want me to declutter my home?"
Of course, you are not selling all your personal belongings with your home but there are plenty of advantages if you take the time to declutter:
1. The interior of your home will look bigger!2. Your home will appear brighter!3. No clutter means there's plenty of storage space!4. Buyers can picture their own clutter in your home if they are not distracted by your clutter.5. You already made the decision to move, which means … (3 comments)

I "need" this amount from the sale of my home - 07/21/07 11:13 AM
Dear Seller,
I have heard "I need this amount from the sale of my home" many times and I perfectly understand your point of view. I want you to make a profit and if it was up to me, I would get you a million for your home. Unfortunately, it is not up to me and it is also not up to you. Let me explain why:
Let's say you bought your home for $200,000 and now that you are ready to sell, you want to make a profit. Your asking price is $220,000. You lived in your current home for 5 years, … (0 comments)

FSBO - So you found "THE" buyer - 07/21/07 09:08 AM
You have located a ready, willing and able buyer to purchase your property. Now what? Of utmost importance is to reach a complete agreement on the following:
Price - how much have you agreed on?Terms - how will the buyer pay for your property?Personalty - are their any appliances, furnishing, etc. included with the property?Legal Discription - do you have a complete legal description of the property?Expenses - who will pay for what?Escrow Deposit - have you gotten a good deposit and who is going to hold it?Disclosures - have you made the proper disclosures to the buyer?Title Insurance - who … (3 comments)

FSBO - Watch out for these...... - 07/21/07 08:54 AM
1. Buyer requests financing from sellerWhile seller financing can make sense in some situat9ions, it is not for everybody. You will want to be concerned with how much money the buyer will be placing as a down payment. Obviously, the more you loand them, the higher your level of risk. Consult your accountant to sxee how providing seller financing might affect you when tax season comes around.
2. Early OccupancyEach case is different,m but in general it is not wise to allow a buyer to mive into your property prior to a full closing. There are always things that the buyer … (0 comments)

FSBO "I can save the commisson!" - 07/21/07 08:27 AM
Many homeowners feel by selling their property themselves, they will be able to save the real estate commission and therefore save money. Part of the trouble is though; the buyer has the same idea.
If the seller wants to save the commission and the buyer wants to save commission as well, that presents you with a problem. Normally, there is only one commission to begin with, and it is impossible for both of you to save it.!
The average buyer is going to discount your FSBO asking price at least 7%, because they know you are not paying a Realtor fee. … (1 comments)

Affordable Tropical Retreat - 07/19/07 07:43 PM
Affordable Tropical Retreat, this 1992 single wide mobile home comes fully furnished. All you need to bring is your toothbrush and the juicer to take advantage of the many citrus and tropical fruit trees on the property.Seller is motivated.
Sold AS-IS, no known defects. $60,0002565 E Altvater Road, Avon Park FL, 33825 
On edit:
Visual Tour
SOLD"Affordable Tropical Retreat" Copyright aNDREA MILLS 2008 *All Rights ReservedThis article was originally posted on http://sebring.activerain.com/ … (2 comments)

Little Known Fact about Avon Park - Lawn Mower Racing - 07/19/07 07:36 PM
There is, in fact, as US lawn mower racing association and yes, people tune their lawn mowers to race them.
Avon Park is home to the Avon Park Mower Plex. Racing season starts at the end of the summer, a date for this year's season is still to be determined. Check out the "Mower Plex" website for updates.Having your hotdog while watching lawn mowers zoom by is quite an experience and a great way to meet with folks in your community.
Avon Park Mower Plex is located on Herrick Road, off CR 64 right behind the Avon Park Airport.
… (5 comments)

Ain't it grand? - 07/19/07 12:55 PM
Remember the listing I took the other day? It used to be mine before I switched brokerages and went on to much greener pastures (LOL), now I just re-listed it because the agent that took it over from me didn't do anything to sell it (she had told me it would never sell).
Well, well, well, I have just gotten a verbal offer on it. 10,000 under asking price but we (seller and I) knew it was overpriced. The buyer is her boss and I will be representing him as well. So, not only will I sell this unmarketable mold infested mobile … (4 comments)

How about your own property? - 07/18/07 08:38 PM
We walk through other people's homes all the time, open closets, we wonder "what the heck where they thinking when they picked THAT carpet", we tell them their home is cluttered, the kitchen needs updating and so on.
What about your home? Do you spend a lot of time keeping it in Open House condition or would I have to call in advance for a showing?
I was pleasantly surprised when I had my home appraised 2 months ago. The average SOLD price in my community was $158,810, mine appraised for $193,000 (I bought it FSBO for $120,000 in 2005). Nonetheless, I knew my … (10 comments)

Your listing presentation - 07/16/07 08:26 PM
What does it look like? Is it a folder, a binder, a bunch of graphs, Power Point presentation, just something in your head or all of it combined to be prepared for whatever kind of seller you're dealing with.
How about a Pre-listing packet? Anyone send those out? What do they contain?
Yes, I'm a new agent and I'm nosy :)
 
… (6 comments)

Are you too lazy to maintain your listings? - 07/16/07 07:41 PM
I switched brokerages about 4 weeks ago and left all my listings with my previous broker. Today, I listed one of those old listings with my new brokerage. I didn't even have to ask the seller to list with me after her listings was expired. She contacted me asking if I would be so kind to take her listing.
The realtor that took over that listing, never called the seller once to .........well, discuss how she plans to market the listing or just to introduce herself. She simply let it expire. That was two days ago. My seller lives out of state … (3 comments)

How often do you walk away from a listing - 07/12/07 06:09 AM
because they refuse to list it at market value?
I've been using all sorts of charts and even sent sellers on a shopping spree for a BMW (which one are you gonna buy, the one for 49K or the one for 59K, both Beemers being identical).
Yet, I walked away from that listing anyway. They were not willing to pay my commission after I told them what the market value of their home was. They of course, "need" a certain amount of money from the sale and if they avoid paying me they can get that amount. Good luck!
I'm glad I walked away. … (17 comments)

Lake Placid/Highlands County Calendar of Events 07/2007 - 07/08/07 11:05 AM
Wednesday, July 4 Fireworks sponsored by the Lake Placid Jaycees over Lake June, 9:00 p.m. Wednesday, July 11 Lake Placid Chamber of Commerce Membership Luncheon. The presentation will be made by Dorothy Harris, Highlands Hammock State Park. The luncheon will be held at the Lake Placid Elks Lodge, 12:00 noon. Cost is $8.00 per person. Please confirm your reservation by calling the Chamber at 465-4331 or email at chamber@lpfla.com no later than July 9th. Don't forget to bring your business cards so that you will be eligible to win valuable prizes.
Friday, July 20 Artist's entries for the 2008 Caladium Festival Artwork … (0 comments)

Avon Park/Highlands County Calendar of Events 07/2007 - 07/08/07 11:01 AM
1       Happy 4th of July at Sun'N Lakes  Annual celebration featuring karaoke for entertainment, giant slide & bounce house, raffles, give aways, clowns, face painting, balloon animals, obstacle course, and yes, the pool is open for swimming.  Featured activities include riding the mechanical bull and climbing the rock wall.  Tickets include your choice of food from a variety of vendors, entry into event, and entry into drawing.  Firework show begins at 9pm.  Bring your chairs & blankets.  Tickets can be purchased at http://www.sunlakegolfclub.com/ the Town Hall at Sun'N Lakes, or the Club House, and are only $10 for adults, $5 for … (0 comments)

I'm Gothic! - 07/07/07 03:04 PM
Yep, that's what my daughter says. I wear a lot of dark clothes, preferably black. Why? First of all, it makes me look skinnier (LOL) but there are two other benefits to wearing dark clothes: Your badge sticks out like a neon sign. Mine is white with red lettering. If I wore a blouse with colorful flower print, my badge wouldn't be nearly as noticable as when worn on a black blouse.
Also, when wearing dark clothing or let's say monochromatic clothing, the person you talk to is not distracted by figuring out if those flowers on your blouse are shrimpy pink and … (13 comments)

Highlands County Calendar of Events for July 2007 - 07/05/07 03:17 PM
When I first moved to Highlands County (I'm a city slicker!!!) I thought this place is as dead as can be. Looking at the Calendar of Events just for this month...................it doesn't look dead at all: 
July 1 - Sun n' Lakes Annual Independence Day Celebration, a variety of vendors: Fireman's BBQ, Sun n'lake Hot Dogs, Brats & Philly Cheese Steak Cart.  Entertainers ~ raffles ~ giveaways ~ games ~ prizes ~ clowns.  Pool is open...bring your swimsuits, chairs & blankets.   Tickets on sale at the (Sun n' Lakes) Town Hall or the clubhouse or to sponsor a table call 863-385-4830 Ext. 3.  … (5 comments)

DOM's for the last 4 years - 07/05/07 01:23 PM
Using CTI I compiled a list showing the average time a home spends on the market (aka DOM). I convert this data in a chart and use it as an indicator as to where our Highlands Housing Market is going and it's also a helpful tool with clients that expect their home to sell within 4 weeks.
I use Microsoft Excell to input the data and then generate the chart. Unfortunately, I can't copy/paste the appropriate chart with the above data.
… (1 comments)

Highlands County Stats for June 2007 - 07/03/07 04:29 PM
Once a month I run a summary of all sales for Avon Park, Sebring, Lake Placid and a general one for Highlands County, listing Average List/Sale, Median List/Sale, DO, Sold To List%, Sold to Original%, total sales, failed to sale.
I input that data into Microsoft Excell to create charts that show at a glance how our local market is doing. I though this might be of interested to some of you here:
 
 
… (0 comments)

Beautiful Lake Views! - 07/03/07 04:18 PM
80 x 125 residential lot with beautiful view of Lake Hill. Very quite country type setting, paved road, perfect to build your dream home and enjoy what Lake Placid (Caladium Capital of the World) has to offer; golfing, watersports, cultural events etc. $29,000$1,000 BONUS for selling office, $1,000 towards buyer's closing cost. WOW, WHAT A DEAL!VISUAL TOURSORRY, NO LONGER AVAILABLE


… (2 comments)

 

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