Larry's Blog

Anna Maria Island, the bridge is open, the bridge is open!

2008-11-06T20:33:25Z

It's official, the state route 64 bridge that connects Anna Maria Island to the mainland is open! More than a week early the island tonight had a buzz. I received several text messages, a phone call, and it was announced over our public announcement system in our office, "The bridge is open, the bridge is open."

The bridge closure was a non-event. I heard very little complaining regarding traffic. Sure, no one was happy to take the long way to Manatee avenue but the Florida Department of Transportation did a fantastic job. My compliments to the leadership of the project. It's not often my expectations are exceeded and in the case of the State Route 64 Anna Maria Island Bridge repair project, my expectations as a business person were far exceeded.

The Anna Maria Island bridge the gap events were a fantastic addition to paradise while the bridge was closed. We still have a few events planned that will be sure to converted into a large celebration that the bridge is open, the bridge is open. Life in paradise is still darn good! Nice job FDOT!

Anna Maria Island bridge repair - so far so good

2008-10-02T21:52:15Z

So far so good. We are almost one full business week into the Manatee avenue bridge closure. Those I have discussed commuting to and from Anna Maria Island have positive comments regarding the traffic congestion on Anna Maria. They say "life" is good. Most tell me the detour is only about 10 minutes out of the way. We have not seen a weekend as of yet so time will tell but all indications show that all the actions the Department of Transportation has taken to ensure the flow of traffic has made big impacts.

I remain cautiously optimistic. So far so good!

Anna Maria Island continues positive Real Estate News

2008-09-26T22:16:09Z

Anna Maria Island Real Estate continues to show positive results versus 2007 and 2006. Reviewing the chart below you can see more detail of each segment of Anna Maria, FL Real Estate.

For single family residential Real Estate on Anna Maria Island our transaction levels are up over 40% versus 2007. Continuing to be just as impressive are 2008 single family transaction levels. They are up 40%+ versus 2007. Condos and multi-family transactions are substantially up versus 2007 and continues the positive real estate news on Anna Maria Island.

Single family average square foot SOLD values continue to hold steady while condos and multi-family data shows a continued slip. Please see the chart below.

If you are interested in single family residential property on Anna Maria Island we expect 2009 to begin a modest appreciation period. Condos, vacant land, and multi-family will see a leveling period in 2009. Of course this data is for information only and should not be the only decision making information used to purchase your Anna Maria, Florida Real Estate. For more information on Anna Maria Island be sure to review Island Real Estate's blog and for more information on property for sale on Anna Maria Island visit our Real Estate website.

Early Christmas on Anna Maria Island?

2008-08-30T21:28:49Z

Manatee, Florida 2008 Property Tax Information - Anna Maria Island

Ken Burton Jr. is on my good side 2008. I have a feeling some Anna Maria Island property owners may disagree. It appears as though his leadership within the county of Manatee, Fl has made a fair reduction in Anna Maria Island property taxes. I received my personal property tax letter early in the day and waited until late in the evening to open the proposed property taxes. I expected very little in the way of property tax reductions so I was ready for a rough night with a lots of tossing and turning over the best way to appeal the escalated Anna Maria property taxes.

I have so little faith and am embarrassed to admit my pessimism. I was elated to see Manatee County, FL got my personal property values correct. I have to admit that I quickly moved to denial just after opening my 2008 estimated property tax letters. There must be something I am missing?? I reviewed my property estimates with a fine tooth comb and sure enough, Ken got it correct! Wow!

Once the 25% reduction in property taxes sank in, I quickly moved my attention to thoughts of property taxes for all of Anna Maria Island. The following day I consulted an Island Real Estate professional that has one property in Anna Maria City and one in Holmes Beach. He confirmed Manatee County calculated his property values correctly for 2008!

So in summary, I reviewed two duplexes in Holmes Beach, Property Values were right on. Three single family homes in Holmes Beach, property Values were correct. One Vacant lot in Anna Maria City, property value was about 15% high. Two Single Family homes in Anna Maria city, both property values were correct. This is great Real Estate news! Now for the bad news. After consulting a Bradenton Beach Condominium owner it appears as though Bradenton Beach owners may not be as happy with their reduction in 2008 property taxes as the rest of Anna Maria Island owners. So, looks like there are mixed property tax results for Anna Maria Island.

If you feel your property values are too high speak with your Anna Maria Island property specialist or email me to determine the value of your Anna Maria Real Estate. Do NOT wait to start this process as you only have twenty five days to submit your appeal. This correlates roughly into a September 12^th date so DO NOT procrastinate! If you need recommendations for professional help to appeal your property taxes don't hesitate to contact me.

I hope the mail provides for as pleasant surprise as I received...Early Christmas presents are always welcome on Anna Maria Island!

Lions, Tigers, and Rental Restrictions ...oh my #2!

2008-08-18T22:43:45Z

Anna Maria Island Rental Restriction - UPDATE

As part of the comp plan a one month rental restriction was passed about one year ago for properties in R1 area in the city of Holmes Beach. Many of Island Real Estate property owners ask me how could this happen? Apparently it was discussed in one meeting with little to no communication to the public. I think it is important to mention the public is invited to all meetings so it's tough for locals as me to play the "victim" role. More on victimization later.

As the G.M. I often predict potential rental income for seasonal rentals on Anna Maria Island. I feel extremely comfortable predicting that the one month restriction will reduce gross rental income for properties affected by more than 40%. A typical 4 bedroom home with a pool on a canal should generate at least $70,000 annually. Gross income generated with a one month rental restriction....Maximum $42,000. That's a large hit for

Holmes Beach owners that are using income to defer debt service, insurance, and property taxes. What impact does the one month rental restriction have on property values in the R1 areas? The first question that needs to be asked is what do future buyers want? Rental income or fewer new "neighbors" throughout the year? I estimate at least 70% of potential buyers request specific information regarding rental income. Many do not rent their home after purchasing but they take great care in understanding "what if" scenarios. This is just good business sense. So what's the rental restriction going to cost Holmes Beach owners in the R1 area? I would estimate between 15-25% of their value.

But wait....Thanks to David Zaccagnino and a few of us that attended the latest Holmes Beach meeting on Tuesday, August 12th. David the "lone commissioner" convinced the mayor and remaining commissioners to revisit the comprehensive plan and open the rental restriction discussion to the public. Thank you Holmes Beach City! Sandy Haas-Martens informed the council that the vote needed to await the return of several vocal residents in the R1 zones. So, it appears we will have our opportunity to discuss the rental restriction around November of 2008.

If you are a private home owner of the affected area don't be a victim. Let your Anna Maria Island Real Estate professional know whether you support the one month rental restriction. If you want to be sure your voice is heard... contact me directly as I will continue to play an active role in the Holmes Beach rental restriction.

Putting your House for Rent in this Market

2008-08-17T09:14:32Z

Two points I would like to add regarding renting your property...

#1) If a property owner is considering renting their property and have no experience, they should consult a property management firm to at least understand risk versus reward.

#2) Potential landlords should consult their rental situation with their CPA. Your CPA will help you understand if your income bracket will allow for you to take advantage of a rental property on your Federal Income Taxes. This for some properties is HUGE. Assuming you are eligible, if the rental property breaks even, your 1040 will show a LOSS in regards to Federal Income Taxes! How? The FED allows landlords to depreciate the building itself. One last note, your rental loss comes RIGHT off your income. Lose $10,000 on your rental and guess what, the Federal Govt says you made $10,000 less than you did. This is HUGE! Don't take the deduction for granted, be sure to see your CPA to ensure you can take advantage of any and all rental losses.

Via Northern Virginia Real Estate:

If you are planning to sell your home, you should wait for sometime until the current global real estate downturns end. It is just not a good and logical time to dispose properties, especially residential types, these days. That is because home prices are still down, the demand is still sluggish and an economic slowdown around the world is very evident.

The emergence of a current property downturn is the main reason why most homeowners are currently deciding to put their units under a short- to long-term rental program. The thought of the property generating income is just irresistible and promising for most property owners. The numerous benefits of putting up a home for rent are also further convincing people to hold on to their assets for sometime and make money from it through rental fees for the time being.

One good and practical reason why you can rent out your home for a while is that through the act, you can hold on to your home until market valuation and situation improves. For now, home prices are still low and less profitable. Wait for sometime until valuations rise and you can generate enough and contenting amount of money from selling the property. You surely would not want to sell your home at a loss. They say waiting is a really good and worthwhile virtue.

Here are several other reasons why it will be wise to put up your home for rent. You might look into these before you make a significant and important decision about what to do with your asset.

1. Rent payments you can generate can very much sufficiently cover insurance, mortgage and other costs of continually owning the property. You surely do not want to shoulder such expenses even for a short period. Renting out is a way out.

2. If you are still not yet fully decided about leaving the place or the neighborhood, holding on will never hurt. It can be a better decision if you will continually own the home and instead put it up for rent. This way, you can still return when you feel like you want to live on it again.

3. The current real estate downturn is not expected to turnaround soon. In this case, it will be really logical and advisable to lease the property and not live up to the loss-making situation in prevalence.

4. Homeowners can avoid shouldering utility expenses by putting up the home for rent. You should know that even if you do not live in the house and utilities are not used, there are minimum utility bills that have to be shouldered.

5. Putting up the home for rent can be a good strategy to establish the profitability of the asset. This way, you are effectively boosting the valuation of the property. When you successfully get into negotiations for selling the home, you can always point out that the property is profit generating, as proven by the decent rental income it draws.

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Get Wikipedia Wi'd it, Please HELP me skin the....Wiki

2008-08-17T08:31:25Z

I continue to see Wikipedia topics as I search on the world wide web but until I read an article explaining their recent popularity I really did not pay much attention. I personally find Wiki's to be a little to "spammy."

I searched our Gulf Coast barrier Island and reviewed the Wikipedia for our area and most of the information as well as the links are neutral and great sources for the public. However, one of the links is disguised as our COMPETITION!

It appears as though ANYONE can edit a Wikipedia however there are some warnings that I consider to be severe especially given my basic experience regarding Wiki's. I read over policy guidelines and after dosing off twice and asking if they were using the English language, I gave up with hopes Active Rain could help. I searched Wikipedia on Active Rain and found some great articles but none answered a basic question I have.

So...what is the best way to remove a link on a Wiki that is NOT neutral but should be? Or is there another way to skin the ... Wiki?

Guest comments are critical to any successful vacation rental

2008-07-29T21:12:48Z

If you are managing your own vacation rental or have a management company running your rental home, electronic dialogue is becoming the norm when renting out your property. In some cases your home is being rented without any telephone dialogue at all. Statistics show guests younger than 35 are more apt to choose their property without ANY verbal dialogue. So how are guests booking without telephone dialogue? Pictures, great descriptions, and yes, they are using guest reviews. Tripadvisor, I go u go, and several other websites are making their mark by providing travel reviews. Heck, just about any good on-line retail store offers some type of review. We use reviews to aide us in buying everything from digital cameras to automobiles. Now vacation rentals have an independent free source to provide feedback on your vacation rental. I just signed our management company up with Flipkey.com. They offer an independent option for guests to write reviews about their vacation rental experiences. Sure, it's a little scary not to have complete control over the reviews that will be posted. I find it even scarier that potential guests may be moving on to other vacation rental homes that have reviews. Flipkey allows the property management or owner to offer their side of the story as well as rebuttals. They work from an email list provided by the property owner of past guests and email a standard request to the past guest to fill out a quick review of the property. So, if you own a vacation rental and do not have guest reviews on your website, take a look at Flipkey.com. It is early in the process for Island Real Estate of Anna Maria Island, inc. but so far so good. In addition, if you would like to review how Flipkey is going for our vacation rentals visit our website where we will shortly have the Flipkey link to properties that have been reviewed within our inventory.

Twenty Year High School Reunion - I need help!!

2008-07-20T21:00:53Z

I will be going to my twenty year high school reunion this weekend. I am excited to catch up with old friends but I have been asking myself how I can maximize the opportunity. Sure, passing my business cards while cathing up is the obvious answer, sending out great to see you again cards a few weeks after the reunion is another, but I want MORE!!! I know I will have alot of fun and a blast at my reunion but please help with innovative suggestions on how to make the reunion a productive networking event...Thanks!

Lions, Tigers, and Rental Restrictions ...oh my!

2008-07-16T21:07:07Z

So...it happened. Somehow one of our cities on Anna Maria Island passed through a new month minimum rental restriction in our R1 districts. There are lots of owners that count on their $30k - $75k rental income to help pay their debt service, property taxes, and insurance. The new month minimum will cut their gross income to less than $20k per year. More importantly, what impact the rental restriction will have on our local Anna Maria Island Real Estate.

I would love to hear from those of you who have seen similar rental restrictions. In addition, do you have a success story you can share with us regarding reversing the restriction or if the rental restriction resulted in a positive result that we have not anticipated.

Thanks!

Larry

Password managers - the best thing since sliced bread!

2008-07-13T07:20:24Z

For my personal password depository I have tried journals, excel spreadsheets, notes, outlook, my Treo, you name it. My hand written journal worked the best using codes to remind myself of passwords. Anyways I thought I had the best solution until one day I received an email from Palm software for my Treo 650. I noticed a free trial for a password manager called Turbopassword by Chapura. I tried it and became speechless immediately.

Firstly the program works on my Treo 650 AND my desk top PC. Here is how it works, you have a MAIN password that opens the "vault" of ALL your passwords. Just remember ONE password for your book club, active rain, travel network, PIN for telephoned prescriptions, whatever...

JUST WAIT, it gets better! Once you are logged into Tubopasswords the program will remember everything you do. So for example...you log into your Active Rain account, the program recognizes you are entering a password and it automatically sucks in the information and asks you if you want to add this web site, username, and password to Turbo. Wow...even better....the next time your ready to log into your Active Rain account, just click a little icon on your browser tool bar and whala la, Turbo AUTOMATICALLY fills in the username and password. That's right, it FILLS IN THE INFORMATION AUTOMATICALLY!!!

JUST WAIT, there is more...I have several different accounts with the same bank using the SAME web site. Yup, Turbo asks me which account I want to log into. In addition, very often I have to use another trusted computer within the office and with Turbo, I dont memorize passwords anymore. ...yikes, not a very good first impression when trying to log into your account to show property for sale. No worries, it synch's up to my Treo so I just pull out my cell phone, log into Turbo on my Palm and look at what the password is and enter away.

PALM was offering a free 30 day trialwhen I downloaded the software. Now this may sound like a commercial for TURBOPASSWORDS but it is really a commercial for password managers. I just happened to find Turbo and my staff have all downloaded the program so we don't have any pieces of paper anymore with bank accounts on them, etc. The Turbo download cost me $40 and after having the program for 1 year I would pay ALOT more...and I have already compiled OVER 75 passwords.

Do yourself a favor, find a password manager that works with your PDA AND your desktop. It's the single best $40 I have spent in YEARS.

Tacky marketing or down right good stuff ? Number 2

2008-07-12T23:35:57Z

I live on gorgeous Anna Maria Island which is 1 hr South of Tampa and 1/2 hr North of Sarasota. We have 7 miles of gorgeous white sandy beach. Lately I have been trying to exercise more and find myself walking the beach or our local streets each morning. Normally I see at least 30 people on my walks. I continue to ask myself how many of the walkers I pass are interested in selling their home, buying their home, or know of someone looking for a home on Anna Maria Island. How can I tap into this potentially huge resource for leads?

I have created T-shirts with the Island Real Estate logo on the front (Brokerage) and on the back in BIG HUGE LETTERS...

GET "REAL"....
Estate

just ask me!

Tacky marketing or down right good stuff?

In addition, please share any marketing ideas that might help me on my "walks." I don't mind copying your great ideas if you are willing to share!

Anna Maria Island Real Estate Market statistics - June

2008-07-08T21:47:51Z

Anna Maria Island continues to be a bright spot in Florida Real Estate news. Transactions continue to be significantly above 2007. Our average sold prices for single family residences are more than 18% higher than 2007 levels. The average sales price per square foot is holding steady against 2007 levels for residential single family homes. See below chart...

Anna Maria Island is still a great paradise to diversify your fiscal investments. Our real estate correction on single family homes since 2000 has returned an average of more than 10%. Couple that with an investment property that you rent through Island Real Estate's fabulous vacation rental program and your investment can quickly become a power house within your portfolio of investments. See below chart...

For additional Anna Maria Real Estate information call me at 941 345-1288. For more information on Anna Maria Island visit the Island Real Estate Blog. I have more charts available to those who sign up for my newsletter. Mailto: Larry@IslandReal.com A chart you may find very interesting is an inventory absorption chart for Anna Maria Island that tells you relative to 2005 when demand is exceeding supply. The absorption chart for the second quarter of 2008 shows favorable conditions for Anna Maria Island's Real Estate appreciation levels.

Tacky marketing or down right good stuff?

2008-07-01T21:31:10Z

Island Real Estate keeps fairly accurate records of why we receive Real Estate inquiries and we get a high percentage of calls off our Real Estate signs. I don't think many of you are surprised by that.

I would love a little feedback...this year we are modifying our Real Estate sign posts to accommodate small American Flags for the 4th of July. We will be attaching the American Flag to our sign posts to both attract attention and of course show our passion for Independence Day. It is fairly easy for someone to remove the flags and we expect a good portion of them to be used on the 4th of July and thats what we hope for. We will go back through the next week and remove the flags to show our respect for the American flag so they are not littering our streets.

Tacky or Down right Good stuff?

No Brainer investment - DOUBLE YOUR MONEY in 4 YEARS - Numbers included

2008-07-01T10:00:21Z

Anna Maria Island single family real estate even after our little correction appreciates at 10% year over year on average. So if you can find an investment that pays for itself through vacation rentals life is really good! Right?

On Anna Maria island vacation rentals are extremely popular. Anna Maria Island is located on the Gulf Coast of Florida and there are two buildings above 37' and that is it...no more. So no chain hotels which lends itself to an excellent vacation rental market. We have 7 miles of Gulf Coast and about 2 miles of the Tampa Bay Coast and the island at its widest point is about 10 blocks.

Currently there is a 4-5 bedroom on the market for $425k. Its about 2 blocks to the Gulf which means it should rent fairly well. There is no pool but a NICE pool would cost $40k and furniture, fix up would be another $50k....so up front capital of $80k down, and $90k for pool etc...$325k mortgage should be about $2k per month, property taxes $6k/yr, insurances $5k/yr, op costs $500/month. So, carry the one, hmm, hmm, ok if I did my math correctly $3400 expenses per month including DEBT expenses.

Now for the gross income. The gross income on similar properties would be at least $55k with an UPSIDE of $65k minus a commission of 20% for management. Lets remain conservative, income AFTER commission = $44k. Income per month -------$3666 per month. Ta Da!!!

So, expenses per month INCLUDING DEBT service = $3400
NET Income per month = $3666

Lets just call it break even to cover repairs.

So in summary, for $170k in capital you too can create a 10% deferred savings account of $1,100,000 that you can cash out. That's almost 6.5 X your original investment of $170k! Boy I love Real Estate!!!

For more information on Anna Maria Island Real Estate visit www.IslandReal.com or our website. For more information regarding the specific property listed in my blog visit 407 80th..if the link is broken the home has already sold but give me a call or visit our web site for more bargains. I did include a picture below.

Of course there are always risks to investing. Hurricanes, red tide, oil spills, travel crunches and of course all figures above are estimates however call or comment with more questions. The analysis is NOT perfect but it is within 5-10% and in now way is this a commitment of rental income.

Anna Maria island - market update - POSITIVE REAL ESTATE NEWS!

2008-06-17T23:46:37Z

In 2008 Anna Maria Island of Manatee county has seen a fabulous upturn. More specifically, residential property is doing well as compared to 2007. Anna Maria Island is on the Florida Gulf Coast just South of Tampa and just North of Sarasota and East of Bradenton. Our little island of 7 miles long and 10 bocks wide has many things to be proud of...in 2007 we were named the #1 hottest travel destination by Tripadvisor.com, our small chamber of commerce was named the best in Florida, and lastly, for decades we have restricted buildings higher than 37 feet. Sure, we have three separate cities for a 7 mile distance but our Gulf Coast, Tampa Bay coast, and white sand that feels like flour makes up for our local politics.

Single Family homes appear to have hit bottom. Each month in 2008 has pointed to a stronger number of transactions. More specifically, average sold $'s per square foot is up 6% versus 2007, number of transactions is up from 2007 and the average sold $'s per transaction is up more than 20%. That's right, the average SOLD $ per property is up 20+% versus 2007. The staggering number of 20+% is due to Gulf Front properties selling at a record pace in the past 8 weeks. As you can imagine the most desirable properties on a gulf coast would be the first to come back from a rough market and that is exactly what we are seeing on Anna Maria Island. That coupled with the fact that our property is very reasonable has created a demand for our premier locations. Take for example 753 North Shore, the home is surrounded by zero skyscrapers or condos and only residences. The property is a direct Gulf Front with two buildings on the lot. Total price for your piece of paradise right on the Gulf of Mexico? $1,750,000. Seem like alot? Just a reminder, two buildings, Direct Gulf Front, surrounded by single family homes! In this house you could hear the crickets chirp at night, heck you could hear them during the day if they chirped.

Condo's and multi-family homes have NOT hit bottom. Unfortunately there are no points that show we have hit bottom so we have some time in front of us. The good news we estimate supply versus demand stability of our island inventory is about 450 properties for sale and as of May 31st we were at 620 with an average of 40+ transactions per month. The 620 is down from the peak of almost 1000. If we don't have a surge of owners placing their properties on the market we should work down to a steady state inventory of mid 400's in about 6 months.

For anyone interested in specific data or charts of our Anna Maria Island ,drop me an email and I would be more than happy to share some positive news. Just a side note I have the luck of working for Island Real Estate of Anna Maria Island, Inc. www.IslandReal.com I hope my positive news helps others in the tough real estate cycle we have found ourselves in. Keep Positive, this too shall pass....