The day of the storm found me trying to catch up blogging and wade through my tons of paperwork.  I had a contract come in on my 500 Lambiance CIR #201 the day before the storm!  I did manage to get out to take this video of the storm in my community in Pelican Bay.  Make sure to turn on your sound so you can hear the wind!

The day after the storm I headed to the beach at Pelican Bay.  The restaurant was open and the trams were running.  The beach had taken a pounding but still looked great!

The strong waves did not deter one person from windsurfing at the beach!

I wish you could have seen the colors of the sail against the sky!

Pelican Bay had a number of downed palm fronds and branches but all is well after TS Fay!

Today found me reminiscing about selling real estate back in 1981 in my Strip Joints and Selling Homes posting.  Writing this article reminded me I forgot to post my latest price reductions on Active Rain so here's the scoop.........

My 400 Lambiance Cir #202 in Lambiance in Pelican Bay in Naples, FL is now priced at $599,900.00.  Since the price has been reduced, I have had quite a few showings on this unit.  Agents keep asking me, "How low will the sellers go?"  Come on guys!  Besides the fact that my Sellers bought the unit at the height of the real estate market for $749,900.00, unless I have something in writing from the Sellers authorizing me to tell an agent what they would take, I CAN NOT SAY!  This unit is being sold turnkey furnished, which means EVERYTHING stays.

My 500 Lambiance CIR #201 in Lambiance in Pelican Bay reduced their price 85K from $674,900.00 to $589,900.00.  This unit is also being sold turnkey furnished and has been getting a number of showings since the price reduciton.

Both these listings have great views and are in tip top condition.

This year has turned out to be a much better year for me than last year.  I have had a number of listings sell and have had some sales.  I also have had some time to concentrate on my Naples Web site. My 805 Sand Pointe Dr. came under contract and is due to close in July.  Yesterday I wrote an offer on one of my listings and I hope the contract will survive all the inspections.  Things are busier, which I find encouraging.  According to statistics from the Naples Board of Realtors, pending sales are up in the areas by the beach and in areas under $300,000.00.

My advice to any buyer right now is to get off the fence and make a decision in either of the two areas mentioned in the above paragraph.  Next year these buyers could be kicking themselves saying, "I should have bought last year!"

My sellers at 400 Lambiance Cir. #202 had me reduce the price on this lovely unit from $664,900.00 to $624,900.00.  An open floor plan with 1967 under air, 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, an attached garage and a peaceful lake and aquascape view, this makes for a good buy in L'Ambiance in Pelican Bay.

If someone desires to be close to the Gulf of Mexico in a beach community, L'Ambiance in Pelican Bay is a great place to live.  L'Ambiance is walking distance to shopping, movie theaters, the library and the Pelican Bay Community Center.

Escape those cold winters,own in Pelican Bay and you could feel the warm sand between your toes while enjoying sunsets at the beach in Pelican Bay.

The property tax cut amendment that was up for a vote yesterday passed the Naples Daily News reported in this morning's newspaper.

Homesteaded FL residents will see their $25,000.00 homestead exemption increased.  Homesteaded residents will also be able to take up to $500,000 worth of Save Our Home benefits to a new residence.  This feature of "portability" of the Save Our Homes benefit is what a number of current home owners have been waiting.  When faced with downsizing or increasing the size of their current home, many Florida residents have put home purchases on hold waiting to see if this portability issue would pass.

Non-Homestead property owners under this new amendment will get a 10 percent annual assessment cap on their property taxes.

Will this property tax amendment help increase homes sales?  I believe that there is a large segment of homesteaded owners in the Naples area that have owned for a period of time and have been waiting for this amendment to pass.  These owners, I think, will now want to buy a larger or smaller residence in Naples. They understand that while they might not realize what they could have received for their homes in the heat of the market, there currently is a wide selection of homes to choose from and a number of good buys on the market today.

Yes, it is true.  My sellers at 805 Sand Pointe in Pelican Bay had me reduce the price of their SINGLE FAMILY VILLA WITH A POOL from $649,900.00 to $549,900.00.  This villa has 1672 sq. ft. under air, 2 bedrooms, 2 baths AND 2 car garage!  This could be your chance to own NOW in Pelican Bay.

I am a few days late posting these statistics, however I am happy to report that I have been busy with Real Estate since the beginning of the year.  While the number of sales are still down, the median sales price for the state does not show double digits!  Please don't forget to read the asterisks on the Naples Board of Realtors contribution to this report.  Here the figures for existing condos:

Florida Sales Report - Year End 2007

Existing Condominiums

•(1)     * Statewide figure includes data from the Naples Board of Realtors; except for December, as historical data from Naples for December 2006 is not available.

•(2)     * Does not include data from the Naples Board of Realtors.

•(3)     Historical data from the Ocala-Marion County Association of Realtors for 2006 was not available.

•(4)     Data from the Hernando County Association of Realtors now included in the totals from 2006 and 2007.

Editor's note: Sales numbers represent totals of Realtors' closed transactions from local Realtor
boards/associations within the MSAs.

This information is based on a survey of MLS sales levels from Florida's Realtor boards/associations. MSAs are defined by the 2000 Census. Source: Florida Association of Realtors and the University of Florida Real Estate Research Center.

Here are the numbers on the existing Single Family Homes:

Florida Sales Report - Year End 2007

Single-Family, Existing Homes

•(1)     *Statewide figure includes data from the Naples Board of Realtors; except for December, as historical data from Naples
for December 2006 is not available.

•(2)     *Does not include data from the Naples Board of Realtors.

•(3)     Data from the Hernando County Association of Realtors now included in the totals from 2006 and 2007.

Editor's note: Sales numbers represent totals of Realtors' closed transactions from local Realtor boards/associations within the MSAs.

This information is based on a survey of MLS sales levels from Florida's Realtor boards/associations. MSAs are defined by the 2000 Census. Source: Florida Association of Realtors and the University of Florida Real Estate Research Center.

The owner of 2300 Lambiance Cir. #102 instruced me to drop the price of this lovely 3 bedroom plus family room, 2 bath 1st floor condo in L'Ambiancefrom $799,900.00 to $699,900.00!!!!!  This condo has 2,025 square feet under air and a peaceful waterscape view.  It is located in Pelican Bay in Naples, FL.

L'Ambiance is just a short walk to the Pelican Bay Community Center with its state of the art fitness center.

It is also a quick walk to the North Tram stop where a tram waits to whisk you away to the gorgeous beach in Pelican Bay.

This L'Ambiance coach home has just had wall paper removed, walls painted and new flooring installed.  The 2,025 under air floor planprovides room for a master bedroom suite, a guest suite, a third bedroom AND a family room.  You can enjoy a peaceful moment on your lanai with this lovely lake & water-scape view.

L'Ambiance is a gated community in the planned unit development of Pelican Bay.  This development has been built with beach access to the Gulf of Mexico throughout various tram stops located in the community.

While no beach is private in the State of Florida, access to the beach here in Pelican Bay is private.  You must show your membership pass to board the tram or to walk, bike, jog, roller-blade on the berms or eat at the restaurantas  in Pelican Bay.

Pelican Bay has two beach facilites with chairs, umbrellas and cabanas provided to its members.  There are two restaurant facilities in Pelican Bay, one at the North Beach and the other at the South Beach.  Can you picture yourself relaxing here in JANUARY????

This unit is being offered at $799,900.00.  If you owned this home now you could be painting your own portrait in the living room,

or this spacious family room.......

or this kitchen...........

If you owned in Pelican Bay, you could be not only enjoying the beach but also enjoying.........

You also could enjoy an evening out at The Phil

or an afternoon at The Naples Museum of Art

Own now and enjoy sunsets like this...........

Sunday provided an incredible sunset at the Sandpiper Beach in Pelican Bay.  In the 12 years that I have lived here, I have seen some truly beautiful sunsets.  Last night's sunset was truly awesome.  I snapped some photos to share.

New Years Day found an offer coming in on my 1500 Lambiance Cir #101  The offer was just finalized on Friday. I do not anticipate any problems with this transaction as the unit is in tip top shape.

I have noticed some more showings on my listings over this past week end.  Now we just need those buyers to write more offers!  I showed most of the day today. My buyer like the majority of buyers out there are looking "a deal".

Pelican Bay with its unique beach set up has held up OK so far.  We have dipped a bit but between 2004 to 2005 low rises in Pelican Bay saw a 34% increase in prices.  Our market couldn't go up like that forever.  I'll be working on stats for Pelican Bay over the next week.

The Naples Daily News had two good articles in yesterday's paper.  One article dealt with the residential real estate market in Naples.  The other dealt with commercialreal estate in Naples.  There has been a slow down in commercial real estate in Naples. 

While areas in Naples further from the beach are taking and will take a longer time to sell.......Naples still has some beautiful sunsets!

In between family company, I've been a busy bee the last few weeks.  I recently listed a 3 bedroom, 2 bath, second floor condo, with a one car garage and 1967 square feet under air in L'Ambiance in Pelican Bay for $664,900.00  This lovely unit has a peaceful lake and waterscape view.  The floor plan is a rarely available C-2 plan.

L'Ambiance is a gated subdivision in the beach community of Pelican Bay.  You can see that I talk a great deal about Pelican Bay on my home page. 

Pelican Bay Beaches have two restaurants and an outdoor exercise area.  Beach chairs and umbrellas are provided to residents.  Tram stops are located in the community that will whisk you away through the mangrove forest to the beach at Pelican Bay.  The fees for everything that Pelican Bay has to offer is included in the units quarterly fees of $1,485.00.

This unit has a great view from its lanai.....

This floor plan features a great room with sliders opening to the lanai.  A Jenn Air grill makes outside dining a snap!

If you are considering owning a home in Naples FL you owe it to yourself to check out the beautiful community of Pelican Bay.  All the following are located in Pelican Bay along with tennis courts and canoe rentals for the residents.

Whether you are enjoying a vibrant sunset .............................

or watching a full moon................

If you owned in L'Ambiance in Pelican Bay, you could be enjoying these things now!