Chris Sapp in Orlando/ Windermere, FL is a realtor I highly recommend.

I am a realtor in Naples, FL dealing with very sophisticated buyers and sellers. Most are very successful and need a realtor who understands what they need and what they are looking for. I needed the same to list my property in Orlando. It was a short sale situation and I chose a realtor from the active rain site initially. This is where you don't assume... EVER... It turned into a nightmare. She was ignorant of law, didn't listen, said one thing and did another. Lost the sale to say the least. The funniest part (now that I look back) is that she was "coaching" her peer who had the buyer (which of course walked away). OMG -- talk about "lights on but nobody home." Her broker assured me she was one of their better agents... Isn't that scary???

Then, I spoke with many friends in the area and came across Chris Sapp with Suzi Karr Realty. He is educated, listens and can disfuse any uncomfortable situation just by being himself. He did what he said he would do, when he said he would do it..... his follow up was that of a professional. I highly recommend him to all buyers and sellers. Out of all the realtors I had to deal with this past yr. regarding this property.... he is the only one I would work with again... and look forward to it.  

Good Selling...

Pat Murray

Premiere Plus Realty Co.

239-404-0759

WE (well, me lately) seem to always write about how terrible service is or how we did not get what we paid for or the people we have to deal with who are socially or emotionally or intellectually challenged. You get the idea.

Here is a post that tells you of great service to both me and my clients, consistantly for at least 6 yrs. since I lived in Naples, FL. 

Jose Puertas owns "Blind Expert." He is a distributor for Hunter Douglas and also does custom window treatments. I have used his services a couple of times and many of my clients have too (from entry level condo's to multi million dollar homes). All have come back to me and let me know how happy they were with his work and service. He listens to what you want or think you want and then directs you to make good choices, both visually and financially. He is hands on. 

Troy owns Anglers Pool Service. He works a lot in the North Naples area. I have recommended his services in The Strand, Pelican Marsh, Vineyards, Carlton Lakes. I know he has other area's he works in too. He is very knowledgable and takes care of issue's as they arise and his company does the weekly maintenance service we all need for our pools. A few of my clients also used his services to install the aqualink systems for their pool and were very happy with their price and service.  

There you go... 2 great recommendations and more to follow. They deserve the recognition, they work hard and do a great job. 

Pat Murray

Premiere Plus Realty Co.

239-404-0759

PENDING SALES AT THREE YEAR HIGH Report Shows Inventory Declines 7.6 Percent

The report provides annual comparisons of single-family home and condo sales (via the SunshineMLS), price ranges, geographic segmentation and includes an overall market summary. The statistics are presented in chart format, along with the following analysis:

Overall pending home sales for properties less than $300,000 saw a 178 percent increase, with 587 pending in February 2009 compared to 211 in February 2008. 

Single-family pending home sales increased 131 percent overall, with 450 in February 2009 compared to 195 in February 2008. 

Overall condo pending sales increased 26 percent, with 358 in February 2009 versus 284 in February 2008; and pending condo sales under $300,000 increased 77 percent with 266 in February 2009 compared to 150 in February 2008.

Ok -- it has been a couple of weeks and I really have not yet recovered from my bruised ego since the attempt at the Miami Marathon in January. I trained and did all that was expected and..... I just had a bad day....not just a bad day... one of my worst running days I can remember ...... My body just didn't feel like my own and I ached and dragged myself over the 1/2 marathon finish line.... embarrassed and so disappointed.

So..... I am one to not give up and finish what I start (or is it pure ego and ingnorance?) I have regrouped a bit and will put another on my calender for the fall. Right now I will back off of running - just a couple of days a week and focus on total fitness, dropping a couple of pounds and licking my wounds. 

I will continue to read all the blogs to keep me inspired. Keep on running!

PENDING HOME SALES AT HIGHEST POINT SINCE 2005
 
NAPLES, Fla.-February 13, 2009- In January 2009, the highest number of pending sales since 2005 was reported in a report released by the Naples Area Board of REALTORS® (NABOR), which tracks home listings and sales within Collier County (excluding Marco Island).
 
Overall pending sales, which are a key indicator of buyer activity, increased 85 percent year-to-date in January 2009.
 
The report provides annual comparisons of single-family home and condo sales (via the SunshineMLS), price ranges, geographic segmentation and includes an overall market summary. The statistics are presented in chart format, along with the following analysis:
Overall pending home sales in the greater Naples Area, which includes Naples Beach, North Naples, Central Naples, South Naples, East Naples, Immokalee and Ave Maria, increased 85 percent, with 706 pending in January 2009 compared to 382 in January 2008.
 
Overall pending home sales for properties less than $300,000 saw a 208 percent increase, with 508 pending in January 2009 compared to 165 in January 2008.
 
Single-family pending home sales increased 141 percent overall, with 405 in January 2009 compared to 168 in January 2008.
 
Overall condo pending sales increased 41 percent, with 301 in January 2009 versus 214 in January 2008; and pending condo sales under $300,000 increased 118 percent with 220 in January 2009 compared to 101 in January 2008.
 
"The overall number of closed sales for the 12 months ending January 2009, increased 22 percent," 
 
 "The decrease in the inventory and the average days on the market is due to the increase in closed sales. The available inventory decreased 6.4 percent from 11,308 in January 2009 compared to 12,086 in January 2008."
 
"The over $300,000 price range shows signs of stabilizing, as the median sold price only decreased 1 percent for the 12 months ending January, 2009,"
 
 
Patricia J. Murray
REALTOR
 
Premiere Plus Realty Co.
749 12th Avenue S.
Naples, FL   34102
 
PH:   239-404-0759
FAX: 239-514-7873 
patriciajm@live.com

ING Miami marathon is soon approaching. If you are a running with a firm foundation, you can still register, if you haven't been running too long, you still can run the 1/2. We should have wonderful weather as usual. Why not spend a weekend in the sun - flights are cheap and the sand is warm! Registration is filling up fast. 10,000 have already registered and they are only accepting 15,000.  

Now, back to training. This will be my first marathon (probably my only)--- I knew it was going to be a lot of hard work and committment, but I have been learning a lot more then I thought. For one thing. You have to be flexible. While building on my long runs (adding mileage every week so your body can get used to the pounding, lactic acid build up and just pure determination) you really have to "hear" your body - what I mean is.... you will have some days where you feel like you never ran a day in your life and barely finishing 5 miles can sometimes be as hard as running 15. This is where you have to determine that that bad day is just that, or... are you getting sick - is your body telling you to slow down? Maybe take a couple of days off or skip that long run and pick it up next week. That's how I was feeling a couple of weeks ago and low and behold, I came down with a cold. I felt bad, but stopped everything and ate all fruits and vegetables, soup, orange juice and just did nothing for 3 days. I skipped my long run and started with my maint. runs and the next week got back on track with my 18.5 miler. It was hard, but only because I never ran that far before, not because I was weak or tired or just worn down.

It is hard sometimes because we always think more is better---- even if we intellectually know it isn't, we still push a bit more then we should. Another thing I learned it how cross training really helps me work out my hip/muscle stiffness. An hour bike ride the day after a long run - is like magic. It really gets me back at my maint. runs without shuffleing those first 2 miles.... 

So --- think about Miami... the sun may be calling you northerns.

Pat Murray

Premiere Plus Realty Co.

239-404-0759

Comcast -- 9 phone calls, 3 hrs. 14 min on hold, 1 missed scheduled service call to come out to "fix" the internet problem.... never showed....  Please, Please,,,,,, I beg you ..... I want to give you my money, I want your service desperately, please, can I buy and pay you for your service?????????? CAN ANYBODY HEAR ME????????????? apparently not, I ended up getting embarq, the local phone service to hook up my internet connection because I need to work! Can you believe this? 10 days later and comcast has no clue....

I know it isn't an isolated problem since many of my clients come back and tell me similar stories. I am "over the top" aggitated with this lack of customer service, but who really cares over there at comast? You get the customer service people on the phone, very polite and nice, but have no idea about taking "ownership" of the given situation. It is always passed on, with a polite apology, but never any results.

I was having a conversation with somebody who had the same experience and we came to the conclusion we would prefer total jerks, but had the skills to solve the issue's as opposed to a clueless "kind" ditz's with no clue of how to use their critical thinking skills to take charge and solve the problem (similiar to a childs mentality).

Everybody has problems with most services, that's ok... it's how you choose to solve the problem that keeps the customer.  I am shouting it from the rooftops ---- to all residences in SW Florida.... down with comcast..... they won't pay attention until they see a large decrease in sales..... individual choice is always ours as our voice.... just like an election.....

I don't want to hear other "they were wonderful for me" stories or comments.... it doesn't matter..... what matters for a company for me to recommend them to my clients and neighbors is that they do a good job steadily --------

I got that off my chest.... stay tuned for book 2, 3 and 4!

Finally.... Finally.... Finally..... that's all I can think when I go over in my mind the last 6 months with this one short sale listing. The seller was great, the buyer was great, the agent for the buyer was great.... guess who was the pain in the neck????

Country Wide was the first disfunctional institution, then the second mortgage was held by a smaller bank, Third Federal. With all the news, all the documentation and all the personal information shared to all, we never got a call back from either bank. All the calls were made by the seller's attorney and their title company.... every day. We had the first offer, the first week of the listing in April. Then Country Wide never responded, until we again.... had to call every day and bug them .... continuously.... we lost the buyer -- after waiting 2 1/2 months.... the buyer walked.

Back on the market..... another offer within 2 weeks -- full price, cash with proof of funds submitted with the contract...... another appraisal... (appraisal less this time since the market came down a bit)---- again --- phone calls, more phone calls...... 2 months later.... approval from the first mortgage company (they were getting paid in full .... what took them so long when the 2nd mortgage co. was taking the fall?) ---- then... the 2nd mortgage company denied the short sale---???? Attorney on the phone to try to get a reason.... they thought the seller had "hidden" assets... with everything documented; bank account numbers, credit card numbers, other debts, etc.... all open for all to see --- credit reports with every debt reported...... no proof but this one guy, who ignored us through this whole process before he even saw the paperwork, just "had a hunch" ---?????? and.... for this property to go into forclosure it would cost them more money then what they would lose with the possability that the seller would have to claim bankruptcy and they would get nothing!

Ok - somebody who still has a job --- not a real high position within the company, "just had a hunch" ... the arrogance of it all...... The power some have in this situation just infuriates me....

Needless to say, the attorney got what we needed to close the sale. Finally........ The seller can move on with her life and rebuild, the buyer can enjoy his condo and we get paid! Probably made about minimun wage on this one.... another one..... what we don't do!    

EIGHT IS GREAT
Report Shows 106 Percent Increase in Overall Pending Sales
 
NAPLES, Fla.-October 16, 2008-For the eighth consecutive month, pending sales increased in the Naples area according to a report released by the Naples Area Board of REALTORS® (NABOR), which tracks home listings and sales within Collier County (excluding Marco Island).
 
"The greater Naples Area is seeing a double digit growth in all geographic areas in overall pending sales. The increase ranged from 47 percent in South Naples to as much as 244 percent in Central Naples" .  , "The average days on the market has decreased 17 percent for Single family homes, indicating that sales are continuing to increase."
 
The report which provides annual comparisons of single-family home and condo sales (via the SunshineMLS), price ranges and geographic segmentation also includes an overall market summary. The statistics are presented in chart format, along with the following analysis:
 
 Overall pending home sales in the greater Naples Area, which includes Naples Beach, North Naples, Central Naples, South Naples, East Naples, Immokalee and Ave Maria, increased 106 percent, with 481 in September 2008 compared to 234 in September 2007.
 
 Overall pending home sales for properties less than $300,000 saw a 264 percent increase with 320 in September 2008 compared to 88 in September 2007.
 
 Overall home sales increased 50 percent with 361 in September 2008 compared to 240 in September 2007.
 
 Single-family pending home sales increased 173 percent overall, with 319 in September 2008 compared to 117 in September 2007; Pending sales of single-family properties of less than $300,000 were 202 in September 2008 compared to 27 in September 2007, a 648 percent increase.
 
 Single-family home sales increased 50 percent overall, with 209 in September 2008 compared to 139 in September 2007.
 
 Overall condo sales increased 50 percent, with 152 in September 2008 versus 101 sales in September 2007; and pending condo sales under $300,000 increased 93 percent with 118 in September 2008 compared to 61 in September 2007.
The $300,000 and below market has been leading the way and is now driving sales to higher priced properties. "Pending sales are up 22 percent in the $500k and above market from September 2007 to September 2008, and the numbers of homes sold are up as well" . "The activity in the higher priced properties demonstrates that the increases in the $500k and above market are now driving the sales" 
 
To view the entire September report, go to www.Naplesarea.com
 
The Naples Area Board of REALTORS® (NABOR) is an established organization (Chartered 1949) whose members have a positive and progressive impact on the Naples community. NABOR is a local board of REALTORS® and real estate professionals with a legacy of nearly 60 years serving 5,000 plus member-customers. NABOR is a member of the Florida Association of REALTORS® and the National Association of REALTORS®, which is the largest trade association in the United States with more than 1.3 million members and over 1,400 local boards of REALTORS® nationwide. NABOR is structured to provide programs and services to its membership through various committees and the NABOR Board of Directors, all of whose members are non-paid volunteers.
###


Patricia J. Murray
REALTOR
 
Premiere Plus Realty Co.
749 12th Avenue S.
Naples, FL   34102
 
PH:   239-404-0759
FAX: 239-514-7873 
patriciajm@live.com

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Very excited about finding this group. I love new cultures, different food, wine, people..... anything to show me how big the world can be. Suddenly, what was getting us down, or if we were in a funk over simple, trivial things..... getting away always puts things in perspective.

I was bored..... just closed some sales, nothing really going on. Hot, humid in Florida and in the summer.... it can be quite boring.... so... after getting the brochure from backroads.com for many years ---- I just decided to check out it's website -- before I knew it..... by the end of the day - I had a trip booked and was on a plane to San Francisco by 3 PM the next day.

We took a shuttle to wine country and the tour company took great care of us. Supplied everything except your cloths---- bikes were top of the line. Could be a beginner or advanced. They had routes for all and vans to pick up those who thought they could do more, but couldn't. 82 degree's, sunshine and no humidity - perfect. Routes took us through Alexander Valley, Sonoma, Napa and a couple more I can't remember -- we stopped at wine tastings, had wonderful meals and I really met a lot of pretty cool people. All have traveled often, some ran marathons, others bike regularly --- ages were 28-71. (the 71 yr old - a dentist who is in the process of opening another dental practice --kicked our butt!!!) ---

The scenery was so beautiful and I just considered it needed therapy. I came back with a renewed sense of self and burned a few calories. The guides were top of the line --- I can't say enough about the tour company ---- Next May... I am thinking of biking in Argentina or Thialand.

Pat Murray

Premiere Plus Realty Co.

239-404-0759

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