Deduction for Federal Excise Tax on long-distance phone calls - 01/28/07 06:06 PM
Federal judges recently ruled that the 3% federal excise tax on long-distance phone service was illegal. You can go back and add up the federal excise tax on all your phone bills for 41 months, from March 1, 2003 to July 31, 2006. Note - this isn't just on traditional long distance phone charges, but also to that tax on bundled services, such as calling planes on your cell phone - doesn't matter if it's flat fee or per minute if local and long distance calls are added together.  For some of us, that can be a lot of money. Claim … (2 comments)

Gen X and Gen Y - 01/27/07 05:33 PM
It's been known for a long time that response time is critical to following up on internet leads. Often the agent getting the business is not necessarily the best, but the first to respond (assuming they continue the dialogue).
Many Gen Xers want immediate information. That's immediate as in IM (instant messaging), not in waiting for an e-mail response. Boomers are very laid back compared to Gen X and Gen Y. They want to be involved in the process, and they want what they want NOW.
Are you ready?
Sharon Simms, Real Estate Agent selling homes in St. Petersburg, Florida, the Gulf Beaches and … (3 comments)

The market is improving - 01/27/07 05:28 PM
We noted an upswing in the market in the middle of December in the Tampa Bay area. January has seen even more showings, offers and contracts. While Tami and I have been away, Rob has been very busy - he's negotiated five transaction sides in five days. That's really great for St. Pete. We're proud of him.
It's so good to have a team, so when we're away attending or teaching classes, or attending conferences, Rob and Amy can keep everything going smoothly at home. I was only involved in one of the negotiations, I was in Texas, the buyer's agent in … (0 comments)

Go Away for Classes - 01/27/07 05:24 PM
I've heard so many people say that they wait for a class, such as a designation class, until it is given locally. I don't think that's the way to go, even if it does save travel time and hotel expense. First, your mind is more on your class and networking when you aren't conducting your business during every break. Second, you'll probably get more ideas from your classmates when they are doing business in another area. Most important, though - it's not likely that your local colleagues will be sending you referrals, or you sending referrals to them.
Go somewhere else for … (3 comments)

Kansas City Airport - 01/27/07 05:18 PM
Tami and I are in between planes at the Kansas City airport. We were here once before years ago, and it's a small area - if you want to use a restroom, stop at a shop or restaurant, all of that means you go outside of the small secured area and have to go through security again. It's 23 degrees and there are occasional snowflakes, and our Florida bodies do NOT want to go outside. As before, it's not crowded and the people are friendly. Like Tampa, Kansas City has free wireless internet access. How welcoming for guests, and how practical … (1 comments)

Networking Locally but Not Local - 01/27/07 05:14 PM
Although we know the value of networking, and would like to spend some time discussing things with colleagues in other companies locally, coordinating two busy schedules rarely allows this to happen. Ironically, if you're away at a conference, where there's time for networking, it works with local colleagues as well as those from faraway. Frank Malowaney, a fellow luxury agent in St. Petersburg. Florida, was attending the Luxury Conclave (as I was) in Dana Point, California, and we found more time to chat there than back in St Pete, though our offices are only a couple of blocks apart. You may … (0 comments)

International panel at The Luxury Conclave - 01/26/07 08:04 PM
Angela Eliopolis, Jacqueline Grelinger and  Olivia Decker spoke on an International panel at the Luxury Conclave in Dana Point, California. Angela, an agent in Washington, DC, pointed out that 48% of international real estate investment is in the US. Buyers appreciate the stability of an investment in the US, and for many buyers, the exchange rate makes US property a great bargain. Jacqueline, an agent in Boca Raton, Florida, talked about how to list properties that are located in other countries. Olivia, a San Francisco area agent, discussed many ways to find international buyers for US properties.
Sharon Simms, Real Estate Agent selling … (0 comments)

Potato Chip Marketing - 01/26/07 07:57 PM
Jennifer Cummings spoke at the Luxury Conclave about Potato Chip Marketing and how to generate profit in any market. She said it's necessary for agents to stop being commodities, and to create a USP, or Unique Selling Proposition. This is what sets you apart as an agent and makes a customer want to do business with you. She went on to talk about marketing, how it differs from advertising, and how it should include a call to action. Our marketing should be focused on the prospect, not on the property. Jennifer coaches individual agents as well as companies.
Sharon Simms, Real Estate … (0 comments)

Indoor-Outdoor Living - 01/26/07 07:49 PM
According to Barclay Butera, an interior designer who spoke this week at the Luxury Conclave at the St. Regis Resort, Monarch Beach, CA, indoor-outdoor living is a trend of which he is a great fan.
We've seen this trend in Florida in upper end homes - there is a roofed outdoor room, usually large, perhaps 20 x 20 feet, often with a fireplace, that is furnished with pieces and fabrics that look like an inside living room but are treated to withstand the outdoors. This is really inviting and comfortable, and is a wonderful lifestyle addition for enjoying the outdoors while feeling … (4 comments)

Richistan - 01/26/07 07:42 PM
There's a new book that can now be preordered on amazon.com, written by Richard Frank, called Richistan. It is expected to be ready in June 2007.
Earlier this week Richard Frank spoke at the 3rd Luxury Conclave in Dana Point, California. He has done extensive research on the wealthy and uber-wealthy and spoke about some of the statistics and case studies that will be in his book. It should be interesting as well as a great resource, and I've already pre-ordered it through amazon.
… (0 comments)

Smile, You're on Candid Camera - 01/21/07 10:56 AM
One of the benefits often given for blogging is that you appear in the search engines, that you're on google, and that you reach a wide audience. 
The flip side of this is: you're on the search engines.  And your blogs stay accessible, while ads disappear. So, remember when you blog, that the entire world can see what you're writing. A year from now a potential client may find what you wrote on the web, either inadvertently or by researching you. It's so easy to blog that it's easy to vent, or complain, or point fingers  -  think before you post: … (30 comments)

Suggestion for ActiveRain improvement - 01/21/07 07:24 AM
Since Matt is looking at several changes/improvements, I though I'd mention one I've wanted for a long time -
           Read  vs  Not Read
Each day we have a different amount of time to read new blog postings, and each day there's a different volume of blogs posted, not to mention that some take a long time to read through, read the comments, and visit all the links.
Whether in Featured Posts, Associates, Groups, or any of the headings on the Dashboard, I'd like to see a button we that would bring up all the posts that we have NOT read.  Once days go … (4 comments)

St. Petersburg Benefactor - 01/20/07 12:37 PM
The University of Florida announced yesterday it's largest private gift ever - from St. Petersburg, Florida, resident and investment banker, William R. Hough. Both Tampa Bay area newspapers, the St. Petersburg Times and the Tampa Tribune had articles and photos relating to this recent gift. Hough gave $30 million for graduate business programs. Since his gift qualified for $20 million in matching state funds, the value of his gift is $50 million. His gift will establish an endowment for programs in the graduate business school., and will help pay for a new building, to be named William R. Hough Hall. The … (1 comments)

Using Symbols - 01/20/07 06:41 AM
When we're blogging, it's easy to bold, underline or italicize a word or phrase because those buttons are right on top of the blog entry window.  But how to insert a symbol? 
When we use a registered trademark, it's important to use the ® symbol, because we don't want "Realtor" or "Cyberstar" to be used by an agent or public person who just wants to use that word.  So, you can use the Alt system.
Hold down the Alt key while pressing in sequence 0174 on your numeric keypad, and suddenly ® appears. So do this at the end of each word … (55 comments)

Groups vs Affiliates - 01/20/07 06:13 AM
Sam Miller, a fellow CyberStar®, asked me to explain the difference between Groups and Affiliates. I started to get long winded so decided to blog it, as other ActiveRain members may have the same question.
On the left side of your personal home page, there is a GROUP category and an AFFILIATE category.  
A GROUP, to me, is topic or subject related. The CyberStar® group would be where you see things of interest to and related to all the CyberStars®. The Photography group would be where you talk about things relating to photography. After you've written a blog, and put in your tags, … (16 comments)

Karl Kuttler "Strikes" Again - 01/19/07 05:33 PM
College President Carl Kuttler, president of St. Petersburg College, knows how to get things done. Locals know this, and so do leaders of Russia!  Dr. Kuttler works quietly behind the scenes, but somehow comes up with not only a plan, but action when somethings needs to be done.
The latest art coalition in St. Petersburg, Florida looks like a Win-Win-Win-Win, with  SPC as the central link. St Pete College has been expanding its satellite locations for some years, including expansion into downtown St. Pete. Dr. Kuttler envisioned an arts and museum studies program for SPC, and worked with the Florida International … (1 comments)

Rising Inventory Not Bad for Everyone - 01/19/07 05:18 PM
Two major newspapers, the St. Petersburg Times and the Tampa Tribune, both carried stories today about lockbox manufacturers. They pointed out that while the real estate community is bemoaning the high inventory, for other suppliers, such as lockbox manufacturers, are working round the clock to meet the demand. The Pinellas Realtor Organization has exhausted their supply.  Earlier this year, both Tampa and Pinellas were out of lockboxes.
Sign companies also are running to keep up. Often they are putting signposts together at night so they'll have something the next day to hand sign panels on.
We need to take such shortages into account … (0 comments)

Pinellas County Florida Luxury Market Update January 2007 - 01/19/07 06:18 AM
Pinellas County, Florida is on the central west coast of Florida, bordering the Gulf of Mexico - separated from Tampa by Tampa Bay, with three connecting bridges and various land connections in the north. It's main cities are St. Petersburg and Clearwater.
There are currently 1,089 properties over $1,000,000 listed in the MLS, nearly equally divided between single family homes (565)and condos-townhouses-villas (526).  101 properties, approximately 10% are under contract - 22 single family and 79 condos.  Last year 360 properties sold, showing about a 3 year supply.  The supply of single family homes is 2.5 years (224 sold) and the supply … (3 comments)

Florida Heat Wave - St Pete and Pinellas County - 01/18/07 07:22 PM
We've had warm weather while the rest of the country freezes. The headlines this morning led to a story commenting that this was the warmest stretch of warm winter weather that we've had in 73 years! Really strange weather all over the country.
San Antonio was pleasant last week, and now the Riverwalk is frozen over and the Alamo closed down. People all over are without power.
Many people are changing their vacation plans and heading to Florida - just be sure you don't fly through Denver or even Dallas.  You may only get part way. 
Sharon Simms, Real Estate Agent selling homes in … (2 comments)

Cyberstar Group - 01/17/07 05:57 AM
A new Cyberstars group has been formed, thanks to Margaret Rome and Allen Hainge.  I'd like to remind all the Cyberstars that you should also add each Cyberstar to your Affiliates Group - make a separate section there for Cyberstars - when you add them as a member of your overall Affiliates, you can also add them to a special affiliates group, Cyberstars. This is not the same as the topic group, it's a people group. You can also go back to an individual you've previously added, and add them to your CyberStar affiliated group. You can then click on this … (4 comments)

Photoshop Elements 5.0 - 01/14/07 05:38 PM
Kristal Kraft asked me to followup on my photo class - specifically, when you're taking an inside shot, how do you get to see what's outside the window.
You take your photo and make it into two layers. You treat each layer separately, so in one you adjust the contrast and coloration to make the inside look just right, and in the other layer, you adjust so that the scene outside the window is in perfect focus and color. Then combine them.
If you want to learn more about Photoshop Element 5.0 check the new books at amazon.com, including Photoshop Elements 5.0: The … (2 comments)

Keeping the Grass Green - 01/13/07 06:25 PM
There hasn't been enough rain in St. Petersburg, Florida, this year to keep the grass green. From lack of water, or bugs, or sprinkler problems, we're getting patches of brown on many lawns. This has led to an addendum in offers/contracts in which the buyer is requesting the seller to resod portions of lawn before closing. That seems straight forward enough. An issue in a currently pending contract is WHEN the sod should be replaced. The closing is about 6 weeks away, and the Seller plans to put the sod in a week or so before closing. When we told the … (2 comments)

Puttin' On The Dog - 01/13/07 06:18 PM
Florida International Museum, in downtown St. Petersburg, Florida, has announced the opening of it's new exhibition,  Wolf to Woof: The Story of Dogs. This interative exhibition will run from January 19 to May 13, 2007. There is a series of events planned during that time, the first of which is the opening reception, Puttin' On The Dog, on January 19th. Information on the events and tickets for the show is available at the link for the museum.
The museum opened January 11, 1995, with Treasures of the Czars, a wonderful exhibit from the Kremlin Museum in Moscow. This one, and The … (1 comments)

Standoff seems to be ending - 01/13/07 06:08 PM
2006 in St. Petersburg and Pinellas County, Florida has been a slow year in sales, turning around and heading up only in December 2006. Buyers slowed because their homes haven't sold, and not all sellers were motivated to sell. It was a standoff - buyers weren't making offers because they feared the market would continue down, and sellers were holding to their bottom lines. Who was going to blink first? 
Properties are having more showings, and there are more offers. Most of them come in low, but we point out to the sellers that they should be mad at the people who … (2 comments)

Pinellas County Florida Market Update - 01/13/07 06:03 PM
Figures are out from the Pinellas Realtor Organization, and the numbers confirm an upturn in the market, which showings and offers on our listings have shown as well, starting the two weeks before Christmas.  December shows the first upturn in absorption rate in months. For single family homes, the rate increased from November's 5.7% up to 6.8% (a 15 month supply) and for condos, the rate increased from November's 4.0% to 4.1% (a 24 month supply). Single family homes sales were down 36.6% in units for 2006 vs 2005; condo units were down 46.7% Hopefully with the upturn in December, the … (0 comments)

Adobe Photoshop Elements 5.0 Class - 01/13/07 05:54 PM
A week ago, before the CyberStar Summit in San Antonio, Alan Mah gave a pre-conference class on Adobe Photoshop Elements 5.0 - about 50 of us attended. Helped by Josh Lorenz, he showed us lots of tricks and shortcuts of the many things we can do in Elements. Learning to use and modify layers was one of the most important - I finally figured out how I can show the outside through the window better when taking an interior shot.
There are a few good books out on the new version, too, especially Photoshop Elements 5: The Missing Manual, available at amazon.com. 
Sharon … (2 comments)

One Note - 01/12/07 07:10 PM
One Note is a Microsoft program that is especially useful on laptops, because you can take notes, make drawings, import photos, and even use it as a control of your listings and clients. I particularly like the note taking feature, and use it at all the conferences, meetings and classes I attend. It's readily searchable so if you remember who said something, or the topic, you can go immediately to your notes on it - don't have to worry about where you filed it. Another things I like about it is that you can classify things on the fly - things … (4 comments)

135 Sunset Dr. N., St. Petersburg, Florida - 01/12/07 06:49 PM
This wonderful family compound was built in 1925 or before. The main building has 5,088 sq ft plus uncounted space on the third floor that has angled ceilings. Behind it is a building with a 3 car garage and rec room on the ground level, and two guests apartments on the second floor (these are not included in the sq ft of the main building). Charming wood floors, niches, fireplaces...an enclosed sun room and a large screened porch that overlooks both the pool and the waterfront. Across the brick street is another strip of grass and your own water lots, complete … (3 comments)

Visistat - 01/12/07 06:29 PM
Visistat is a web analytics tool that can slice and dice your website in many different ways - now only how many hits you get, but where they came from - by browser, by state, even by city. It can also track which page the visitor came in on, and where he went while on your site. Search terms he used? Yes, that, too. For up to 25,000 page views a month, the cost is $179.95 a year. Information is power, and knowing which parts of your website are valuable to customers, and how they reached your site is critical information. … (1 comments)

Airport Security - 01/12/07 06:22 PM
It seems that every time I go through airport security, I forget something prohibited and have to throw it away - from tweezers to miniperfume that was itself legal but wasn't in the proper sized ziplock bag. This week I thought I had it all down pat: when I arrived at the security line I had my lipstick and miniperfume in a one quart clear ziplock bag, and all other cosmetics in my checked luggage. I arrived with my bag and purse: took off my shoes and jacket and put them in a tray; took off my cell phone and put … (0 comments)

The Naked Diet - Part II - 01/12/07 06:10 PM

Comments from my blog on The Naked Diet asked for progress photos, so reluctantly, Amy and I are obliging. The first photo was December 5th, the day we started the diet. The second was taken today, February 12. So, after 5 weeks we're neck and neck - I've lost 29 pounds and Amy lost 29.5 pounds. Our starting points were within 2 pounds, so it's a pretty even start.  We both managed well through all the holiday parties.
This week was a bit more challenging for me as we had airline flights and a CyberStar convention - not usually a place you … (10 comments)

In The Zone - 01/08/07 09:20 PM
Interruptions in your day can consume you, whether phone calls or  "visits" or just team members asking you a question whenever it comes to mind. This affects each one of us. Amy, our Director of Information, was the first to make project time - she'd put on her headphones and plug in her iPod and seeing the headphones we all knew not to disturb her. We could write down our questions so we wouldn't forget them for when she was free again. So one by one, we've all adopted that - without the iPod, though. We go zoning - and it … (3 comments)

Sometimes it's ok to be a Pop-Tart - 01/06/07 03:39 PM
Most of us have "rules" about how we work with prospective buyers, and often one of them is, when someone calls that's sitting in front of one of our listings and wants to see it "now", it's generally not worth the effort if they won't set a prearranged time to meet at the office or, possibly, at a listing. The phone rang this afternoon with such a call. Caller ID showed out of our area code. They're in front of one of my listings, and would like to see it now. Well, I'm working at home, trying to get all the … (5 comments)

Tarpon Springs, Florida - The Epiphany Dive - 01/06/07 12:03 PM
Tarpon Springs is a Greek "city" of about 20,000 people,  in northern Pinellas County, Florida, on the Gulf of Mexico. It's about 30 miles from St. Petersburg, so an easy drive when you feel like authentic Greek food and Greek culture. With 51 miles of waterfront, gulf, river and bayous, The Sponge Docks are a great attraction - yes, the fisherman bring in live sponges, and you can buy many types of sponges in the 100 or so shops on the docks. There are also over a dozen restaurants just on the docks, so there are many more Greek treats than … (3 comments)

The Naked Diet - 01/06/07 11:32 AM
Now that got your attention, didn't it? Even without a photo (Kristal would have had a clever photo for this one)
This wasn't a New Year's resolution, since I started December 5th. In the first month I lost 25 pounds, and that was over the period of all the Christmas parties, New Year's Eve, etc. I feel great. The best thing about this diet is that I don't feel hungry - and if I don't feel hungry, I don't eat.  I thought it would be hard giving up my Glad-To-Be-Home-At-The-End-Of-The-Day Chivas on crushed ice, but it hasn't been. I thought I'd … (10 comments)

Donuts, Brian? - 01/06/07 07:46 AM
Think food, not carbs. For those of you who want to bring food, why not step outside the box and bring some healthy things - I don't mean to NOT bring donuts or bagels, but how about something for all those people who are trying to lose weight or just stay healthy - it would be neat to bring something for them. Boiled eggs, maybe? (without the mayo, pickles and other things that do into delicious devilled eggs). Some shrimp cocktail? Small chunks of tuna, either raw or grilled? Want to bring something easier? Maybe some apples, or grapes, or plums. … (7 comments)

Update on New Year's Negotiations - 01/05/07 07:20 PM
Some of you have wanted an update to the blog I posted on the multiple ownership negotiations, so here it is:
Today we received the last signatures from the multiple parties, so we now have a contract instead of an offer. It's good I extended the acceptance day until today, to allow for delays, because it took all of that time. One personal visit; one fax to an attorney who drove half a hour to have his friend/client sign the offer and then fax it back to me, and one that had to be sent overnight to California to owners that did … (5 comments)

First Friday - St. Petersburg, Florida - 01/05/07 07:07 PM
Do you like block parties? Well, come on downtown. The first Friday of every month, St. Petersburg ropes off a block of Central Avenue, between 2nd St and 3rd St, for a night of live music and festivites. It's a great place for an end of business day party for downtown business employees, and yet another interesting event for all the downtown residents. So many people of all ages love living downtown in condos or townhomes, where they can walk to a constant flow of events. And if you don't want to be down on the street with the crowd, go … (0 comments)

Salvador Dali Museum - St. Petersburg, Florida - 01/05/07 06:58 PM
Twenty four years ago a museum opened on the waterfront in St. Petersburg which attracts 200,000 visitors a year from around the world - it's the Salvador Dali Museum, with the largest private collection of Dali in the world! We have a permanent collection, and several travelling exchanges. There is a meeting room for functions, with access to the museum after hours. There is a fun store with unique gifts to give for Christmas or birthdays, or take home, or just buy for fun. If you like jigsaw puzzles, there are some really interesting ones here. Throughout the day there are … (0 comments)

Book Crossing - 01/05/07 06:46 PM
Book lovers HATE to throw away books.  Unfortunately as they accumulate over the years, there aren't enough bookshelves in a home to accomodate them all. We don't want to sell them. Sometimes we'll give them away to friends or family, or loan them out. Generally it's the nonfiction books that I want to keep and refer back to, so I pass on the fiction to family who might have the same interests. What about nonfiction that you don't want to reread, or fiction that someone close isn't dying to read...
 Some of us read when we travel, and after we've finished a … (1 comments)

Hogmanay - 01/02/07 07:59 AM
Hogmanay is the Scottish celebration of the New Year - it starts on New Years Eve and ends today, January 2nd, which is a Scottish Bank Holiday.  We were fortunate to be invited by friends to celebrate Hogmanay at their downtown St Pete condo on New Year's Eve.  Below us was First Night, the 16th annual New Years Eve celebration in St Pete with many, many nonalcoholic events going on - many types of music, many places to see, and two fireworks displays, one at 9 and another at midnight. We were in the perfect place for the fireworks, as they … (5 comments)

 
Sharon Simms St Pete FL - CRS CIPS CLHMS RSPS (ALVA International, Inc.) Rainmaker_large

Sharon Simms St Pete FL - CRS CIPS CLHMS RSPS

Saint Petersburg, FL

More about me…

ALVA International, Inc.

Address: 238 Beach Drive NE, St Petersburg, FL, 33701

Office Phone: (727) 898-2582

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