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Category Archives: Buyers

Financial Transparency Finally Comes to Florida State Government Spending!

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Long overdue, state government fiscal transparency has finally arrived in the state of Florida. Floridians can now track how their taxpayer dollars are spent. Gov. Charlie Crist and Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink recently unveiled a new Web site to allow citizens to track the state budget. The new “Sunshine Spending Web site” will allow Floridians to hold our state government accountable for our hard earned tax dollars.

Free Search for Florida Vendors

It’s interesting to note, part of the functionality of this new Sunshine Spending web site is to “freely” allow Florida citizens for the first time to search for vendors and others who receive state funds. Updated daily and free of any login information, the site allows citizens to access a list of contracts of at least $25,000 in the open government section of this new Web site.

Proponent of Open Access and South Florida MLS Transparency!

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Marketing Hollywood Florida Real Estate with High-Tech Tools

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In today’s competitive Hollywood, Florida real estate market, home sellers deserve the absolute best in terms of property visibility. You really do deserve the most sophisticated marketing plan for your South Florida property. And sophisticated South Florida buyers are targeting Golden Beach, Hallandale, Aventura and Hollywood luxury neighborhoods with pinpoint accuracy. How is this possible?

National Websites & Smart Phone Tools for South Florida Home Buyers

While it’s important for a South Florida real estate agent to provide typical neighborhood information like area maps, easy to use South Florida MLS property search tool, offer neighborhood information and hyper-local market stats on their personal websites, tech-savvy buyers are using even more creative resources to access South Florida neighborhood listings. In addition to my personal South Florida real estate website at BuySouthFlorida.com, a few of the creative ways I make sure your listing is exposed to the masses includes the use of high-traffic national websites, smart phone applications and of course, this South Florida real estate blog.

Creative Hollywood, Hallandale, Aventura, and Golden Beach Property Marketing Strategies

Below are a few strategies and tools used to market your Hollywood, Aventura, Golden Isles or Golden Beach property.

What Do You Expect?

What other creative marketing tools and strategies would you expect to see take place if you were to place your South Florida home on the market?

City Of Golden Beach Florida News

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Grand Opening of Golden Beach Florida’s Newly Renovated Beach Pavilion

The Golden Beach Pavilion project has been completed.  The Pavilion is a focal point of the town and is only for the use of Golden Beach residents.  Among the renovations to the revamped Pavilion are wireless internet access, new furniture, renovated restrooms, landscaping to the parking lot and a new facade.  Total renovation costs are estimated around $700,000.00.  The Grand Opening was held this past Sunday September 14, 2008.

Golden Beach Residents Have Access To A Private Beach

The Beach Pavilion can be reserved by residents for parties or special occasions and is located at the Strand and Ocean Boulevard.  The community of Golden Beach is one of the only ones to offer it’s residents and registered guests access to a private beach.  Many of the Golden Beach properties are located on the intracoastal and it’s waterways or directly on the Atlantic Ocean.

Get To Know Hollywood Beach Florida

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Avoid the Crowds – Come to Hollywood Beach!

Offering visitors and residents alike many advantages including easy access to Fort Lauderdale and Miami, Hollywood Beach is located minutes from Aventura, Golden Beach, Sunny Isles, Golden Isles and Hollywood Lakes. In South Florida we all know its all about the beaches and Hollywood Beach Florida offers some of the finest beaches like its sister South Florida cities. Want to avoid the peak season crowds? You must come to Hollywood Beach. Offering something for every budget, visitors to Hollywood Beach can access accommodations from the luxurious to the affordable.

The Hollywood Boardwalk

Hollywood Beach Hollywood Florida

Measuring two miles in length, the Hollywood Boardwalk was built in 1923. Beckoning to days of old, this landmark thirty-foot wide pedestrian promenade is home to a vibrant blend of beach activities, cultural events, awe-inspiring views and of course – a terrific beach! Named one of America’s top notch nostalgic venues by USA Today, the Hollywood Boardwalk is an auto-free zone. Expect to find an active crowd enjoying a bike ride, along with runners, walkers and rollerbladers. Blending in perfectly in this nostalgic setting are fanciful boutique hotels, interesting shops, and great Oceanside eats.

Hollywood Florida East Market Report (5 Year Snap Shot)

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Hollywood Lakes

Supply & Demand Hollywood Florida

In order to assist both Buyers and Sellers in better understanding the South Florida real estate market and precisely Hollywood East including “Hollywood Lakes” I have provided a “Supply and Demand” graph of the past 5 years. The peak of the market was April 2005 when there was hardly any inventory and tons of sales creating what is called a “Sellers Market”, we had approximately as little as 2 months supply of single family homes in both Broward and Miami-Dade Counties.

Condo v.s. Single Family Homes

If we were to graph different areas throughout South Florida they would all look very similar to this graph with the exception of the “Condo Market” which is dramatically different. Although often grouped together the “Condo Market” and the “Single Family Home” market are “Apples and Oranges”. The “Single Family Home” “Waterfront Market” is in much better shape than any other sector of the real estate market. Sellers were in the drivers seat for a very long time but today the Buyers have much of the control due to the abundance of inventory and especially International Buyers that are also taking advantage of the weak dollar.

What Is A Healthy Real Estate Market?

Many of the single family home markets have anywhere from 20 to 50 months supply of inventory and some of the condo markets have up to 90 months supply, depending on the location, price range and even the development. To give you an idea of what is a “Healthy Market”, we need no more than 6 to 12 months supply, below 6 months supply is a “Sellers Market” and above 12 months supply is a “Buyers Market”.

International Influence

I could talk about supply & demand and the whole real estate market forever but let’s all be thankful we are selling and/or owning properties in South Florida (Hollywood, Golden Isles, Aventura and Golden Beach) where we have one of the largest concentration & influence of international Buyers in the US. The Aventura Mall is now one of the top grossing malls in the country mainly due to “International” shoppers. My sales so far this year are up 22% over last year, I contribute this directly to South Florida being the place the world wants to be.

Premier Waterfront Communities In Aventura, Golden Beach, Sunny Isles, Hollywood and Hallandale

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South Florida has much to offer from cultural diversity, fine dining, beautiful beaches, vibrant nightlife, great weather and the best boating in the US. We are surrounded by water and there is no better way to take advantage of Sunny Florida than owning a piece of premier South Florida waterfront real estate. The Intracoastal waterway shaped South Florida and made it the boating capital of the world “America’s Venice” and navigating the waterway offers the best way to see South Florida from a different perspective.

Waterfront Communities In Hollywood, Hallandale, Sunny Isles, Golden Beach and Aventura!

Hollywood: Harbor Islands & Hollywood Lakes

Hallandale: Golden Isles

Sunny Isles: Golden Shores & Golden Gate

Aventura: Island Estates, Porto Vita & Williams Island

Golden Beach

Thinking of Buying a South Florida Waterfront Property?

What you should consider when thinking about buying a home in South Florida?

1. Are you a boater or are you considering purchasing a vessel in the near future?

2. What is the water depth at the property? The deeper the better and easier it will be for larger vessels to navigate since they usually draw more water. I recommend a minimum of 5 feet low-mean tide. Be sure you know – “What’s the draft of your vessel or future vessel?”

3. Are there any fixed bridges in your area you will be navigating? If so, what is the clearance/height at high tide? Many times fixed bridges are tall enough for about any vessel to get by.

4. Location to the ocean cut, in other words how far will it take you if you have a vessel to get out to the ocean via the inlet.

5. How wide is your dock and the canal, will the length of your dock meet your vessels overall length? Also, typically the wider the canal the more privacy you will have.

6. Is the property located in a wake zone or no wake zone?

7. For the most part, South Florida properties offering open water views have the steepest price tags for obvious reasons like the alluring views and privacy but are not always great in terms of docking your vessel at the property due to the rough seas & wakes from other vessels.

8. Does it have a dock with the correct services: 30, 50 or 100 amp service, water, cable and telephone?

9. Most importantly, is your seawall and dock deeded to your South Florida property?

Owning a Piece of South Florida Paradise Can be Yours!

All and all you almost can’t go wrong buying waterfront properties in the South Florida communities of Aventura, Golden Beach, Hallandale, Hollywood and Sunny Isles. It is one of South Florida’s biggest draw and with no more land being created, it is truly owning a piece of paradise. Money goes to Water!

Are You an Avid South Florida Boater?

What other features or characteristics would you add to this list?

Thanks for the feedback!

Scott

Hollywood Florida Twin Lakes “Northlake” and “Southlake”

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Hollywood Lakes is a large residential section with twin man Hollywood Lakes Northlake and Southlakemade lakes known as “Northlake” and “Southlake” flanking Hollywood Boulevard as focal points for beauty, symmetry, and aquatic activities. Southlake is designated as a wake zone and is one of the only areas that offers water skiing and Jet Skiing directly from your property with close proximity to Hollywood Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Aventura and Miami.

Northlake and Southlake Offering Great Views

The lakes draw a lot of attention not just for their size but for the open spaces, unobstructed lake views, cool breezes and natural ventilation that comes from living along either lake. One of South Florida’s hidden waterfront communities.

Hollywood Florida Real Estate is truly European – The Brits Are Coming!

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Hollywood Beach Home

International Buyers Descend on Homes for Sale in Hollywood, FL

Lately, I have really noticed an increase in international buyers interested in South Florida real estate especially buyers from Europe. I just sold this new Hollywood Beach home that closed and sold for 1.5 million dollars, it was another cash transaction!  No doubt, international buyers are taking advantage of the soft value of the US dollar versus the value of the Euro when buying homes for sale in South Florida.

International Buyers Tap into The Power of the Internet

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Aventura Real Estate Agent to Connect in San Francisco at Inman Conference!

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It’s All the Buzz of the Real Estate Experts in South Florida

All the buzz here in the South Florida real estate community is about whether I should attend the Inman Real Estate Connect that takes place in a few weeks in San Francisco. The other day my EWM buddy and South Beach Realtor, Kevin Tomlinson told me I should go. Even my real estate marketing partners at Dakno told me it’s the place to be to learn all the last on Internet marketing strategies and blogging tips. Based on the advice of Brad Carroll with Dakno Marketing, Crystal Coast Real Estate Blogger and Dakno associate Bobby Carroll, Kevin T. and EWM COO Beth Butler – San Francisco here I come!

Lookout Aventura, Hollywood, Hallandale, and Golden Beach Real Estate Markets – I’m Going to Connect!

I look forward to meeting with my peers and learning about the latest and greatest technology and issues in our industry as well as visiting beautiful San Francisco! I already have locked in my place to hear our own Beth Butler of EWM when she speaks at the conference. Plus, this is a great opportunity to connect with many of the top Blogging Realtors throughout the country and bring back many fresh ideas to my real estate markets in Aventura, Golden Beach, Hallandale and Hollywood.

See you in San Francisco!

Scott


Connect SF 2008

Mystery Luxury Buyer Purchases Fort Lauderdale Waterfront Mansion

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Fort Lauderdale Waerfront Property Fetches $15.5 Million

A mere 5 miles north of Hollywood, Hollywood Lakes and 6 miles from Hallandale (Golden Isles) & Golden Beach, lies the highest priced recently sold property in Fort Lauderdale (Broward County). Fetching $15.5 million, this 16,000 square foot waterfront mansion on Harbor Beach was supposedly purchased by a European buyer one publication called a “Bill Gates type” individual.

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