Archive for May, 2009
Beware: Don’t Miss the Boat(s) on Your Pinellas Real Estate Purchase! How Rising Mortgage Interest Rates Hurt Your Bottom Line … Even in a Declining Market
May 30th, 2009 categories: Mortgage Updates
As Pinellas real estate prices have continued to drop each month, some Pinellas home buyers continued to play it cool, sit back and wait until a particular Dunedin Fl neighborhood becomes affordable in their eyes. Beware! There’s another boat you don’t want to miss.
Conventional interest rates had been hovering at historic lows of 4.75% – until this week, where they ended at 5.27%! It is unlikely they will stay in these low ranges, whether the 4’s or the 5’s for any length of time say most experts. Mortgage interest rates are tied to the bond market which has begun to take hits due to the state of the economy. Money.com had this good synopsis Thursday if you want to delve deeper.
So, if you’re waiting for that $200,000 home to fall another $10,000 or 5% – this will take about three months in our current market. Now its September 1st and you’re going to offer $190,000 and save about $50/mo on your mortgage payment. But wait! Interest rates have risen one point to 5.75%. Now your mortgage payment is $125.00 MORE than it would have been last week. This scenario has now cost you an additional $75.00/month – for the next THIRTY YEARS!!
$200,000 home with an 3.5% FHA 30 year loan:
4.75% = $1006.78/ mo payment
5.75% = $1126.30/mo
6.75% = $1251.79/mo
Some will say, “not a big deal.” Really? A 2% jump in interest equates to an additional $3,000 per year and over $162,000 over the life of the loan. Hmmm…
What’s the other boat? Trying to time the bottom of the market. A post for another day!
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Crystal Beach Fl Homes Are Selling While Kids Prepare for Crystal Beach Junior Talent Show!
May 29th, 2009 categories: Crystal Beach Homes, Selling Tampa Bay Homes FAST
Crystal Beach Florida is it’s own “town” within unincorporiated Palm Harbor FL. As you locals know, it’s kind of a secret place, and many outsiders don’t ‘get it’ with just a quick drive by. That’s why if you’re looking to sell your Crystal Beach fl home, it’s important to hire a local professional who can sing its praises to the outside world. We just sold these two Crystal Beach homes with spectacular gulf views. We’ve also sold more Crystal Beach homes than any other Pinellas Realtor this year!
Sellers, take heed. We aren’t the only game in town, but we are professionals that will get results for you. And we know how to have a laugh or two. We weren’t the first listing agents on either of these homes, and one of these homes was listed FIVE times with THREE Realtors before Suncoast Partners @ Keller Williams Realty Palm Harbor was hired with our stealth marketing strategy.
Crystal Beach Junior Talent Show Info: Those of you with kids thinking about relocating to Crystal Beach Fl might want to stop in May 30th at 6PM to check out the 3rd Annual Crystal Beach Junior Talent Show. It will be at The Beach House @ 520 Crystal Beach Avenue. Residents 18 and under will we singing, dancing, acting, doing magic tricks and comedy for trophies, ribbons and door prizes, and lots of fun. Admission and entry are free, of course. Call (727)787-7523 for info.
Currenlty there are 34 Crystal Beach homes in the Pinellas MLS for sale. For your personal tour, or for a plan to get your Pinellas home SOLD, call us, Julia & Matt Fishel, at (727)366-0325 (Matt) or (727)366-0324 (Julia).
We’d love to meet you and see if we can’t help you, too!
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A Taste of Pinellas at Vinoy Park in St. Petersburg This Weekend
May 28th, 2009 categories: Eat A Peach Restaurant Reviews, Pinellas Things to Do & Events
A Taste of Pinellas is happening this weekend and it looks like it’s going to be even bigger and better than last year. The setting alone (on the waterfront in Downtown St. Pete) is spectacular, but the celebration of great food and music makes it one of the best annual parties in Tampa Bay. This event is like the Taste of Palm Harbor on steroids! Admission is free and all of the proceeds go to support All Children’s Hospital.
Food and drink can be purchased from the restaurant booths with tickets — a sheet of 8 tickets sells for $5 and can be purchased at the event. There will be a Kids’ Zone for children and a specialty & import beer garden.
But central to this great festival is the tremendous opportunity for local restaurants to present selections from their menus. As of this writing some 40 restaurants are scheduled to set up and show off their extraordinary fare. Just some of the tasty treats will be served up from the ever-popular Bob Evans, the succulent ribs from Brady’s Backyard BBQ, the Courtside Grille , famous Crabby Bills , classic favorites from Five Guys Burgers and Fries , perfect sausage and peppers from Gratzzi Ristorante , and the local favorite, Hurricane Seafood Restaurant.
There will be music for every taste throughout the weekend but the headliners include: Night Ranger with Lita Ford on Friday night, Travis Tritt on Saturday and the ever-consistent KC and the Sunshine Band on Sunday!
Visit the parking and shuttle map to get yourself situated. We hope to see you down at beautiful Vinoy Park in St Petersburg!
Friday, May 29, 5pm-10pm
Saturday, May 30, 12pm-10pm
Sunday, May 31, 12pm-7pm
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All About Dunedin Florida Real Estate and Dunedin Things to Do
May 25th, 2009 categories: Dunedin Homes For Sale
While visions of palm trees dance in the heads of the Florida real estate buying public, there are neighborhoods and towns in Florida that offer SO much more than swaying foliage. Case in point: Dunedin Florida. It has it all. 
Dunedin Florida is a waterfront town nestled between Palm Harbor (including Ozona Fl and Crystal Beach) and Clearwater. Two of Dunedin’s claims to fame are the very celebrated Honeymoon and Caladesi Islands situated off the Dunedin shore. The Florida pride is justified in the recent proclamation of Caladesi Island as #1 on the list of best beaches in America. Honeymoon Island is just a 3 minute drive from the mainland and Caladesi Island State Park is reachable via ferry or private boat from Honeymoon Island.
Because of the recent #1 nod, Dunedin Florida has become a hot place to host weddings and to celebrate life’s milestones. Your guests can enjoy a pampered experience and then kick up some sand and rejuvenate!
The Dunedin lifestyle runs the gamut of outdoor activities like: windsurfing, sailing, kayaking, canoeing, and jet skiing. This active way of life is only rivaled by spectacular dining offered at local restaurants like Bon Appétit and tranquil evenings of star gazing from one of the yachts that dot the blue water of St. Joseph Sound.
For pursuits further inland, Dunedin real estate is architecturally interesting. As one of the premier Dunedin Realtors in the area, we’ve sold Dunedin homes with styles that run the gamut from spectacular waterfront Dunedin homes to retro ranches. From any number of these special homes, Dunedin visitors and residents can just take a spectacular stroll to the picturesque and lively downtown Dunedin area with its Read the rest of this entry »
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The Palm Harbor Library is Good and Green!
May 13th, 2009 categories: Palm Harbor Homes & Neighborhoods, Pinellas Things to Do & Events
Nestled in all this glorious Palm Harbor real estate is our recently renovated seat of learning and tranquility. The Palm Harbor Library on Nebraska Avenue recently completed a full-scale renovation. With several nods to the Feng Shui sensibility of design, the new Palm Harbor Library layout is open and airy and much more efficient. The original renovation concept was to add more light, utilize space more effectively, and make access to materials easier.
In addition to making the structure brighter and more effective, there was a definite desire to migrate toward the more environmentally correct. Throughout this beloved Palm Harbor Fl building, small signs are hung all over the place noting the modifications that were incorporated to make it green like: low-flow toilets and faucets, motion sensors to regulate lighting, and solar tubes to save energy — just to name a few modifications.
Some Palm Harbor Realtors we know actually take advantage of the independent sound proof study rooms just to catch up on emails and take a break from the phones! Imagine, Palm Harbor Realtors complaining about ringing phones? But sometimes it is great to take an hour, get some focus, and patronize our beautiful new library. Hope to see you there!
And parents, be sure to not only check out the timeless classic ‘The Cat in The Hat’ the next time you visit, but also check out the Palm Harbor Library’s kid links page. It’s filled with tons of of fun things to do, both online and in and around our treasured Pinellas homes.
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Pinellas Real Estate Sales as of March 2009
May 11th, 2009 categories: Market Updates
As Pinellas Realtors, we know that we have challenges ahead. Yet, as we study the statistics here at the Pinellas Peach, the signs are becoming clearer with each passing month that we are in a slow recovery pattern, at least in terms of the absorption rate. In fact, within the Keller Williams Realty Palm Harbor Florida office, we’ve all felt a significant uptick in buyer activity (and truly appreciate those rare days off!). Want proof?
Units Sold: There are more Pinellas condos and Pinellas homes selling now than have since 2007. Single family home sales were up 19.3% year over year in March. Condo sales showed a 17% increase over March of last year. If we had our magic wand, we could tell you if this trend will hold.
Inventory: The number of Pinellas homes on the market continues to drop, and were at their lowest point since March of 2006 when we were still in a boom Pinellas Real Estate Market. The Tampa Tribune reported similar findings in April for all of Tampa Bay.
Absorption Rate (A/R): The Pinellas County Real Estate absorption rates are higher than they have been since a couple of years. Yes, folks, you can sell your Crystal Beach Florida homes if you want to!
Pinellas Homes and Declining Median Sales Prices: OK, every silver lining has it’s dark cloud. Prices are Read the rest of this entry »
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Palm Harbor Pizza – These Palm Harbor Realtors Give Corteo’s Two Thumbs Up!
May 6th, 2009 categories: Eat A Peach Restaurant Reviews
Corteo’s Pizza and Pasta Restaurant in Palm Harbor, Florida makes a Sicilian pie that is hard to find outside of the Northeast. First of all, they construct it with real mozzarella cheese, not the inferior soy-based products that predominate. Their pie is also made in the infamous “Grandma-style” by nestling the cheese under the sauce. This method enables the cheese to stay moist and not burn. The sauce on top also helps to keep the cheese on the slice instead of it pulling off in the first bite. These things are important to a pizza lover!
The entrees are reasonably priced. The restaurant is clean and although not dripping with ambiance, it is open and friendly. The owners are those of the Michele’s Italian Restaurant that closed some years back.
Corteo’s offers “Parties on the Patio” for up to 20 guests for birthdays, anniversary parties etc. They only require a 5-7 day advance notice. Catering Trays “To Go” are another option with only 3 days notice required from order placement. Early bird specials are featured daily from 2:30 – 5:30 offering courses from appetizer to dessert.
The absolute best bet though is calling ahead and swooping in to pick up a Sicilian pie to go! Corteo’s is located at 32922 US 19 in the shopping center by Hops. Mangiare!
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1st Annual Palm Harbor Citrus Festival – A Ferris Wheel Ride to Remember
May 2nd, 2009 categories: Pinellas Real Estate
So on another sparkling blue Sunday in Crystal Beach Florida, we followed the music and made our way over to the first annual Citrus Festival. The streets in this exquisite section of historic Palm Harbor form a quaint labyrinth that showcases all the shops and eateries that make it the place to be on any Sunday.
But this past weekend it wasn’t just the Pinellas beach homes on display. The whole area around Nebraska and Florida Avenues was closed off to accommodate all the rides and the full arcade of classic carnival games. All kinds of vendors were represented in addition to a full set-up by our local Palm Harbor YMCA. Savory snacks sizzled on grills and the multi-tap Budweiser truck dispensed frothy glasses of beer to the Palm Harbor revelers.
As usual, the Palm Harbor Chamber of Commerce events staff did an outstanding job (with a bevy of hard working volunteers) hosting a tremendous time in this beautiful hamlet in North Pinellas County. With all of the excitement, we dropped our Flip video camera, and lost the ferris wheel video. Yet we managed to save this shot of a high-flying ride against the back drop of the downtown Palm Harbor sky.
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