The biggest historic preservation news of the season — aside from voters’ approval of Bradley Park as a new home for Henry Flagler’s Sea Gull Cottage — was the Town Council’s decision to cast off a longtime policy of rejecting landmark designation for properties when owners object to the protective, historic status. In April, the Town Council voted 5-0 to reverse the informal policy. The Landmarks Preservation Commission recommends properties for landmark designation; the Town Council approves or rejects those recommendations. Preservation consultant Jane Day told the council Palm Beach has forever lost to demolition houses and other buildings that might have been worthy of preservation but weren’t considered for landmark protection because their owners did not volunteer them.

Other Florida towns, including Coral Gables, Miami and Tampa, designate properties as landmarks without owner consent, Day said. Landmarks Preservation Commission Chairman Gene Pandula said high real estate values are putting existing houses at risk of being torn down to make way for larger ones. “The value of property in Palm Beach poses a threat that wasn’t there just a few years ago,” Pandula said.

For more information on this and other real estate matters, your first source for Palm Beach real estate should be licensed agent and long-time resident Caesar Parisi.

Read the rest of this entry

search for : Bradley Park, Henry Flagler, Sea Gull Cottage, Landmarks Preservation Commission, Palm Beach

Florida’s housing sector continued to show signs of market adjustments in April as mortgage rates edged up and the inventory of homes available for sale remained at higher levels in many markets. Statewide, the existing-home median price rose 13 percent to $249,700 last month; a year ago, it was $221,100, according to the Florida Association of Realtors® (FAR). A total of 16,392 existing single-family homes sold statewide last month, a decrease of 31 percent from the 23,844 homes that changed hands during the previous April, according to FAR.

“The single-family existing-home market has eased its pace, but the market is returning to a more normal balance after a long run of record sales and low inventory,” says Beverly Pindling, president of the Orlando Regional Realtor Association and broker-partner of Orlando Real Estate Professionals. “With economists predicting the national housing market to be the third-best ever (below 2005 and 2004), by comparison this confirms that Orlando remains a very strong local market. Our condo market offers many homeownership opportunities priced under $200,000, which helps to meet the challenge of getting more people into their first home.” Read the rest of this entry

search for : mortgage rate, Florida Association of Realtors, single-family, Orlando

Many less-experienced flippers who bought heavily into pre-construction deals in large communities on the Treasure Coast have experienced less than great returns. Instead of the quick riches they expected, many have encountered a slow market in which buyers are hard to come by. Some are stuck carrying mortgages longer than expected, cutting their asking prices or walking away from contracts altogether. The driving force: Too much competition for a diminished pool of buyers.

Just in Martin’s Crossing — one of the largest new communities in Martin County — 81 of about 500 completed homes were for sale last week, not including many listed by owners. In its sister development in St. Lucie County, Newport Isles — a subdivision east of Interstate 95 in Port St. Lucie — 84 of 403 completed homes were listed with an agent. Meanwhile, the communities’ builders also are continuing to jockey for buyers. Read the rest of this entry

search for : flippers, pre-construction deals, Treasure Coast, mortgage, Martin’s Crossing, St. Lucie County, Newport Isles

La Vieille Maison, one of Boca Raton’s most famous restaurants is closing. Three decades after Leonce Picot brought French cuisine and Old World service to southern Palm Beach County, this Boca Raton real estate property has become more valuable than the restaurant. The last lemon crepe soufflé, a constant over 30 years, will be served Wednesday. The most requested table, the four top in the Fish Pond Room, will be no more.

“It was difficult selling that place,” he said. “We were the first in Florida, perhaps in the South, that poured champagne by the glass. We were the first ones to bring Mondavi wine east of the Mississippi.” Laura Sayles, Picot’s daughter and the restaurant’s controller, said, “We were doing things that no one else had done before.” She runs the family’s Good Tastes, a Boca wine and gift shop that is not being sold. “[La Vieille Maison’s] very unlike most restaurants in South Florida,” said Carol Gottlieb, of Boca Raton, who celebrated a friend’s birthday there in March. “It’s set up like you’re the only ones there.” Read the rest of this entry

search for : La Vieille Maison, Boca Raton, Boca Raton real estate

Buying your first home involves some sacrifice. You’ll have to come up with a down-payment. Your aim should be to put down 10 percent to 20 percent of the purchase price. The bigger your down payment, the lower your mortgage payments will be. Tack on another 3 percent to 5 percent for closing costs and that is your goal. Sure, the number may be scary, but it’s better to know and be prepared than to be caught short later.

If you must the borrow a portion of the down payment, particularly if you find a home that your know is a great buy. You might consider borrowing the remainder of the down payment from your 401(k). The interest rate is usually good compared with other loans (typically, the prime rate plus a point or so) and you generally have 15 years to pay back the loan. Plus, the interest and principal you pay go back into your own account.

To find the perfect home, RE/MAX Properties REALTORS® Annette Smith is available to help you be an informed home buyer or home seller in today’s changing Sarasota real estate market.

Read the rest of this entry

search for : Buying your first home, down-payment, down payment, mortgage payments, 401(k), annettesellssarasota.com, sarasota-homefinder.com

Not long after settling into a new dwelling, many buyers begin to critique the house they just rented or bought. Rather than engaging in a depressive round of “buyers remorse”, wouldn’t it be better to spend some time in pre-purchase planning? Here are some practical things to think about when you’re looking through your pool of homes that you’re hoping to buy.

Location, location, location.


Yes, location means everything in the real estate market. And, have you considered where you live in relation to the services you need; schools, church, groceries, doctors, etc. Is the shopping just down the road, or does it take a maddening half-hour of fighting bumper-to-bumper traffic to visit your favorite supermarket?


More information on pre-purchase planning is discussed here.

Ready to buy or sell a Palm Beach home or condo? Consult with licensed agent Caesar Parisi. Caesar has assisted hundreds of buyers and sellers, giving sound advice on how to most effectively buy and sell property.

search for : dwelling, buyers remorse, pre-purchase planning, bocaraton-real-estate.com, real estate market, bocaraton-real-estate.com, Caesar Parisi

David deMartino bought a 760-square-foot, one-bathroom condo for $212,900 in the booming market of Fort Lauderdale, Fla. He’s already ordered custom flooring and cabinets and a flat-screen TV, but he has no plans to move there. That’s because the condo is for his collection of cars and motorcycles. The idea of buying a parking space is nothing new in crowded urban areas. A 180-square-foot space at the Brimmer Street Garage in Boston’s exclusive Beacon Hill neighborhood just sold for $200,000, according to a garage manager.

Park Place Car Condo is opening a 224-garage facility in North Miami and a 179-garage facility in Fort Lauderdale and plans to open locations in New York, Las Vegas, Orlando, Fla., and Scottsdale, Ariz., in the next few years. Developer Kevin Buckley said Park Place condos start at $150,000 for a 620-square-foot condo for three cars and go up to $400,000 for an 1,800-square-foot condo that can house a bus. Read the rest of this entry

search for : one-bathroom condo, Fort Lauderdale, Fla, Park Place Car Condo

Is there a property bubble on Florida’s Treasure Coast? But what is a real estate bubble? Simply, it’s a sharp rise in prices, followed by a sharp fall in prices. Infamous bubbles in financial history include the Tulipmania of the 1600s, the South Seas Bubble in the 1700s, and the more recent, the Dot.com Bubble that burst in 2001.

Academia identifies bubbles by examining the rise and fall of prices using statistical modeling. But without examining the statistics, academics know what one looks like: In the upside of a bubble, prices are fueled by speculation and reach levels that are not sustainable. In other words, prices rise to a point at which they do not bear any relation to the true economic value of the asset — what Alan Greenspan referred to as “irrational exuberance.”

Ready to buy or sell a Palm Beach home or condo? Consult with licensed agent Caesar Parisi. Casear has consulted with hundreds of buyers and sellers, giving sound advice on how to most effectively buy and sell property.

Read the rest of this entry

search for : Florida’s Treasure Coast, real estate bubble, Tulipmania, Dot.com Bubble, irrational exuberance

Summertime, and hurricane season, looms large on Jupiter Island Florida, a secluded 17-mile strip where Atlantic Ocean waves gently lap one side and the warm breeze pushes toward the Intercoastal Waterway. Here, among the manicured lawns, long driveways, security cameras and protective fences sits one of Florida’s most expensive collections of homes – nearly $2 billion in taxable value, an average of $4 million apiece.

Jupiter real estate agents suggest that at least 25 percent of the 500 or so homes on the island have a high-end generator at the ready. Since the island is largely vacant during hurricane season, shutters are up from June into November at most of the multimillion-dollar properties. And for those who do stay year-round, many have either handymen on call or the top-of-the-line automatic shutters, where they can protect their homes with a simple flip of a switch. Even with that level of preparedness, they do not fixate on hurricane season – in fact, many are tired of hearing about it already, even before it starts. Read the rest of this entry

search for : bocarelocation.com, Jupiter Island Florida, Intercoastal Waterway, ourcolony.net, bocaluxuryhomes.com, bocabeaches.com

The challenge of affordable housing is how to design it and have it look the same as market-rate housing in a community, a leading South Florida developer said Friday at the Urban Land Institute’s conference on affordable housing at the Boca Raton Resort and Club. “In my first encounter with workforce housing, we had 100 three-bedroom homes starting at $359,000 and 20 workforce homes at $225,000 that were smaller but had the same features,” said Jeffrey Auchter, marketing director for Lennar Corp.’s Broward County Division. “The workforce homes were scattered throughout the community, and you can’t tell the difference between what’s market rate and what’s workforce.

In the decade of 1992 to 2002, the aggregate cost of construction increased 67 percent, Friedman said. In the past four years, construction costs rose 160 percent. “Building within a budget is the most difficult thing to do,” he said. One important strategy is to negotiate costs, he said. Product substitution also is a powerful tool. And developers must learn to be more demanding of architects and engineers, Friedman said. “Say, ‘This is what we need,’ ” he advised. Friedman and other speakers reserved their strongest words for the Florida Legislature and Gov. Jeb Bush’s cap on the Housing Trust Fund. The fund gets its money from a tax on real estate transactions and funnels it back to local governments to build affordable housing.


At the forefront of affordable housing of all kinds has always been Palm Beach and Boca Raton Realtor® Caesar Parisi. Give him a call today.

Read the rest of this entry

search for : affordable housing, South Florida, Urban Land Institut, Boca Raton Resort and Club