Miami Dade Real Estate Scoop

If you live in Dade County and your property is your primary residence, you are entitled to a $25,000 homestead property tax exemption.  Not only will this help to reduce your annual property taxes, it will prevent your taxes from being taxed at Assessed Value in the coming years.  This is the reason some homeowners pay less than others...because they filed for Homestead Exemption!  It is very common to see this happening all over Miami, including the areas I cover, Kendall, the Redlands and Homestead.

If you purchased your home in 2006, as long as you closed and moved in by December 31, 2006, you may be eligible for the Homestead Exemption.  But hurry, the deadline for filing is March 1, 2007!

There are other exemptions available, such as Senior Citizens, Widow/er, Disability, Veteran's and others.  Check the website to see if you qualify.

For more information, including how and where to file, visit the following website:

http://www.miamidade.gov/pa/exemptions.asp

This community announcement is brought to you by your local Miami Redlands Real Estate professional, Maggie Dokic.  Visit Maggie's website for more local reading!

I'm serious!  Kind of like...if a tree falls in a forest....blah blah blah

I've read a few blogs this week about commenting on blogs.  I think everyone enjoys having their blogs visited and commented on but does it have to be the be all and end all?  I'm pretty new in Active Rain and have enjoyed splashing around.  But once the novelty wore off and I realized I want to do this as a regular part of my marketing I started seeing things differently.

Please don't misunderstand me.  I think it's polite to try and add a valuable comment if I can.  I've done more than my maximum 10 comments daily, simply because I thought it was the appropriate thing to do.  If I was reading, I wanted the blogger to know it.  Sometimes I commented precisely because there were no comments and I felt the blogger should be acknowledged.  Sometimes I've used the comment box as an instant messenger of sorts and just went back and forth with the blogger.  Only once did I read a blog with zero comments and found myself stumped as to what to say, so I snuck out the back door hoping I had not been seen.

I'm writing because I've realized how important the comments have become to me and I don't like feeling that way.  If there's comments...you like me!  If there's no comments...you don't like me!  I thought I had figured out a way to fix that.  I remembered seeing in my settings a box I could check to not allow comments.  YES!  That would be my solution.  If I can't get comments, then I won't worry about them not being there.  Does that make sense?  Am I giving you TMI here?  I went over to my settings and discovered I had misunderstood the box.  It was there only to exclude non-member comments.  Oh rats.  I was back to square one.

For those of you who've been around longer, I'd like to ask: did you feel this way at all in the beginning?  If so, does the feeling pass?  Are these just growing pains?  I read Maureen Francis once saying she'd broken her AR addiction.  How'd you do it MF?

For the newer ones: is anyone else out there feeling like this?

For all:  if AR were to give us a box whereby we could turn commenting OFF, would you use it?

Please be gentle with me.  I've always been the type to wear my heart on my sleeve.  I'm doing it again now.  How's that for transparency?

I've always been fascinated by folks who take what seems to be nothing and turn it into, well... something.  I remember years ago reading the story of Sasson Jeans.  For those of you old enough to remember, their jingle may still reverberate in your head.  "Oooh la la. Sasson!"  Apparently their founder arrived in the United States in the 70's with approximately $51.00, a bag of skinny French jeans and not much else; no place to live; no job to speak of.  Without even a command for the English language, he set out to convince mega-retailer Bloomingdale's to carry his jeans.  The rest of the story is, as they say, history.  Sasson Jeans was big in its heyday.  Very big.  They graced some of the finest derrieres around. 

How did someone who had what seemed to be no resources turn a bag of clothing and not much money into a fashion conglomerate?  The answer is what's driving my writing today.  You see, he did have something.  He believed in himself and he acted on that belief.  He knew that although the odds were stacked against him, he had come to this land of opportunity to build a future for himself.  Was it easy?  I dare say not.  But is anything of worth ever easy?  (I must disclose at this point that the empire this man built eventually crumbled.  There were many reasons, not the least of which was his newfound penchant for cocaine.  I'm not here discussing the perils of chemical addiction or shady bookkeeping just the drive to succeed, so please forgive my somewhat tarnished example.)

I'm paraphrasing one of my favorite motivational speakers, Anthony Robbins, here.  He says that what people can achieve is monumental, but what they do achieve is usually disappointing.  Can you grasp the value of that statement?  You are capable of doing extraordinary things!  Yet we tend to get stuck in a rut and not move forward, repeating the same mistakes over and over again.  Why would we choose to not live up to our full potential?  I can go into the psychological reasons but let's keep it simple.  It's easy.  It takes too much effort to step outside our comfort zone and do the things we know will bring us success.  It's so much easier to get caught up in the day-to-day stuff that's going on and forget that one day down the road we'll wake up and realize we're nowhere near where we'd like and the years have passed us by.  Before you go stick your head in the oven at this realization, let me say a few other things. 

• You have the power to dramatically change your future.  The power is within you. 
• Write a mission statement.  What exactly are you trying to achieve with your life? 
• Create a game plan for that mission.  It's no joke that failing to plan IS planning to fail.
• Write your goals down.  For whatever reason, it works.  It's been proven that those who write their goals down are much more likely to achieve them than those who verbalize them.  Write your Long Term Goals as well as Short Term.  You should do this for every aspect of your life: personal; professional; spiritual; financial, etc.
• Be specific.  Don't just say I want lots of money.  How much?  or I want to help people.  How?  or I want an expensive car.  Which one and when?
• Use the Salami Method to achieve your goals and work on your projects.  Would you eat a whole salami in one bite?  Of course not.  You'd cut it up in little pieces and tackle it that way.  Identify all the steps necessary to achieve those goals and finish your projects.  List them as simple, doable tasks.  Getting your broker's license may seem like an astronomical feat, but it's really made up of many simple steps.  Start with the first one.
• Keep a schedule.  Make sure you are regularly scheduling some of those tasks identified... and getting them done!
• Revisit your mission statement, plan and goals regularly.  Even a pilot whose plane is on autopilot has to check regularly and make sure he is still on track.  If something needs adjusting, do it.
• Find a mentor, if you will, or like-minded people who will raise you up.  Stay away from the nay-sayers who will drag you down.
• Above all, believe that you can do it, for it's true.

Decide right now, this very moment, that you want more.  Then go for it.  As trite as it may sound, Nike was right when they said Just Do It. 

I know you can.

I had something happen today that's never happened to me before.  A buyer called about one of the properties I have listed for sale.  That's happened before, I'm referring to something else. 

He was standing in front of the property and asked for information.  I went into my usual informative speech about the property and asked if he wanted to schedule an appointment to see it.  He asked how firm the seller was about the asking price.  I replied that my seller is willing to consider all serious offers.  It is listed at $365,000 and I believe it is priced well.

Without further ado, the gentleman tells me, "OK, tell them I'm offering $300,000." 

He took me by surprise but I quickly overcame that.  "Sir, in order for an offer to be considered a serious offer, I need to have it in writing.  Should you wish to submit a written offer I'd be happy to meet you at my office and we can get one written up."  I did not laugh at the offer, although I wanted to. 

He kept insisting that I take his verbal offer back to my client and get back to him.  I held my ground and insisted on having it in writing (a nice big good faith deposit to go along with that paper would be nice too.)

He ended the conversation by telling me he'd get back to me if he was interested in pursuing this further. 

I take great care in pricing my clients' properties.  I knew this lowball offer was just that.  The man had not even been inside the property!  Who makes a serious offer without first seeing what they're buying? However, I also have a legal obligation to submit all offers to my sellers, and submit them in a timely fashion regardless of what I think of them personally.  It is not for me to decide if an offer is acceptable or not.  That's a job for my client and I gladly offer my advice to help them out.  Ah, but wait.  My obligation is specifically for written offers.  The listing agreement says so.  There's a box for verbal offers on the contract but it's never checked.  I discuss this with my sellers.  I don't consider a verbal offer to be serious so why waste anyone's time?  It is too easy for these bottom feeders to go around making ridiculously low verbal offers and see if anyone takes them up on it.  In the event anyone did consider such an offer it's just as easy for the buyer to claim he never made it if he's moved on to greener pastures.  A BIG waste of time for all involved. 

I actually did call my seller and filled her in.  She asked for his number so she could call him herself and have a word or two with him.  Of course I didn't provide it and we both had a good laugh about it.

Bargain hunters you're on notice.  If you want a piece of Miami real estate that's being sold by this agent, put it in writing.

When the center started, their sole animal was one cougar who had been confiscated from a tool salesman in Ohio.  They now have over 30 "cats" as well as monkeys, geese, macaws and others.  Many of these animals were kept as "pets" by their previous owners until they were taken away from them, due to neglect and oftentimes injured.  Such was the case with Sabbi, one of the many Florida panthers, who was brought to the center bloodied and with broken feet - the doings of an owner who didn't want his "pet" wandering off.  It is not only the intent of the center to rescue and rehabilitate these animals but to educate the public about the harm of owning exotic animals as pets. 

The center receives no federal, state or county funding.  It survives entirely on donations.  Although visits can be made most Sundays, there is a special Open House this Saturday, February 24, 2007 from 10AM - 4PM.  It is the hope of the center that visitors to the Open House will learn more about the animals and how much help they truly need.  Admission is free and there will be guided tours.

The SFWRC is located at 19391 SW 336 Street, South Miami-Dade

For more information please call 305-247-7885 or 786-246-4263

This announcement is brought to you by your local Miami Real Estate expert, Maggie Dokic.  Please visit at www.MaggieTheRealtor.com

This weekend is St. Sophia Greek Orthodox Cathedral's 29th Annual Greek festival.

I left New York and it's diversified cultures years ago.  I miss being able to find just about any ethnic food nearby.  While Miami does have many different cultures and I love it here, one has to travel a lot farther in Miami to find certain things.  I am looking forward to this weekend's Greek festival and being able to buy some good baklava, a flaky pastry made of phyllo dough, nuts, honey and sugar.  Another favorite, although a similar version can easily be made at home, is horiatiki, or the traditional Greek salad made with feta cheese, black olives, chopped cucumbers, onions and tomatoes.  My mouth waters just typing this.

There will be many other Greek foods and pastries available.  In addition to food, there will be cooking demonstrations by some of the local Greek establishments, cathedral tours, a children's dance demonstration and a musical performance by the duo Sasha.  The event traditionally attracts roughly 7,000 people.  Mmmmm.... can't wait!

When:  11:00AM - 11:00PM Friday - Sunday 2/23-2/25/07

Where: St. Sophia Greek Orthodox Cathedral, 2401 SW Third Avenue, Miami, FL

Admission: $5 for adults.  Children under 12 free.

Info:  305-854-2922

Mortgage Fraud.  These 2 words can evoke fear in people.  As well they should!  Mortgage fraud is so rampant in our industry, including here in Miami real estate, that it is being treated by the authorities with the attention it deserves. 

I'm sure most consumers aren't aware that some of the things going on are illegal.  There are many different things that constitute mortgage fraud.  I'm touching on only one thing in this post: the inflated appraisal.

Asking an appraiser to "bring the appraisal in" at a certain number is illegal!  Recent findings show that a majority of appraisers find themselves pressured in some way to appraise the home at a specific value.

Some people think that no one is being hurt if a home is valued incorrectly just to be able to close on the deal.  After all, the borrower is going to make the mortgage payments, right?  Wrong.  It is still fraud.  The bank is being defrauded.  

Aside from qualifying the applicant for a loan, a bank has to qualify the property as well.   Most consumers don't get this.  The bank is just doing their homework and covering their assets, no pun intended.  You wouldn't accept collateral on a personal loan if it was worth less than the amount you're lending, would you?  Yet, that is exactly what is happening to a bank when a property's appraisal is compromised.

Think about it rationally.  Maybe this scenario will help:

• A bank lends 90% in a transaction under the belief that the home is worth $500,000.  That means the loan is for $450,000.
• The home is actually only worth $400,000.
• The closing takes place and the buyers fully intend to make the mortgage payments.
• Six months later someone gets laid off and keeping up with mortgage payments is difficult.
• Three months after that foreclosure proceedings begin.
• The bank now has to foreclose on a property that is worth $400K, but they are owed $450K (just a tad less, considering the principal paid).  They are being shortchanged.  I have left changing property values out of this equation.  A bank does not lend money based on what a property may be worth in the future.  I am also leaving out legal fees for simplicity's sake.  Considering they can run into the thousands that just brings the amount of money to a new level altogether.

This a very simplified version of this, to be sure.  When this happens, chances are pretty darn good that money has  changed hands at the closing table months before.  And I'm not referring to the money that should have rightfully changed hands; a sale did take place after all.

So be wary if your real estate professional says, "don't worry, we do this all the time."  That may very well be the case, but it doesn't mean it's legal.  Personally, if I hear that line, I do exactly the opposite:  I worry. Make sure you're working with someone who keeps everything above board.  Even if I did look good in orange jumpsuits, I'm not ready to make them my daily attire.

This is sooo cute I had to share it....    

Little Leroy came into the kitchen where his mother was making dinner. His birthday was coming up and he thought this was a good time to tell his mother what he wanted. "Mom, I want a bike for my birthday."

Little Leroy was a bit of a troublemaker. He had gotten into trouble at school and at home. Leroy's mother asked him if he thought he deserved to get a bike for his birthday. Little Leroy, of course, thought
he did. Leroy's mother, being a Christian woman, wanted Leroy to reflect on his behavior over the last year.
"Go to your room, Leroy, and think about how you have behaved this year. Then write a letter to God and tell him why you deserve a bike for your birthday." Little Leroy stomped up the steps to his room and sat down to write God a letter.

LETTER 1:
Dear God,
I have been a very good boy this year and I would like a bike for my birthday. I want a red one. Your friend, Leroy.

Leroy knew that this wasn't true. He had not been a very good boy this year, so he tore up the letter and started over.

LETTER 2:

Dear God,
This is your friend Leroy. I have been a good boy this year and I would like a red bike for my birthday. Thank you. Your friend, Leroy
Leroy knew that this wasn't true either. So, he tore up the letter and started again. 

LETTER 3:

Dear God,
I have been an "OK" boy this year. I still would really like a bike for my birthday. Leroy.

Leroy knew he could not send this letter to God either. So, Leroy wrote a fourth letter.

LETTER 4:

God,
I know I haven't been a good boy this year. I am very sorry. I will be a good boy if you just send me a bike for my birthday. Please! Thank you, Leroy

Leroy knew, even if it was true, this letter was not going to get him a bike. By now Leroy was very upset. He went downstairs and told his mom that he wanted to go to church. Leroy's mother thought her plan had worked, as Leroy looked very sad.  "Just be home in time for dinner," Leroy's mother told him.

Leroy walked down the street to the church on the corner.  Little Leroy went into the church and up to the altar.
He looked around to see if anyone was there. Leroy bent down,and picked up a statue of the Virgin Mary. He slipped it under his shirt and ran out of the church, down the street, into the house, and up to his room. He shut the door to his room and sat down with a piece of paper and a pen. Leroy began to write his letter to God.

LETTER 5:

God,
I'VE GOT YOUR MAMA. IF YOU WANT TO SEE HER AGAIN, SEND THE BIKE.

Signed,

YOU KNOW WHO

I love to hear of people getting contacted by consumers finding them on ActiveRain or Localism.  I even wrote about my first such contact last week.  I've received 2 more contacts but am not jumping for joy.  These don't seem to be genuine.  Maybe I've gotten too cynical?  Here's how one reads:

"am (name), and i will like to share some ideals with you, well am incharge of my sister's company which i need to get some ideals from people like yoou...

thanks"

The other goes like this:

"I would like you assisting me in getting a real estate firm offer, i am a colleague of (Acme Real Estate) which is a private real estate firm selling and buying houses in china and have other ventures like renting of homes and room. We have plan of investing into the US real estate BIZ where we can buy houses and sell we are chosing US because of it's today's competitive real estate market. we are also looking in assisting someone with an real estate projects by which we fund the real estate project. we are only hoping for this business form in the US and europe and if getting interest from investors .We provide conforming, non-conforming and joint venture funding.
get me your IM address for a chat i would have like to talk on phone but i dont speak english wel and i am getting to you with the help of a transaltor ,if interest you can add to your Yahoo IM at  (Acme)500@yahoo.com  of mail me at foreigninvestor@(AcmeRealEstate).com"

I checked the website and it's a point2agent site.  And it's in English.  Yes, they speak English in China, but it's not their primary language.  Are businesses in China targeting the consumer in English because of the many dialects over there?  The information is also very vague and general.  When I googled the person and company name I only came up with one entry and it was a posting on a bulletin board telling folks basically what my email contact was telling me.  To make it a little murkier, the contact came from an email at a college networking site, not even the yahoo or company email stated above.

We've all been made aware of the foreign nationals who email us to tell us we can share in their billion dollar "forgotten" bank accounts if we only provide our own bank account numbers for the wiring of funds.  Uh huh. And I have some swampland right here in our lovely everglades I can sell you too.  But I've yet to hear that this has started happening right here in the Rain.  Have other Rainers been getting these contacts also?  Does this mean we are finally going mainstream??  Not only is google and the media noticing us, the conmen are too!

Picture it...  11 homes listed in this subdivison.  It's a beautiful community made up of 92 gorgeous homes.  The community is brand new.  The developer closings on the first house took place a year ago and the more recent ones were finished 6 months ago.  As a matter of fact, the builder still has 3 properties for sale (not listed on the MLS). They're finished, but sitting vacant. In addition there's also a FSBO fighting for attention from would-be buyers.  The homes are mostly 2-story beauties with many upgrades.  Even the smaller models are eye-catching. 

The listings range in prices from $320K to $480K. That high end of the range is pushing it quite a bit as it really should be listed at around $435K tops.  The one at $320K is a pre-foreclosure, priced to sell at exactly what the owner paid 11 months ago and it's been on the market exactly 2 months today without going pending yet. Nothing is moving!

Then along comes Bozo and lists his phenomenal house at $589,000!  No that's not a typo.  He (or his Seller) actually thinks someone out there is going to be umm... shall we say stupid enough to pay a full $125,000 more than the other one just like it that's listed (and has sat for 3 months without selling)?  Let me repeat that, $125,000.  One hundred and twenty-five thousand dollars.   Does anyone other than myself realize how much money that is?  At the federal minimum wage of $5.15 it would take a person 11.66 years to earn that kind of money!  And that's a bad comparison since the person is expected to actually spend the earnings to live. Have we lost our senses? And get this, the owner bought the house almost 6 months ago at $435k!  Does he not realize they will use his own house as a comp on the appraisal?  HELLO?? Anybody home??  To add further insult to injury it's been 2 weeks and there are no pictures. This home is so stunning that pictures wouldn't do it justice, I guess (that's sarcasm, in case you didn't catch it).

For those of us who might want to offer the benefit of the doubt and say...

• But Maggie, maybe his house is better.  It isn't.  Don't argue with me.  The builder made them pretty much the same.  Upgrades were extras such as a second sink in the master bath for an extra $550.00.  How many sinks could he have gotten?  Even an Octopus family wouldn't need that many sinks!
• But Maggie, maybe he improved it.  What can you possibly do to a brand new house that's already got vaulted ceilings, high-hats, granite counters, cherry wood cabinets, keystone pavers in the driveway, 20 x 20 ceramic tile, etc?  OK let's say he did want to make improvements, I still need to interject this, we're in Dade County; where a contractor who shows up when he says he will is as good to have as the very best neurosurgeon.  He would have had barely enough time to pull his permits in the 6 months since he bought.
• But Maggie, maybe the agent is just using this listing to get buyer calls.  Aha!  I knew you would go that route.  Wrong again!  There are no signs allowed in this community.  A 12x12 inch sign may be placed inside the window.  How much exposure is that going to provide to anyone?  My riders are bigger than that!
• But Maggie, maybe the house really is worth that much money.  I'm shaking my head now. If I have a buyer who can afford to spend that kind of money, I would advise him to go where the average home is worth $600K and buy the cheapest home there.  Better ROI in anyone's book.

My take on this is pure and simple.  The seller is greedy and the agent is clueless.  He needs to add a curly red wig and a rubber nose to his business attire.  I'm disgusted with these people.