Miami Dade Real Estate Scoop

I read that Lizzie Palmer is only 15 years old.

We should all be so wise.

As of this posting, this video has been viewed over 8 million times.

Remember.

Have you been looking for a home in the Redlands but can't afford the prices?  Own this great gem of a home in the historical Miami Redlands area at a phenomenal price!

$349,900 buys you this small but ample home in the Miami Redland area, slightly off the beaten path.

The lot is 150' x 108' for a total of 16,200 SF.  There's plenty of room here!  The home has been completely remodeled  inside.  See below for details!

To make an appointment to see this affordable home in the Redlands, please call your Miami Redland REALTOR, Maggie Dokic at 786-581-1517.

The Redland is waiting for you!

Please mention code P8240411

Visit my blogsite.

This post was inspired by a post of Maureen Staccato's.

No, I am not being facetious.  I really want to know. 

Why am I asking something that may seem obvious to most?  Well, here in Florida you don't need to speak English to get your real estate license.  You can take the class in Spanish.  You can take the test in Spanish.  You can speak Spanish to your customers.  You can use a Spanish sale and purchase contract.  But is this beneficial to the consumer?

Before I get someone thinking that I am bashing Spanish, let me spell it out clearly: I am not.  I am Latina, born in Cuba.  I speak Spanish fluently.  Hablo Español perfectamente bien.  I have customers who prefer to speak Spanish and we do.  But I use the English documents since not everyone involved in the transaction may understand them in Spanish.

Can someone who speaks no English represent the best interest of their customers?  I am not doubting that the job can get done.  Yes, real estate is local.  But it is also a profession fraught with laws that change and the networking is limited if you don't speak the local language.  Even calling another agent to set up a showing appointment can pose a problem if they can't understand you.  Appraisals and Inspections are reported in English as well.  How to read them and best present them to your customer if you don't understand them?

I guess I'm thinking that if I went to another country and wanted to buy real estate I would feel much better knowing that the person helping me spoke not only English, but the local language as well.  Oh, but this is Miami.  Maybe the local language is Spanish after all?

It's not every day I get stuck in traffic behind a horse.  Oh, living in the Miami Redlands, I see horses being transported all the time.  And I usually see local horse owners taking them out for leisurely rides.  But today I saw something different.

I was driving on SW 200th Street when I saw a horse galloping like a bat out of you-know-where towards 200th street.  I knew that if I didn't slow down he and my vehicle might actually have a sudden and, more than likely, injuring collision. 

As he reached the street he barely slowed and turned onto the street and in front of my car.  He didn't even signal.  That told me he's a Miami native ;-)  My daughter and I were very interested in seeing where he was going.  He continued galloping at about 25 miles per hour with us right behind him. 

The cars started to accumulate behind us.  SW 200th Street has a speed limit of 45 mph in that area but I can tell you most folks do 60.  To the state troopers it's like shooting fish in a barrel when they hang out on that street and give out speeding tickets.  They can reach their monthly quota in one day, I bet.  But now everyone had to slow down to 25 or less based on the horse's whim.  Plus the horse had the oncoming traffic to deal with as well.

Thankfully most folks were pretty patient and everyone was slowing down to look at this spectacular creature running free in the middle of traffic.  Whheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!  I kept thinking I had to do something and asked my daughter for permission to stop.  I was taking her to school, you see, to look at the posted results and find out if she had made it onto the cheerleading squad.  We mustn't be late!  It might rain or something and the ink could run and render the results illegible and she might have to wait until Monday to find out if she'd made it.  Horrors!  She begrudgingly agreed that she could spare 5 minutes.

Broker Maggie and Little One to the rescue!  The horse had now decided that a side road looked more interesting and turned down that way (again, without using the turn signal).  We had travelled about half a mile from were we saw the horse get onto the street and I had not seen any vehicles come in off that road.  I checked traffic and made a u-turn.  As I passed a few cars that had gathered I asked one man getting out if that was his horse.  He told me it wasn't and I told him I knew where he'd come from and I would go alert the owner. 

The horse was oblivious to all this hoopla and was now quietly and calmly getting farther and farther away from us and the civilization to be found on the state road.  I took off to find the owner, the whole time hoping I would be successful.  I'd heard stories of horses getting stolen in the Miami Redlands and I certainly didn't want this poor fella to be one of the statistics. 

As I reached the road from whence he'd come I turned and saw a truck careening down the dirt road towards us.  I honked frantically at him and he finally stopped.  It turned out he was indeed the owner and I told him exactly where he could find him.  As soon as you pass the train tracks make a right and follow the road.  No, no, the horse isn't on the train tracks, he's on the next road that runs beside them and gaining distance every minute.  He thanked me and off he sped!

As we got back on course and headed to school Little One commented "that was fun."  "Yes Little One.  Living the Redlands often is."

This post isn't about real estate.  Not directly anyway.  It's about a neat site one of my sellers told me about.  I take time to make small talk with my customers.  It's not small to me.  I really do enjoy connecting with people this way.  Sometimes this means it takes longer to get things done (I had a 5 hour listing presentation once!) but I really do enjoy the connections I make with my customers.

I have a seller who rescues Dalmatians.  He presently has five in his home.  But these 5 are all his.  Steve's home is their home.  Some are maimed from when they were with previous owners.  It's heartbreaking. 

Steve has lost beloved animals in the past.  If you are an animal lover, I know you understand.  A pet is not "just a dog" or "just a cat."  A pet is part of the family.  They are special little creatures who love unconditionally.  Feeling crabby?  Everyone else in the house may stay clear of you, but Fido doesn't mind.  He still comes running and wants to play with you.

Steve showed me a beautiful framed picture of a rainbow and an open gate.  I read the writing on it and was touched.  He told me about the site Rainbow's Bridge.  It's a virtual memorial for pets.  Beloved pets who have passed on can frolic and play there as they await their masters' arrival on the rainbow bridge.

Other animal lovers stop by, read the memorials and sometimes offer their condolences and words of support.  Connecting with others who have lost beloved pets makes the grief a little easier to get through.  I thought the site was special enough to pass on to others.  Enjoy your visit!

This post was inspired by one of Active Rain's resident animal lovers, Lysa Napolitano.  Any little critter who needs help is lucky to be in her path.  Thanks for all you do for the little helpless ones Lysa!

Google Earth^TM has a nifty little gadget available that offers endless possibilities for it's use.  It's called a Trackstick.

The Trackstick is a smidgen bigger than a jump drive and it tracks its own location at predetermined intervals.  Not only does it track its location, it also tracks time, date, speed, heading and altitude.

It has over 1Mb of memory and can easily store months of travel information.  It integrates seamlessly with Google Earth^TM  so you can create really cool vacation memories.

Parents can get one of these for their kids and stick it in their backpacks (or jeans pocket?) and keep track of where they've been.  I still haven't figured out if the information can be retrieved remotely, as in the case of a lost child.  The site doesn't say but it's something that interests me so I will follow up on that.

I'm thinking I can use this to track the mileage for my real estate business.  It can be the new mileage log.  I do track my mileage the old-fashioned way, but there are times that I am out an about and someone calls at the last minute and I accommodate them.  I sometimes forget to enter those last minute additions into my mileage log. 

According to the description on the site, here are some of the ways it can be used:

• Seamless integration into Google Earth^TM
• GPS tracking / location history recording
• Employee and vehicle monitoring
• Mileage recording and verification
• Public Safety
• Law Enforcement
• Homeland Security
• Jogging, Hiking and Biking
• Photo Tours
• Child / Family Safety

The Trackstick is not cheap.  It's regular price is $199.  Google Earth^TM sells it for $189 and right now you can buy it for $169.  Get more info here.

Been thinking of this all day.  Worth the few minutes to listen.  All you Mamas - enjoy!

Purposefully underworded.  No points! 

Living in the Miami Redlands makes it easier for me to sell real estate here.  Easier because I don't just sell real estate in the Redlands, I live it, know it and love it.

The Miami Redlands area is a historic agricultural community.  As such, you can't beat it for finding wonderful plants, be they for landscaping, windowsills or gifts.  There are many plants to be found here.  One of my favorites is the orchid.

Next time you're in the market for some orchids try Remarkable Homes and Gardens at 20990 SW 147 Avenue.  They are known for their $7 orchid sales.  Yes, you read that right.  Only seven dollars. 

If you've been to the local home improvement giant's garden department, you know orchids are pricey.  Yes, Remarkable has orchids that are priced a lot higher than $7, but their selection of $7 plants is pretty big and there's always something pretty in the mix.  The one in the picture was from the $7 selection.

I stopped there yesterday and purchased 3 pretty orchids for only $7 each.  The guy waiting to pay right behind me paid $125 for his 2 gorgeous plants, and they really were exquisite.

In addition to orchids you can also find bromeliads, foliage, palms and landscape plants there.  They have some great hanging planters made from real coconuts that make a great display piece if you're keeping your orchids indoors.  Kevin, the proprietor, also pointed out a smaller vessel made of gourds that are ideal to display their coconut orchids.  The coconut orchids, by the way, are very fragrant and smell like chocolate!

Remarkable Homes and Gardens can be found on SW 147th Avenue.  Just head south on 147th, past the 4-way, red-light Stop at 200th Street.  It will be on the right hand side.  They are only open Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, from 8am - 6pm and you can follow the signs that say $7 Orchid Sale all the way there.  Tell Kevin Maggie the Realtor sent you.

This is a special day for all.  Even if we are not mothers, we needed one to get here.  Here's wishing everyone on the Rain, and not, a blessed Mother's Day.  These quotes come from http://www.mothers.net/

Time is the only comforter for the loss of a mother.
- Jane Welsh Carlyle

Mother
Simply having children does not make mothers.