Miami Dade Real Estate Scoop

No, this is not my latest listing in Pinecrest.  This is one of the cutest dog houses I've ever seen!  I was driving west on 152^nd Street and had to do a 180 so I could appreciate these little homes closer.  They impressed me to no end.

The luxury dog houses are created by Ricardo and Janeth.  He is a master carpenter who specializes in custom yacht carpentry.  As the luxury market had dwindled a bit, so did the amenities associated with it.  In a moment of inspiration they decided to make custom homes for our furry friends. 

My precious Fifi and Lola would love to live in any one of these homes.  There's the little red shingled barn, a boat house with its crisp white paint, chimney stack and shiny golden anchor (and look at those porthole windows!), and the stone villa, with its textured walls, and windowed gable.  Sooooo cute!

The attention to detail in these homes is impressive.  To order your own custom home for your furry best friend, you can contact Ricardo or Janeth at 786.285.9431

The Village of Pinecrest was one of only six cities in the U.S.  hosting this guest.  The guest?  A rare original print of the United States Declaration of Independence that is on a traveling tour.

The visit was made possible by the students at Palmetto Senior High School, who were top participants in mock elections held across the nation's schools.  The mock elections were put together by organizations wanting to foster an appreciation of the democratic process in students throughout America. 

The students at Palmetto Sr. High embraced the event and in the process earned themselves the opportunity to have the rare document come for a visit.  Way to go Palmetto!

Over 1500 people, including Pinecrest Mayor Cindy Lerner and members of the Village Council, had the chance to see the document at the Pinecrest Branch Library.  The document was also displayed at Palmetto Senior High School where hundreds of students were able to view it.

This is another fine example of the strong commitment of Pinecrest area educators.  It's not without reason that the Pinecrest schools are tops in the county and beyond.  Thank you teachers.

High Pines - A Neighborhood Introductionby Maggie Dokic, Broker Associate

The area of High Pines is highly regarded in Miami.  Its close proximity to main thoroughfares, great schools, shopping, restaurants and Miami entertainment venues make it a winner.  All this while still retaining its residential neighborhood feel.

High Pines is comfortably nestled between South Miami, Coral Gables and the Ponce / Davis area.  It is bordered by Sunset Drive (SW 72 Street) to the north and SW 80^th Street (Davis Road) a mere half mile distance.  On the east is Schoolhouse Road (SW 52nd Avenue)and half a mile to the west, Red Road (SW 57^th Avenue).

High Pines flourished after World War II when soldiers returning to Miami started working in Holsum Bakery, one of Miami's largest employers at the time.  The bakery was situated on US 1, right behind the intersection of Sunset Drive and Red Road.  It has since relocated and the prime real estate now houses the Shops at Sunset Place, one of the larger shopping facilities in South Miami.  Adjacent streets are lined with boutique shops, restaurants of every conceivable cuisine, bakeries, old fashioned pizza parlor, gourmet groceries, ice cream parlor, banks and all the services a good neighborhood shopping district needs to make it truly one-stop-shopping.

The Metrorail station is within walking distance of High Pines so commuting to work can be an easy thing.  Anyone who is tired of having to drive to most places will find this feature of High Pines a delight.

The lush flora in Florida is played up in High Pines.  The densely canopied streets make strolling an enjoyable activity, even in the hot South Florida sun.

High Pines residences consist mainly of single family homes on sizable lots.  There are also townhomes (many brand new luxury construction by Red Road) and garden type condos.  There are presently 9 single family residences listed for sale in High Pines.  The listings range in price from $349,000 to $2,199,000 with the average list price at slightly over $1,013,000.

If you're relocating to South Florida and the Miami area, I highly recommend giving the High Pines area more than a passing look.

Real Estate Market Report for Coral Gables - the City Beautiful

The following is a market snapshot of real estate activity in Coral Gables as of March 19th, 2010:

Active Listings (For Sale) - 473
Pending Listings (In escrow) - 91
Sold Listings (last 30 days) - 34

Of the Sold Listings, here is how the Days on Market (DOM) stack up:

0 - 30 Days - 32%
31 - 60 Days - 10.4%
61 - 90 Days - 11.2%
91 - 120 Days - 5.6%
120+ Days - 40.8%



Data is gathered from the SEF MLS and believed accurate, but not guaranteed.

I don't usually relish reading every new email that comes into my mailbox hawking something new.  Even if it's free.

But when I received John's email invitation to check out his new site and get in now, before someone else took my city, I checked it out.

I thought it was good enough to warrant joining.  See below for details from John.

As I was helping someone verify the "official" cities in the Miami area, I put together this list.  I thought I'd share it with you in case you've been losing sleep over whether a certain area is a city or not in Miami-Dade County. =)

The number represents the municipal code.  If you live in the county and look up your address' "folio number" (which can be likened to the 'social security' number of a property), your folio number will begin with one of these 2 digits.

01 Miami
02 Miami Beach
03 Coral Gables
04 Hialeah
05 Miami Springs (a friend and resident aptly described it as the Mayberry of Miami.  Lovely place)
06 North Miami
07 North Miami Beach
08 Opa-Locka
09 South Miami (this is the city name, sometimes applied erroneously to areas in South Miami-Dade)
10 Homestead (and you do NOT have to live in Homestead to claim the Homestead Exemption that the state of Florida has in place for property owners.  Another source of confusion when discussing said exemption, which applies to the place you claim as your homestead)
11 Miami Shores (a shout out to my buddy Ines!)
12 Bal Harbour
13 Bay Harbour Islands
14 Surfside (can you guess where this is?)
15 West Miami (see South Miami above - same error pops up)
16 Florida City
17 Biscayne Park
18 El Portal (this is Spanish for "the front porch."  I'll have to look up the history behind that.  Ines?)
19 Golden Beach
20 Pinecrest (a favorite of mine)
21 Indian Creek (a nod to the original settlers of our area.  MANY Indian names in Florida)
22 Medley
23 North Bay Village
24 Key Biscayne
25 Sweetwater
26 Virginia Gardens
27 Hialeah Gardens
28 Aventura
29 Islandia
30 Unincorporated Miami-Dade County (a repository for the rest of the county that has yet to incorporate itself)
31 Sunny Isles Beach
32 Miami Lakes
33 Palmetto Bay (another of my favorites)
34 Miami Gardens
35 Doral
36 Cutler Bay

So where does that leave "areas" like High Pines, Gables by the Sea, Snapper Creek, Kendall, The Redland, the Hammocks, Country Walk, and so many others?  Technically, they are all part of unincorporated Miami-Dade county or a municipality listed above.

As of today's date (3/11/2010) the municipalities list is complete.  However, the "areas" list is not.  I may work on that list in the future and add a link here when I post it.

I was speaking with a friend yesterday and she was surprised to find out that I have home buyers in Miami who can't find homes.  Well, let's rephrase that.  The can find homes, They just can't get them under contract.

I realized that she was not the first person I've talked to lately who was surprised at this.

"But I thought it was a buyer's market right now?" they always ask me.

Yeah, according to who?  The news that prices are low, foreclosures are high, short sales abound, is always out there.  But it is only in the very recent weeks, that I have seen the media getting the truth about finding a home out there:  home buyers are having a tough time of it right now in Miami.

Yes, there are lots and lots of listings. Over 8,300 single family homes in Miami-Dade county are listed for sale right now.

But then you remove the overpriced listings because, well, because they're overpriced.  Momma didn't raise no fool, now did she? ::wink::

And you don't really remove the foreclosed listings, but you almost should.  The ones that are priced right are getting multiple offers.  Sometimes fifty or more.  I've been on both sides of the deal with these, as listing agent and buyer's agent.  So I know first hand that listing agents are not making this up.  With mulptiple offers on the table, chances are stacked against you getting your offer accepted.

And then there's the short sales.  Yeah, those.  I don't shy away from them.  But I do make sure I ask lots of questions of the listing agent when selecting whether to show them or not.  If the listing agent hasn't got a clue, we pass.  The process is already long enough, add someone who doesn't know how to do it right, and it's slow as molasses AND perhaps dead before it starts.  When my buyer makes an offer on a short sale, I advise and counsel that we are in it for the long haul.  So we MUST make sure that there's a decent chance it will get to closing.

Remove the above and what does that leave?  Well, it leaves the regular sales.  Remember those?  Ahhhh. Those days were good, were they not?  There was a seller, there was a buyer, and there was a deal.  I long for them again.  But let me snap out of my daydreaming!  There are some well priced regular sales to be found.  And they sell quickly when you find them.  So make sure you act fast.

Add to all that the buyers scrambling to make the April 30th deadline for the $8,000 home buyers credit and you have a very brisk Miami real estate market.

The tides have changed.  If you're out looking at homes in Miami, make sure you have the benefit of working with a professional by your side.  Contact your local Realtor today.

If you're a Florida homeowner in need of a locksmith, here's something to consider: in the State of Florida, locksmiths don't need to be licensed.  Not yet anyway. 

Because of this, it is very easy for someone who has no intentions of being a bonafide locksmith, set up shop as a locksmith and scam people.  For as little as $15, the person can purchase "bogus" business cards and make people think he is in it for real.

People in need of a locksmith may call these con-men with a legitimate request to change locks or set up a safe in a business or home.  The "locksmith" can keep the combination or copies of keys and later rob them without much effort.

In an effort to prevent this scenario, bills have been filed in the Florida legislature, that would require licensing for locksmiths and make it a criminal offense to impersonate one.  The measure would make it harder for this type of scamming to continue.

Legitimate locksmiths welcome the licensing.  They don't want to be affiliated with those who would commit these crimes.

So until this comes to pass, how can you protect yourself?  If you live in Miami-Dade, the county has already put a locksmith ordinance into effect.  It requires that anyone working as a locksmith be registered with the Miami-Dade County Consumer Services Department, Consumer Protection Division.  To verify if someone is registered, you can call the Consumer Services Department at (305) 375-3677.

Additionally, the ordinance requires that the registration number be listed prominently on advertising (including business cards), and on all forms, invoices, commercial trucks and vans.  Look for these.

In addition, follow these common sense tips when using a locksmith:

• ask friends for recommendations.
• ask the locksmith for their registration #.  A legitimate one will have it on all the items listed above.
• obtain more than one estimate if possible.
• obtain written estimates.
• don't choose a locksmith on the basis of price alone.
• get an itemized bill.
• never sign a blank form.
• keep accurate records of work performed & amounts paid.

As always, it can't hurt to be too careful.

No, this is not a picture of the top of Missy Caulk's car. (for those who may not know, Missy is a Michigan REALTOR). 

This is the top of MY car, this morning.  (I am a Miami REALTOR)

Yes, this is Miami.

Yes, that is ice on top of my car.

Yes, this is the coldest winter in 30 years in Miami.

I miss my balmy winters. =(