Miami Dade Real Estate Scoop

Are you a Pinecrest resident wanting a tree on the swale outside your property?  Although the right-of-way property is not legally the homeowner's, the public swale is to be maintained by the homeowner.  And who doesn't want to keep their surroundings looking pretty?

Pinecrest has an Adopt-a-Tree program which provides trees at low-bid prices for interested homeowners.  Pinecrest has been designated as a Tree City, USA by the Arbor Day Foundation for their commitment to community forestry. The Village of Pinecrest has planted over 10,000 trees since 1997.  Not shabby at all.

If you'd like more information about the Pinecrest Adopt-a-Tree program, click on the link.

And remember that Miami-Dade County still has it's own program where they give two trees per year to homeowners of single family or townhome properties in the county.

A citizen is fighting the Village of Pinecrest for improper seizure of her home.  Or should I clarify and say, her property, as she does not live in the Pinecrest house.

I just read an interesting legal article about the case involving Zenaida Gomez and the Village of Pinecrest.  Apparently Ms. Gomez purchased the Pinecrest home in 2006, in 2007 leased it to someone and in 2008 the Pinecrest police were called in to investigate some goings on in the home.

The police found that the Pinecrest home was being used for an illegal hydroponics lab (proving that the Redland doesn't have that market cornered and that upper scale neighborhoods are not immune to criminal activity, but I digress).  Due to the activities going on at the home, the Village of Pinecrest proceeded to seize the home, through legal means.

The article is full of legalese and I have to admit that I couldn't finish it.  It appears that the seizing authority (the Village of Pinecrest) has to prove that the owner of the house knew or had reasonable cause to know that the Pinecrest house was being used for criminal activity.  They claim she leased the home without even so much as checking whether the driver's license presented by the tenant was valid.

I checked the home's history in the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) and found the sale in there.  The home is in a great north Pinecrest location with multimillion dollar homes around.  The home itself was move-in ready but needing updating according to the MLS remarks when it sold.  It sold back in 2006 for $1,075,000 and according to a desktop appraisal I quickly did on it, might be worth in the neighborhood of $717K today, although that doesn't take into account the damage that is done to a home when it is used as a hydroponics facility.
In any event, I find the case interesting.  Be cautious when renting your home and make sure you do background checks!

Are you a buyer looking for a home in Pinecrest, Palmetto Bay, South Miami or the surrounding Miami area?

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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.

This Friday Prudential Florida Realty will be hosting it's "Sunshine After Dark" event to benefit the Sunshine Kids organization.  Sunshine Kids was formed to help kids with cancer.

Our Sunshine Kids event “Sunshine After Dark” is set for Friday, November 13, 2009 at 7pm. The event will be held in Pinecrest, at our first floor office space-which will be transformed to a chic lounge for the event.

We will have wine, appetizers and a wonderful silent auction with fabulous prizes.

The tickets for "Sunshine After Dark" are $25.00 in advance and $30.00 at the door.  One hundred percent of this goes to Sunshine Kids.  Prudential is footing the bill for all the expenses and we've had gracious donations for the raffles.  Yay Prudential and sponsors!

We are also selling tickets for a 1 in 1,800 chance for a new 2010 Mercedes Benz C Class. Tickets for the car drawing are $50.00 per ticket. Sweet!

Get excited about having a great time and supporting a wonderful cause!

Prudential Florida Realty is committed to the kids.

What: Sunshine After Dark

When: Friday 11/13/09 at 7pm

Where:  Prudential Florida Realty 11525 S. Dixie Hwy., Pinecrest, FL 33156

Cost:  $25 in advance, $30 at door

Please contact me at 305.975.3842 if you wish to attend.

The Village of Pinecrest boasts some of the loveliest homes in Miami-Dade County.  The market trends in Pinecrest are in line with it's desirability in home buyers' eyes. 

The numbers in Pinecrest are more encouraging than the county as a whole. Follow this link to see the county numbers.  In comparison, Pinecrest's numbers are shown below.

It's interesting to note that there has not been a glut of inventory added to Pinecrest's Homes For Sale.  They have held steady in the range of 253 - 282 for the last 10 months.  This is around a 10 percent fluctuation.  In comparison, the county had an increase of over 20% in the same period.  

The Months Of Inventory in Pinecrest looks as follows:

Look at the steady low numbers in May, June, July and August.  This was caused by the proportionately high number of sales in those months.  Then in September it spiked from 13.3 months worth to 44.3.  That's due to the fact that the sales dropped from 20 in August to 6 in September.  October and November fared no better, but the numbers overall look good in Pinecrest. 

Traditionally the Holiday season is not a good one for real estate sales so we'll have to keep an eye on the coming months to see how things play out in Pinecrest.

© December 2007 Maggie Dokic, Broker-Associate 

The beautiful Pinecrest Gardens in our lovely South Dade Village of Pinecrest is hosting it's annual Eggstravaganza.

The event will be from 10AM - 1PM on Saturday, April 7, 2007

Egg hunts start at 10AM sharp so be on time!  The egg hunts are for kids 10 and under.

There will be 3 different age group hunting areas to keep things fair and fun for the little ones.  3 hunts will take place in each area at 10AM, 11AM and 12AM.  That's 9 hunts altogether.  What fun!

In addition to the egg hunts you can enjoy rides, face painting, arts & crafts, and visits with the Spring Bunny (I didn't change his name.  It's this way on their flyer).

Admission is $6 for adults and $4 for kids.  And remember, apart from special events like these, entrance to the lovely and relaxing Pinecrest Gardens is always free!

Pinecrest Gardens is located at 11000 Red Road (SW 111 Street & 57 Avenue).

Last week I had the opportunity to revisit the beautiful Pinecrest Gardens in Pinecrest. 

 Pinecrest Gardens sits on 14 acres of lush land.  Parrot Jungle used to be there until 2003, when Pinecrest Gardens was dedicated by the Pinecrest Village Council.  The foliage you'll see there is incredibly beautiful.  From the massive banyan trees to the humble water lily.  There's so much to see and enjoy! 

 There are running streams and bubbling brooks everywhere you walk.  You can't get away from the sound of running water.  It's quite relaxing.

Even nicer is the fact that it doesn't cost a penny to get in and enjoy these sights.  It's free!  They also make their facilities available for weddings and other celebrations.  There are different lawn areas available for rental. 

The entrance to Pinecrest Gardens is on 57th Avenue (Red Road) and 110th Street.  They are open daily 8:00AM to Sunset.  Did I mention it's FREE?  =)

All these pictures were taken at Pinecrest Gardens.  Stop by and discover it for yourself!

Village of Pinecrest

Pinecrest is a village located in Miami-Dade County, Florida. It was incorporated in 1996 and just had it's 11th birthday this month.  Pinecrest is governed by a five member Village Council and operates under a Council-Manager form of government with a Mayor at it's head.  The physical boundaries of Pinecrest are US1 to the west (US1 is called Pinecrest Parkway along the stretch where it flanks Pinecrest), 57th Avenue to the east, 136th Street to the south and just a little further north of 88th Street (Kendall Drive).  Here's a map of Pinecrest.  It is just a hop, skip and a jump away from beautiful Biscayne Bay.

Driving along the streets of Pinecrest you will notice the abundance of mature trees with huge canopies!  There is so much green in Pinecrest and it really does add to its charm and attraction.  Even so, after incorporation, the village undertook a beautification project which included the planting of thousands more trees.  The homes are on lots which are much bigger than most of unincorporated Miami-Dade county.  Another thing you will notice are the unique street signs in the village.  They're forest green and distinctive from the rest of the county so you will know you're in Pinecrest by the signs.

Pinecrest has an amazing municipal park called Pinecrest Gardens.  It sits on what used to be Parrot Jungle.  The gardens are free to visit and quite a tourist attraction.  The natural flora is breathtaking.  You feel the grandeur of nature here.  And the colors are incredible.  There are orchids and other flowers everywhere.  On a recent visit I had to be careful as a 2 foot iguana was meandering across the parking lot just as I decided to leave. 

The schools in the Pinecrest district are wonderful.  As such, Pinecrest is a much sought-after community to live in.  Local real estate prices reflect that desirabilty.  The least expensive home in Pinecrest will cost around $650,000 with the vast majority of them hovering in the close to a million mark.  Of course, there are the multi-million dollar properties as well, mostly determined by the expansive acreage they sit on as well as how large and detailed the homes are.  In Pinecrest, it is not uncommon for a much older home that has seen better days but is still in decent shape to be purchased just to be torn down and built anew.  Land is that valuable in Pinecrest.

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