Miami Real Estate

Real Estate prices are dropping in Florida. What does that mean for the Real Estate Market – for 2010? Whether you and I are buying or selling (or just curious) …  information will be key to our decision-making.

New York Real Estate Guru, Steve Harney, and founder of “Keeping Current Matters”    flew to Miami last week to shed some light  – and met with Realtors from Esslinger Wooten Maxwell: “Shadow Inventory hasn’t (yet) hit the real estate market in South Florida.  Just How big a role will foreclosures play?” Read the rest of this entry »

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Miami attracts foreign buyers in droves.  The destination is appealing .  It’s  easy to get here.   From almost anywhere in the world you can be in Miami in just a few hours.  The weather is  hard to beat.  Where else can you be outdoors, poolside and oceanfront,  literally year-round?    Miami  offers an alluring lifestyle …  has a diverse population with  a mix of  cultures  and people .  Not hard to find common ground here:  food, languages, interests.  It’s an easy place to fit in…   make friends…  and feel at home.  

35% of  property bought in Miami over the past year was purchased by foreign buyers.  In 2009,   sales  of condos equalled the number of single family homes sold.  Read the rest of this entry »

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Miami is  back to the  property values we experienced  in 2000 – 2001.    From 2005 -2008  housing prices skyrocketed and homeowners saw a significant increase in their equity. 

If you bought a home or condo between 2005 and 2008  -  at the height of the housing market -   breaking even will  likely be a challenge  ( if you need to sell now).

Read on though, because the housing market has already begun to rebound!

Read the rest of this entry »

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BusinessWeek bellows:  “If you don’t buy a house now, you’re stupid or broke”.    Okay, Marc Roth softens the blow somewhat as his article continues … but the basic gist of the message is simple and straightforward.  Here’s what matters…  Want to know why?   Read the rest of this entry »

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What Is My House Worth?  

FOR A COMPARATIVE MARKET ANALYSIS (“CMA”) OF YOUR PROPERTY,  showing recently SOLD relevant properties,  as well as any currently FOR SALE ,  conact  the Restivo Team at EWM REALTORS.   

Curious as to what the value of your property is, and whether this would be the right time for you to sell?   

For a no pressure market valuation, contact us through www.MiamiRealEstateCafe.com  or 305 793 1365 or 305 632-1064.

READY TO SELL YOUR HOUSE NOW?   Considering listing your property  for sale?  All preliminary information is entirely confidential, and there is no pressure to sell with us.   We invite you begin the mutual evaluation process … just send us a note here.  We will determine together whether this might be the right time, and whether there is a ‘fit’.

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Vacant land is selling … listed  between $17 and $21  dollars a square foot in Pinecrest.    Acre  lots can be had for under $750,000. .. and  15,000 square foot lots can occasionally be found for as little as $350,000 … although most tend to be listed for, and sell above that.

Perceived value drives price.   While quiet streets  appeal to a number of home buyers …  highly trafficked areas and  intersections can (and do) appeal to others.

Adjacent to Pinecrest Park on the corner of SW 82 and SW 124th is a vacant lot,  listed for sale by Victor Mills and Marie Montgomery.  It has already been cleared and is ready to build.   It’s priced at just under $14 a square foot ($650,000 for 43,560 square feet).

After a hiatus on building,  Pinecrest is now seeing and increase in new construction.  Much of what is being built is luxury building… the single family, high-end homes, on a  rather mega-scale.  With vacant land opportunities such that they are now, more builders and individual home owners are looking at the available land for sale in Pinecrest.

Please give me a call if I can help with any of your real estate needs.

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Not a bad track record…   Ugo Colombo’s highrises still rank among the very top of Miami’s most desirable condos. 

The Santa Maria, built in 1997,  as of right now, has list prices averaging  $702 / square foot in the MLS … despite foreclosures  Read the rest of this entry »

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Home sales have increased in Pinecrest from the start of 2009, slowly.  Looking back from January until now, the number of single family homes for sale dropped, while the number of homes that sold  increased.   There is no question but that more homes sell in the spring than in the winter… as seasons affect sales in Miami (and elsewhere). Nonetheless: 9 homes sold in January…  25 homes sold in August…  figures worth noting. While average listing prices have remained pretty much on a par with what they were nine months back (hovering around $1.6)  the average selling prices in Pinecrest are holding steady at around $950,000.   Inventory dropped… cutting into the available  ”pool”…. with just over 12 months of inventory (as opposed to the 37 months worth we had back in April of 2009).  If you have been thinking about selling, this may be the time to look into it a bit more.  In the current market, you will need to be competitively priced to sell  (with one out of nine homes selling in any given month).  25 out of 214 homes sold  in Pinecrest in August  2009.  Curious as to the value of your home?  I’ll be glad to do a no-obligation market analysis for you.  Just click here.

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Inventory is dropping! The number of  homes for sale in Coral Gables (priced over $700,000)  dropped 23.8% over the past 6 months (February to August 2009).  If you are considering selling your house, this might be the right time.  Currently 311 homes in the Gables are listed for sale at $700,000  or above. (Six months ago there were 408  homes  for sale  in that price range).  Over the course of a single  month…July to August… the number of homes listed for sale for $700,000 (and above)  in Coral Gables dropped by 7.7%.

Buyers know what they want, but aren’t finding the right house to buy. I am looking for property to sell,  and I may already have a buyer for yours.  Wondering whether this might be the right time for you to sell ?  Please give me a call at (305) 793-1365 … or contact me here.   By doing a home valuation for you, we can see whether this might be a good time for you to sell…  or not. 

Based on the number of homes for sale in the Gables right now, from the 51 month supply of inventory we had just six months back, we now have half  that amount… and are down to a 25 month supply.  The average selling price now is currently $1,372,000 ($366 a square foot)  …  and homes are taking an average of  264 days to sell. 

Read the rest of this entry »

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What is the VALUE of your  home and who determines it?

With facts and figures tossed around liberally (especially here in Miami!): Market Value, Appraised Value, Assessed Value,  List Price, Sales Price, Replacement Value … understanding the value of your home is a tough nut  to crack:

Market Value,  as referred to in the tax role, references what the county believes the fair market value to be. 

Appraised Value is set by an appraiser  (comparing recent sales… normally going back no more than 3 months) …  Appraised value is the benchmark used by a  lender in determining the amount of mortgage the lender will finance.

Assessed Value is the amount determined primarily for tax or legal purposes. The county assesses or appraises your property to determine the taxable value.  You can also have an independent appraisal done, to evaluate and assess your property for contingency tax disputes… to reduce property tax.

List Price is determined through  market analysis of comparable properties in the vicinity  (having sold within the past 3-6 months … currently “pending” sales… and currently-listed “similar” properties  potentially competing for the same buyer-pool).

Sales Price is what the property actually sells for… determined by market conditions and what a specific buyer is willing to pay for that property.

Replacement Value  is a ‘guesstimate’ as to what  it might cost to replace or rebuild the house at some unknown point in the future.  Replacement value is used for  insurance coverage on a property, by estimating the cost to return a property to it’s pre-loss condition.

Replacement value has absolutely NOTHING to do with your purchase price, or the amount of your mortgage, or the assessed property value for tax purposes… It excludes the land value and landscaping from the equasion.   In brief,  replacement value is the  estimated cost of replacing  the house itself  (the structure),  due to a natural disaster…  fire damage, hurricane, flood, or otherwise.  

Factor in to your “replacement value”: Inflation, fluctuation in building costs  and materials,  labor costs, market conditions,  which all affect replacement value.   Upgrades and rennovations (new cabinetry, kitchens, baths, additions, shutters or awnings,  hardwood floors, upgraded appliances, newly replaced windows or doors… or unique features your house has) should be considered … in determining eventual ”replacement value”… Replacement value  is what’s used in quoting insurance coverage.   Have real estate questions?   If you do, chances are others will as well.  Alexandra and Vicki Restivo will answer  them, and may even blog about them!  Go ahead… ask!   Your questions are welcomed… and when you’re ready to buy or sell … we’re ready to help!MiamiRealEstateCafe.com …. READY WHEN YOU ARE!   Vicki Restivo 305-793-1365

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