Miami Real Estate Blog

142 NW 98^th Street – This 3 bedroom / 2 bathroom home is in move-in condition. Lovely hardwood floors with Cherry wood inlay, open living area, newly updated kitchen with granite counters, laundry room as well as a single-car garage, low maintenance backyard, located in private cul-de-sac. (1,556 sq. ft – 7,725 sq. ft. lot)    $449,000  **SOLD**

9035 NE 2^nd Avenue – Built new in 1992.  This lovely 3 bedroom / 2 bathroom home offers vaulted ceilings and open floor plan.  Open airy living areas with plenty of light, eat-in kitchen with granite counters, master suite with large master bath.  French doors from the family room introduce the rear patio and large fenced yard, plenty of room for a pool, 2-car garage.  (2,146 sq. ft and 10,125 sq. ft. lot)    $579,000 - RENTED

70 NE 94^th Street – 1939 ageless beauty.  This 3 bedroom / 2 bathroom home not only features an oversized 12,800 sq. ft. lot with plenty of room to grow…but you will not be disappointed with the numerous details throughout.  Features include Pecky Cypress beamed ceilings, archways, French doors, new bathrooms and plumbing, spacious family room overlooking covered patio, 2-sided fireplace, and energy efficient water heater with solar cell. (Approx. 2,000 sq. ft. as per seller’s appraisal)     $579,000  **SOLD**

821 NE 99^th Street – Wonderful place to call home.  This open, spacious 4 bedroom / 2 bathroom residence with hardwood floors, crown molding and open beamed ceilings in the family room, has been lovingly cared for and represents Florida living at its finest.  Where practicality meets beauty, the 4 large bedrooms have excellent closet space and ideal layout with 3 bedrooms downstairs in a split plan, eat-in kitchen, large family room overlooking a tropical backyard pool area.  The many upgrades include renovated bath, pool in 2002 with large paved deck and updated electric.  (2,527 sg.ft and 8,850 sq. ft. lot)      **RENTED**

1132 NE 105^th Street – Best waterfront value in sought-after Miami Shores.  85’ on deep water canal with natural Coral Sea wall.  One block away from Biscayne Bay with one fixed bridge and ocean access.  This distinctive 3 bedroom / 2 bathroom mid-century home features large gourmet kitchen with granite counters, striking stone and hardwood floors, split bedroom plan, uniquely designed sunny Florida room with generous window seating, new roof, windows and circular driveway with brick pavers, and not to mention endless possibilities to add on and grow on its oversized 12,835 sq. ft. lot. (Approx. 2,300 sq. ft.)        $825,000

Please visit our website at www.Miamism.com for additional photos and virtual tours. 

When you think of South East Florida, you think “MIAMI” , but Miami-Dade County is made up of numerous cities.  From the southern most city of Homestead  all the way north to  Aventura, there are approximately 40 miles.  Here’s a brief overview of Miami, Miami Beach, and our cherished Miami Shores.

Miami  is known as the "Magic City" and is recognized for its diverse culture and ethnicities.  Miami, also known as the Gateway to Latin America attracts a tremendous amount of foreign born people and is recognized worldwide as an international hub.  There is always something to do in Miami.  Miami has been the host of many special events  in film, arts, culture and entertainment; including Calle Ocho Festival, The Latin Grammys and The MTV Music awards to name a few.  There are also numerous parks, public facilities, museums, monuments, is considered "Golfers' Paradise" by many, and is Home of the Miami Hurricanes, Miami Dolphins, Florida Marlins, and The Miami Heat.

When you mention Miami, you cannot leave out Miami Beach, an International Mecca for travel, business and to establish a home.  From its small hotels with modern lines along lower Collins Avenue and Ocean Drive to its major hotel chains along the beach.  It´s Art Deco District  and South Beach areas are world-famous.  And let’s not forget the beautiful sandy beaches that bring incredible tourism from all over the world.  Miami Beach will have its yearly Festival of the Arts  to be hosted in 2007 by our own Coldwell Banker.

Lastly – Miami Shores the city that holds our heart, where we live, work and play.  Known as The Village Beautiful, it  is a small suburban neighborhood centrally located just minutes from Downtown Miami, Fort Lauderdale and Miami Beach.  It´s considered a secret gem that few people know about.  Its Real Estate ranges from Luxury Bay front homes (located right on Biscayne Bay) to 1920´s historic architecture.   Activities include Golf, Tennis, a great community center and field house offering all kinds of sports and activities for all ages.   With its own extremely efficient police force, its own government building or Village Hall, as well as library, there´s nothing Miami Shores can´t offer.    Miami Shores is a neighborhood where your neighbors have your keys and kids play on the streets, a true village beautiful.

 Miami is a city full of life and passion and once you visit you will want to come back for more.  Whether to relax, work, play, fish or party, there is something for everyone to do. 

Rick & Ines – http://www.yourpropertypros.com/ www.miamism.com

I wrote a post called Architecture in Real Estate some time back that did not get much attention from the Active Rain Community.  But from there Dave Rosenmarkle suggested the idea of offering “a series of short blogs about types of architecture”.  So thank you Dave, here is my first attempt at enlightening our AR friends, with a style that hits close to home, since we have the largest compilation of Art Deco Architecture worldwide, right here in The Historic Miami Beach Art Deco District.  Hope you find this helpful and let me know if any of you would like to hear about other “styles”, and I promise that if I don’t know enough, I will not mind doing the research.  Also please keep in mind that I am truly simplifying and hope not to do injustice to the historical period represented.

Modern Architects’ desire for a new language, together with the need to rebel against traditional architecture and excessive decoration, lead to the ART DECO movement, which not only is visible in architecture, but also fashion, art, graphics, furniture, transportation and even household items.

The style is mainly characterized by simple, clean, geometric lines.  As Art Deco arrived in The United States, so did the images of sleek cars and trains.  Angular shapes like zig-zags, and lightning-bolts became popular. Visible in Miami Beach, buildings were streamlined to look like ocean liners and a clear nautical theme can be discerned. 

Some features to expect in Art Deco Architecture are:  flat roofs, combinations of flat and curved walls, use of glass block, circular windows, steel frames, vertical emphasis, rectangular framing, horizontal articulation like eyebrows over windows and doors, low relief ornamentation around door and window openings, metal windows, metal railings, stucco walls with some plaster ornamentation (stylized and abstracted floral motifs and sunrise patterns), colored glazed bricks, mosaic tiles, and most of all SIMPLICITY!

How to you use this in real estate property descriptions:  If you see any of the elements above, you can make mention of Art Deco influence.  Please make sure you do not call a structure Art Deco if the roof is not flat.  Also, if there are other non-Deco elements in the property, don’t be afraid to call the structure eclectic.   I always look for the most striking elements first to make mention.  Example:  you may have a Non-descript home with a beautiful Art Deco Mantle or an exterior ornamental plaster grill.  Take advantage of these elements to make  homes sound like they have some kind of architectural significance, it may make the difference to the buyer. 

Hmmmm........which style will I do next?

I know Mortgage Fraud has been a really sensitive subject around AR lately, and I wanted to share with you what we went over at our office meeting yesterday.  Scott Daniels had an outrageous case a couple of days ago and Bryant Tutas wrote a fabulous post on this same subject.  As some of you may know, Rick and I received 2 fraudulent offers this past week and as common as this may be, it’s important for Realtors, as professionals, to be able to identify fraud and report it.  Here are some red flags that will help you identify questionable transactions:

1. Receive request from a buyer or mortgage broker to increase the listing price of a property after the buyer is under contract.
2. Credits to a buyer or price reductions written into separate addenda rather than the body of the contract even though the credit/reduction is part of the initial offer.
3. Taking properties off the market to facilitate a refinance (lenders ask owners whether they are selling their property when applying for refinance since lenders typically lose money on the first few months of a loan.)
4. Unusual credits to buyers for “redecorating” or “remodeling”

Fortunately for us, we were able to spot fraud because we received a fax by mistake.  In that fax the numbers as well as signatures from both buyer and seller had been forged, the numbers had been changed, and there was an appraisal request showing an amount in excess of $300,000 above purchase price. 

Mortgage Fraud is extremely common and we have to do our part to stop it.

We have GREAT NEWS!!  The market has turned around!!  After months of negative talk and the so called “bubble” bursting, it is great to know that the slump is finally over and there is light at the end of the tunnel.  I hope this applies to markets all over and would like to hear how other real estate markets around the nation are doing.  But I can truly say that here in Miami, the change is obvious.

A property that we would show once or twice/week, we are now showing 2 and 3 times per day!  We are receiving as well as writing more offers – We are moving!!

It is normal for real estate to have its ups and downs; we were in such a high that it was time for a correction. There have been a ton of posts on the slow market so this is a positive note to let you know to expect your sales to pick up.  Start rolling up your work sleeves and expect a GREAT end of the year.  Some great bloggers here in AR have written beautiful analogies like comparing the real estate market to a pendulum, others have talked about looking forward to the last quarter of the year.  As for Rick and myself, I truly feel we will be ending this slow year with a bang!  I hope this applies to all of you as well.

Overview of the single family market in Miami Shores, FL:

• Currently on the market:  176
• Currently under contract:  20
• Closed in the last 90 days: 33
• Lowest Priced Listing:  $302,900
• Highest Priced Listing:  $3,995,000

Overview of the condo market in Miami Shores, FL:

• Currently on the market:  33
• Currently under contract:  8
• Closed in the last 90 days: 8
• Lowest Priced Listing:  $139,500
• Highest Priced Listing:  $699,00

Visit http://www.yourpropertypros.com/ www.miamism.com

We have 2 condo listings in the same building in Miami.  Yesterday a real estate agent called to schedule an appointment to see both and I was appalled at what happened.

The first unit is owner occupied, by an elderly couple who are moving with their daughter.  The second unit is vacant.

I showed them unit 1 first while the sellers waited in the party room of the building.  Then I proceeded to show them the second unit on a different floor.  After the agent saw the units he thanked me and went on his way.

Little did he know that I had planned on going back to unit one after turning off lights and when I did, he was there with his customer talking directly with my seller!

Needless to say, This behavior is considered unethical and there is no excuse for it.  I was easily accessible, in the same building, if he wanted to go back to see the unit, he should have asked me.

I showed them outside the door and asked that if he wanted to know anything about the unit, he had to call me, that’s the reason I was hired.  His behavior was totally uncalled for and unprofessional.

This particular case upsets me not only because it is unethical, but because I always feel that the elderly are more prone to being taken advantage of. 

I found out later, that this agent went back to them a third time without calling me.  We received an offer the same afternoon, and we are on our way to negotiating tough terms with the sellers.  Now we have to look forward to working a deal with this guy who obviously does not do things right.  Wish us luck!

A lot of Realtors are obsessed with the Architectural Style of homes and I would like to help with common misconceptions.  Style is derived by elements within the architecture:  the massing, scale, proportion, character derived from nature of building materials, details, and special distribution.  Type, on the other hand, is usually defined by the use and floor plan:  Bungalow, suburban four-square, saltbox, etc.

Unfortunately, a lot of today’s architecture has no specific style, but a lot of elements from a particular era. American Architecture has evolved into a very eclectic compilation of European styles.

Even the so called RANCH – comes from Spanish Colonial “ranch” type architecture, usually with a U-shaped plan with a covered portico – not at all what we envision when we say ranch or rancher today.

Spanish Mediterranean, very popular in South Florida, is a compilation of elements from Spain, France, Morocco and other Mediterranean countries.  This so called “style”, is a modern American concept that was very popular in the 1920’s and can be found in Coral Gables, Miami Shores, Morningside and other South Florida historic districts.

My suggestion, if you are one obsessed with including architectural style into your listings’ descriptions, is to buy a couple of books about Architectural Styles, make sure they are illustrated, and make mention of the predominant style elements in a home.  It is better to say “with neoclassical elements” or “Tudor Inspired” than to make a statement you are not sure about.

It’s also helpful to know column types (orders: Doric, ionic, Corinthian) – types of windows (awning, single-hung, casement), and materials (types of brick, marble and granite).  Please do some research before you make false statements about elements and style of architecture.

This should be an easy test for eveyone, can you tell me what type of column is the one in the photo?

This is what we do when we are not working.  Actually, we also work on the boat, answer our calls and make appointments.  This is what Miami looks like from the water. 

I had to post Rick's lobster (or "bug" as we call them here), for Rich to see that we have good catch here also.

Have a GREAT WEEKEND everyone and close lots of deals!!

One of the local schools, Miami Country Day, in Miami Shores, invited our office today to a breakfast to learn about the school and to tour their facilities.  What an amazing idea!  They are Crystal Clear about who meets families first and who guides them into the schools.  The school administration had a great presentation for us.  We met the principal and some of the staff and toured the school facility while kids were in class. 

Their whole objective is for Realtors to be able to talk with authority about the school to their customers as well as for the same Realtors to feel they have good contacts within the school that will take good care of anyone they refer.  We have a good positive experience to associate to the school - BRILLIANT marketing!!