Miami Real Estate Blog

I've been writing blog posts in Spanish because it is an untapped market, anyone that speaks another language should be taking full advantage. 

With that in mind, I was recently contacted by a gentleman that needs mortgage information in Spanish.  To think that I live in Miami and it hasn't been an easy task is beyond me.  After speaking to Brian Brady, he came up with the genius idea of asking for help via blog.

The idea is to be able to create a network of Spanish speaking professionals in the real estate industry that we could resort to.  I also created a group here in Active Rain for those that want to join.

Red de profesionales de bienes raices

If you do speak Spanish, please follow this link to my Miamism.com blog where I give specifics of what we are looking for. 

**please note that the link will take you to another website outside of Active Rain** 

There are some older buildings in Miami Beach that make a statement, The King Cole is one of them. Built in 1963, it represents the MiMo style (Miami Modern) because of its concave shape where the views from the waterfront units are framed beautifully.

There are a lot of people that argue that the building was designed by Morris Lapidus, because its shape resembles Lapidus' Fontainebleau, but it wasn't. I am still doing some research to find out who the original architect is - if anyone reading this article knows, please feel free to jump right in and let me know. I even asked known architectural critic, Beth Dunlop and she confirmed The King Cole was not designed by Morris Lapidus.

Now to the details. The King Cole Condo has an incredible marina and you can see from this aerial that it accommodates big boats. The slips are privately owned, some are for sale and can dock up to 65 foot vessels. It is a full amenity building with:

• heated pool
• 24-hour valet-parking
• gym overlooking the water
• children's playroom
• solarium
• saunas
• marina
• doorman security

It is located on the Southeast corner of Normandy Island in Miami Beach at 900 Bay Drive.

This Luxury condominium has been going through major renovations including a face-lift where all the balcony railings were changed to hurricane impact glass. The Lower Lobby, where most building amenities are housed, is also going renovations including finishes. In a few months, the building will be restored to its original grandeur.

A lot of people relocating to Miami, especially Miami Shores, always ask me if I can recommend a pediatrician.  Obviously, choosing a doctor is always very personal but having a doctor that is close by and responds quickly to emergencies is one of the most important factors when dealing with sick kids.

So here is my plug for an awesome Miami pediatrician and friend. Shores Pediatrics is run by Dr. Laura Fernandez-Ortiz who not only has children of her own, but is an active Miami Shores resident.  You will see her at all the community events from the Christmas Lighting ceremony to Unity Day.

Dr. Laura gives her medical practice that personal touch that so many other doctors are loosing because all they think about is money.  She will take her time with your children and discuss preventive medicine.  She has trained under the best doctors and I trust her with my own without even blinking an eye.  You can also tell a lot about the doctor by the staff they choose and you can rest assured that at Shores Pediatrics you will experience the best care possible (I'm not exaggerating), from the nursing staff to the receptionist, they know how to deal with patients and will learn your name as well as your kids' in no time.

Her practice is temporarily located in Hollywood at 4801 Hollywood Boulevard -(which is 15 to 20 minutes away from Miami Shores).

The good news is that Shores Pediatrics will move to their permanent location in Miami Shores on November of 2008.   The address will be 209 NE 95th Street, Miami Shores, FL 33138.

You can reach Shores Pediatrics and Dr. Laura Fernandez-Ortiz at (954) 987-8740 and visit her website at www.ShoresPediatrics.com

Here's that article:

Spiritual approach to sell your home? We are bombarded by the Media everyday telling us that it is a slow housing market. Some sellers are trying new ways to attract buyers into their homes and eventhough some of these methods may seem unconventional, it's interesting to know different options are out there. We have talked about conventional methods like "staging", "updating" and even "seller incentives", but what about imploring a HIGHER POWER?? Some of these practices involve from burying a St. Joseph statue in the yard of a home, to Feng Shui, to the Indian practice of Vaastu. Dinah Eng, in her Realtor Magazine article, speaks to different real estate professionals who have experienced these approaches. Can Higher Powers Sell a Home? Let us know if you have had first hand experience using any of these methods, and what the result was and good luck with the sale of your home.

Little did I know what that blog post would turn into. I was contacted by a Channel 7 producer last week telling me that she had found my "St. Joseph blog post" and would like to interview me and possibly one of our customers because she was doing a story on St. Joseph and Miami real estate.  (Did you know that St. Joseph Statue sales has increased over 200%?)

Of course I jumped at the opportunity, this would mean great exposure not only for "Rick & Ines" and our real estate business, but would help out one of our customers as well. (Nothing like getting TV exposure for one of our listings).

I have to admit I was a bit nervous during the interview and felt my voice cracking at times, but it was a lot of fun and I was happy to meet the producer, Maday Rodriguez, as well as Anthony Pineda, the photographer from Channel 7. Andrea, our customer, was such a sport about the whole thing and not only visited a "Botanica", but allowed to be filmed doing the burial ritual and let Channel 7 into her home.

I am a bit nervous at the whole editing business and hope that I am not taken out of context when they cut and snip the taping. The story should air on February 8th (I will include a link in Miamism.com when it does).

(pictured from left to right:  Ines Hegedus-Garcia, Maday Rodriguez, Anthony Pineda, Andrea Williams)

And just in case I am taken out of context, here's my rational explanation why the ritual of burying a St. Joseph Statue can only help the sale of your Miami real estate.

We all know that Real estate is an emotional process. As much as we would like to think of it as business, there are a lot of feelings and sometimes sheltered emotions that are involved.

In the case of sellers, we encounter that a lot of the time there are emotional blocks where subconsciously a seller does not really want to sell their home; whether it's because of priceless memories that the home holds or simply because they dread having to pack and move and to find a new place. (I know this may be a bit far fetched for "the skeptics").

The actual ritual of buying and burying the statue can help break the emotional block, and ultimately make the house more welcoming to prospective buyers.

In the case of Andrea, the whole process went a step further. Her house had been listed for nearly 8 months without much luck. She took this opportunity as a chance to change the process, allow new energy into the sale of her home and she not only did the ritual, but also decluttered so her house would show better.  She did later admit that although she wanted to sell, she didn't take the sale seriously before, and now was ready.

I thank Maday Rodriguez for finding the article and for letting us join in the fun.  Thanks also to Andrea for playing along.  Now let's get that house SOLD!

Look who I found yesterday in non other that NAR's Magazine?

I don’t know about you, but it feels good when I open a random article by NAR and actually know who they are talking about. Although they are covering Inman’s Real Estate Connect (it only seems right), it was great that Brian Brady and Dustin Luther were featured. They are 2 good guys that I look up to and like their style.

Take a look at the article:

Bloggers Debate Best Way to Attract Consumers

They both present interesting strategies for blogging successfully and although there is no right or wrong way, I do think it’s up to your own particular style to decide how aggressive you want your blog to be.

I agree with both, and I’m usually not the wishy-washy type, but I do think you can reach a happy medium between their suggestions.

Dustin’s method:

“soft marketing” approach to blogging. Start a blog, write about topics you know about and are interested in, and people with similar interests will find you and your business will grow

Brian’s method:

putting calls to action in every blog post and every e-mail sent to potential clients. Calls to action include directing readers to your Web site, giving them a link to find mortgage rates or to search an MLS

I have to admit that the “call to action” on every single post bothers me, but the call to action in the general blog with listings and MLS search does not. I comes back to the idea that each consumer will be different, and your own personality needs to be reflected in your marketing strategy.

One of the main complaints we hear from people relocating to Miami is that they can't deal with Miami drivers so Rick and I came up with the perfect solution......If you can't beat them, join them!

Here are some basics you'll need to learn to be able to drive in Miami without loosing your mind. These should make the transition  much easier and once you start practicing, you will feel right at home.

1.   Never, under any circumstance, drive with both hands on the wheel.  (2 hands on the wheel mean "weakness" and they will spot you a mile away).

2.   Make sure you have a cell phone on one ear.  (hands-free devices are for wimps)

3.   Use the other hand to do either of the following:  women can apply make-up or pluck eyebrows and men can shave or pick their nose.

4.   Never, under any circumstance use your blinker (turn signal) - we like surprises here in Miami, just change lanes without notice and the other drivers will respond with friendly signs.

5.   If you are on the highway and cars are passing you on the left, make sure you move over to the furthest left lane to slow traffic down......this should upset plenty of drivers, just smirk and wave if you dare.

6.   Sign language not only is acceptable but it is expected, only keep in mind that some drivers do pack heat, you may find yourself chasing bullets.

7.   Don't ever turn right from the right lane, add excitement to your life - being in the wrong lane to turn is more acceptable.

8.   Yellow light means PUNCH IT!! Slow down and you WILL cause an accident!

9.   If you see a police car, don't drive patiently behind them, speed up and pass them as quickly as you can while waving with the hand holding the cell phone.

10.   If you ever get stopped by the police, don't start making excuses.  Miami police love the truth - just tell them to hurry up with the ticket, you have places to go and people to meet.

So stop complaining, be a little more assertive with your driving and soon enough you will not understand how you were able to drive anywhere else.  Driving in Miami will feel like home.