Palm Beach Real Estate and Loans

The first thing that comes to mind when you think of Palm Beach Gardens real estate is probably luxury homes on a golf course.

For the most part that is true - but there is an alternative or two. One of the first that comes to mind is the unique community Steeplechase.

Situated on the south side of Northlake Boulevard, just south of BallenIsles, Steeplechase offers the top-notch estates that Palm Beach Gardens is so well known for BUT, each home is on a lot that is a minimum of 1 acre.

There are none of the uncomfortable, zero-lot-line set ups that you see in so many other communities. 

Leibowitz Realty has a great description of this community:

"Steeplechase is a wonderful 24-hour gated community of luxury homes on one acre plus lots! (A very rare commodity in South Florida).

Offering a diverse selection of established estates and brand new construction custom estate homes, Steeplechase is one of the most unique neighborhoods in Palm Beach County.  Each home is set on at least an acre of gorgeous property creating a true estate feel with deeply set back homes offering the ultimate privacy and fabulous backyards with room for tennis courts, sports courts, private playgrounds and more!  A Charming tree-lined main street and sidewalks on Steeplechase main drive encourages neighborhood walks, jogs and general enjoyment of this intimate community and the fantastic South Florida weather.  Custom estate homes surround the quiet side streets and are interspersed around lovely cul-de sacs as well in this beautifully designed community."

You can read more about it HERE or take a TOUR of the community.

Please call me at 561-282-7406 at any time to discuss the community and the properties that are currently available.

Some people decide to sell their property themselves - the reason dosen't really matter, but it's usually because they want to save the money that would be spent on a real estate agents' comission.

Or they might just not like agents in general (imagine that?!?!) - I saw these jokes earlier this morning:

-Sign next to FSBO: We shoot every third agent and the 2nd one just left.

-Question: There is a Used Car Salesman, a Realtor and a Lawyer. And you have a gun with two bullets... Which should you shoot?
Answer: You should shoot the realtor twice... Just to be sure. 

Where's the love?

Most agents cringe when people mention 'for sale by owner' (or fizz-bo) properties - but I look at it this way:  You're the owner! Whatever you do is your own business.

Of course, I would certainly rather you use a professional - yes, I mean me - to do the job. But if you want to go it alone at least let me give you a list of things that you need to consider:

• Make sure the home goes into the Multiple Listing Service (MLS). That is THE main database and, of course, Realtor.com
• Get a photographer to take pictures of the house
• If your neighborhood allows it, put a sign in the yard
• Run ads - with photos - in your local newspapers
• Straighten your home up - I mean PRISTINE - and keep it that way, every day
• Be ready to answer the phone every time it rings.
• Be ready to show the home every single day of the week even on short notice
• This is the Internet age - print advertizing alone won't suffice, so make sure that your home is listed on as many real estate-related sites as possible (Some of the ones I use are AcitveRain, Localism, CraigsList, GolfCourseCommunities, WorldProperties, and many more)
• Make sure to have a lawyer that will handle the paperwork
• What if an Agent brings you a qualified Buyer - would you pay him/her for their efforts?
• and the list goes on and on.....

Oh, and whatever you do, PRICE THE PROPERTY PROPERLY.

That IS a long list and it is by no means complete.  Can you honestly tell yourself that you can do all of that, hold down a full-time job and take care of all of your other family matters?

We still have a very strong Buyers' Market in Palm Beach Gardens - it's like that almost everywhere - so if you really want to sell your home, you better be prepard for a lot of work!

Anyway, you get the idea.  If you and your family are prepared to do all of that, then give it a try.

If not, just give me a call-

So you want to know the current value of your Palm Beach Gardens real estate -

You and your family might be thinking of SELLING and you need an accurate idea of what the property is worth so that you can price it properly. 

Too low and you lose $$.

Too high and it will sit on the market for a loooooooooong time.

Not to go off on a tangent - but this is  BIG problem.  Too often an uninformed Homeowner will give a listing to whichever agent hits them with the promise of the biggest price, even though there is no justification for it.  They're just stroking your ego and people fall for it by the ton.

There are several ways to determine your home's value-

The WORST thing you can do is use one of the many automatic valuation tools that have popped up on-line in the last few years - they are fast, but extremely inaccurate.

There are quite a few and the general consensus is that they are extremely inaccurate.  The sites themselves even admit their faulty nature, so why even bother using them?  As these 'estimators' develop over the years and their databases expand I'm sure they will be more accurate - but right now they are a very poor choice.

The #1 way is to hire a Professional Appraiser - there is a charge, but it's well worth it.

Another way is to click on the 'What's My Home Worth?' button on the left of the screen on this site's Home Page.  You'll provide some basic information which I will use to come up with an estimate of what your home is worth and what it should be listed for.  Once I have the specifics on your home, I take a look at the comparable properties - both the ones that are currently listed and the ones closest to you that have sold in the last 6 months.  I then adjust for any minor differences and get the estimate to you within 24 hours, for free.

If you are considering luxury real estate in Palm Beach Gardens, you don't want to miss the homes in San Michele.

Everyone, including myself, is always talking about BallenIsles, Mirasol, PGA National, Old Palm -

San Michele is different.....

It is a very private, gated community of only 90 phenominal estates in the north of Palm Beach Gardens - just north of the intersection of Hood Road and Central Blvd.

 A perfect example of what you can expect there is 3132 San Michele Drive - a 4 bedroom 4.5 bathroom Tuscan-style courtyard home that you can come and see at my Open House this Sunday (7/13/2008) or you can go to the virtual tour here.

View Larger Map

There are currently 11 homes for sale from $1,199,000 to $1,750,000.

For information on any of these homes just call me @ 561-282-7406.

How would you like an easy way to search for real estate in Palm Beach Gardens - or anywhere in the southeast of Florida for that matter?

Most people would - that's why I offer a simple solution.  Located on the left of this screen you will see 2 buttons:

• Search for Homes - the quick way to get basic knowledge of property that is available in the areas that you are interested in AND
• VIP Registration - this is where you sign up to get the specifics on the properties that are most important to you.

When you sign up for the VIP Membership not only do you get the specifics on any home(s) that you like, you can also sign up for any/all of the informational series on Buying, Selling, Investing, Financing, etc.  Most importantly you can also set up specific searches for Homes in target areas that are AUTOMATICALLY updated whenever new Homes become available.

In return, I do ask for your information, including your phone number and email address. Why?

It's more simple then most people realize - to update you I do need to know WHERE to send the information!

Believe it or not, I was actually contacted by a man who was upset when he didn't get any updates.  Well, he'd provided a bogus email address, so none of the emails ever got to him!  He said he just didn't want to be 'pestered' but he still wanted the information.......  Some people just never seem to make sense.

I do understand that people are careful when giving out personal information - and you SHOULD be.  But let me assure you that I NEVER share or sell your information.  Unfortunately that isn't the case with some sites, but with me it is secure.

So, now that I've gotten completely off-track....

The advantage of being able to use this search is that YOU can search for any listed properties on your own time frame - you feel like doing it at 2 in the morning? Go right ahead.  That and the automatic updates - something new gets listed and it meets the criteria that you set, the information will automatically be sent to you.  Much better than having to check every day.

I've had a lot of positive feedback about this search system.  Feel free to give it a try and let me know what you think.