2012 Economic Summit The New Future, A View from the Top The Naples Area Board of Realtors presented The 2012 Economic Summit last Friday April 13th. The keynote speakers included Lawrence Yun, Chief Economist and Senior Vice President of Research for the National Association of Realtors; John Tucillo, Chief Economist of the Florida Association of Realtors and head of the Industry Data and Analysis Department; Shelton Weeks, Department Chair of
Read MoreThe 2012 Housing Recovery Coldwell Banker President, Budge Huskey, COO, gives his outlook on the national real estate market today on Fox business news channel. Please take a moment to listen to his interview by clicking on the link below. I think one of the most interesting points he made, is that although some naysayers continue to wait on the sidelines, predicting the upcoming "glut" of foreclosures which are due
Read MoreMORE GOOD NEWS! Recently released statistics, from The Naples Area Board of Realtors [NABOR], report more good news! Closed home sales, as well as sales pended, have increased 5% over the past 12 months. This data tracks all home and condo sales in Collier county excluding Marco Island, which has its own board. In addition to the increase in sales, our inventory is way down...an overall decrease of 17% less
Read MoreThe Value of Owning a Home Coldwell Banker recently released their 2012 ad campaign at the annual business conference in New Orleans. The creative agency selected by Coldwell Banker to head up this campaign is Siltanen & Partners in El Segundo, California. A very different approach to their marketing was adopted this year in order to play up the emotional reasons for owning a home. Personally, I have always felt
Read MoreWould you like to have some Naples Real Estate in your shopping cart? Vacation and resort destinations have an entirely different set of rules when it comes to 'buyer urgency' when compared to other markets. Jerry Murphy, managing broker at The Park Shore Coldwell Banker office, always says, "There are two kinds of buyers in the world...those that 'need' to buy and those that 'desire' to buy". That goes for
Read MoreThere is never a lack of activities in this diverse town, that I can assure you, and this weekend is no exception. The Naples National Art Festival is consistently ranked among the top 10 art festivals in the country! Held in beautiful Cambier Park, there are over 260 artists showcasing their talents. Come on down this Saturday & Sunday, February 25th and 26th from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The
Read MoreHere is an example of what is presently happening in Old Naples.... So, we've had this one listing since January 2008....We began with an asking price of $499,000, which was right in line with the most recent closed sale at that time of $465,000. The property went on and off the market a few times over the years, while slowly chasing the market down, like many of the sellers...Numerous price
Read MoreInventory Is Down ~ Inquiries Are Up! January is now behind us, and Easter is early this year, which means we are now technically 1/3rd the way through our "season". There are a lot of buyers in the market place....open houses, floor time opportunity, sign calls and Internet leads have all increased substantially. Even the media, for the most part, is reporting good news on the real estate front. Inventory
Read MoreWhat is happening today in the Naples Real Estate market? Just released, The NABOR Market Report has some exciting and interesting statistics about the current state of the real estate market in Naples Florida. Several factors are coming into play regarding value, primarily supply and demand. The 2011 housing inventory ended at a 5 year low. Specifically, the number of properties listed below $300,000., which has been the driving force
Read MoreWho is it that said the road to heaven is paved with good intentions? I'm not sure, but if that's the case, I'm well on my way. I had a lofty goal this year: I wanted to post to my real estate blog at least 3 times each week. I had, what I thought, was a fairly easy schedule to implement, and I had a list of wonderful suggestions from
Read MoreHi there! It has already been a crazy first 9 days of 2012. Wow! The feedback I've gotten from the last question posed online regarding content was overwhelming! Thank you all for your emails! I have already decided to change one thing because of the result of asking for your suggestions. Our "Select Vendor of the Week" will now be called "Naples featured Business of the Week". This will also
Read MoreGreetings Naples Real Estate Blog Fans! We are nearly one week into the new year and I am trying to come up with some fresh ideas to increase activity on our blog! One thing which I am going to try to do this year is keep a "patterned pace" when posting. I've learned several tips from fellow bloggers, and more regular posting seems to be one of the keys to
Read More"An optimist stays up until midnight to see the new year in...A pessimist stays up till midnight to make sure the old year leaves." ~Bill Vaughn So, has there ever been another year written about as often as 2012? Of course, 1984 comes to mind...as does the new millennium. Ah yes, waiting for the clock to strike on December 31st, 1999 at 11:59 PM--I'm sure you remember where you were
Read MoreWell, here we are, getting ready to flip our calendars over to yet another year. It'll probably take more than a few times of mindlessly writing 2011 on checks and letters before the new year sinks in and twenty-12 becomes more natural. It's been a good year...we met our business goals, our children and grandchildren are all healthy, my mom is still getting younger with every passing year, we took
Read MoreHave you made your "list" and checked it twice? As any of you who know me well know, I am a list maker...I have lists for everything! The everyday "To do" list The "I never go to the Grocery Store without a" list The Books I want to read list The Birthday and anniversary cards for the month ahead list The Things that need to get done around the house
Read MoreMARTIN"S COOLING & HEATING, Inc. It is my absolute pleasure to recommend Martin's Cooling and Heating, Inc. We recently hired them to do service work at our own personal residence. All the employees were hard working, personable and skilled. We have hired them many times before, and have referred them to many of our Naples customers over the years. They always do a fabulous job. They are reliable, and set
Read MoreThe power of being thankful...it's not your typical real estate blog post... I started keeping a journal when I was a teenager, although back then it was called a diary. Having moved from New York, to New Jersey, to California, to Texas, to finally Naples, many of those 'Notes To Myself' have been lost...or buried in boxes in storage...or simply read & re-read a few times before making their way
Read MoreWhat's happening on the water in Naples Florida? There is a very limited supply of new construction homes for sale in Naples Florida. Currently there are a total of 2,585 homes for sale in all 'NA' zones in Naples according to our local multiple listing system, SunshineMLS. When doing a search of the Naples MLS for single family homes presently for sale that have been completed in the year 2011
Read MoreI work on the prettiest street in the world [click on image to enlarge]. Sitting at my desk, I face out in front of a big picture window...it's amazing to me that i don't spend more time daydreaming...As I look out, I can see the beautiful people passing by...Those who are lucky enough to live here are usually dressed for work, and the snowbirds that recently began arriving again for
Read MorePerfection in Grey Oaks, Naples Florida This magnificent estate is situated on a 1+ acre cul-de-sac homesite where you can savor the views of the preserve, lakes and greens of The Pine course from every vantage point. The home was designed by renowned architect Stofft & Cooney, and built in 2005 by Borelli Construction. It has 6 spacious bedrooms, 7 full and 2 half baths. Some of its many amenities include a detached guest
Read MoreThe Harris Peppe Team of the Coldwell Banker Previews office on Fifth Avenue South in Old Naples is proud to announce this week's select vendor of the week is Carroll & Carroll, Inc. They are an independent fee appraisal firm practicing in both Lee and Collier counties. The principals, Ray and Cindy Carroll, are a brother sister team. Their family were some of the earliest pioneers in Naples, dating back
Read MoreAgain we are faced with the media presenting erroneous information to consumers based on data that is inaccurate and far too broad-based to carry water. As one of my colleagues so eloquently put it earlier today in remarking about various newspaper and magazine accounts of the current real estate market, "Real Estate is NOT real, it's the perception that is real"! As stated in CNNMoney this week, according to FISV,
Read MoreMaxine's, Inc. Maxine's Alterations & Tailoring was established in 1991. Two sisters operate this family business at 1033 5th Avenue North. I have used their services many times over the years and I cannot compliment their service and results enough! The very first time I went into this modest store was nearly 20 years ago...I had a favorite jacket with two front pockets that had ripped at the seam of
Read MoreI don't use this platform for political commentary very often...but I just need to vent a little. It may actually not be a "political" statement at all, but rather a perspective on the nature of things as I see them right now. I've had people that I know, love and respect becoming very angry lately with what is happening in the world. I see them react in a most unfamiliar
Read MoreNothing indicates what is happening in the real estate market more accurately than listings going under contract. The graph below depicts pendings of Naples residential listings over the past 4 years, per the local multiple listing service: SunshineMLS. This is a clear illustration [click on graph to enlarge] of the peaks and valleys in our local market. Obviously, our pendings go up during "season"-- that just makes sense. But, what
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