Sheena and Bob in TampaBay and beyond…

Wonder of wonders, they have started construction on the Collier Parkway extension which will connect with Ehren Cutoff. This will provide an alternative to Land O Lakes Boulevard when heading north. Suddenly, the Land O Lakes traffic patterns are really going to open up.  It’s going to be much easier to get around.

TampaBayHomes is your real estate source for TampaBay Real Estate. We can help you throughout the Central Florida area. From St. Petersburg and Pinellas County and TampaBay and Hillsborough County and Land O Lakes and Pasco County we will help you buy your home or sell your home. We are your TampaBay Real Estate source.

Another day in paradise: Buying

There used to be really only one kind of property offered for sale. It was an ACTIVE property. Today, there are short sales, pre-foreclosures, bank owned and ACTIVE. To make it easy, you can treat Bank owned and Active properties the same way. There is an owner/seller and an offer can be made and accepted in reasonably short order. If it is a traditional ACTIVE property, you may expect an answer from the seller in 48 hours. If it is bank owned you may expect an offer in five to ten business days. Short sales, pre-foreclosures and foreclosures are all very much the same. The Lender must accept he offer before a sale can be concluded. A contract is established when Buyer and Seller agree and execute a contract. This is binding. However, Lender acceptance of the contract is a specific and limiting contingency. Lenders generally take 45 to 50 days to receive record, evaluate and decide on a short sale offer.

TampaBayHomes is your real estate source for TampaBay Real Estate. We can help you throughout the Central Florida area. From St. Petersburg and Pinellas County and TampaBay and Hillsborough County and Land O Lakes and Pasco County we will help you buy your home or sell your home. We are your TampaBay Real Estate source.

Another day in paradise: Buying

REO stands for Real Estate Owned and is the proper name for a property that the Bank now owns having gone through the foreclosure process or accepted the deed in lieu of foreclosure. You can treat a bank-owned property just like you would treat a normal sale between a seller and a buyer. The appeal of a bank-owned, REO property is that the price will tend to be at or below a very competitive market price. Further, an experienced Realtor will be able to negotiate on your behalf to secure the best possible price and the best possible terms. The lenders do not want to own property. Apart from the cost to foreclose the lenders have monthly maintenance expenses. They want to get properties off their books. If you’re looking for a REO property we have the experience to help you find a very good opportunity and negotiate an attractive settlement. For more information please write to tampabayhomes1@yahoo.com or call 813.996.2441. We are REO specialists. Visit Our Website

Another day in paradise: Buying

Buying a short sale property is becoming more rational. A year ago, when short sales were starting to become common, the Lenders did not have any clear set of rules and procedures for handling short sales. As a result, everything about an offer to purchase a short sale was unpredictable. Now, things are getting better. Most importantly, if an offer has been submitted on a short sale to the lender the seller’s Realtor must list the property as pending. Further, only one offer may be submitted at any one time and that offer must have been accepted and signed by the seller. A new offer cannot be submitted to the lender until the originally submitted offer has been rejected or countered by the lender. It still may take as long as 45 days to get an answer but, as the buyer, you do not have to make an escrow deposit, conduct inspections or order a survey until the lender has accepted the offer. If you would like more information about buying a short sale property please write to tampabayhomes1@yahoo.com or call 813.996.2441. We are short sale specialists, visit our website.

Building Your Own Home

New Construction in TampaBay

Buying new construction in today’s challenging market can offer a number of very positive benefits including an attractive price with generous incentives. Builders are far more flexible in their final pricing than they have been for years. However, buying new construction presents the Buyer with hundreds of decisions they will live with for many years. At least a third of our home sales are new construction. Sheena has been a general contractor and has detailed knowledge of the entire process. Realtor commissions are included in the Builder’s cost structure so we provide essentially free consulting, support and supervision at no cost at all to the Buyer. The following outlines our responsibilities to you, the Buyer of new construction.

• Provide the Buyer with a comprehensive selection of Builders and their models that meet the Buyers requirements.
• Assist in evaluating the Builder’s incentives. Upgrade allowances are only good if, in fact, the upgrades covered by the allowance are fairly priced.
• Mortgage evaluation. Most Builders have their own financing arm and offer financing incentives. We will help you evaluate the mortgage terms as compared with other alternative financing.
• Design Center. Upon contract signing the Buyer is directed to the Design Center where they will be asked to make hundreds of decisions affecting every area of their new home. The selection process in the Design Center includes selecting flooring for every room, paint, fixtures of all kinds, cabinetry and countertops, exterior paint and trim, door and cabinet handles and pulls and light fixtures and power outlets (and their placement). During the Design Center process the Buyer will generally make at least 200 decisions on-the-spot.
• Design Center support. We accompany you to the Design Center and help you manage the decision process as well as counsel you on the result of your selections. For instance, will your tile, your countertops and the paint you have selected compliment one another to form a pleasing result in your kitchen? Sheena has extensive interior design and decoration experience and will provide valuable support during this exhausting process.
• Periodic Inspection. We will monitor the construction process and we recommend hiring the services of an independent Home Inspector to evaluate progress during the construction process as well as for a final inspection before closing.
• Walk-through – There will be a walk-through inspection during what is call the “punch-out” phase of new construction. We will be with you as we inspect the property with the Building Superintendent. During this walk through we identify all issues which need to be corrected. This is a comprehensive inspection of every facet of the new home starting with the landscaping and exterior to every square inch inside the home.
• Final inspection – We will accompany you and the Building Superintendent to confirm that all identified “punch out items “have been corrected.
• Closing – Immediately thereafter we will accompany you to closing. If there are any open repair issues we will ensure that these repair issues are identified and a completion date set. These issues will be reflected in the closing documents.
• Congratulations – you are now the new owner of a brand new home designed and built to meet your exact specifications.

TampaBayHomes is your real estate source for TampaBay Real Estate. We can help you throughout the Central Florida area. From St. Petersburg and Pinellas County and TampaBay and Hillsborough County and Land O Lakes and Pasco County we will help you buy your home or sell your home. We are your TampaBay Real Estate source.