Cape Coral Real Estate : September 2006

So many of you said how beautiful Pine Island is.

I can't agree with you more but my house has Western exposure so I get the great sunsets from my backyard. Can't complain right?

Well here is a photo I took a while back from my backyard, yes the bay is only about 2-3 miles due West.

Cape Coral, Florida Sunset

So today I'm driving around in Cape Coral (where I live) checking on some of my vacant land listings when I decide to head over to Pine Island.

Pine Island is a quaint island community. The areas are Matlacha, Pineland, St. James City & Bokeelia. I decide to head through Matlacha & make a left down towards St James City.

How nice. The sun was up but obviously close to setting as I drive.

These photos are not the greatest because I took them while driving - yeah very safe I know...

So to the left is the very end of St. James City....

Ok after that I drive down the road the way I came. We stopped at the main grocery store for a drink ~ Winn Dixie. I'm amazed that there are only about 20 people inside the entire store - nothing like Cape Coral. We get back in the truck & continue on our trip.

Here we stop on a dead end road to photograph this direct access canal. The homes are small & modest here but what a view & quick access!

Here is another shot of a canal:

Ok & one more just so you get the idea:

Notice the mud on my mirror - yeah it's mud, we were checking out some property & ended up spinning mud on the truck....

Ok so we turn out of these dead end roads & head back through Matlacha - I didn't get any photos of the quaint stores along the way all painted in the most radiant colors - as not to crash on the main road/bridge.

I take a photo of the bay as I drive by:

And then of the bridge - Matlacha Pass where many people are walking about & fishing:

Then home we go. A couple of miles from there & from my house we pass our brand new bustling Publix shopping center & we're home in less than 7 minutes.

Sometimes you forget your surroundings & all the beauty around. Its nice to take time out from time to time to go see your 'backyard'

Thanks for reading!

I got an e-mail today from one of my clients who lives in North Port, Florida. I guess a neighbor came screaming to his door yesterday -- something about a big snake -- he comes out to find the following:

He is told to contain the snake until animal control gets there....fun huh?

 For those of you NOT from FL that is a Diamondback RATTLE SNAKE!!!

YUCK - That thing is HUGE!!!

There are ways out. That' the #1 thing to know.

There are options available to homeowners who have missed mortgage payments & facing foreclosure.

Many homeowners do not realize that they could get out & save their credit too.

You have to know: The bank does NOT want your home. Especially not in the current buyer's market that most of the nation is in.

According to Freddie Mac the average cost for a bank to take back a property is $59,000! Why would a bank choose to lose so much? Wouldn't they rather work with you? Of course...

Typically, you can contact your lender & work something out. Thats the first place to start. Call them as soon as you know there may be a problem, don't wait until after you've missed more payments. Often times they will work out something with you to save you some time & money while times are tough. This may include an adjustment to your current loan or a grace period/forebearance.

If that doesn't work & you think you may risk losing your home, contact a real estate professional. Make sure you interview a few & find out what their experience with pre-foreclosures or short sales are. Some may have never dealt with this type of circumstance before.

You need to make sure you are honest with the agent so they can devise a plan for the sale of your home. Even if you owe more than the current market value, an educated agent can assist you in selling your house & saving your credit. Banks often times take a loss (also called a short-sale) on a property to avoid having to go through the expensive foreclosure proceeding.

Another option, if your credit is still intact, is to refinance. Again, contact a real estate professional for a referral to a mortgage broker or bank - or contact them directly if you know of someone. There may be a better loan available for you that will ease the monthly cost. Your current lender may even be willing to refinance you depending upon circumstances. Again, ASK. You don't know until you do.

The last option is to find a real estate investor who buys pre-foreclosures. Often times they have access to cash to remedy the situation quickly. Be advised though that they will be making a profit. That's expected but its something to keep in mind.

In conclusion, its pretty scary to be facing foreclosure on your home that you've worked so hard to purchase & maintain but keep in mind that there are many options available so be proactive as soon as you know there is a problem.

Don't give up until you explore all of your options.

It seems like we do not talk about or hear about our troops as much as we did when they were first deployed.

It's almost become commonplace. I was sent an e-mail earlier today about a website that lets you send a postcard to a random soldier thanking them for all that they do.

The best part is it gets to put a smile on someone's face, next best part - its free & the final part - it takes like one minute to complete.

We should all send one or more:

Support Our Troops - click this link to send a free postcard to a soldier today.

Whatever your political views, or whether you support the war or not, we should all support our troops.

I found this site a few months ago & used it. It's so great.

You can get a free copy of your credit report in a matter of 2 minutes online from all 3 credit reporting agencies! This is NOT one of those credit monitoring systems. It's a real credit report for free. You can only do it for free once a year though.

If you have any credit-troubled clients send them here. They can dispute anything with a simple click of the mouse. Something not theirs? something incorrect? The system will take it OFF & e-mail you a confirmation.

I had a client do this & her score went up over 100 points - this is TRUE.

Ok just another website to offer to your clients, oh yeah & use it yourself too!

Annual Credit Report

Let me know what you think!

My opinion is that now is the best time to be a first time homebuyer in our area. The prices of homes have actually been declining making them once again affordable. In SW Florida we experienced price appreciation of 20-30-40-50%+ a year depending on type of property & location over the past 2-3 years. We knew this couldn't go on forever but it was fun while it lasted.

Now the market is adjusting back to normal. First time homebuyers are able to take their time to research, plan & make a decision on the best options available. Last year, they had to move quick & often times make offers ABOVE asking prices. Now, with more options available you can actually make offers BELOW asking prices & GET THEM ACCEPTED.

There are NICE homes in Cape Coral under $75,000 again. There are brand new ones under $120,000 again. These prices are lower than they've been in about 5 years. Now is the time to buy. First time homebuyers, stop renting or living with your parents - you can't afford it. A new home is now affordable here. 

We have designed a great new site just for the first time homebuyer with articles, advice & contact information to the best 'team advisors' around. Get your team in place today & find your own home while the market is down. Take advantage of the buyer's market & don't be left on the sidelines when it starts going back up.

Search all Cape Coral real estate for sale now!

I hope to see you there soon!

Yours in Success,

Susan Milner, e-PRO GRI REALTOR

What kind of an investor do you want to be? I am currently reading The Millionaire Real Estate Investor by Gary Keller.

As an investor myself I am constantly looking at ways to increase my investment portfolio & learning about what other real estate investors are investing in & how is a great way to enhance your current situation as well. Why re-invent the wheel as they say? Exactly. And maybe youve been successfully investing & your way works but maybe there is an easier or more lucrative approach out there? Im sure if you are reading this that you are the type of person that is always looking to find great advice out there though.

By continuing to educate yourself through books, tapes, seminars, etc you are becoming more & more of what you ultimately seek to be.

One part of the book Id like to share with you that I personally found very insightful was the following:

The Four Investment Profiles

Investor loves opportunity & buys the right thing!

Collector loves ownership & buys something!

Speculator loves the action & buys anything!

Observer loves ideas & buys nothing!

So where do you want to be? Looking over these 4 characters I see that a lot of my clients are currently the speculator or collector instead of the investor. I want to help my clients reach the investor level for ultimate success. Dont you want to be an investor too? Im sure that the collectors & speculators like to THINK that they are investors but in reality are they? No, they really arent. While some speculators get very lucky & have huge returns that is the exception & not the rule.

When investing in real estate you have to know what you are doing & make your money going into the project, not hoping for appreciation after the fact. This is exactly why I worry about speculators who want to buy & flip properties. While several clients made a lot of money doing this over the past couple of years we all knew it couldnt go on forever. And it has stopped. We all know that the market has shifted & a lot of that was fueled by the speculative investors. Some of them are looking at other soon to be hot markets & some are waiting it out. Some have had to cut their losses and get out now & hopefully will be able to return later.

Now many true investors are seeing opportunities in our area & are looking at adding properties to their portfolios. These properties may even have cash flow & the investor plans to hold them for a while.

Real estate isnt a liquid asset so if you cant afford to hold the property you better not buy it.

Some things that real estate are as Gary Keller points out as well: Attainable, appreciable, leverage able, rentable, improvable, deductible, depreciable, deferrable, stable & livable.makes it quite able doesnt it?

Id be more than happy to speak with you about real estate investing & help guide you to properties that are a fit for you. Its a buyers market here.

Which means you should be buying, but not just buying anything, but rather buying smart. I look forward to working with you in the near future.

To buy Gary's book online at amazon.com just click this link: The Millionaire Real Estate Investor It's selling used for about $11 & new at $14 - not much at all for what you get!

Yours in Success,

Susan Milner, e-PRO REALTOR

http://www.susanmilner.com/

(239) 218-2229