Real Estate Views from St Pete

It's so frustrating to make a phone call and find yourself in Automated Hell. None of their choices of "departments" sound like the one you want, and you can't go backwards so you have to go back and or call in again and start through the choices all over again. Sorry, no last option of Speak to the Operator. The worst automated phone system I ever experienced was the US Department of Immigration - it's a wonder any non-citizen would want to come to this country after dealing with that (and we have problems when English is our native language).

I read about a web site that seems very useful, though I haven't tried many of the numbers. It's called

www.GetHuman.com

The site lets you search by company and get instructions on how to reach a human - i.e., which buttons to push or not push. 

There have been many posts about abbreviations

    Why we shouldn't use them in ads or in posts

    Definitions of terms

    If we don't know what a wbfp or eik or siso is, how do we expect customers to? 

I'd also like to compile new terms that I see being coined:

garagemahal  -  pretty self-evident; a house where garages dominate the front of the house. 

solana - less obvious; it's a covered outdoor space that looks/feels like an indoor living room or salon.  

Any interesting new terms that you've come across? 

Jon Washburn posted a broker/agent query and Cheryl Johnson posted a followup. Here's yet another folllowup:

To me the commission split has never been about what the broker pays the agent, it's been about what the agent pays the broker. Every agent has a business (though some don't realize it). The agent needs to look at what services/benefits he's getting and what he's paying for it.  If that make sense, great. If it doesn't, change it or move.

In the last several years, many agents have formed teams, so that they actually have a recognizable business within a business. There are still some hassles of brokerage that I don't want, so I'm willing to pay for them. There are still some advantages of name recognition and client comfort that I want, so I'm willing to pay for them.

I'm not willing to pay for things that I don't want and that I don't use - so, don't make me.

Give me more tangible benefits (i.e., income that I'm making because of you instead of because of me) than I have expense, and I'm not "paying" anything.

Dollars aside, benefits aside  .  no amount of pay or profit will keep me with you unless

• you're honest
• you have integrity
• you have leadership, knowledge, inspiration and above all,
• caring.

If you don't CARE about my customer, if you don't put my clients interest above my money or your money, if you don't know it's all about the customer,

           then I'm gone.
 

As mortgage loans went from local banks to securitized "securities", determining the actual owner of an individual mortgage has become more difficult. Worse, as the mortgage loan passed from owner to owner, ultimately to bundling  huge numbers of mortgages sold to thousands by brokerage firms, the original note may have been lost in the shuffle. Many of the originating lenders have gone out of business, sold, closed or filed for bankruptcy.

Bloomberg posted a  provocative article today revealing that "judges in at least five states have stopped foreclosure proceedings because the banks .... haven't been able to prove they own the mortgages." Many parties filing a foreclosure action have submitted either

• a copy of the mortgage note or
  
• filed a "lost-note affidavit".
  

If the owner or owner's attorney does not object, the foreclosure has often proceeded.

The article tells of one homeowner with a $1.5 Million mortgage who hasn't made a payment since 2002 and has successfully stalled the foreclosure because no one has been able to produce the original note.

Some judges have dismissed foreclosure cases when  the original note can't be produced. Other judges have warned plaintiffs to bring the original mortgage notes, not copies, and not lost-note affidavits.

Bloomberg estimated "more than $2.1 trillion, or 19 %, of outstanding mortgages have been bundled into securities." 

With vacant and abandoned homes already creating problems for cities and neighborhoods, what will this add to the problems?

Sub-prime loans  ...   Upside-down homeowners  ...   Government bailouts  ...   Now "unforeclosable"  loans?  

What next? 

Just to see what's happening, change your settings to deny any cookies - i.e., to ask you each time a site wants to set a cookie. You'll be amazed at how many cookies are set. Even some of the widgets that are on the side of blog posts set widgets. 

At first you may want to forget it all - i.e., when you have to respond to a dozen cookie requests to get to a single page on the Internet. But don't you want to know who wants your information?

You can allow the cookies from sites you know and like, that allow you easy access when you return. You can disallow all the advertising sites, all the surreptitious sites. Wouldn't you want to know when your competitors are capturing information about your visit? Perhaps that's something to share with prospective clients.

You can allow cookies or deny them - but shouldn't it be YOUR choice? 

Ooze and Schmooze is a new restaurant planned for 400 Beach in downtown St Petersburg. Combining the instant success of Parkshore Grille, a block away, and the renown of Ooze's owner Sir Robert Irvine of the Food Network, this seemed destined for success. I first posted about this last August.

One of my clients, a few weeks ago, told me that Irvine may have been ONE of the queen's chefs, but he was never THE chef (from the UK and traveling there frequently, they speak with some authority). The last week an article about "Sir" Robert Irvine and his alleged resume was written in the St Petersburg Times. I blogged about it, and since then, the story has taken on a life of its own.

To learn more ...

Broadwater Waterfront Homes, St Petersburg, Florida

Broadwater is a wonderful neighborhood of mostly waterfront homes, located in southwest St Petersburg. West of I-275 it is bounded on the south by the main channel leading into Maximo Marina, and on the west by Boca Ciega Bay. Most of the homes were built in the 1970s and many have been remodelled. Homes currently being built are on "lots" created by tearing down the house previously on the lot.

There are 18 waterfront homes currently for sale, ranging from $525,000 to $1,500,000. Home sizes range from about  1,600 sq ft to 4,600 sq ft.

Parkshore Plaza on Beach Drive in downtown St Petersburg

is a luxury condo completed in 2006 with 97 units and 29 stories. On the ground floor is Parkshore Grille, with indoor and outdoor dining, as well as various shops.

Currently there are 16 units on the market, ranging from $679,000 to $3,000,000. These can be further sorted as follows:

City homes (both flats above the shops and townhouses):
     3 units from 1,686 sq ft to 2,979 sq ft), priced from $679,000 to $1,700,000.

Tower units (starting on the 4th floor)
     01 units have 2,384 sq ft and face north, then east
          4  units from $875,000 to $1,100,000

     04 units have 2,736 sq ft and face south, then east
          2 units from $975,000 to $1,399,000

     02 units have 3,081 sq ft and face east (full water view), then north
          5 units from $1,175,000 to  $1,450,000

     03 units have 3,081 sq ft and face east (full water view), then north
          1 unit at $1,515,000

A double unit with 5,465 sq ft facing east and north, combining an 01 and 02 unit, is available for $3,000,000.

There is one unit pending, listed at $1,999,999. 

One Parkshore unit has been sold in 2008, an 04 unit at $975,000. 

There are six condos at Parkshore Plaza currently offered for annual lease, ranging from $3,000/month to $8,000/month.

When you talk about this to someone, eyebrows raise, and sometimes men will leer just a bit - they're thinking NUDE sailboat races instead of NOOD  (National Offshore One-Design) sailboat races. Three days of NOOD regattas are taking place in St. Petersburg, in sight of land, just off The Pier. Some 1,000 sailors are racing in this famous regatta, hosted by the St Petersburg Yacht Club, a well known sailing club. 

One of the racers is Jennifer French, certainly a contender. If she wins, she'll be the first female winner of NOOD, and also the first disabled winner. The St Petersburg Yacht Club and the St Petersburg Sailing Center have two young teams in the races - one of high school boys and the other of high school girls.

St. Petersburg has been home for many international sailors, including Ed Baird, famous skipper in the America's Cup races. 

When we moved from Newport, Rhode Island, a waterfront sailing capital, it was only appropriate that we move to St. Petersburg, also a waterfront sailing hub.

Laurie is the founder of the Institute for Luxury Home Marketing and a renowned national speaker. 

Bayfront Tower Condominium - downtown St Petersburg - Market Update

 Bayfront Tower was the first of the downtown St Petersburg water"front" condos, built in 1975. We locals consider this waterfront, since it has a wonderful, open view of the water, but in reality, two streets and two parks separate the building from the water. This is one of the largest downtown condos with 240 units. Most of the recent condo buildings have their common facilities on a lower floor, but this one has the 28th and 29th floors as common areas, so the views are magnificent. Units have just one parking space, but it's currently the only building that has valet parking included in the monthly maintenance fee. Many of the units have been totally renovated and some owners have combined two adjacent units to make one large one. Kitty-corner from the St Petersburg Yacht Club, the club has been known to deliver meals to members who have been unable to walk over to the Club. Some owners are still there from the 70s, including some of the pillars of the St Petersburg community. When not in Tallahassee, Governor Charlie Crist lives here also.

There are commercial spaces on the bottom two floors, then the parking, then the residential units, then on the top, the common areas. In 2007 there were 10 sales, ranging from $260,000 for a 1 bedroom unit on the city side to  $480,000 for a 3 bedroom unit(1,925 sq ft) on the city side. Only one unit sold with a full water view, which was a 1 bedroom unit. There hasn't been a larger unit sold since 2005 when one sold for $1,300,000.

Currently there are 16 condominiums units (less than 7% of the units) listed in the MLS, ranging from $282,000 to $1,000,000. There are no age limits for residents, and pets are allowed.

Accessoreez and  Image Creations of Florida hosted a designer's showcase event in St Petersburg. I was fortunate to be invited to this private event, planned to make a quick stop for 15 minutes, and then spent over an hour there. Not only did I have a chance to talk with old friends and meet some new ones ... I saw some wonderful wearable art, some for me and some for my home. 

Linda and Jack Albrecht, friends and clients, have been serving the Tampa Bay interior design community for more than a dozen years - creating wonderful cast paper art,  providing unique faux painting for homes, framing original artwork and prints, Giclee (pronounced zhee-clay) artwork pieces, and providing customized pieces for residences and commercial buildings. Linda has partnered with a long-time friend (we don't have "old" friends), Leslie Belcher, to provide unique art glass jewelry through Accessoreez,

Leslie designs beautiful glass jewelry. My favorites were those that began with sea themes and applied her creativity. I liked the symmetrical aspect of her necklaces. Which designs? Which colors? Hmmm - I guess I'll have Leslie design a custom piece - or two - or three.

Image Creations of Florida is located at 3025 44th Avenue North in St Petersburg, where Leslie is setting up both a showcase and a workshop. Do call first - the experience is so much better if Linda and Leslie are there to walk you through the whole creative process. 

A comment to a recent post of mine on downtown St Petersburg luxury condos
mentioned

condos, probably 40 years old or so,...that are simple, have views, and have an old time laid back feel. More like old St. Pete I imagine than the Miami feel some of the newer condos give off.

The specific reference was to a complex called Whispering Waters where a 1 bedroom condo starts at $177,000. (a 55+ community). Nearby are:

Shore Crest condo, starting at $175,000 for a 1 bedroom condo (also a 55+ building), 

North Shore Normandy, starting at $229,000 (no age restriction)

Harbour Hill, starting at $224,900 (55+)

and right downtown you have:

Townview, starting at $238,000 (no age restriction)

Bayfront Tower, starting at $282,000 (no age restriction)

and a real oldie from 1927:

Flori de Leon, starting at $95.000 (55+)

so yes, there is a good variety, and it does depend on the lifestyle you want, and the investment you want to make.

Regardless of which you choose, downtown St Petersburg has a wonderful quality of life. 

Kevin May posted a blog stating that print isn't on its way out. While I disagree with his conclusion (I think it's declining but won't die) I'm in agreement on both the need for marketing and how to compose an ad to attract attention.

On the internet, and in your blog, you also need a good headline.

    You need to convey emotion.

        You need to tell a story. 

           You need to set the tone.

One advantage of the internet is that you aren't limited in size - use enough space to really tell the story, to really touch the viewer. Some people will already know your blog and check it frequently, or have it sent to them via RSS. Yet you have more readers. The long tail will catch a lot of people, now and well into the future (and well into the past).

Kevin mentions needing a marketing plan and a media mix. To me, this is how print will survive - by integrating with the web, by complementing each other and  taking advantage of the best points of each. 

After showing a prospect some downtown St Petersburg condos this afternoon, we sat down to sort through what we'd seen. He asked me, "What's going to happen with prices? Are condos going down more than houses?"

Other than not having a crystal ball, I can say that in both condos and houses some are going to do well and some are not. The average price change isn't going to help you. Let's talk about which building (or which neighborhoods) are likely to show more price drops than others. Despite the newspaper statistics you read, there are still some building and some neighborhoods where prices are not declining, and where they're actually going up.

Then we started to discuss the downtown St Pete condo buildings, one by one. They say Real Estate is Local - and it really is. Dig deeper to separate the mini-markets. 

This is a follow-up to my post on blacklisted condos, condos that don't qualify under normal financing guidelines:

Some contract forms provide that when a buyer is approved for his loan, all contingencies are removed; some contract forms don't limit the interest rate that a buyer will pay or limit the type of loan to be pursued.

If we're representing a buyer, we don't want to risk having the buyer lose his deposit because the building he's buying in isn't a building his lender will loan on. Nor do we want him to be obligated to a high interest rate loan because of where he's buying.

Suggest to your manager or your attorney that they draw up an addendum you can add to the sales contract that covers this possibility. Be proactive before you or your buyer are losers. 

As if we didn't have enough challenges getting buyers qualified -

As if there weren't concerns about declining prices ...

The Daily Business Review published an article about "blacklisted" condos, and talked a lot about the Miami market. However, what happens in Miami doesn't stay in Miami. It could come to your market, too, and mine. 

Part of the cause for our prices declines were the number of properties bought by speculators to flip. Now - if you can find a buyer for one of these condos, the lender may turn down the loan because the condo doesn't have at least 70% owner occupied units. Buyers walking away from their deposits, foreclosures, flips on the market - and only cash buyers can buy? Or buyers willing to pay much higher interest on their mortgage? Seems to me that's going to just increase the problem.

Please read the linked article and think about the ramifications. 

Downtown St Petersburg, Florida

A few years ago I added a new niche to my business - luxury downtown condos in St. Petersburg, Florida. St Pete has transformed from a sleepy town of retired folks to a vibrant lifestyle that's in demand. Within the last decade five luxury condominium projects have been built along* the waterfront and others have been built within a few blocks of there. 

From a location and planning perspective, what makes downtown St Pete unique is that these waterfront* condos aren't lined up along the water, blocking the views from everyone going by - along the waterfront is a sidewalk, then a street, then a series of parks, then another street and THEN the condos! So everyone can enjoy the parks and the many concerts and art shows that take place in the parts, can walk along the waterfront, and all can enjoy. Traffic? not a problem, except for during a big even, such as First Night (New Year's Eve) or the Grand Prix races.

What also makes it nice is that these condo buildings along Beach Dr NE are required to have retail on the street level. That makes for interesting walking. There is a further requirement that the buildings can only go up 2 or 3 stories there along the sidewalk - then the tower has to step back toward the rear of the property. That keeps a comfortable feel for those walking along - you don't sense a wall of high buildings.

Add to this lots of restaurants, sidewalk cafes, museums, shops, a multi-theater movie complex, historic buildings, trees and benches - it's fabulous. Old and young are moving downtown, and many of them are selling their cars, or keeping one just for times they head over to the beach (though you can take the trolley from downtown to the beach).  

These "front line" condos are generally priced from $750,000 to over $5,000,000. Choose one a block or two away, or find a smaller unit without a water view in one of these "front" buildings and you may be able to buy one for $250,000 less. 

What's even nicer is that I can show these condos without a car - we can just walk from my office to the various buildings. I find that walking to a property gives a better sense of what it would be like to live downtown. 

Albert Whitted Park in downtown St Petersburg, Florida, will be dedicated tomorrow, Sunday, February 10, 2008. The is the latest addition to St. Petersburg's magnificent waterfront park system. This was a parking lot in its last life and is across from the Mehaffey Theater and future site of the Dali Museum, along the water, and adjacent to Albert Whitted Airport.

Dedication is at 1:30 pm. Grand Opening Celebration, put on by the Albert Whitted Airport Preservation Society, is from 10 am to 4 pm and will include:

• aircraft displays
• Angel Flight exhibit
• control tower tours 
• free Young Eagles flights
• simulator rides
• aviation activities and crafts for kids.
• great views of airplanes landing and taking off
  

The latest addition to St Pete's downtown waterfront parkland has a waterfront walkway along the South Yacht Basin, picnic shelters, restrooms, parking, and an aviation-themed playground. At several shelters you can listen to control tower communications.

St Petersburg is designated as a Green City. This park will have renewable, sustainable electric energy and lighting systems. 

You've no doubt heard that you should target market. You shouldn't advertise to everybody, because you'll find nobody. Eliminate the people who won't buy a home anyway, and find those who will accept the property you're marketing with all its warts.

This morning I saw a 1/4 page ad in the Wall St Journal - no property photos, a subtle colored background and a small head shot of the agent - but the text caught my eye:

The first owner was Old Blue Eyes.
The new one must be someone with vision.

See yourself living in a one-of-a-kind apartment once owned by Frank Sinatra? Well, you'll have to look past the toll the years have taken on this potential triplex and see it for what it could be - a true showplace and a showstopper .......

and the ad continues.  Then there's the noteworthy last sentence:

Like this property and even Old Blue Eyes himself, Ann Bialek is a rare find. 

Now that's someone who knows how to write a great ad.