Real Estate Views from St Pete

We've read about topics for blogs.

We've read about making better use of our time.

Just a little while ago I had a call from out-of-state from someone inquiring about one of my listings he'd seen online. He had looked at the property website, but wondered about the schools (he has no children, but is thinking ahead to resale). He hadn't seen anything about the schools on the flyer.

I explained that here in St Petersburg, and all of Pinellas County, Florida, for that matter, we don't have assigned schools for each property and told him that I'd e-mail him with a link to the school department that could explain what was going on.

That rang a bell relating to Adam Waldman's Local Experts group, and the relocation package I had started but not nearly finished by contest end time. Even this post on schools took a couple of hours to put together properly.

So - before I e-mailed the prospect, I wrote a lengthy post about  schools in St Petersburg and all of Pinellas County, Florida. Now I'll e-mail him a link to that post, and will put the post address on our team server site, so that any time any one of us needs to send someone information about the schools, it's a link rather than a lengthy e-mail. It helps clients, it saves us time, and it should help the google juice.

Thanks, Adam, for the original idea, and for continuing the group. It's a great inspiration. 

Schools are one of the first questions families moving to St Petersburg, Florida, consider. Which ones are the best? Which school is this house zoned for? In many parts of the US, this is an easy question to answer. Here, it's not. Our school district is county wide, the 23rd largest in the United States, and serves over 150,000 students. 

None of the national sites give adequate information, because the zone covers the entire county - so there is no specific information on one side of town vs another.

Pinellas County has also been in a state of change over the last years - from neighborhood schools to school choice and now transitioning back to close-to-home - with extensive grandfathering.

Where will your children be assigned? Which school(s) is open to this property? You have to be living there to find out. So - here's a post that gives you more information and should help you along the way -  click here to read more. 

Today the Institute for Luxury Home Marketing launched its new, revised website. It's more interactive and allows members to update their own information. There are links to their blog and to the new videos that Laurie Moore-Moore, the Luxury Diva, has been recording. One of them talks about the benefits of using a CLHMS (Certified Luxury Home Marketing Specialist):

In case you haven't taken the CLHMS course, there's a class schedule online. Laurie is teaching some of the classes and Tami and I are teaching others. The class schedule will let you know who's teaching in each location.

Florida is known for geckos, running around everywhere (they're cute and they eat bugs, and they don't bother you, so they're friends, not foes).

Many cities around the world have had artists paint and decorate cows or pigs or such - but Bradenton, Florida, has a Gecko Fest. Started in 2006 for the Village of the Arts, it currently has an encore, Gecko Fest 2008. Geico and others are sponsoring this, and since fall 2007 these 6 ft geckos have been spotted on walls throughout Bradenton (between Tampa and Sarasota on the west coast of Florida). "This year, as an Arts In Public Places non-profit organization, funds are being raised for the various arts organizations, including  Art Center Manatee, South Florida Museum, the Arts Council of Manatee, Inc, and the Artists' Guild of Manatee (Village of the Arts). 

On March 22nd the 62 gecko entries were auctioned off - 45 of them sold. The remaining 17 are available through an on-line auction. After you've looked at the geckos, you can bid for them. You have until April 30th and the minimum bid is $500.00

When George and I travelled through Europe the last time, I took lots of photos of the decorated cows in Berlin. It's fun to see the different entries, and here's your chance to contribute to Bradenton, Florida, "to help our school children, strengthen and grow our local cultural community, support its arts and artists, and will become the spring board for future art-on-the-street projects".

Ovation, the latest luxury condominium by JMC Development, is rising in downtown St. Petersburg. The 27 story building is expected to be completed by the fall of 2009. It's currently at about 10 stories, and JMC invited a few people to tour the building today. Hardhats on we checked out the views, the floorplans (names of rooms were marked out on the floors), and the construction. I still say - this is THE place to be in downtown St. Petersburg. Located at the corner of Beach Drive NE and 2nd Avenue North, you're in the heart of everything, and could do quite well without a car, though you have two parking spaces. Only two units per floor (3,660 sq ft) with the penthouses having an entire floor, you get both sunrises and sunsets. Let me tell you - the view from the kitchen is gorgeous! Wide water views out over the marinas to Tampa Bay. Look down, and see the tropical pool deck. Watch the boats or the pedestrians..walk to restaurants, cafes, museums, art galleries, colleges, shops, Starbucks, parks, marinas and more. Each luxurious unit has 10 foot ceilings, luxurious amenities, wide glass "walls" with georgeous water views. Learn more and see photos of the tour and the views here ...

I find it so interesting that people remember things different ways. 

Some people make lists. Let's divide that even further: some people make lists on paper and love to be able to cross them out or highlight them when the tasks are done.  Tami's one of those.

Some people use a computer program. Amy puts all of her tasks into ACT. She sets alarms, she even puts in tasks that are done daily - i.e., three times a day she gets a message on her computer to Check Faxes.

Some people write notes. My husband, George, writes notes. He writes notes everywhere. The grocery list is on the kitchen counter, the note pad is on his "desk" on the patio. He also remembers things with piles - the envelopes spread out on a table, the folders spread out on the floor, the newspapers piled beside his chair.

Then there are people like me. I do all of the above. My "Things To Do" on the computer is so long I really don't see it anymore. Each evening I write out a "Things To Do" list on a piece of paper - that's the important things to do tomorrow. And yes, then there are the slips of paper, the sticky notes, the notes from a phone call while I'm in the grocery store that are written on the back or a receipt or deposit ticket.

It's easy if you're always in one place. Then you can organize your desk, your workplace. My problem is that I get "things to do" at all kinds of times, in all kinds of places. Sometimes I'm driving down the highway when I answer my iPhone and  get "things to do". Yes, maybe I can call jott - but I can't remember phone numbers to put in jott. What about that promise you made to someone when you were at the cocktail party? The request from a fellow sailor out on the water? the request from someone on the treadmill next to you? Those are the problems.

How to YOU remember things? 

When you have a project, sometimes it's easier to accomplish when you can organize your thoughts, plan the steps. The figure to the left is a Mind Map. It's one I did when I was going to move my office.

You start with your idea or project in the middle - it can be a marketing plan, a book idea, anything.

So - I started with the goal: Move Office. I wrote it in the center of the sheet, and circles it. Then I thought of all the things that were involved - where's the new location? what about the schedule? packing? actual moving? notifying people? Each of these I wrote on lines going out from the center circle, no particular order. 

Then I looked at what would be involved in each of those steps. I made substeps where necessary.  For example, part of the new location was Connections. I'd need to have phones connected, computers connected.

It can be overwhelming when you think of all of these things at the same time. This helps to break things down so you can do one at a time, or so that you can assign things. You can go from this to a TO DO list, or you can use this and cross out or highlight the things that are done.  

Tony Buzan, a Brit, coined the phrase, and has written books about it and has a website.  Some of the books make it very easy to understand - some go off on tangents. So pick how you want to learn - by book, by web, by coach, or just winging it from the concept.

Let me know how it works for you ... 

 This is a photo I took while stretched out on the floor of the Museum of Fine Arts in St Petersburg - odd, yes, but that was the suggested way to fully experience the glass ceiling there in the Chihuly Exhibit. In any case, it's more attention getting than the exterior shot of the Museum in one of my "other" blogs.

The Museum of Fine Arts , which opened in 1965, is located in Straub Park, which separates Beach Drive from the waterfront,  in downtown St. Petersburg. Famous for its Steuben glass collection and Georgia O'Keefe's "Poppy", it hosts a series of travelling exhibitions such as Ansel Adams Photography and Dale Chihuly's glass creations.

Today is the official opening of the new Hazel Hough wing of the Museum of Fine Arts. Last night Tami and I attended a members' reception there and had the first opportunity to see the special exhibit of art words from the Museum's collection which has seldom been seen, due to lack of space. It was my first glimpse of Hazel Hough's gift of a video sculpture by Peter Sarkisian. We also enjoyed the work of students that was displayed upstairs.

Today and tomorrow the museum is open free to the public. Come enjoy the art, the architecture, the cafe' and the gift shop.

3/23/08 addition:  The St Petersburg Times published an article today about the new wing and exhibit and also have an Interactive Tour of the Museum of Fine Arts. 

Knowing condo rules and restrictions is so important! Why even look at a property, much less make an offer, if you know you and the rules aren't compatible? Perhaps you have pets - why look at a condo that doesn't allow them? Perhaps you're in your 30s - why even look at a condo where the residents need to be 55 or older to live there?

Whether you're taking a listing on a condo and want to provide complete information to prospective buyers and agents, or whether you're representing a buyer and tracking down information that wasn't provided by the listing agent, you do need access to that information.

(yes, our contracts do require the owner to furnish these to the buyer who then has 3 days to review them, with the option of terminating the contract - but often a buyer wants to know certain things before he writes an offer and a check)

Some associations make it SO difficult! Some send you to a third party company that provides online documents for $$$ per page. Others won't give out information to a real estate agent.

Some associations make it SO easy! They're the ones that believe in transparency (which is great for current owners and is also great for prospective buyers, who can qualify themselves on whether they'll fit in to the community). One of the best local transparent associations is for the Huntington townhomes, who make them available on line: you can find the rules, the documents, minutes of meetings - it's a treasure trove!

Perhaps you'd be doing your local associations a favor by suggesting this to them, as a means of giving out information and saving money and time in the process. One condo president that I spoke to recently had no idea that this was possible, so is looking into it for his association.

Do be part of the solution ... 

This week as I've passed the shops at 400 Beach in downtown St Petersburg at 5:30 every morning, I've seen the first store in the retail space on the ground level of the luxury condo, 400 Beach. On 4th Avenue NE, second in from Beach Drive, I've seen a women's clothing store appear - first I could see the contents as I drove by, and then I saw Coco Brazil on the window. I haven't had "daylight time" to check out the shop, so googled "Coco Brazil" and found www.cocobrazilfashions.com and www.cocobrazilonline.com .  I don't know whether the shop is related to either, but a visit to Coco Brazil at 400 Beach is on my list of Things To Do.

During the hot market of the late 2005s and early 2006s, when properties were selling to crowds lined up around the blocks, marina owners were enamored with turning rental slips into "dockominiums" for sale - often at $5,000 per foot or higher - and then, of course, you'd have the maintenance fees. Some marina owners even booted the rentals out.

In St Petersburg both Nautico and Maximo Marina (with common ownership) finally threw in the towel and returned the deposits they had, and are now seeking renters for their slips. It will be interesting to see how many displaced boat owners want to return, now that they've moved and made other arrangements.

The Renaissance Vinoy Resort in downtown St Petersburg has been rebuilding their marina since the old one was damaged by the hurricanes, Some of the slips are transient, reserved for hotel guests. Others were rented by members of the Vinoy Club. Happy to see the new marina finished, the Vinoy Club owners were offered not a new rental agreement, but a purchase of marina club interest (i.e. a 99 year lease) at $5,000 per foot. Few have jumped at the offer, and some have moved from their "temporary" dockage to the new city-owned docks at the St Petersburg Municipal Marina, which are available for rent, not purchase.

For years we've all enjoyed the American Stage Theatre's productions in the park at Demens Landing. Many of the local restaurants provide picnic dinners that you can take with you - and of course you can pack your own picnic dinner and wine. For many years this was Shakespeare in the Park, but this year's it's "The Pirates of Penzance".:.

This will run in downtown St Petersburg from April 9 to May 4.  The Gala Under the Stars fundraising event is April 11th. The "pay what you can" nights are April 9 and 10.  

Learn more or reserve tickets at www.americanstage.org. 

Cafe Alma, a popular restaurant in the "basement" of McNulty Station in downtown St Petersburg, Florida has just been sold. Dwight and Catherine Watkins sold it to Scott Vogell and Tony Harahan, and will stay on for 10 days of training. We've enjoyed Cafe Alma and have often recommended it to our clients. Vogel is a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America. Since both new owners come from franchise backgrounds, it will be interesting to see what they do with this individual restaurant. 

My only suggestion to the new owners - and it's a personal one - is to make sure that the noise level is kept down enough that you can talk with the other people at your table - and hear them. 

Back in November I talked about the Kindle and in December I received the Kindle I bought.

1.  I love reading books on the Kindle. I don't mind the electronic format since I can still curl up in a chair, hammock, the beach or a boat. In fact, I even read it on the treadmill every morning.

2. I love being able to download in less than a minute. If a book is recommended at a conference, and I like it, I'll just download it in less than a minute. I still like to browse the bookstores in an airport, especially for business books - yes, I can download it in less time than Tami takes to check out at the cash register.

3. I like saving money. At $9.99 a book, I've already paid back he cost of the Kindle in December.

4. I can "recall" a book fro Amazon for free; I can check out who's buying my book ...and it's vetter and gaster with digital.

It's easy to post a calendar of events of all that's going on in your hometown. Not to pooh-pooh that, but let's put yourself on the line. What are YOU going to do this week? this weekend? while x attraction is going on?

Today everything's about niche marketing. So, don't try to  be all things to all people - be who you are. You're a niche person, so why not try to be a niche marketer in the same mrket? 

What successful layering if someone follows your blog, goes to an event, and meets you there. 

The typical popup (unless you just allow cookies) says that a site is trying to put a cookie on your computer. I wish it would say WHY it wants to put it on your computer and what it will transmit. Some sites want to put several cookies on your computer.

If the cookie wants to track how long I'm on the site, and which pages I click on - that's fine with me. That's useful knowledge to someone, and doesn't hurt me.

If it wants to install programs for future use on my computer - I object.

If it wants to capture information from my computer - i object.

If it wants to send me spam in the future - I object.

If only you'd tell me what you want, for some of you, I'd let you in. If you don't tell me - oh, well, Deny, Deny, Deny. 

 We know it's all about networking and about helping each other. If you help people get what they want, they'll help you get what you want.

In that vein, recently friends/clients (they are both, so I don't want to choose one or the other) have invited me to events at their businesses, and I've blogged about that to get the word out.

Today I went to the opening of a contemporary fabric store, fiberologie, here in St. Pete. Check out my blog and Real Estate Show.

Recently I went to another showcase event at Accessoreez and blogged about that as well.

If you're ever in St Petersburg, do visit both of these wonderful places. 

ARDELL posted a blog about getting updated pre-approval letters. Many of the comments related to whether the seller's agent should contact the lender and what right the buyer has to privacy.

When representing a seller, we ask for a pre-approval letter with the offer, so that we can ask any necessary questions before the sellers sign.

    (When is a pre-approval letter NOT a pre-approval letter? When, despite the heading Pre-Approval Letter and/or Congratulations! you've been approved!  is followed by verbage that says, subject to verirification of income or employment or funds to close etc. )

If the buyer's concerned - and he should be - about not revealing  that he's qualified for a higher mortgage amount - many lenders will prepare several letters, each for different offered amounts that are less than or equal to the pre-approved amount.

I'm not trying to find out private information, and I'm sensitive to the lender's responsibility to protect that privacy, but I do need to know for my seller how secure the pre-approval is, if there are obstacles, etc.

Suggestion:                                    always call the lender.

Don't call the number on the pre-approval, unless you know the lender and the individual. One of the reasons to make the verification call is to verify the authenticity. Sometimes letterhead will be stolen from a lender, and the lender has never talked to the buyer. Sometimes, for an unknown lender, the letterhead may come from WORD and the phone number is just a buddy of the buyer, who is prepped for the call. Checking out the lender online and calling the number listed there is just another safeguard. 

 Will megayachts be coming to St. Petersburg?  We've seen them during the Grand Prix when they anchor just off the downtown race course.

Currently two megayachts are at the Port of St. Petersburg. This one, Tatoosh is a 301-foot (92 m) yacht owned by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen.  (He also owns a 416 ft yacht, Octopus).

Moored just behind  Tatoosh is Ecstasea, a 282-foot yacht owned by Roman Abramovich. It's here in St Pete on the recommendation of Tatoosh. 

Although the Port of St. Petersburg isn't a gated compound, it is a bit off the beaten track (unlike Monte Carlo) but still close to downtown St. Petersburg with its restaurants and activities.

St. Petersburg's port doesn't have the water depth to attract the large cruise ships (you need to go to Tampa to take a cruise), it's more than adequate for these megayachts.  

There aren't many waterfront homesites in St Pete that could accommodate these yachts, but then - with these megayachts, who'd need a house to stay in?