Real Estate Views from St Pete

10.  No snowstorms, blizzards, freezing weather, typhoons, earthquakes...and warm enough weather year round.

9.  Dolphins and manatees that I sometimes watch from my dock, and nearly always see dolphins from our boat. They put on such a show, it never ceases to be fascinating.

8.  Christmas boat parades with lights reflecting on the water; homes decorated on both street side and water side;  warm weather;  palm trees decorated with tiny white lights (the original Christmas had more palm trees than firs and pines); having Christmas dinner outside by the pool; going to the beach after presents are opened; no storm cancelled flights.

7.  If we had basements, the Florida inventor would never have come up with Pods.  Garages are used for storage - that's why we need 3 car garages. Attics can hold some Christmas stuff, but don't put your candles up there! If we had basements, storage buildings wouldn't be such a good investment. It's good to unclutter your life - better Feng Shui. 

6. Chads have been replaced by touch screen voting machines. At least our elections aren't as long as the one in Mexico.

5. Tourists just looking at houses - and even those just looking at beaches - often become buyers, and bring their relatives and friends.  They can be entertaining to us.  I like to watch people walking on the beach in our winter months - you can tell the Northerners and Europeans are the ones wearing bathing suits, and the locals are wrapped in ski jackets.  As to wasting time showing them property - it calls for the same interview and judgment call as any other lookers. 

5A.  30% of all sales last year were for second homes and investment properties.   I'm not turning them down.

4.  You can choose between inside photos and outside photos for this blog.  Have someone take your picture when you're not looking and you won't have to hate getting ready for it.

3.  When you're tired of beaches, try the museums, the theaters, the shopping, the restaurants, the attractions, the sports events, the bicycle trails, and on and on and on.  When you tire of clear skies, wait for the August afternoon thundershowers - or watch the sunrise and sunset each day, which offers an unending variety - and look for rainbows.  If you tire of fruity cocktails - don't order them. We have as wide a variety of beverages as anywhere else in the country.

2.  If half of suburban Detroit is here, we don't notice them. We love the variety - New Englanders, Californians, people from Atlanta, Chicago, Seattle, New Orleans; from Scotland and Germany and India and Argentina and Japan and Russia; and even a few remaining Crackers (native Floridians). We have all kinds of different neighborhoods and housing types.  You're not back in Kansas, Toto.

1.  We have lots of good AR bloggers here - and benefit in learning from each other.

Maureen and Dmitry - couldn't help but respond to your blog. Come to Florida for a visit - you might like it enough to stay, or at least to buy a second home here to escape your cold Michigan winters....