Florida Real Estate Commission Scholarships Available!

 Florida Real Estate Commission Announces  2015 Real Estate Scholarships 

ORLANDO, Fla. – Sept. 22, 2014 – Know someone interested in a real estate career?

The Florida Real Estate Commission's (FREC) Education and Research Scholarships offers scholarship funding of $1,500 for undergraduates and $2,500 for graduate students working toward a real estate career.

But application time is short: The online process opens Sept. 22, 2014, and ends Nov. 3 at noon.

Who can apply: Students must be a Florida resident and be attending an accredited Florida college or university. Eligible students must be officially enrolled and pursuing a degree in real estate, or a degree with a concentration in real estate studies. Degrees can be at the undergraduate or graduate level.

Where to apply: Find the application online at FREC's website. Applications can only be submitted through the website, which also has a list of frequently asked questions (FAQs)

When to apply: Students can fill out the online applications beginning Monday, Sept. 22, 2014, until noon on Friday, Nov. 3. FREC advises applicants to apply.

Other criteria: Undergraduate students must maintain an overall "C" grade average (2.0 on a 4.0 scale) or higher. Graduate students must maintain an overall "B" grade average (3.0 on a 4.0 scale) or higher. School transcripts must be provided.

© 2014 Florida Realtors®

Source:http://www.floridarealtors.org/NewsAndEvents/article.cfm?p=3&id=313623

Real Estate Report for Zip Code 33548 - September 2014

Interested in Knowing What Homes are Listed and Selling for in Zip Code 33548? 

Please click on the photo to be taken directly to this interactive report where you can browse descriptions and photos of current active and recently sold listings. Don't forget to check out the schools and community tabs too! Questions? Please feel free to call me at 813-230-5804.

If you would like a report like this for your community, please click 

on "Has the Market Stabilized" below or email me at smithersells@yahoo.com

Thinking of listing your home? 

Call 813-230-5804 for a no pressure, no obligation consultation today!

FSBOs Must Be Ready to Negotiate

In a recovering market, some sellers might be tempted to try and sell their home on their own (FSBO) without using the services of a real estate professional. The real estate agent is a trained and experienced negotiator. In most cases, the seller is not. The seller must realize the ability to negotiate will determine whether they get the best deal for themselves and their family.

Here is a list of some of the people with whom the seller must be prepared to negotiate if they decide to FSBO:

• The buyer who wants the best deal possible
• The buyer’s agent who solely represents the best interest of the buyer
• The buyer’s attorney (in some parts of the country)
• The home inspection companies which work for the buyer and will almost always find some problems with the house.
• The termite company if there are challenges
• The buyer’s lender if the structure of the mortgage requires the sellers’ participation
• The appraiser if there is a question of value
• The title company if there are challenges with certificates of occupancy (CO) or other permits
• The town or municipality if you need to get the COs permits mentioned above
• The buyer’s buyer in case there are challenges on the house your buyer is selling.
• Your bank in the case of a short sale

Content Provided by KeepingCurrentMatters.com

Real Estate Report for Zip Code 33626 - September 2014

Interested in Knowing What Homes are Listed and Selling for in Zip Code 33626? 

Please click on the photo to be taken directly to this interactive report where you can browse descriptions and photos of current active and recently sold listings. Don't forget to check out the schools and community tabs too! Questions? Please feel free to call me at 813-230-5804.

If you would like a report like this for your community, please click 

on "Has the Market Stabilized" below or email me at smithersells@yahoo.com

Thinking of listing your home? 

Call 813-230-5804 for a no pressure, no obligation consultation today!

Does Home Ownership Build Wealth?

According to statistics reported by the National Association of Realtors, from the Federal Reserve Survey of Consumer Finances, homeowner's net worth has been 31 to 46 times the net worth of renters over the last 15 years. Home equity was found to be a major component of those homeowner's wealth.  

The last survey was conducted in 2013 and showed that not only had equity prices begun to normalize for most homeowners, but the median homeowner had almost $200,000 in net worth while a median renter had just over $5,000! 

Amazingly, the same survey showed that only 65% of households owned a primary residence...are you still on the fence about buying a home? Call 813-230-5804 today for no pressure consultation!

Source :http://economistsoutlook.blogs.realtor.org/2014/09/08/net-worth-of-homeowners-vs-renters/

How Interest Rates Impact Family Wealth

With interest rates still in the low 4%’s, many buyers may be on the fence as to whether to act now and purchase a new home, or wait until next year.

If you look at what the experts are predicting for 2015, it may make the decision for you.

Even an increase of half a percentage point can put a dent in your family’s net worth.

Let’s look at it this way…

The monthly payment (principal & interest only) on a $250,000 home today, with the current 4.1% interest rate would be $1,208.

If we take that same home a year later, the Home Price Expectation Survey projects that prices will rise about 4% making that home cost $10,000 more at $260,000.

If we take Freddie Mac’s rate projection of 4.8%, the monthly mortgage payment climbs to $1,364.

Some buyers might not think that an extra $156 a month is that bad. But over the course of 30-year mortgage you have spent an additional $56,160 by waiting a year.

Content provided by KeepingCurrentMatters.com

Real Estate Report for Zip Code 33549 - September 2014

Interested in Knowing What Homes are Listed and Selling for in Zip Code 33549? 

Please click on the photo to be taken directly to this interactive report where you can browse descriptions and photos of current active and recently sold listings. Don't forget to check out the schools and community tabs too! Questions? Please feel free to call me at 813-230-5804.

If you would like a report like this for your community, please click 

on "Has the Market Stabilized" below or email me at smithersells@yahoo.com

Thinking of listing your home? 

Call 813-230-5804 for a no pressure, no obligation consultation today!

Real Estate Report for Zip Code 33624 - September 2014

Interested in Knowing What Homes are Listed and Selling for in Zip Code 33624? 

Please click on the photo to be taken directly to this interactive report where you can browse descriptions and photos of current active and recently sold listings. Don't forget to check out the schools and community tabs too! Questions? Please feel free to call me at 813-230-5804.

If you would like a report like this for your community, please click 

on "Has the Market Stabilized" below or email me at smithersells@yahoo.com

Thinking of listing your home? Call 813-230-5804 for a no pressure, no obligation consultation today!

The Social Benefits of Home Ownership

According to a National Association of Realtors blog post some of the documented social benefits of homeownership include:

• Increased charitable activity
• Civic participation in both local community and national issues (including voting)
• Greater awareness of the political process
• Higher incidence of membership in voluntary organizations and church attendance
• Greater social capital generated
• Greater attachment to the neighborhood and neighbors
• Lower teen pregnancy by children’s living in owned homes
• Higher student test scores by children’s living in owned homes
• Higher rate of high school graduation thereby higher earnings
• Children more likely to participate in organized activities and have less television screen time
• Homeowners take on a greater responsibility such as home maintenance and acquiring the financial skills to handle mortgage payments and those skills transfer to their children
• Lower teenage delinquencies
• General increase in positive outlook to life
• Homeowners reported higher life satisfaction, higher self-esteem, happiness, and higher perceived control over their lives
• Better health outcomes, better physical and psychological health
• Tremendous wealth gains for homeowners under normal housing market conditions (outside of the terrible bubble/bust housing years)
• Homeowners not only experience a significant increase in housing satisfaction, but also obtain a higher satisfaction even in the same home in which they resided as renters
• Family financial situation and housing tenure during childhood and adulthood, impacted one’s self-rated health (in particular, the socioeconomic disadvantaged indicated by not being able to save any money or not owning or purchasing a home are less likely to self-rate their health as excellent or very good).
• Less likely to become crime victims
• Homeowners better maintain their homes, and high quality structures also raise mental health -renter-occupied housing appreciates less than owner-occupied housing
• Housing prices are higher in high-ownership neighborhoods
• Maintenance behavior of individual homeowners is influenced by those of their neighbors

Wow! Home ownership does matter and helps us all become better members of our community!

Link to NAR Blog here 

Real Estate Report for Zip Code 33558 - September 2014

Interested in knowing what homes are listed and selling for in zip code 33558? 

Please click on the photo to be taken directly to this interactive report where you can browse descriptions and photos of current active and recently sold listings. Don't forget to check out the schools and community tabs too! Questions? Please feel free to call me at 813-230-5804.

If you would like a report like this for your community, please click 

on "Has the Market Stabilized" below or email me at smithersells@yahoo.com

Thinking of listing your home? Call 813-230-5804 for a no-obligation consultation.

Whose Mortgage Are You Paying?

Whether you own or rent you are paying a mortgage...are you paying your mortgage or someone else's? If you would like to find out how to pay your own mortgage instead of someone else's please contact me at 813-230-5804 to schedule a no-obligation consultation today!

Real Estate Report for Zip Code 33625 - September 2014

Interested in knowing what homes are listed and selling for in zip code 33625? 

Please click on the photo to be taken directly to this interactive report where you can browse descriptions and photos of current active and recently sold listings. Don't forget to check out the schools and community tabs too! Questions? Please feel free to call me at 813-230-5804.

If you would like a report like this for your community, please click 

on "Has the Market Stabilized" below or email me at smithersells@yahoo.com