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Rolling Out Our Monthly Newsletter w/VIDEO

March 18, 2013 By Leave a Comment
Hey! It's Ilya and James - The HOME Team

Hey! It’s Ilya and James – The HOME Team

We are officially starting our monthly newsletter.  Frankly, I don’t know what kind of information would perk your interest on a regular basis, yet we’ll try to provide only high quality content.  We are Realtors, so naturally we want to share news related to real estate in St Petersburg and Tampa Bay area.  But we are human too, so we will share things from our day to day lives, information about local restaurants, parks, neighborhoods and more.  So stick with us and feel free to share your thoughts in comments below or send us a private message.

If you are reading this but did not receive our newsletter in your email, please send us your contact info here and we’ll add you to our email newsletter list.  Close to 2,000 people read it, and so should you!

As always, if you know anyone looking to sell or buy a home, let us know, we’ll appreciate a referral.  Our clients love us!  You can find our reviews on Trulia, Zillow and Yelp.

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Filed Under: Dining in St Pete Tampa Bay, Events in St Pete and Tampa Bay, Home Buying and Selling Tips, Living in St Pete and Tampa Bay, Real Estate For Agents, St Pete Tampa Bay History blog, St Petersburg Foreclosures, St Petersburg Neighborhood Reviews, St Petersburg Real Estate Video Blog, St Petersburg Short Sales, Tampa Bay Foreclosures, Tampa Bay neighborhood reviews, Tampa Bay Real Estate Professional Information, Tampa Bay Real Estate Statistics, Tampa Bay Real Estate Video, Tampa Bay short sales, Tampa St Pete Real Estate Technology, Uncategorized, Weekly Real Estate deals in Tampa Bay Tagged With: , ,

Sunken Gardens – Historic road-side attraction in St Petersburg, Florida

January 8, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Have you ever been to a botanical paradise?  If not, come visit Sunken Gardens, located on 4th street in St Petersburg, FL.  It is over 100 years old and features some of the oldest tropical plants in Tampa Bay.  It’s a great place to come and unwind.  Sit in the shade of the trees and read a book or come feed the Koi fish with your kids.  The path weaves through the garden and provides an exciting experience of peace and quite as if you were far away from the city.

Here’s James bringing you a quick real estate update from Sunken Gardens.  Also see the promotional video of Sunken Gardens by the City of St Petersburg who operate the gardens.


Filed Under: Events in St Pete and Tampa Bay, Living in St Pete and Tampa Bay, Tampa Bay neighborhood reviews, Tampa Bay Real Estate Video, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , ,

Uncertainty – The Watchword for 2013

December 26, 2012 By Leave a Comment

By guest blogger/writer Jared Diamond

The real estate forecast for 2013 is cautiously optimistic.  Modest gains are expected in leasing, rents, and pricing across the nation.  Quick profits will still be a distant dream for developers and investors who have been hoping to make a killing, after all, the recession continues and taxes and prices are rising for everyone in a variety of sectors.

Low Inventory

However, the decimated housing market is expected to witness a turnaround in many regions, certainly in states with low taxes and financial discipline (this could be Texas, Florida, Oklahoma, and several others).  Housing prices seem to have hit rock bottom and are now slowly rising. This rise is primarily due to the decline in number of properties for sale rather than surging demand.  Low inventory is an indicator that recovery is on and means that the number of buyers is more than that of sellers.

Hedge Funds

Tampa Bay has also been witnessing this firsthand.  The number of homes sold in the area rose 35 percent from the year before while sale prices were up by an average of 9 percent.  According to Todd Bezemos, a community housing coordinator of rent to own homes listing service HomeStarSearch, says “the reason for an increase in prices is partly due to recent large purchases in the area chiefly by big company hedge funds.”

Investors and buyers are making a beeline for property in the region leading to bidding wars.  Inventory in Hillsborough County was at 7,000 listings this September as compared to 12,000 a year ago.  It is estimated that these listings are barely enough to last four months.  “Tampa Bay ranks just behind Orlando in the national survey on outlook for real estate markets for 2013,” says Bezemos.  He adds, “This ranking takes into consideration factors like investment, development, and home-building potential.”

Project Delays

Construction is also starting to look up with the number of permits sought for single-family homes running into the thousands this year.  Now, the problem faced by the construction industry is an acute shortage of labor.  The years of this housing slowdown has led many workers to opt for other career options and many people have flat out stopped looking for work because the opportunities are just not there.  Construction hiring has been reduced to half of what it was during the boom.  And this boom was partly caused because of social engineering and federal regulations which reduced the standards of home ownership leading to this mess (there are a couple of other reasons but these are some of the major ones).  The lack of labor can cause delays in the completion of new projects and thus, hold up the region’s economic development.

Also, Florida home values are still eons away from the prices they hit in 2006.  At the current rate, it might be 2017 at the least before we see those prices again. Single family home sales in Hillsborough are still 20 percent lower than those seen in 2004.

There are many welcome and positive developments taking place in the housing market.  But this should not be mistaken for an imminent boom―not even close.  The high unemployment rate and other economic problems including the unwillingness of banks to extend credit can prove to be high hurdles for a healthy housing market to manifest itself.

Many also see excess supply of housing units as the core problem and feel that a slowdown in construction helped the housing market regain its footing.  They feel that the resumption of unfettered construction will once again cause home prices to slide.  The owners of multiple underwater properties are waiting on the sidelines to unload their investment at the earliest opportunity and when this happens, it will curtail the upward movement of housing prices.

Nothing is for Sure

The market stabilization seen in 2012 was also due to the low interest rates and increased buying by investors.  Whether this will continue next year is something that only time will tell.

Jared Diamond is a real estate credit consultant with Amerifi Home Loans in Los Angeles CA. Outside his profession, Jared writes on a variety of personal-finance and real estate topics. Jared holds a B.A. in Economics from Ohio State University.

Filed Under: Events in St Pete and Tampa Bay, Home Buying and Selling Tips, Living in St Pete and Tampa Bay, St Petersburg Short Sales, Tampa Bay Foreclosures, Tampa Bay Real Estate Professional Information, Tampa Bay Real Estate Statistics, Tampa Bay short sales, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , , ,

Piano Exchange or Old Garden Cafeteria Demolished

September 11, 2012 By 2 Comments

What Will Take Place Of This Historical Building In St Pete?

A well-familiar structure in St Petersburg, FL at 232 2nd St N came crashing down.  A nearly 100 year old building of a unique mission-style was recently demolished.  It was sitting vacant for several years, slowly deteriorating.  I often wondered about the fate of this historic icon passing by it daily on the way to work.  My parking lot abuts this old cafeteria and I’d find myself observing its chipping paint as I’d be getting behind the wheel of my car.  Now it’s just a well-graded dirt lot, a vacant lot.  Watch the video below of the building being demolished.

Yes, it used to be a well-known café called The Garden Cafeteria.  It was built in early 1920’s and was initially used as an assembly hall for The First Baptist Tabernacle.  A decade later it transformed into an automobile garage and later became a café.  Tropical style murals painted by a famous local artist covered most of the walls.  They even had a koi-pond.  In the 70’s they served their last meal and it became a piano exchange shop and that is how most people would refer to it up till now.

It’s not yet known what will be built in its place.  Hopefully something decent, so it could offset the running shoes store on the corner or 3rd Ave N and 2nd St that had just been painted obnoxiously screaming orange that could probably be seen from out of space.


Filed Under: Events in St Pete and Tampa Bay, Living in St Pete and Tampa Bay, St Pete Tampa Bay History blog, St Petersburg Real Estate Video Blog, Tampa Bay Real Estate Video, Uncategorized Tagged With: , ,

White House On The Beach

September 10, 2012 By Leave a Comment

President On Treasure Island, FL

In Miami Beach folks can ride bikes and roller blade along the trail paved directly on the beach.  There’s a place in Pinellas where you can do the same, that place is Treasure Island.  Granted, it’s not as long or as fancy as the one in Miami but that’s your only option if you want to shake up memories of your 90’s rollerblading days while watching the sunset directly over the water.  By the way, in Miami you will only see the sunrise, not the sunset.  So it’s either Treasure Island or California, you pick.

A couple weeks ago some beach sand artists built a couple really unique sand sculptures.  One is The Lincoln Memorial and the other is The White House.  Seeing The White House on the beach of Treasure Island was very cool and I was hoping they could make carved sand statues of Barack and Michelle but to my disappointment I couldn’t find any.  I’m sure there will be plenty more presidential visits to Tampa Bay before election and maybe a local sand carving artist can build their sculptures in their liking.

That week there was a lot of rain in Tampa Bay and the beach looked strange.  There was a huge lake in the middle of the beach.  As you may know, Treasure Island beach is one of the widest beaches in Pinellas so it was unusual to see so much water in the middle of the sand.  Watch the video below to see what I mean.  It was a memorable night because a few hours later my wife gave birth to our second daughter, so it was probably my last time on the beach for a while.  Now I have 2 girls and I’m clearly outnumbered.

Do you want to be the kind of Treasure Island?  Then call us now and we’ll help you find the house or condo of your dreams in this unique beach community!  If you need to sell one, we’ll help you too.


Filed Under: Events in St Pete and Tampa Bay, Living in St Pete and Tampa Bay, St Petersburg Neighborhood Reviews, St Petersburg Real Estate Video Blog, Tampa Bay neighborhood reviews, Tampa Bay Real Estate Video, Uncategorized Tagged With: , ,

Where’s Isaac?

August 28, 2012 By Leave a Comment

RNC in Tampa and Surfing in St Pete

It is Monday afternoon, I’m sitting by the window at Bayfront Baby Place watching Isaac.  No, not my newborn.  My second daughter, baby Natalie came into this world yesterday, quite dramatically, but she’s fine and recovering well at All Children’s.  Isaac hasn’t arrived yet, not to St Pete.  Years later Tampa Bay residents might be remembering tropical storm Isaac (which threatens to become a hurricane) by a couple of tipped plastic lawn chairs in their back yard.  Heck, kids are happy, schools are out today.  We are hoping there will be minimal affects in Florida panhandle, Alabama coast and especially New Orleans.  Hang in there!

Last week’s heavy rains and thunder storms in Pinellas very well outperformed not only Isaac but many other hurricanes and storms over the last few years.  You can read my post about the flood I’ve watched in my neighborhood of Eagle Crest here.

I live in St Petersburg and it’s quite exciting to observe all the activities and commotions in our town that are associates with the Republican National Convention.  Yesterday was the kickoff party at the Tropicana Field and many streets were blocked off.  It’s was tricky getting to Bayfront Hospital from west St Pete.

Both Tampa and St Petersburg did a big deal of preparations for the event and I’m sure the guests are enjoying their stay even while the skies are slightly grey.  Tropical storm Isaac is causing some nice waves and there will be many local and out of state surfers coming down to take those 5-6 ft waves.  Body boarding, traditional surfing and paddle boarding – you will see at these styles of surfing in action, just head down to St Pete Beach or Indian Rocks Beach in Pinellas County.

Tampa Bay is an exciting place to live.  We have over 4 million people living in the area yet it doesn’t quite feel like a big metropolis.  There are many industries providing secure jobs, great medical care (and I’ve witnessed this first hand over the past few days), wonderful sugar-sand beaches and apparently this is also a great place to hold a convention.  Any convention.  Tampa and St Petersburg host auto shows, boat shows, celebrity concerts and other events.  And we have multiple venues for various type and styles of events.  St Petersburg is quickly becoming a very desired destination and real estate investment area on the Gulf of Mexico.

Have questions about local real estate?  Contact us here.

Filed Under: Events in St Pete and Tampa Bay, Living in St Pete and Tampa Bay, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , , ,

Flood Timeline. West St Pete (video)

August 21, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Flash flood in west St Petersburg

6.05 left my office in Downtown St Petersburg. Thunder. No rain.

6.10 started raining, hard.

6.15 can’t make it to my neighborhood because my street is flooded.

6.20 looking for a spot to park my car in my neighborhood. Water rips off plastic engine guard at the bottom of my car.

6.25 walking to my house soaked.  Shoes full of water, but laptop survives in my briefcase.

7.00 water getting higher, nearly waste deep. Higher than I’ve ever seen.  4 drains are not handling the water in my street fast enough (call the city of St Petersburg tomorrow?)

7.35 5 cars stalled on my street and a few more in the next street over.  Why are people still trying to drive through here?

8.00 firefighters arrive, but quickly leave, water too deep for them to do anything.

8.55 a big RAM truck jumped over my neighbors yard, spun a huge 20′ rooster water tail in a desperate attempt to get out of the deep water, realizing too late he is doomed. Stalled engine 4 seconds later. Smoke everywhere.  Neighbor upset with the teenage driver kid. I bet his parents will be upset too and relationship with his insurance agent may get tense.

 

Well, so far an eventful night. I hope I can still find my car a few blocks away tomorrow morning and can get my daughter off to school without delays.  How was your night?

Filed Under: Events in St Pete and Tampa Bay, Living in St Pete and Tampa Bay, St Petersburg Real Estate Video Blog, Tampa Bay Real Estate Video, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , ,

What To Do In West St Pete On Saturday Morning?

August 6, 2012 By Leave a Comment

And Why Saturday Morning Market in Azalea Park is the answer.

We’ve all been enjoying Saturday Morning market in Downtown St Pete for a decade now.  It is a vibrant weekly event featuring dozens of produce and dining vendors, local artists and musicians.  It is probably one of the best places to hang out with friends, try some new cuisine, buy a piece of local art and watch people, all this to a sound of a local music artist.

But if you live in west St Petersburg it might take you a little while to get to Downtown.  So if you are looking for something closer you may want to check out recently opened Saturday Market at Azalea Park, which is right off 16nd Ave N and 74th St.  Though fairly small and started just a few weeks ago, there are already dozens of vendors.  Several are offering food including BBQ, some are arts and crafts vendors and others sell different household items.  The nice part is there’s plenty of shade as most tents are set up under big oak trees.  There are several vendor tables inside the Azalea Rec Center, where I bought some new BBQ spices and my daughter picked a nice smelling bar of handmade soap.  Watch my short video below.

Local K-9 police officer was demonstrating the skills of his dog which is still a puppy.  The crowd loved the interaction.  Some dance enthusiasts were showing off their moves and others simply watched sipping on some iced lemonade.  I enjoyed some casserole and mint ice-tea and was simply happy to spend the morning with my family, this time not in the midst of busy downtown market but on my side of town, west St Pete.  Come check it out, Azalea Fresh Market is growing, open every Saturday 9 am to 2 pm.  Go like their Facebook page and visit the website.  What a great new place and did I mention the BBQ?

Azalea is a family friendly area in west side of St Petersburg.  If you are looking for homes in this area, feel free to check out these current listings we’ve pulled together just for you.


Filed Under: Events in St Pete and Tampa Bay, Living in St Pete and Tampa Bay, St Petersburg Real Estate Video Blog, Tampa Bay Real Estate Video, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , ,

Tropical Storm Debby in St Pete Beach

June 26, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Overnight Waterfront Homes – Thanks to Debby

For many people in Tampa Bay today’s situation is far from being exciting. Tropical storm Debby blasted through our area and not only did some damage but also caused some unpleasant flooding. While some are having fun, kids skim boarding in their driveways, folks riding through streets in canoes and floats, others are fighting water in their living rooms.

A couple days ago a tornado ripped through Pass-A-Grille damaging several homes, turning one on its side and taking a few roofs off. Yet many are enjoying the wind taking advantage of the waves and surfing on body-boards. Some tourists are walking along the beach enjoying what they can while on their paid vacation.

For many a dream of owning a waterfront home in Florida became a reality over the last few days. Not a happy reality for some. After all, this is not the kind of waterfront that will increase your property’s value. On the contrary, we see contracts falling apart and buyers walking away from deals in areas like Shore Acres in St Pete that’s completely under water.  However this situation is not new to Shore Acres residents, most have a canoe or kayak for a time just like this.

Here’s a short video from last night’s ride through St Pete Beach and the Pass-A-Grille area.

Filed Under: Events in St Pete and Tampa Bay, Living in St Pete and Tampa Bay, St Petersburg Neighborhood Reviews, St Petersburg Real Estate Video Blog, Tampa Bay neighborhood reviews, Tampa Bay Real Estate Video, Uncategorized

Indian Rocks Beach – a secret getaway

April 4, 2012 By Leave a Comment

How about a vacation on Indian Rocks Beach?

Shady cottages, quaint businesses, less crowds, few high rise condos…These features characterize perfectly the uniqueness of Indian Rocks Beach, my favorite among them all (and there are many here).   Every time we cruise through Indian Rocks on Gulf Blvd, I confess than I’m a little jealous of the people vacationing here.   They’ve chosen wisely.   Unless of course rowdy crowds and endless high rises are your preference.

Indian Rocks is a barrier island between the Clearwater and St. Pete/Treasure Island area beaches, about a half hour from Tampa International Airport and a 20 minute drive to downtown Clearwater.   The little city (incorporated in the mid-50s) was developed in the 1920’s for a wealthy inlander getaway spot.  After WWII, development picked up again.

The population is somewhere between 4-5K.   But it certainly feels like less.   One of the city’s nicknames is “South Buffalo South” because many residents hail from South Buffalo, New York.   Apparently, Indian Rock folk have chosen a less ambitious development path.  Conspicuously absent are the giant towers and familiar corporate beach business (though there are a handful) compared to some of the neighboring  beaches.  And this seems to be the reason people dig it.

If I vacationed here, my ideal would be a stay in a historic beachfront cottage, breakfast at the local doughnut shop, take-out lunch on the beach, and dinner at one of the Bay’s best seafood restaurants.    Notable Indian Rocks businesses include Sarah’s Seaside Cottages, Guppy’s on the Beach, Lighthouse Doughnuts, Keegan’s Seafood Grille, and Laughing Lizzard Bed and Breakfast.

Filed Under: Events in St Pete and Tampa Bay, Living in St Pete and Tampa Bay, St Pete Tampa Bay History blog, St Petersburg Neighborhood Reviews, Tampa Bay neighborhood reviews, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , , ,
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