South Beach Living- Sales and Rentals

South Beach . . . where the bronzed and the beautiful work, play, shop, and let loose . . . where money and sex flow like the ocean surf . . . where stately palms sway over the languid curves and artful angles of a world of deco delight . . .



Lest us help you live the SOBE life... www.homekeys.com

Home For Sale in The Alexander, Miami Beach

Priced To Sell. Amazing 2/2 Fully Furnished In The Luxury Alexander Condo On The Ocean. South Exposure, Low Floor/ Tile Floors And Carpeted Bedrooms. Hotel Services Available Include Shula'S Steakhouse, Business Center, Concierge, Maid Service....


For pictures and information on this property visit www.homekeys.com and enter
MLS number D1338859





property was listed by Beachfront Realty, Inc

Nine Tips for First Time home Buyers- Tip # 1

This is the first of 9 tips for first time buyers.
For additional information, please contact us at http://www.homekeys.net/

Tip 1: Don’t bet on market timing
It seems that everyone loves a good real estate story. The media is filled with reports about declining property values and proclaiming that the time is right to purchase a home. As a result, many first time home buyers, afraid of missing out, will rush into buying decisions and achieve less-than-spectacular results. As a first time buyer, your biggest challenge is to balance livability and profitability in a way that makes sense for you and your family. Remember, you are buying a home first and an investment second. Of course, there’s no foolproof formula for buyer success, but there are steps you can take to stack the odds in your favor:


If you’re waiting for prices to drop to the bottom in places like Southern California, Washington D.C. or Miami, you may be waiting a very long time. In regions that are built out with limited room to expand, it’s not realistic to assume property values will fall dramatically. Of course, prices in the nation’s super-heated residential markets (much of California, Nassau-Suffolk Counties in New York, South Florida) arev cooling down , but there’s no guarantee that higher interest rates, insurance or propertry taxes won’t eat up any savings from a price correction. If your personal circumstances say it’s time to buy, high prices alone shouldn’t keep you on the sidelines. Current interest rates are still historically low, so you may consider locking in a mortgage before rates head north. Even in booming markets, there are good deals for those willing to devote some time and energy to finding them.

Tomorrow's tip : Leverage Free and Low Cost Resources

Selling Direct by Owner is Increasing in Popularity

Trying to differentiate one real estate company from another, could be a difficult task. They all seem to offer the same products, for a similar price. Web based companies are starting to break the mold. Perfect examples of it can be found at Homekeys. Their theory is to offer maximum exposure and complete service; all these for a low set fee. And this seems to be the trend that real estate is moving to. Sellers are realizing that paying 6% commission is too high for the amount of actual work that is put on a listing. Companies like Homekeys have recognized that issue and are aggressively marketing their “for sale direct” program. This means you get all the benefits of a realtor, plus all the exposure of a web based company for a ¼ of the realtor’s fee.
At the end of the day, what really matters is that your property is price properly and that it receives maximum exposure. And in today's environment you do not have to pay 6 plus % to sell your property.

Would you foreclose? Refinace? Reverse Mortgage?

Several of our clients have asked us to provide a link to this past Sunday's 60 Minutes.
As you probably know, "60 Minutes" on Sunday produced a 15-minute segment on the housing downturn and foreclosure crisis. You can view the video segment here ("House of Cards").
In the segment (The Valdez family) -- about halfway through -- looks at the prospects of paying a higher mortgage payment on a house no longer worth the amount of the loan. The homeowners, who face a substantial monthly payment spike, consider whether it's better for them to walk away at this point. Would you foreclose? Is reverse mortage an option? Other options?
What would you do? Why?
http://www.cbsnews.com/sections/i_video/main500251.shtml?id=3756665n&channel=/sections/60minutes/videoplayer3415.shtml

It is worth it to fix your home for sale

Sellers who anticipate losing money if they sell their home may wonder why they should spend a dime fixing the place up for sale. Isn't this throwing good money after bad? Even sellers with plenty of equity in their homes often figure the way to get the most out of the sale is to cut sale costs to a minimum.
This attitude is directly contrary to the notion that the way to make the most money on the sale of a home is by pricing the property appropriately for the market, and by making cost-effective improvements that will result in a higher sale price in a shorter time.
Job applicants don't show up for an important interview in tattered old clothes if they want to make a good impression, particularly if there were plenty of other qualified applicants. Likewise, if you wanted to get top dollar from the sale of a car you would have the car detailed so that it looked its best. The same principal applies to selling single-family homes.
Today, the housing market have plenty of homes for sale and far too few buyers. For years, buyers competed with one another in order to buy a house. Now, in general, sellers are being forced to compete with other sellers in order to get their home sold.
Consider the competitive nature of the market when deciding if you're going to improve your home before selling it, and how much you'll invest. Keep in mind that the point of fixing up a home to sell is to maximize your return from the sale. Don't waste money on improvements that have little or no value to buyers.
Ask your real estate agent to walk through your home with you for the purpose of determining what fix-up projects you should ideally complete before marketing the property. For example, you might be inclined to replace worn-out carpet. Your agent, however, might advise otherwise, a buyer looking for an older home, prefer hardwood floors, your agent may recommend refinishing the hardwood floor that is hidden underneath the carpet instead of changing the carpet.
The best houses in the best condition and offered for the best price usually sell quickly. A fast sale is important to some sellers in this market. The sooner your home is sold, the sooner you stop paying mortgage payments, property taxes and various maintenance costs.