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Florida Property Taxes Just Went Down... ...As Amendment 3 passed last week and this one is a BIGGIE for Florida Homeowners The Homestead Exemptions just increased A LOT The exemption increases to $150,000 for 2027 and takes an even bigger jump to $250,000 in 2028 for the non school taxes for owner occupied properties this leaves just a short window of time for home buyers to take full advantage of this reduction for 2027 buyers would need to close by December 21, 2026 to qualify for those that purchase in 2027 they could apply for tax relief for 2028 there are lots of details that everyone involved should review todays show discusses the changes that will be taking place

We Are Seeing Appraisals Coming In Low But... ...Not for the reasons that you might be thinking While some may feel that prices are dropping it's not necessarily the case we are experiencing less sales which means that appraisers have less data to work with and ultimately a much more difficult time justifying market values today's show does a very deep dive into what is going on and why it is making things much harder for real estate investors that renovate and then rent properties as well as owner occupied home buyers with low down payments you are going to want to save this episode to refer back to

The #1 Way To Lose A House... ...is to come in with an offer that is way too low to start I see this way too often and its hard to watch buyers get carried away with bad negotiating tactics and get flat out rejected by sellers they do not get a counter offer and then they are forced to move on to a different home or raise their offer to the seller meanwhile the seller will now thinks that the buyers aren't serious and think that they will attempt the same thing during inspections ultimately these buyers end up paying more for the property than they would have if they came in with a better initial offer or they just lose a property that they really wanted there are definitely buyers in the market  that just keep repeating their lowball strategy over and over and getting rejected time after time which means that their desire to move in to a new home gets pushed further and further into the future tune in to today's show for all the details

Paying For Special Assessments... ...and the creative ways that it can be done for those who aren't really sure about what they are think of having a big project coming up at home and you have some of the money saved but not all of it so you are short on funds to get it done you could certainly try to get a loan for the money needed and then split the payments with whoever owns the home a different way to do it is to calculate the shortfall for the work to be done and divide it evenly among the owners of the home and put in that amount of cash yet another way to do it is to take the amount of $$$ needed and divide it based on who occupies what portion of the home and then split the cost accordingly that is the quick and dirty math on how to pay for it keep in mind that a special assessment is only needed when there isn't enough money saved up for the cost of the project today's show takes a much deeper dive into all of the moving parts

Surprising Data Regarding AI Use... ...In Real Estate Sales Above 70% of 1st Time Home Buyers are using AI To research homes that align with their income and credit scores 76% of them trust the data as much or more than real estate agents more than 60% of potential home sellers are also doing the same type of research now before everyone goes off the deep end lets keep in mind that this is simply a natural progression it wasn't that long ago that a newfangled thing called the internet was either going to be a fad or take over every business and everyone was going to lose their jobs sounds kinda like the whole AI conversation doesnt it? the real news to me is that this an opportunity for agents and consumers to have an elevated conversation right away and for sales professionals that embrace this  they are going to do very, very well in the years ahead listen in to todays show for some really hot takes on this topic

The Average 1st Time Home Buyer Is... ...Is 40+ Years Old I was blown away by that statistic and got to thinking how could it be true I came up with some plausible reasons   student loan debt fears of the 2008 financial crisis median income cannot buy a median priced home they bought fancy cars with big payments they want a lifestyle that doesn't include home and yard maintenance   along with a few wild ideas about why people prefer not to own a home   their parents basement is very cozy they love door dash they cannot go a single day without buying a gourmet coffee they keep buying depreciating assets like cars video games are way cooler the have no idea what a savings account is   in all reality, its probably some of each so is the statistic real? it sure seems possible when you dig a little deeper check out todays show for my passionate takes on this subject

The Best Day To Launch Your Listing... ...without question is Thursday I know...I know... your probably think that its Monday or some other day but in my 20+ years of experience in Florida Real Estate I have noticed that the most excitement occurs when a listing hits the market right before the weekend all of the marketing that syndicates to all of the popular websites hits when most buyers are bored at work and checking for new listings so that they can book showings on the weekend if you nail it on price, condition, and have a great location its sets the stage to get showings, and offers fast multiple offers on the 1st weekend is what every seller wants todays show dives deep into this highly successful strategy

1 Segment Of The Florida Real Estate Market Is Absolutely Surging... ...while a different one is lagging behind so which one is which? The Luxury and Ultra Luxury Market is doing very well right now buyers for these properties are relatively unaffected by the economy and could care less about interest rates they are seeking high end properties at a frenetic pace in hot areas as many of them are moving away from high tax states  on the other side of the this high paced market is the median homes market in the 300k-500k range where the median income earners struggle to qualify for them this market is moving considerably slower than in years past much of which is attributed to high interest rates for those that are buying in this price point many are "marrying the house and dating the rate" a growing number of lenders are offering incentives to refinance in the future with lender fees being waived tune in to today's show for all the details

Termites... ...can definitely be a pesky pest for Florida Homeowners we are finding that 2026 Is an abnormally high for termite activity the sub terranean termite tends to do the most damage each year drywood termites are also known to cause problems the "swarms" this year have done their fair share of damage and quite often you will notice they have visited a home by the tell tale sign of their wings on a window sill or on the floor most homeowners choose to get some form of preventative maintenance plan annual treatments are popular options many homes have a termite bond which certifies that the home has been treated and they are often transferrable to a new owner it is highly recommended to get a WDO inspection when you purchase a home WDO - Wood destroying organism also known a the "termite exam" listen in as todays show give you much more information

The Least Amount Of $$$ Needed To Buy A House... ...could very well be zero It's pretty well know that a Veteran can use a VA Loan to buy a home with no down payment a home seller can also contribute 4% of the purchase price to help pay for the closing costs which means that there would be little if any $$$ out of pocket to close the deal there is also a thing called a USDA Loan also known as a rural housing loan - look it up no down payment required if you qualify for the program and sellers can help pay for closing costs as well an FHA Loan is widely used by 1st time home buyers it does require a 3.5% down payment and once again sellers can help with the closing costs check out todays show for a variety of $$$ saving strategies

Boomsday Market Ahead... ... Robert Palmer, the Founder of LPT Realty has been talking about this a lot lately He feels that the market is due for an uptick in homes sales annual home sales have been in the 4 million range for the last 4 years and the typical number of homes sold prior to that is 5 million annually we are at a 30 year low for home sales that probably isn't sustainable people have chosen to stay out of the market for many reasons   waiting for prices to drop waiting for interest rates to drop waiting for the economy to improve waiting for inflation to go down   lets keep in mind that if there is a dramatic increase in home sales it doesn't mean that prices will go up, or down, for that matter and it certainly doesn't make it a buyers market or a seller market it just means that more people decided that they didn't want to wait any longer todays show talks more about the Boomsday effect

Buying Vacation Homes That Also Make You $$$...  ...its not that far fetched if you understand how to choose wisely one of the most commonly selected properties is a condotel if you aren't familiar with them think of a condo that looks like a hotel room it can be a studio room with a few creature comforts it can also have 1 or 2 bedrooms and a mini kitchen they are typically found in buildings that allow short term rentals and many of them have amenities such as pools, games, and fitness areas these work very well for investors that want to vacation throughout the year and also want income when they are not in town the rental income can help pay the association dues as well as the property taxes the vast majority of condotels are cash purchases quite often this type of property is a great entry position into this type of investment you can certainly do the same thing with condos and homes if you have a larger budget and the cash reserves to furnish and maintain bigger properties tune into todays show for a deep dive on how the experts are getting it done

The Exact Right Price For Your New Listing... ...or a Re-Price for one that has been lingering on the market what I have been noticing lately is that the majority of unsuccesful sales have some ready made excuses   the market sucks the economy sucks gas prices suck the Iran crisis sucks my agent sucks the mid term elections   the last one in particular in really funny when you say it out loud "my home isn't selling because a senate/governor election 6 weeks from now chased all the buyers away" so now that you know how I really feel about it a home that is priced well based on its location and condition will sell quickly in pretty much any market to get the rest of my super candid take on this tune in today's show for the down and dirty details

Look At These Things For AirBnb Properties... ...I have been on every side of short term rentals   owned them sold them worked with investors managed them stayed in them   and there a few key differentiators that are missed quite often that lead to less bookings and less profits for owners and veteran short renters with less options to get everything that they are willing to pay for bedroom and bathroom configurations are super important bunk rooms for kids are a big part of the focus so are game rooms and stand alone video games pools in warm weather areas attract attention hot tubs with a view in the mountains can be the clincher for many renters owners should place a heavy emphasis on this when they are making investment decisions a detailed floor plan should be part of your online marketing I notice that many ads do not have them and its a big mistake check out todays show as I share many lessons learned over the years

Welcome To 7% Interest Rates... ...The Fed did what everyone expected at todays meeting they raised interest rates by .25% in an effort to tame inflation  let's face it - everything costs more these days this is the 1st increase by the Fed Rates in about 3 years so while its not the end of the world it does affect purchasing power for most buyers and it remains to be seen if it has an effect on home prices listen in to today's show for all the nitty gritty details