January 2020 Market Report

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      As I write this market report, I realize there are two very important aspects of how we are all evaluating the real estate market today.  Certainly the numbers from the most recent market report of January 2020 tell a story but also the recent stock market tumble in light of the corona virus concerns is top of everyone’s minds.

      Let’s start by talking about January results because they are important to decisions we all will be making today to sell or buy in Florida.  First – January was a great month in Florida Real Estate – especially in Palm Beach County. When comparing to January 2019, January 2020 showed an increase in the number of sales, both average and median prices and total dollar volume.  However, new listings were down from January last year as well as December 2019 – for a myriad of reasons.  What does this mean to our Palm Beach County market? – Well, we now have less inventory and as a result for the market from $300,000 to $599,999 – we have a balanced market – so, therefore, buyer’s make realistic offers and seller’s realize that there is no longer an advantage in a balanced market so before you choose not to respond to an offer – maybe consider a counter!  With inventory trending down this balanced market condition may change – stay tuned. The higher end market, however, is a different story – over $600,000 and upwards of the $1,000,000 mark it is still a buyer’s market – a great amount of homes are sitting – over $1 million shows 19 months of inventory  – reminder that 6-9 months is considered a balanced market. If you are holding out for a cash buyer, we would suggest reconsidering – cash sales as a percent of all sales is around 37% – but with the interest rates so low, the cost of borrowing money is even more desirable. What do we recommend? That we as agents, dig deep into the pre-approvals – talk to the lenders who pre-approved the buyer – have they run credit, have they reviewed tax returns or w2s? IN other words how far into the process did they go and do they have any concerns?    Homes are being sold – the process, as always, needs to be properly managed and homes need to be properly marketed!

 As for our recent turn in the financial markets – and how this will impact real estate in Florida – Personally, I believe homes will continue to move in Florida – we may simply have to adjust how we show and how we all work together to get homes sold.  There is even more value in videos and remote showings – photography is critical.   Also – how we interact at face to face showings – for now we simply don’t shake hands – we just need to be smart about how we do business – in any field right now.

Delray Chamber chair Bill Branning passes gavel to new chair Noreen Payne!

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“The annual tradition of passing the gavel from the outgoing chamber chair to the incoming chair took place during the Greater Delray Beach Chamber of Commerce’s membership luncheon and installation of officers event.”

 

Legislature Considers Amendment to Extend ‘Save Our Homes’- FloridaRealtors

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This is amazing news for Homeowners. So often residents sell their primary residence and have not yet identified their next home. Under the current statute, to qualify for portability, you must establish a new residence by January 1st of the second year after leaving or selling your prior residence.  The amendment that is being considered would extend this time period from 2 years to 3 years. Portability can be a big financial benefit if you are moving to a more expensive home so you have more time to settle in your new home and file for portability, which would be a relief for many homeowners. At the All About Florida Homes Team of Lang Realty, we make it a point to calendar this important task and help you through the process!  Too many people miss the important deadline – we will not allow that to happen to our real estate clients!!! 

“How long should Florida’s homeowners have to “port” property tax savings to another home? It’s officially two years now but can be barely over one year depending on the timing of the sale. Proposed amendments for the Nov. ballot would give sellers up to three years.” (FloridaRealtors.org)

CLICK TO READ: https://www.floridarealtors.org/news-media/news-articles/2020/02/legislature-considers-amendment-extend-save-our-homes

As Realtors, we need to be concerned with more than just selling houses and earning a commission. 

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Realtors Helping Realtors

So excited that my article was picked up by Real Estate Marketing Magazine…
Realtors Helping Realtors

People often ask me why I give so much of my time to our real estate industry – participating on Boards locally and at the State level, on the State Line for the Women’s Council of Realtors, teaching classes to other agents, and being involved in the creation of community education events for all of the agents in the area.

As Realtors, we need to be concerned with more than just selling houses and earning a commission.   We, as Realtors, have the opportunity to be the voice for our communities.  To take the issues impacting our communities to our local board (Realtors Association of the Palm Beaches and Greater Ft Lauderdale), to Florida Realtors and ultimately through the National Association of Realtors – Political Action Campaign (RPAC).

Policies That Matter

Since the National Association of Realtors is the largest trade organization in the United States, we have a strong and loud voice. NAR, through funds from RPAC, advocates policy initiatives that promote and protect a strong real estate industry, which in turn provides for vibrant communities.

Some of the initiatives that Realtors have tackled and made an impact on nationally are the National Flood Insurance Program, Fair Housing and Federal Taxation.

Locally in Palm Beach County our voice was heard as we worked to protect homeowners with a 10% cap on increases of non-homestead property taxes.  This initiative alone saved the taxpayers over $725 million.   We petitioned for our local businesses with the first ever cut to business rent tax – we saved business owners over $61 million!  There are so many other successes that have benefited our local communities.

Raising the Bar

The other main reason why I devote so much of my time to our industry is to help raise the bar in our industry. How do we do that?  We help each other!

We educate each other, we learn from each other, we share information about communities, about loan programs, about contract issues, about local governance to name a few and all for the sake of delivering incredible value to our clients. We assist clients with one of their largest investments in their lives – we owe it to our clients to be the best we can possibly be!

We need to be professional.  We need to be well versed and knowledgeable.  We need to seek out answers when we do not know them.   We need to be precise and we need to be caring and understanding. We need to be a resource for all things real estate and to my real estate friends – that doesn’t mean you need to have all of the answers – it means you need to surround yourself with a team of professionals, resources who you can bring in when needed.

We owe it to our industry, to our clients and to ourselves to continue to invest in knowledge and to share this learned information with each other so together, we can protect and help our communities.

It has been and will continue to be my great honor to serve in our industry.

Amy Snook, Partner on the Lang Realty team!

Atlantic Ave Magazine’s City Person – Noreen Payne!

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Have you had a chance to read Atlantic Ave Magazine’s spotlight on our very own Noreen Payne?  If not, click below for the full article!

From Florida Realtors: A condo doesn’t allow pets – what about service animals?

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Florida Realtors recently answered a question that may be on your mind if you own rental properties.

Question: Our condo is designated pet-free in our community documents. I am about to rent and want to keep the apartment in good shape. If I include a no-pets clause in the lease, am I still forced to accept emotional support or service animals? – Jane

Answer: Yes. Service and emotional support animals are not pets, so restrictions that apply to pets do not apply to them.

Emotional support animals are companion animals that provide therapeutic benefits for people with psychiatric or mental disabilities. These animals do not have to be trained, unlike service animals that are trained individually to perform specific tasks to help a person who is disabled. You do have the right to confirm that the animal is genuine and your prospective tenant is not trying to outsmart you. However, it is essential to remember that you should not discriminate against someone with one of these animals any more than someone with, for example, a wheelchair.

It is understandable that you want to keep your apartment in good repair, but sometimes you have to adjust your expectations to allow everybody to be treated fairly.

 

Amy Snook Earns Commitment to Excellence Endorsement from NAR

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Amy Snook, a partner in the All About Florida Homes Team of Keller Williams Realty, has earned the Commitment to Excellence (C2EX) endorsement from the National Association of Realtors (NAR). The endorsement goes to Realtors who have demonstrated knowledge and competency in 10 core areas of real estate practice: Client Service, Professional Reputation, Real Estate Law, Realtor Code of Ethics, Equal Service to All, Advocacy of Real Property Ownership, Trust and Integrity, Use of Technology, Data Privacy and Areas of Practice.

The C2EX endorsement is available only to Realtors. It is earned through a self-directed program that enables users to assess and build on their competency in each of the core areas. Launched in November 2018, this innovative program sets the standard for what it means to be a professional in the real estate brokerage business.

“Earning the Commitment to Excellence endorsement is a true accomplishment and an affirmation to consumers that you stand for ethics and professionalism in your work,” says 2019 NAR President John Smaby.  “Advances in technology and online user experience are making our business more and more seamless, and that’s fantastic, but with new technology can come vulnerabilities. A C2EX endorsement offers consumers the ease of mind that they have a skilled adviser, committed to conducting business at the highest standards, helping them through what might be the largest purchase or sale in their life.”

The National Association of Realtors is America’s largest trade association, representing over 1.3 million members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries.

 

Coastal Star Covers Noreen Payne’s Chamber Award!

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We are so proud of Noreen’s contributions to the City of Delray and the Delray Beach Chamber of Commerce!

In April, she was named Director of the Year by the Chamber, and the Coastal Star included the honor in its Business Spotlight Section!

They wrote:


“Noreen Payne, a partner of the All About Florida Homes team of Keller Williams Realty, was named 2018 Director of the Year by the Delray Beach Chamber of Commerce. Noted for her leadership and commitment to the chamber and the city, she has worked with the chamber’s board members and staff to develop and implement strategic goals focused on service. Payne is the chamber’s vice chair of programming.”

 

Check out the mention here! 

 

 

Keller Williams Coastal Partners Recognizes the All About Florida Homes Team for January Wins!

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We are so grateful that Keller Williams recognized the All About Florida Homes team for two BIG achievements in January of 2019!

We were the #10 team among ALL South Florida offices – based on closed volume – over the course of the month. This is an especially special benchmark, because South Florida’s real estate market is pretty hot!

We were also SO EXCITED ? to be recognized as the #1 team in our office – for both closed volume and closed number of homes – in January.

We want to extend a HUGE tip of our hats to our preferred vendors who help us make our clients’ real estate dreams a reality… AND to those clients who choose us for their important transactions. We absolutely chalk these successes up to YOU! Thank you.

 

 

 

Delray Beach Home Tour Draws Hundreds to Benefit Achievement Center

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Noreen was interviewed this morning about one of her favorite projects, The Delray Beach Home Tour!

The Tour is a well-loved annual event that benefits the Achievement Center for Children and Families.

Participants come from all over South Florida to tour some of Delray Beach’s most distinctive residences. Guests enjoy a relaxed day discovering the delights of the homes on tour, plus partake in a catered luncheon. The trolley transports them from home to home. With over 800 attendees, 100 volunteers, and many other supporters, this signature event is not to be missed!

From the tour website:

“This year’s Home Tour will be in the Palm Trail Neighborhood of Delray Beach and features a wide variety of architectural styles and design elements that provide home decorating enthusiasts an inside look into the world of distinctive Delray living.”

17th Annual Delray Beach Home Tour
Thursday, March 15, 2018
10 am to 4 pm
Palm Trail Neighborhood of Delray Beach

Contact the organizers for more information or to purchase tickets!