Gainesville FL Real Estate Blog

Gainesville Real Estate For Sale:

12254 NW 10th Place, Newberry FL 32669

MLS# 306326

Peaceful living conveniently located near hospitals, I-75, dining and shopping. Walk to town of Tioga or West End Golf Course. Enjoy the sun room with built in bench seating concealing extra storage, while overlooking the natural green space. This lovely home boasts oversized 2 car garage with golf cart area, laundry room tub, new garage door opener, private fenced back yard and spacious rooms. This low maintenance home has the advantage of the community pool, clubhouse, tennis courts and front lawn care through the Homeowners Assn. come home today!!

Learn more about 12254 NW 10th Place and other Gainesville real estate by visiting Gatorhomes.com and MyGatorCondo.com.

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Gainesville Real Estate For Sale:

4015 NW 96th Street, Gainsville FL 32606

MLS#306046

Squirrels scurry on this 1 acre paradise conveniently located near shopping, I-75 and dining.  Beautiful 2006 remodeling includes kitchen with accessorized cabinets and stainless steel appliances, wood floors throughout living areas and fresh paint.  Other newer features include roof, heat/cooling system, pool pump, window treatments, carpet, pool refinishing, lush landscaping and remodeled baths.  This entertainment friendly home boast spectacular views of the sparkling screened pool & private park like back area from most rooms.  Zoned irrigation system, Reostats on all lighting, pvc fencing and architectural outdoor lighting speak to the owners attention to detail!  A must see and a joy to show!!

Learn more about 4015 NW 96th Street and other Gainesville real estate by visiting Gatorhomes.com and MyGatorCondo.com.

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Gainesville Real Estate for Sale: 1201 NW 4th Street, Gainsville FL 32601

MLS# 282478

This Condo is in an ideal location in a quiet residential neighborhood and is perfect for the serious student. Exterior has been completely repainted and roof is new as of April 2007. UF And Downtown Gainesville is only 5 minutes away. The bus stop is a short 5 minute walk. The electric water heater is new and the dryer is new. Walking distance to Publix, the Post Office, Restaurants and The Tutoring Zone. Only a two unit Condo, never a parking problem. Alarm System. Attached Storage Shed.

Learn more about 1201 NW 4st Street and other Gainesville real estate for sale by visiting GatorHomes.com and MyGatorCondo.com.

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Skeptics thought the Internet would be the extinction of the real estate agent. Let’s face it, all the information in the world about how to buy and sell a house is at your finger tips. So why hire a real estate professional to represent you in the purchase or sale of your Gainesville home, when you can save the big fat commission they charge and do it yourself. If you have asked yourself this question, you are not alone. Here are the Top 10 Reasons To Hire A Gainesville Real Estate Professional:

1. Education & Experience

Most people buy or sell homes 2-3 times in their lives. Many Gainesville real estate professionals are involved in buying and selling real estate 2-3 times a month. Henry Ford once said that when you hire people who are smarter than you are, it proves you are smarter than they are. You don’t need to know all there is to know about buying or selling real estate, you just need to hire the people that do. Hire someone with more experience and education than you that can help you get the best possible deal and save you precious time and money. 

2. Agents are Buffers

If you are a buyer, agents will insulate you from builder representatives and listing agents, who can be piranhas when going after a sale. And if you are a seller, your agent will weed through the ‘lookie loos’ and bring you only well-qualified buyers. Real estate professionals save you time…and as they say, ‘time is money.’  

3. Neighborhood Knowledge

Your neighbor may know that the people who sold the house down the street were asking $350,000, but your Gainesville real estate agent will know that the house actually sold for $295,000 and paid $5,000 of the buyer’s closing costs after being on the market 45 days.  

4. Price Guidance

Your real estate agent is able to guide you through the decision making process to help you make the right choice for yourself and your family. Whether a buyer or seller, agents are able to provide you with the data you need to choose a correct price and then put together a negotiating strategy based on market supply, demand and conditions. 

5. Market Conditions Information

Real estate professionals can also provide you with market data such as price per square foot, median and average sales prices, days on market and list/sell ratios that will have a bearing on your buying and selling decisions. 

6. Professional Networking

The network of other professionals known by real estate agents, many of whom provide services that you will need to buy or sell, can be invaluable. Isn’t it better to have a service provider, who is known for quality and professionalism, recommended to you than having to pick someone out of the yellow pages? 

7. Negotiation Skills & Confidentiality

Top producing real estate agents are skilled negotiators, not just messengers delivering paperwork to a buyer or seller, who are able to remove themselves from the emotion of the situation…and be assured, buying and selling a home is emotional! They are professionals who are trained to present their client’s case in the best light and agree to hold client information confidential from competing interests.  

8. Handling Volumes of Paperwork

Purchase Agreements in the 21^st Century are 10 pages or more and include state and federally mandated disclosures which can be overwhelming and confusing to the inexperienced. One omission or mistake could land you in court or cost you thousands of dollars. 

9. Answer Questions After Closing

Issues have a habit of cropping up after closing…things such as taxing authorities that collect property tax assessments, doc stamps or transfer tax can fall months behind and mix up invoices. Your real estate professional is there to answer questions, provide documentation and help clear up questions. You won’t be left out in the cold to handle issues by yourself. 

10. Develop Relationships for Future Business

Referrals are the basis of am agent’s success. Your real estate professional will provide you with ongoing market updates, news and information. Keeping you informed and staying in touch will help insure your repeat and referral business. 

Bottom line, Gainesville real estate agents are highly skilled, knowledgeable professionals. They will help you sift through the mountains of information you find on the Internet and make sense of it in order for you to make good buying and selling decisions. 

Learn more about Gainesville real estate at GatorHomes.com or give us a call for more personal service.

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2009 is a great time to buy Gainesville real estate. With moderate prices, and abundance of inventory, pre-foreclosures galore, near record low interest rates and the first-time home buyer tax credit, Gainesville real estate buyers are definitley in control! Below are 5 powerful Gaineville real estate buying strategies:

1. Don’t Get “Pre-Qualified!” Get “Pre-Approved” 

Do you want to get the best house you can for the least amount of money when buying Gainesville real estate? Then make sure you are in the strongest negotiating position possible. Price is only one bargaining chip in the negotiations, and not necessarily the most important one. Often other terms, such as the strength of the buyer or the length of escrow, are critical to a seller. In years past, we always recommended that buyers get “pre-qualified” by a lender. This means that you spend a few minutes on the phone with a lender who asks you a few questions. Based on the answers, the lender pronounces you “pre-qualified” and issues a certificate that you can show to a seller. Sellers are aware that such certificates are WORTHLESS, and here’s why! None of the information has been verified! Unknown problems can surface for example: recorded judgments, child support payments due, glitches on the credit report (due to any number of reasons both accurately and inaccurately), down payment funds that have not been in the clients’ bank account long enough, etc. So the way to make a strong offer today is to get “pre-approved”. This happens AFTER all information has been checked and verified. You are actually APPROVED for the loan and the only loose end is the appraisal on the property. This process takes anywhere from a few days to a few weeks depending on your situation. It’s VERY POWERFUL and a weapon we recommend all of our clients have in their negotiating arsenal. 

2. Sell First, Then Buy 

If you have a house to sell, sell it before selecting a house to buy! Let’s pretend that we go out looking for the perfect house for you. We find it and you love it! Now you have to go make an offer to the seller. You want the seller to reduce the price and wait until you sell your house. The seller figures that’s a risky deal, since he might pass up a buyer who DOESN’T have to sell a house while he’s waiting for you. So he says OK, he’ll do the contingency but it has to be a full price offer! So you see, you paid more for the house than you could have because of the contingency. Now you have to sell your existing house, and in a hurry! Otherwise you lose the dream house! So to sell quickly you might take an offer that’s lower than if you had more time. The bottom line is that buying before selling might cost you TENS OF THOUSANDS of dollars. We always recommend that you sell first, then buy. If you’re concerned that there is not a house on the market for you, then go on a window-shopping trip. You can identify possible houses and locations without falling in love with a specific house. If you feel confident after that then put your house on the market. Another tactic is to make the sale “subject to seller finding suitable housing”. Adding this phrase to the listing means that WHEN YOU DO FIND A BUYER, you will have some time to find the new place. If you don’t find anything to your liking, you don’t have to sell your present home. 

3. Play the Game of Nines 

Before house hunting for Gainesville real estate, make a list of nine things you want in the new place. Then make a list of the nine things you don’t want. We call this “NINE OF THIS AND NONE OF THAT”. You can use this list as a scorecard to rate each property that you see. The one with the biggest score wins! This helps avoid confusion and keeps things in perspective when you’re comparing dozens of homes. When house hunting, keep in mind the difference between “SKIN AND BONES”. The BONES are things that cannot be changed such as the location, view, size of lot, noise in the area, school district, and floor plan. The SKIN represents easily changed surface finishes like carpet, wallpaper, color, and window coverings. Buy the house with good BONES, because the SKIN can always be changed to match your tastes. I always recommend that you imagine each house as if it were vacant. Consider each house on its underlying merits, not the seller’s decorating skills. 

4. Don’t Be Pushed Into Any House 

Your agent should show you everything available that meets your requirements. Don’t make a decision on a house until you feel that you’ve seen enough to pick the best one. Review the Multiple Listing printout with your agent to make sure that you are getting a COMPLETE list. In the late 1980′s, homes were selling quickly, usually a few days after listing. In that kind of market, agents advised their clients to make an offer ON THE SPOT if they liked the house. That was good advice at the time. Today there isn’t always this urgency, unless a home is drastically under priced, and you’ll know if it is. Don’t forget to check into the SCHOOL DISTRICTS of the area you’re considering. Information is available on every school; such as class sizes, % of students that go on to college, SAT scores, etc. You can get this information from your agent or directly from the school. 

5. Stop Calling Ads! 

A word of caution – agents create ads solely to make the phone ring! Many of the homes have some drawback that’s not mentioned in the ad, such as traffic noise, power lines, or litigation in the community. What’s not mentioned in the ad is usually more important than what is. For this reason, we want you to be very careful when reading ads. Remember that the person writing the ad is representing the seller and not you! The most important thing you can do is have someone on your side looking out for your best interests. Your own agent will critique the property with an eye towards how well it meets your needs and will point out any drawbacks you should know about. So whether you decide to work with us or not, pick an agent you feel comfortable with and enlist the services of that agent as a buyer’s broker. Then you become a client with all the rights, benefits, and privileges created by this agency relationship, and you’re no longer just a shopper. Did you know that many homes are sold WITHOUT A SIGN ever going up or an AD EVER BEING PUT IN THE PAPER? These “great deals” go to those people who are committed to working with one agent. When an agent hears of a great buy, who do you think he’s going to call? His client, who he has a legal obligation to work hard for, or someone who just called on the phone and said “keep your eyes open”? So, to get the best buy on a property, we always recommend that you hire your own agent and stick with him.

 To learn more about buying Gainesville real estate, visit our websites, GatorHomes.com and MyGatorCondo.com, or give us a call for more personal service.

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Gainesville Real Estate For Sale:

2801 SW 298th Street, Newberry FL 32669
Listing Number: 302915   

 Nice bedroom, 2 bath ranch situated on 7.5 Acres. This Property Has A Fireplace, Stainless Appliances, Open Floor Plan And A Huge Barn. It Needs Minor Cosmetic Work But Will Make A Beautiful Home When Cleaned Up.

Learn more about Gainesville real estate by visiting GatorHomes.com.

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Gainesville Real Estate For Sale:

3736 SW 3rd Place , Gainesville FL 32607
Listing # 301127

4 Bedrooms And 2 Baths Only Tell Part Of The Story With This Decorator Styled Home. Updated Kitchen And Bath Spaces Allow You To Live In Luxury And Stay Close To The University, Restaurants, Theater And Much More! The In-law Suite Allows For Rental Income Potential Or Makes A Perfect Home Office Or Even A Hideaway For Your Teenager! Save On The Gymnasium Memberships Because You Can Also Turn Laps In Your Very Own Oversized Swimming Pool! Quiet Walks Through The Established Tree Canopy In The Anglewood Neighborhood Will Burn Calories And Relax Your Mind At The End Of Your Busy Day. Wood And Ceramic Floors Contribute To The Updated Feel Of This Well Maintained, Owner-occupied Home In Teh Heart Of Gainesville.

Learn more about Gainesville real estate by visiting GatorHomes.com or MyGatorCondo.com.

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Gainesville Real Estate For Sale: Acerage in Cedar Key

347 Road, Cedar Key FL 32625
Listing # 299015

This Is 124.79 acres in Cedar Key. At one point it was divided into 98 seperate parcels. It is located in the Scrub forest area. It does have a protected bird species living on the property.

Learn more about Cedar Key and other Gainesville real estate by visiting GatorHomes.com.

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Saving The Down Payment When Buying Gainesville Real Estate

This is a great time to think about buying a Gainesville real estate. Gainesville home prices have dropped and interest rates are at all time lows. The biggest hurdle for many Gainesville home buyers is saving money for a down payment. Here are 25 things to do on a regular basis to save money:

1. Make it automatic. Before you see your paycheck, have a percentage of it automatically deposited into your 401(k) and savings.
2. Keep minimum funds in checking account. Transfer extra funds into your savings account where it will earn more interest than in our checking account.
3. Don’t pay banking fees! Use your bank’s free bill pay, automatic deposits, free checks, and free reimbursements for all ATM fees.
4. Use rewards credit cards. Use a credit card offering cash back on every purchase and pay the card off each month to eliminate interest fees.
5. Actively search out deals. It never hurts to try and find a better deal, or request a better deal from your service providers.
6. Use a programmable thermostat. Programmable thermostats save you an estimated 10-20% on your heating and cooling bills.
7. Use ceiling fans, floor fans, and space heaters. Turn your thermostat down, close the doors to unused rooms and use a space heater for heat. Use ceiling fans and floor fans to assist with heating and cooling – depending on the season of course!
8. Install CFLs to save energy. Compact fluorescent lights use about a quarter of the electricity of normal incandescent bulbs. They also need replaced much less often.
9. Drive smoothly. Accelerate smoothly and at a reasonable rate, and coast to a stop as often as possible. Also use cruise control on the highway. My car is rated to get 26 mpg around town and I regularly get 29. Use gas rewards credit cards to save money on fuel costs.
10. Plan and research major purchases. Take the time to research the best deals when planning a vacation.
11. Buy quality products. Quality items may cost more up front, but they last longer and generally provide better results than cheaper, inferior products. Examples of items you should buy higher quality – furniture, clothes and shoes, vehicles, and other items that will see a lot of use.
12. Buy generic where applicable. You can save a lot of money on generic items for which the brand name product is essentially the same as the store brand. Food and medicines come to mind as items where generic products are good deals.
13. Use coupons and rebates. Use coupons for oil changes, groceries, books, on-line purchases, and just about anything else we can find.
14. Use store rewards cards. Many grocery stores have their own ‘reward cards’ saving you money each time your shop. If you are a senior, shop on designated senior citizen discount days.
15. Cook at home.  Limit restaurant dining to once a month.
16. Eat leftovers. You can save a minimum of $20 a week by bringing your lunch to work. It is also healthier. On the rare occasion you go out to lunch with coworkers, you’ll enjoy it more.
17. Use the library. Borrow books and movies from the library. New movie releases aren’t always available, but there are usually plenty of classics from the 40s and 50s.
18. Use parks. They are great for hiking and outdoor recreation.
19.  Take care of things. Treat the tings you own with respect and take good care of them. This includes doing things such as cleaning the house, washing your cars, and polishing shoes. Things last much longer when you take good care of them.
20. Buy insurance. Health insurance, home owner’s insurance, auto insurance, and other types of insurance are designed to save you money! Sure, you may end up paying premiums for years and never file a claim, but in the event you need to file a claim, your premium will likely be small compared to what you would have had to pay. You’ll be very happy if you ever need it!
21. Bundle cable and internet. You can save a lot of money by bundling these together rather than purchasing the separately. You can save more if you bundle your phone as well.
22. Use cell phones – skip the landline. Depending on your plan, it can be a real cost saving.
23. Cancel subscriptions. Almost everything you want can be found on-line for free.
24. Home improvement. Try making your own repairs before calling a professional.
25. Avoid debt. If you don’t have the money for it, don’t buy it.

Saving money and watching your savings account grow is a rewarding experience…especially if it can help you purchase a Gainesville home of your own.

Learn more about buying a home at GatorHomes.com or give me a call for more personal service.

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Gainesville Real Estate: Regulatory Reform Expected With Obama Presidency

The upcoming presidential transition comes at a time of great challenges within the housing industry and the economy at large. Consequently, many are wondering what a Barack Obama presidency will mean for real estate and housing issues.

National Association of Realtors analysts expect the Obama administration and the new Democratic-controlled Congress to focus on regulatory reform of the financial services industry, with potential changes to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

This fall, Obama responded to Realtor® Magazine‘s questions about the mortgage crisis, sustainable development, housing affordability and other topics. Read the interview.

To learn more about Gainesville real estate, please contact us at 352-332-8841 or visit GatorHomes.com.

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