Miamism

If you are a Miami real estate buyer you know you can be picky, you can demand more and you have every right to be a pain, since this is YOUR market.    If you have been looking for a while, you may find the search frustrating and never ending and may even wonder if you will ever buy a property.

With the daily gloom of the media, you may have a tendency to forget what your goal is.  You may even start doubting what it is that you really want.  So here's what Rick and I recommend.  (Yeah, we're giving you homework, but you will thank us for it....or not)

Sit down either by yourself or with your significant other and write a list.  Write down what it is that you want (not taking price into consideration yet).  Number of bedrooms and baths, single-family or condo, square footage, location, size of property, layout, close to a particular school, gated neighborhood, remodeled or not, preferred finishes, charm/no charm, modern or traditional, pool/no pool.  Brainstorm away until you have everything down on paper.

If you are making a purchasing decision with a significant other, we recommend that you consolidate your lists and come to a consensus on what is most important.  Then go ahead and organize those items in order of significance - please realize that it is almost impossible to find the perfect home with everything you want and it is essential to be flexible and let some of those "wants" go.

After you are done with the "real estate wants list", go back to your Realtor and discuss price - this will most likely be the only factor that has remained constant since you began, and you may notice that you will be able to afford more items on that list than when you began (so the search time is not all that bad).

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Ines.Hegedus-Garcia 2 feedbacks »

Don't know if you know this, but blogging is a lot of work! We do it to engage our readers, to encourage dialogue and for people to know us before they meet us in person. Nothing like feeling you already know that person before your first meeting - formalities are dropped, you can relax and address core real estate needs immediately.

But why go through all that work? - This e-mail we received yesterday says it all:

Dear friends, my name is Luis Falcon, one day and what seems like an eternity ago, I visited Miami on what was to be a weeks vacation, upon stepping off the bus (La Cubana from Jersey) I looked up at the blue skies and heard/saw parrots flying by, at that moment I realized, I would be in Miami for a while... I stayed 14 years. I worked for City of Miami Beach, News Café, Handy Van in Dade County, Miami Children's Hospital and Club Nu (back in the day.) Me quise llenar como un baso llenándose de jugo en un día caliente! I could not get enough of that place

I currently work in NY and spend my days dreaming of coming HOME, I happened to stumble upon your website today as I was looking for real estate info and was so impressed I had to write you. I recently got married and have plans of moving next year. Reading your blog and comments today, have made me feel like I've know you since childhood.

NOW with every cent my wife and I save for our first home, moving forward I will anticipate the day when I contact you both and say, "Hey guys, you think you can find us a home please?"

Great website and talk too you soon.

Luis Falcon

Wow! Thank you Luis so much for those beautiful words. You managed to sum up the purpose of our Miami Real Estate Blog. We are so looking forward to meeting you and your wife in person and know that not only will we find the perfect home for you, but we will have fun while doing it.

I just noticed today is Miamism's 1 year anniversary!!  And what better way to celebrate than with a Miamism reader's amazing testimonial!! 

Thanks to our loyal readers and those that provide constant blog ideas.  When you stop us on the street to tell us you read Miamism, we love it! 

When you e-mail us to tell us to continue the great work, we love it!

And when you send us Miamisms to be included on Fridays..... well.....it just makes our day.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MIAMISM!

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Ines.Hegedus-Garcia 18 feedbacks »

We see real estate tactics in Miami every day, some could be effective, some could backfire - it is important for you, the real estate client (whether buying or selling) to recognize these.  I usually leave the industry rants for the real estate blogs like Agent Genius where I am a contributor but this time I decided to share an experience with our Miamism readers.

Last month we were surprised to show up to a Miami Shores showing appointment with some buyer clients to find out that the listing agent had made appointments for the same time with 3 other groups of buyers.  It was not an open house, we were not warned.  Our clients were forced to see the house at the same time with others.  When I asked our clients how they felt about the listing agent's approach, they said they felt stressed, they couldn't really detail the house and it was an uncomfortable experience.

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Ines.Hegedus-Garcia 13 feedbacks »

A lot of people relocating to Miami ask us about “Bugs” - well, there are plenty of bugs in Florida and as much as I hate to admit it, you do get used to them (I know, I know pretty lame for someone who absolutely hates roaches).

Here are 15 things you should know about Florida Bugs:

1.  Another name for mosquitoes is B-52’s

2.  Cockroaches can get so big that you can catch a ride on them

3.  A favorite Florida pastime is to see who can snort the most no-se-ums without chocking

4.  According to Chris Griffith, the unofficial Florida State Bird is The Mosquito

5.  Best selling fragrances in the stores are known as “Cutter Bug Spray” and “DEET”

6.  Citronella candles are a common household item

7.  Grasshoppers are so big they look like lobsters

8.  If a perfect stranger smacks you in the face for no particular reason, just nod and thank them

9.  If you see people doing a strange dance on a sandy beach, don’t join them - it’s probably sand fleas

10. There are 3 seasons in Florida - rainy season, hurricane season and love bug season

11. Dayngr can attest to having seen mosquitoes the size of a small Volkswagen

12. Love Bugs can get so intense that there are windshield washing stations along the Florida Turnpike for the splattering nuisances

13. Dragon Flies are so fast that they can chase you down the expressway

14. You are not a Floridian if you have never gotten hit in the face by a flying Palmetto Bug

15.  Florida Ticks don’t just suck blood, they are known to drink Mojitos

For those of you relocating to Miami, please realize that this article, although true, is for entertainment purposes - some of the descriptions given may be slight exaggerations.

**graphic courtesy of my older son who knows I despise cockroaches**

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Ines.Hegedus-Garcia 11 feedbacks »

Real Estate is about relationships and emotions. It may be a little hard to swallow since there are plenty of people that buy and sell real estate as often as they change underwear. But the truth is that those people are not the norm and most real estate transactions are intricate because of the emotions involved.

As real estate professionals we just dont sell Miami homes by volume and hope to make our 'quota at the end of the year, we assess your needs as our clients in order to help you identify properties to buy or sell.

It is our job to ask the right questions and spend some time with you to help you make key decisions. It is important for you to feel comfortable with us and to trust us. I think you would agree that strong relationships are based on trust. The more you are willing to share with us about your lifestyle and your expectations, the better equipped we will be to help you.

We are currently working with some awesome Miami condo buyer clients from Massachusetts and after communicating back and forth by e-mail and meeting them for the first time, this is what they had to say,

Thank you, Ines, for your time, advice, and patience. It was truly a pleasure to meet you, hang with you, and explore possibilities with you…You did a great job of matching us with a potential property. Thats a real talent. Thank you

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Ines.Hegedus-Garcia 10 feedbacks »