Fishing in the keys...Goliath Grouper eats 3 1/2 foot Reef Shark

Good News for HOMESTEADED Property Owners that want to RENT

Check out the new law regarding renting your homesteaded property....
SB 342 by Sen. John
Thrasher (R-St. Augustine) provides a "safe harbor" that lets people rent their homestead for up to 30 days a year without losing the exemption. However, rentals that exceed 30 days for two consecutive years jeopardize the homestead exemption in year two. Note that the law doesn't address how many days beyond the 30-day threshold triggers abandonment of homestead. A Department of Revenue opinion allows for rentals of up to six months every other year if proof of substantial residency and other conditions are met. Effective: July 1, 2013.

Monroe County Insurance Rates going UP 2013

Living on an island comes with risk of rising water and hurricanes.  Due to historic losses in Florida few insurance companies will insure in Monroe County, Florida for Wind and Flood.  As a result, insurance is offered through Citizens Insurance, a government established, not-for-profit insurance company providing insurance for Florida and Louisiana. Since Monroe County is combined with other higher risks and not rated by it's historic losses we bear the burden of higher premiums to offset risks from other losses in Florida.  An effort is being made to prove a lower risk factor for Monroe County through FIRM (Fair Insurance Rates for Monroe County - click here for more information) to bring rates down based on local historical losses.  

As of 2013, insurance rates are expected to rise on many levels.  Some properties rates could increase as much as 25% on new purchases.  It's important to know how these changes will affect your premiums in the future.  Check my vendor list of insurance agents to get a quote or contact the agent currently insuring the property.  All rates are promulgated and the same no matter where you purchase the policy.

Items of consideration: Not all properties are at risk.  Call Gidget Jackson or "Send Me A Note" by going to www.gidgetjackson.com and request confirmation of Flood Zone (s) for your property.

Marathon - Middle Keys - Aquarium Coming Soon!

Coming Summer 2014 - Public Aquarium in Marathon, FL

Originally started in the mid 50's this site is under construction to build a public interactive Aquarium.  

Florida leads nation in foreclosure activity - Business - MiamiHerald.com

Florida leads nation in foreclosure activity - Business - MiamiHerald.com

Sea Scape Motel & Marina - a Conch Records / KeysVideoDirectory.com Loca...

A rare find. Waterfront Commercial Building in Marathon, FL

Transient Units in the Florida Keys

aka development rights, rv lots and campground sites

Transient units are a commodity in the Florida Keys. Due to growth rate ordinances, moratoriums and hurricane evacuation issues there are restrictions for the number of units allowed on a site and just because you are allowed to have them doesn't mean you get them automatically. Transient units are in high demand for the hotel/motel industry but also include RV lots and campground sites. The Florida Keys rely on tourism as the primary economy for the islands. From Key Largo to Key West you will find all kinds of places to stay for the night. The number of rooms and amenities vary greatly from mom & pop motels to upscale resorts. The Keys, as we call it here, has the highest property values in the State of Florida. This is primarily due to the location between the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic ocean - plus we are a chain of "islands". The room rates tend to be higher relative to the type of stay compared to most other areas of the state.

I have heard a lot of speculation about the number of transient units available but no one really seems to know the right number. The more I asked the more it seems the difficulty is in the folks that are actually using them and the ones that have the right to use them if they had a place for folks to stay on their property. These rights follow the land. There are many folks that had an overnight place to stay at one point or another and for some reason no longer use the overnight rights so they sit on the property unused. Many folks believe these rights have value for their property and may or may not want to give them up. These privately held units can be sold or exchanged to be used on another property especially if the owner decides to change the use of their current property and no longer need the rights.

In, 2012, the City of Marathon received 100 transient units from the state as a "gift" for completing the sewer system and some other things. First they had to decide how they would determine who would get the units. After gathering ideas from local folks in open meetings it was determined that the units would be allocated for hotel/motel and RV sites under the following criteria:

Maximum allocation to any one property is 25 units, or 25% of the total number of existing units.
One active application per individual, entity or corporation
$5,000 application fee
Demonstration of financial capability to complete the project

It's important to remember that the number of units allowed on a site does not automatically mean you have units to use. You could have the ability to put 20 units on a site because of the size of the property or the zoning. If you have 10 transient units on that site you will have to buy more units, if possible, to actually get to your maximum allowable units.

What is a Cooperative Short Sale?

A Cooperative Short Sale, CSS, is a new initiative for lenders to cooperate with borrowers to sell their property in lieu of foreclosure.  Typically, if the home is a primary residence and the borrower does not qualify for a loan modification, the lender will offer a Cooperative Short Sale.  Typically, a Cooperative Short sale saves a borrower from foreclosure, allows them to stay in the property while it is being sold, saves them from foreclosure and compensates the seller for moving costs.  The lender (s) and borrower (seller) agree to a sale price allowing the property to be sold like a traditional sale without the unknowns of a typical short sale.

How do you make an offer on a short sale?

Short sales transactions are different from others in that a contingency is added to the contract whereby the seller's lender must approve a payoff that is less than the balance currently owed by the seller.  In some cases there may be other liens such as taxes, utilities, subordinate liens, HOA, Condo Assn, etc.  All liens must be cleared in order to pass a clean title free of liens and encumberances.

What defines a short sale property?

Short Sale Properties are defined in different ways but essentially more is owed on the property than the market will bring at the time a seller has it on the market.  The seller's lender or other subordinate liens must agree to take payoffs less than is owed.

In some cases, properties are advertised as not being short sales when in fact the seller owes more than the balance of the liens but the seller is able to bring funds to the table to make up the difference.

Is it true lenders are paying borrowers to short sale their home?

Yes, lenders are doing what is called "Cooperative Short Sales".  Borrowers that cooperate with the lenders are given around $2,500 plus avoiding foreclosure.  Note: a short sale doesn't always mean it will avoid a deficiency so if you owe more than your property is worth be aware of the details as you go through the process.  Remember foreclosure is not only costly for the lender but the borrower too as the deficiency can be much greater by the time the property is foreclosed.  Cooperative Short Sales ultimately benefit all parties to the sale.

Who do you represent in the short sale?

Gidget: I do not represent lenders.  I represent the seller and assist them with negotiating their short sale with their lender by coordinating between the parties for the best possible outcome for the seller/borrower.  In more cases than not it helps to have a third party involved in the short sale negotiations.  Let's face it...it's a lot to coordinate between working with not only the seller and their lender but the additional requirements the lender wants from the other parties to the contract.  Without someone to coordinate all the parties it would be difficult to get everyone to the closing table.

Strengthen America, find a way to keep homeowners in THEIR homes.

Think about it...taxpayers are paying paying paying...banks get bailed bailed - bailed and nothing helps the majority of folks keep their homes.  Homeowners are treated as if they did the big wrong when in fact they were the recipients of an approved loan with bank underwriting.  Most of the high risk loans went out the first two years of the mortgage crisis.  Now with the combined economic crisis and reduced income of many Americans, folks are not qualifying to keep their homes.  Many lost their jobs that originally qualified them for the loan and/or had their pay reduced, used up all their savings, some their retirement and finally ran out of ways to keep paying their high mortgage as the nations economic crisis continues.  This crisis is way bigger than the American Homeowner and in no way under their control.  So why do the banks get bailed out and the homeowners that pay the taxes are homeownerless (a new word to add to the American dictionary), becoming renters, told their loan balance cannot be reduced to keep their home and ultimately they must sell.  So how does this make sense?
Maybe in the beginning of this crisis you could convince a homeowner they did something wrong and needed to cooperate with the sale of their home to avoid foreclosure.  Today many are questioning who is really to blame and why there is "no hope for homeowners".   Once a homeowner is told they cannot keep their home, what compels them to continue paying their mortgage or cooperate with a short sale?  Some lenders are offering incentives for homeowner cooperation while other lenders are so overwhelmed with foreclosures they only file the foreclosure but forgo moving forward with the action until a future date.  For many homeowners this creates an incredible emotional trauma when they realize there is no hope left but to sell or be foreclosed.  Programs like HAFA (Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternative) offer a small incentive (like cash for keys in a foreclosure) for owners to cooperate with the short sale.  Lenders save money by doing a short sale in lieu of foreclosure which can be quite expensive.  Homeowners typically are allowed to stay in their homes and save money by participating in the program.
Now the reality check, homeowners realize they don't qualify to keep their homes and the lenders will reduce the mortgage for a new buyer but not them.  Many homeowners want to know why they can't keep their homes and qualify based on today's market values and their current income.   If banks need bail outs why not make it contingent upon them helping homeowners keep their homes?  Change the underwriting to make it work.

Strengthen America, find a way to keep homeowners in THEIR homes.   

What is the standard compensation structure for an agent?

Real Estate agents are compensated by commissions based on the sale price of the home.  There is no standardized compensation and may vary depending on the agreement between the Seller and Listing Broker. Seller's list their property with a broker at an agreed upon commission.  These commissions may vary depending on the services provided by the listing broker and the compensation offered to a buyer's agent.  Compensation does not dictate Representation.