Central Florida Real Estate and Community News

Celebration is a popular destination all year round.  The gorgeous town offers fine dining, shopping, peaceful walking trails, and special events throughout the year.  October is jam packed with fall events guaranteed to be fun for everyone. Here’s the lowdown on what’s happening and when.

October 7^th – Celebration’s Porch and Yard Sale

Need stuff?  Then head over to Celebration for this huge community sale and be prepared to be amazed!  This community wide event is sure to turn up that treasure you’ve been searching for! Traffic builds as the day progresses, so plan to arrive early.

October 12^th – Nightmare Before Christmas

Bring your lawn chairs, blankets, snacks, and insect repellant and find your perfect spot on the great lawn at Lakeside Park.  Enjoy this fun and timely Tim Burton film under the beautiful October stars! Showtime is 7:30 sharp.

October 13^th – Food Truck Friday

Calling all foodies! Enjoy the sights and sounds of DJ Joe Magic along with the culinary delights of many of Central Florida’s most popular food trucks.  The event runs from 5:00 to 9:00 PM.

October 20^th – 21^st – Octoberfest

On October 20^th and 21st, Celebration Town Center transforms before your very eyes as the falling leaves of the season drop on Market Street in the Fall festival known as Oktoberfest. Listen for the rustling of leaves, relax by the lakeside and rock your troubles away, and enjoy the live music with family and friends in this one-of-a-kind themed extravaganza. Leaves fall daily at 7, 8, and 9 PM.

October 21^st – Fall Festival

Held annually in picturesque Lakeside Park, this festival is arguably the most fun event of the month. Mark your calendar and come to enjoy the ‘crisp’ autumn air at the annual Fall Festival. Events begin at 11:00 AM and include a bird show, costume contest, live performances, pumpkin decorating, petting zoo, bounce houses, face painting, and lots of great food and drink! 

October 31^st – Trick or Treat!

You’d be hard pressed to find a better place than Celebration to bring the little one’s trick-or-treating.  Beyond the door-to-door candy collecting, homeowners go over the top to decorate and transform the town in the true spirit of this fun family holiday.   

Come visit our town and get a glimpse into why we love to live here!

If you, or anyone you know, are interested in learning more about living in Celebration give me a call at 407-922-9011.  I’d be honored to show you around.

The anticipation has been building for years and in recent months agreements were reached that will allow construction to begin on one Celebration’s final communities, Island Village.  Like the existing villages in Celebration, Island Village will offer an abundance of amenities for a family friendly environment and will be comprised of approximately 1300 homes.  Celebration, when completely developed will consist of approximately 8,065 residents.  This addition of Island Village will bring Celebration up to approximately 90% of that number.

At the end of 2016 The Celebration Company (TCC) came to an agreement with Osceola County Schools regarding where to locate a new school to accommodate up to 1000 new students from Island Village.  Originally the plan called for a new school to be constructed in downtown Celebration, but residents found strong objection to this for several reasons.  The plan was to build the new school on existing athletic fields which would diminish activity for Celebration’s youth.  In addition, Celebration prides itself in being a “walkable” community and a school in downtown Celebration would not be within walking distance of Island Village.  A task special task force was created by the Celebration Residential Owners Association to find a solution that would work for everyone.  The new plan outlines the construction of a new K-5 school within Island Village to accommodate students from the newest part of the community.  Scheduled to open in the 2019-2020 school year, this school will be a wonderful addition to Celebration!

Island Village will be developed on 370 acres south of World Drive and will include all of the amenities currently enjoyed by Celebration residents in the existing villages including green space, pocket parks, and community swimming pools.  In addition, there is 1000 square foot commercial district being built at the World Drive interchange that will include a large grocery store and several new restaurants!

Building of infrastructure may begin as early as December 2017.

Sound interesting?  Contact me today for more information! 407-922-9011 or email info@TonyDavidsHomes.com

You might have been thinking about selling you house for some time, but feel daunted by the task.  I won’t lie to you, there’s a lot involved in preparing your home to list and sell.  Some people prefer a solo ride on this journey.  But when it comes to selling your house, having a professional and trusted listing agent puts you on the path to success.

Why use a listing agent?  There are many reasons, some more obvious than others.  The most obvious reason is, well…listing agents have done this before.  Practice makes perfect and I’ve learned a lot over the years.  I’m here to give you open, honest, professional advice.  As your listing agent, I can’t do it all though.  I do need your help.  An open, honest relationship between a seller and listing agent can go a long way and it’s important to understand that I’m here to help, even if the advice your given isn’t what you were expecting.

To prepare your home for listing we need to de-personalize it.  While your home may be beautifully decorated, it may have too many personal touches and your buyers might not be able to see past them.  I like to use the “less is more” philosophy.  If you’re going to be moving anyway, it makes sense to start packing up and putting some of your personal belongings in storage.  The goal is to have potential buyers walk into your home and be able to envision how their belongings will look in the home.  If your home is cluttered, the home may appear smaller and cramped leaving a negative impression.

Sometimes, you have to spend money to make money.  That holds true when selling your house.  Wear and tear creeps up on you, and many sellers don’t even notice the scratches in their trim, the marks on their walls, or their dirty walkways.  That’s where I come in.  My eyes are trained to see things as potential buyers will.  I may ask you to freshen up your paint, power wash your walkways, or replace some trim to make your home stand out above the others.

How you price your home initially will make a big difference for you.  If you overprice your home, buyers may not catch that, but their agents will!  If your home is overpriced buyer’s agents may actually use the price of your home as a comparison to sell their buyers another home.

It may sound like common sense to say that when your home is on the market, you’ll need to keep it nice and clean.  Buyers really do notice if a kitchen or bathroom is dirty.  So, if you are going to list your home, plan to take a few extra minutes each day before you leave for work to make sure the home is looking great.  Showing requests come in at all hours, and it’s not uncommon to have an hour or less notice to show your home.  Trust me, those few extra minutes in the morning will pay off!

If you’re thinking of selling, give me a call.  I’d love to explain the entire process to you from listing, to negotiation, to sold! In the meantime, visit my homepage to learn the value of your home.  Just go to the “How Much Is Your Home Worth” box in the right side column and fill in the information for a free, instant home valuation!

To say the least, we’ve come a long way baby!

The latest edition of CoreLogic’s Home Price Index shows that nationally, home prices have appreciated 6.7% over the last year and 0.9% month-over-month. The release of the report included this headline, “National Home Prices Now 50% Above March 2011 Bottom”

This is great news for homeowners, especially those who experienced loss in home values during the recession.  The market has stabilized significantly since 2011.

Home equity has become prominent once again as nearly 79% of homeowners with a mortgage in the US now have significant equity in their homes (significant equity is defined as over 20%), according to the latest Equity Report. If asked, would you know how much your home value has appreciated?  Surprisingly few people do know that answer.

Home appreciation varies regionally with homeowners in Denver, CO leading the way with 8.7% appreciation over the last year. Owners in Washington and Utah have experienced a 3% increase in values since the start of this year! Florida, where home values were hit hard during the recession has seen a healthy return of appreciation and equity.

Nationally, CoreLogic forecasts that home values will increase another 5.0% by this time next year.

Bill Banfield, VP of Capital Markets at Quicken Loans, recently explained the importance of knowing the conditions in your area,

“With home values constantly changing, and the rates of change varying across the country, this is one more way to show how important it is for homeowners to stay aware of their local housing market.”

Bottom Line

Do you know what your home is worth? Have you stayed put because you are nervous you won't have enough equity to buy your dream home? At TonyDavidsHomes we have the tools you need to obtain your up-to-date home value. Visit the tool bar on the right side of our website's home page at TonyDavidsHomes.com to check the current value of your home. If you have questions about your home value, give me a call at 407-922-9011.

Today we turned the calendar page once again, and here we are in September.  Where did the summer go?  Along with the change of seasons we start to think of seasonal projects.  And gutters come to mind.

Cleaning your gutters is a task many people dread, but if you appropriately manage your gutters in the spring and fall then it won’t be too bad. What’s the best way to clean your gutters you wonder? Let us walk you through some steps to make gutter cleaning a little more fun.

1.  When was the last time you cleaned your gutters? If the answer is never, this first time could be rough. Making a schedule to clean your gutters twice a year (fall and spring) can ensure that your home doesn’t experience unnecessary water damage. Damaged or over crowded gutters can lead to leaks in your home interior, exterior and foundation. 

2. Check the weather. The best time to clean the gutters is when you can let them appropriately dry for a day or two after you clean. If your forecast says sun, then it’s time for some gutter cleaning fun.

3. Pump up the jams. Cleaning gutters is more fun with music. Pick your favorite and make sure the playlist is at least a couple of hours long.

4. Keep it safe. Do NOT clean your gutters from the roof. This may seem tempting and interesting, but it’s just dangerous and risky. Use a ladder to clean the gutters. Secure your tools and a bucket for debris to the ladder with wires or rope. Make sure your ladder is secured. Never use the top three rungs of the ladder.

5. Get it going. Start by using a trowel and digging out the gunk in the downspout. Get out as much as you can.

6. Clean it. Once you cannot remove any more leaves with your trusty trowel, break out the house and power wash any additional clogs away. Once the water runs out clear and flows regularly you have officially removed your clog.

7. Get extreme. If water doesn’t do the trick you may want to try a long hook to be able to reach in and properly clear the debris. Your local hardware store may recommend specific devices for this situation such as poles, special hose attachments or even gutter cleaning robots (ß that’s not a joke, they are pretty neat).

8. Check your alignment. If you have any standing water remaining when you flush the pipe out, then the slope of your gutter might be off. Gutters should incline at least ¼ inch every ten feet towards the downspout.

9. Check it, all of it. Check to see if your gutters are loose or missing parts from the wear and tear. Make any necessary adjustments. If you haven’t already, consider installing a screen or net over your downspout so that larger leaves don’t get stuck in the drainpipe.

9. You did it! It wasn’t that bad, was it? I bet you even feel a wee bit satisfied from a job well done.

Remember, if you aren’t positive you can do it yourself, something looks dangerous, or you just plain old don’t want to do it, it is always ok to call a professional. A professional knows exactly how to take care of your gutter cleaning, maintenance and repairs. 

This August as temperatures rise the last thing you want to do is crank up the oven to bake a casserole. While summer isn’t over quite yet, the end of your days slaving away in front of the oven can be. With a bit of creativity, you can find some great ways to escape the heat of the kitchen. Don’t dread the remaining weeks of summer; enjoy it to the max with these fresh ideas.

Cooking Without Heat

There are a lot of great dishes you can make without needing a single degree of heat.

·       Cold Soups and Smoothies – Bust out your blender. The possibilities are endless.

·       Salads – Summertime is the ideal time to enjoy fresh produce. Keep in mind that vegetable and fruit salads are both a great option for picnic style dinners.

·       Sandwiches – Not just PB&J, get creative. Have a sandwich off with your family to see who can create the best masterpiece.

·        Raw Dishes – Raw cooking isn’t just for health nuts, it’s also for people who don’t want to sweat in front of a stove for hours on end. Raw cooking is cool, nutritious and delicious. Check out The Raw Food Kitchen for ideas.

Grill Master

If you are going to cook, do it outside so the heat doesn’t fill your home.

·        Meats – Chicken, pork, turkey, burgers. Get your grill on.

·        Vegetables – We all know grilled corn, but have you tried grilled bell peppers or grilled Portobello mushrooms?

·        Fruit – Once you have tried grilled pineapple you’ll never doubt that fruit can be grilled again. Grilled watermelon, peaches and coconut are particularly delicious as well.

Keep it Cool for Dessert

Everyone loves dessert. Homemade frozen desserts are perfect for hot summer days.

·        Popsicles – These tasty frozen treats come in all sorts of shapes and flavors and are exceptionally low cost to you and your family. You can even make them with an ice cube tray and some toothpicks!

·        Root Beer Floats – I don’t really think I need to say anything else. You are already on board.  

·        Kick the Can – Kick the can ice cream has many benefits. Firstly, it allows you to custom make your own ice cream flavors. Get crazy and try something new. Second, it really wears the kids out when they have to kick a can around for an hour for the ice cream to be ready. No kids? Good, you’re about to earn that ice cream with a workout. Third, it’s ice cream.

·        Frozen Grapes – Looking for the least effort dessert possible? Throw some red grapes into the freezer and eat them after dinner as a tasty snack.

Get Out!

Once in a while you just need to treat your family to an evening out and let someone else do the cooking. Take the family out once a week or plan to do a group dinner with neighbors so you take turns cooking and get a day off from the sweltering kitchen.

Beat the summer heat by being a step ahead of it. With proper meal planning and creative thinking you can spend less time sweating in the kitchen and more time with your family eating delicious summer picnics.

Bon appétit, it’s not too hot to eat! 

If the thought of selling your home has crossed your mind, now more than ever may be the time to take action!  The supply and demand concept clearly shows that the best time to sell is when supply is low and demand is high.  That defines today’s real estate market!

National Association of Realtors (NAR) data shows us that this is a great time to sell.  NAR recently released two major reports revealing information that this is a strong sellers’ market. 

The first report is the Realtors® Confidence Index that summarizes monthly data collected from over 50,000 real estate practitioners about their expectations for home sales, prices, and market conditions.  This month showed (again) that home-buying demand continued to outpace supply in the month of May.  Demand for housing continues to be strong throughout 2017, but supply is struggling to keep up, and this trend is likely to continue into 2018.  Buyer demand is higher than the number of homes available for purchase.

The second report is The Existing Home Sales Report. The most important data revealed in this report is the low inventory of homes for sale (supply).  In real estate, there is a guideline that often applies; when there is less than a 6-month supply of inventory available, we are in a seller’s market and we will see appreciation of home prices.  The current national inventory is at 4.2-month supply, and houses are going under contract fast.  During the month of May, properties sold nationally were on the market for an average of 27 days. 

All indicators point to a strong sellers’ market.  If you are going to sell, now may be the time to take advantage of the ready, willing, and able buyers that are still out searching for your house.

It’s no secret that interest rates have been slowly climbing.  But, there’s no need for panic! 

Last week’s Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey revealed that interest rates for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage have fallen to their lowest mark this year, at 3.88%.  This is great news for homebuyers looking to purchase and homeowners looking to refinance. The rate you secure greatly impacts your monthly mortgage payment and the amount you will ultimately pay for your home.

Since January, interest rates have hovered around 4% for the majority of the year helping to balance out the rising home prices and helping to maintain affordability for many home buyers.  Experts predict that rates will increase slightly again by the end of 2017.  For 2018 the prediction is for the rate to be about three-quarters of a percentage point higher, at 4.5% by the end of year.  So a year-and-a-half from now, if the experts are correct, we’re still looking at a GREAT rate!

To put this into perspective, let’s take a look at a historical view of interest rates over the last 45 years.

While no one wants to hear of mortgage rate hikes, we do need to think realistically about what the current news actually means.  Interest rates are still historically low and will remain historically low for the foreseeable future.  We can be thankful that you can still get a better interest rate than your aunts and uncles did ten years ago, and a lower rate than your parents did twenty years ago.  You’re even getting a great bargain compared to your grandparents 40 years ago! 

So if the media hype of rising rates have soured your thoughts of buying, think again!  This is still a fantastic time to become a homeowner.

Here are five reasons listing your home for sale this summer makes sense.

1. Demand Is Strong

The latest Buyer Traffic Report from the National Association of Realtors (NAR) shows that buyer demand remains very strong throughout the vast majority of the country. These buyers are ready, willing and able to purchase… and are in the market right now! More often than not, multiple buyers are competing with each other to buy a home.

Take advantage of the buyer activity currently in the market.

2. There Is Less Competition Now

Housing inventory is currently at a 4.2-month supply, well under the 6-months needed for a normal housing market. This means, in the majority of the country, there are not enough homes for sale to satisfy the number of buyers in that market. This is good news for home prices. However, additional inventory could be coming to the market soon.

There is a pent-up desire for many homeowners to move, as they were unable to sell over the last few years because of a negative equity situation. Homeowners are now seeing a return to positive equity as real estate values have increased over the last two years. Many of these homes will be coming to the market this summer.

Also, builder's confidence in the market has hit its highest mark in over 11 years. Experts are predicting that new construction of single-family homes will ramp up this summer.

The choices buyers have will continue to increase. Don’t wait until all this other inventory of homes comes to market before you sell.

3. The Process Will Be Quicker

Fannie Mae anticipates an acceleration in home sales that will surpass 2007's pace. As the market continues to strengthen, banks will be inundated with loan inquiries causing closing-time lines to lengthen. Selling now will make the process quicker & simpler. According to Ellie Mae’s latest Origination Insights Report, the time to close a loan has dropped to a new low of 42 days, after seeing a 12-month high of 48 days in January.

4. There Will Never Be a Better Time to Move Up

If you are moving up to a larger, more expensive home, consider doing it now. Prices are projected to appreciate by 4.9% over the next year, according to CoreLogic. If you are moving to a higher-priced home, it will wind up costing you more in raw dollars (both in down payment and mortgage payment) if you wait.

You can also lock in your 30-year housing expense with an interest rate around 4%right now. Rates are projected to increase in the next 12 months.

5. It’s Time to Move on with Your Life

Look at the reason you decided to sell in the first place and determine whether it is worth waiting. Is money more important than being with family? Is money more important than your health? Is money more important than having the freedom to go on with your life the way you think you should?

Only you know the answers to the questions above. You have the power to take control of the situation by putting your home on the market. Perhaps the time has come for you and your family to move on and start living the life you desire.

That is what is truly important.

In a recent blog we told you all about the wonders of the Nest Thermostat.  When it comes to making wise investments into your home, Nest has more than just an awesome thermostat to offer.

When you are looking around your home considering home improvement projects, you tend to see the obvious – flooring, painting, lighting... You probably even have a running to-do list in your head, “mulch planting beds, trim shrubs, plant annuals…” Hold on a second; have you thought about your smoke detectors lately? These important alarm systems tend to be forgotten because they don’t exactly have curb appeal. Well, mark this day on your calendar folks, because today is the day that smoke detectors became sexy.

Traditional smoke detectors are a nuisance. They go off every time your toaster is overachieving.  We’ve all been forced into that frantic towel dance trying to fan the smoke away from the detector.  Often times we end up removing the batteries to eliminate the nuisance.  This is a big problem. Smoke detectors, while annoying, play an exceptionally important role in our everyday safety. Smoke detectors save lives and we should treat them with the respect they deserve. Introducing, Nest Protect. Nest Protect is a new innovation in the world of smoke detectors with a list of amazing features. What makes the Nest Protect the sexiest smoke detector in town?

 A human voice alarm system. No more beeping and screaming. Nest Protect uses a human voice alarm that clearly explains the problem so you know how to react. Instead of a mysterious beeping from afar, this smoke detector gives you specifics right away, “Emergency. There is smoke in the bathroom”.  

“Heads-Up” Warnings. Before waking up the whole neighborhood, Nest Protect will give you a heads up warning. If your oven is over zealously self-cleaning, or you just happen to be a terrible cook, you have a chance to silence Nest Protect in the case of a false alarm.  Simply wave your hand in front of the alarm during a “heads-up” warning and the alarm will remain silent.

 Double Duty. Smoke isn’t the only worry you should consider late in the night. CO2 protection is also a very serious matter. In 39 out of the 50 US states law requires CO2 alarms. There is no need for second box on the ceiling.  While Nest Protect keeping you safe from smoke, it’s also monitoring for CO2. Even better than just raising the alarm, Nest Protect will also switch off your compatible Nest thermostat in the case of CO2 detection to keep your family safe from further harm.  

 Mobile Control. All of the information you need to take care of your Nest Protect is in the palm of your hand. Use the Nest mobile app to ensure that all systems are up and running, receive alerts and keep track of when batteries need to be changed.

Star light, star bright. As if the Nest Protect wasn’t already cool enough, it’s also a nightlight. Use the “Pathlight” function to set your smoke alarm to turn on a pathway light when you cross beneath it in the dark.

Options. Nest Protect comes in two different colors (black/white), two different languages (English/Spanish) and integrates with both apple and android products. There is a Nest Protect that is built for you. You just have to go find it. 

Good night.  sleep tight.  Rest easy because Nest has it all under control.