Fun thing to do In the Sarasota/Bradenton Area

Cocktails at the Ca d’Zan
Enjoy lavish cocktails and mingling the way John and Mable would have wanted, with gorgeous views of the couple’s Gothic Venetian estate and the bay’s stunning sunset. Terrace entertainment provided. Every third Thursday from 6-9pm . Limited seating available so arrive early.

Admission is $5.

Parking is free.

The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art
5401 Bay Shore Rd.
Sarasota, 941-359-5700.

New Listing: 7720 Latrobe Ct. Lakewood Ranch, FLorida 34202

Completely REMODELED & FURNISHED home in the gated LWR Country Club. This 3BD/2BA Great Room plan home offers pocket sliders to a Salt-Chlor. pool with a serene Lake View. 18" porcelain tiles diag. thru-out, 5" wood floors in beds, satin designer paint pallet, custom closets, built-ins. Exquisite chef's kitchen with Hazlenut Burnished cabinetry, stainless Pro-Style appliances. Bianco Antico Granite and a 6' island create this dream kitchen. Gorgeous lighting package, 12'-14' ceilings w/crown molding & plantation shutters. Side entry garage, paved drive and tile roof on a Cul-de-Sac lot!

Virtual Tour: http://www.srqvt.com/7720latrobevt.html

Real Estate Term You Should Know

EMINENT DOMAIN

The right of the government and certain others, such as public utilities, to acquire property for public or quasi-public use by condemnation, upon payment of just compensation to the owner. The constitutional or inherent right of a government to take private property for public good upon the payment of just compensation

5 new rules for home sellers

Whether you're buying or selling, the real estate game has changed. To play and/or win, you've got to learn a new playbook.


Selling a home is a lot trickier than it used to be - here's how to be smart about pricing, presentation and incentives.

Rule 1: Get real about price
Too many sellers set their price based on yesterday's market. Big mistake. The first buyers in tend to pay the best price, so you need to price it right at the start. Have three area brokers prepare what's called a comparable market analysis. It will list asking and selling prices of similar homes, as well as amenities and sizes. If there's little inventory in your price range, list for what others are asking. If a lot of homes like yours are on the market, then look to generate buzz. Set an asking price 10% below what homes like yours have been selling for. That raises the odds of your getting multiple offers. If your market is really frozen and you need to drop the price, make one large cut. No baby steps.

Rule 2: Hire an experienced broker
Selling on your own in an unprecedented slowdown means you'll have to work awfully hard marketing your home. If you aren't prepared for that, Hire an experienced broker. Avoid newbies. You want an agent who has been through good times and bad and who has a track record that you can verify with clients.

Rule 3: Pimp your house - hire a home stager
To sell today, you've got to glam up your home. A stager will help get rid of clutter (especially clutter you don't see); rearrange furniture to create attractive focal points; re purpose underused rooms, turning, say, that makeshift bedroom in the basement into a rec room; and pick paint and curtains that make rooms appear spacious. A consultation may run $200. Completing the plan could cost $1,000 or more. It's worth it.

Rule 4: Cash will make your home look even better
Given the number of listings out there, you want to throw in a little something extra to make your house catch the eye of buyers and their agents. Rather than hand out a cruise or a car - skeptics might wonder why you're so desperate -offer something that will make your home more affordable, such as paying part of the buyer's closing costs.
In the multiple-listing service description of your house that agents can see, let them know you're offering a $1,000 bounty or a 4% commission to the one who brings in the purchaser. It will mean more knocks on your door.

Rule 5: Underwater? Learn to swim
If you're a recent buyer, your mortgage may well top what your home would go for today. About a third of those who bought last year or in 2006 now have negative equity, according to Zillow.com. If a job or family issue compels you to move, your options aren't great, but you have a few.
If the rental market in your area is strong (as is the case in many spots that were healthy but not overly bubbly during the boom), you can become a landlord and wait out the slump. Second, of course, is to sell for as much as you can (see Rule No. 1) and raid your savings for the difference.
Short sales, in which the bank agrees to take less than it's owed and release you from your debt, get a lot of media attention. That doesn't mean they're easy to come by. A bank usually will consider one only if you're at risk for foreclosure. Even then it may say, "No, thanks."

US House passes massive homeowner rescue plan...stay tuned

The House on Thursday passed a massive homeowner rescue plan to provide cheaper, government-backed mortgages to half a million debt-ridden borrowers and bolster an economy crippled by the housing crisis.Defying veto threats from President George W. Bush, the House approved the measure by a vote of 266-154, with 39 Republicans – mostly from areas suffering worst from housing woes – supporting it.It would let the Federal Housing Administration take on up to $300 billion in new mortgages so that financially strapped borrowers facing foreclosure could refinance.The plan by Rep. Barney Frank, a Democrat, is the centerpiece of a broader package of bills approved Thursday that Democrats say will prevent more foreclosures and help homeowners and communities deal with the fallout from the mortgage meltdown.“We are in a recession, and the major cause of that is the subprime crisis,” said Frank, the House Financial Services Committee chairman. “Diminishing the number of foreclosures is in the interest not simply of those who will avoid foreclosure, but people in their neighborhood, (in) the cities in which they are located, and the whole economy.”The measure is targeted at homeowners facing default, including many who owe more than their houses are worth.For instance, a homeowner who owes $290,000 on a house now worth $225,000 could refinance into an FHA-backed loan if the mortgage holder was willing to take a loss of about 36 percent. The borrower’s monthly mortgage payments would fall from $2,200 to about $1,200.Loan holders would have an incentive to participate, proponents believe, since the alternative would be costly foreclosures, which can involve losses of 50 percent or more.Supporters hope the package – which awaits action in the Senate – will serve as the basis for a broad bipartisan housing compromise that could satisfy both parties’ keen appetite for delivering election-year aid to anxious constituents.But Bush’s veto warnings, bolstered by staunch Republican opposition, are clouding its prospects.“House Democrats passed bills that they know will never become law. Most Americans understand that we shouldn’t create a taxpayer-funded bailout for lenders and speculators,” said Tony Fratto, a White House spokesman.Republicans argued the package reward lenders and irresponsible borrowers at the expense of homeowners and renters who made more prudent choices and are straining to cover their costs in a punishing economic climate.“The vast majority of Americans who find themselves struggling with mortgage payments, struggling with high gas prices, struggling with high food prices are now going to assume responsibility for ill-advised financial decisions and misjudgments of other people,” said Rep. Spencer Bachus, a Republican.Under Frank’s plan, homeowners currently considered too risky to qualify could refinance into FHA-backed loans if their lenders agreed to take substantial losses on the original mortgages. Borrowers would have to show they could afford to make payments on the new loans. They would have to share with FHA at least half of their proceeds if they profited from selling or refinancing again.The plan is projected to cost $2.7 billion over the next five years.Republican backers said they were putting aside their philosophical objections to a government-based rescue due to the severity of the housing crisis that has hit their constituents.“There are 500,000 real families with children out there who are going to be helped by this,” said Ric Keller, a Florida Republican. “It may not be a perfect bill, but good people in my home state of Florida need help, and in my view, this is the only train leaving the station.”Indeed, with a legislative schedule squeezed by the November elections, Congress has just a couple of months to come to terms with the White House on a housing package. Democratic Sen. Christopher J. Dodd, the Banking Committee chairman, has been searching for an elusive bipartisan deal on a similar measure, which he hopes his panel can vote on next week.The House on Thursday also passed, 239-188 a bill to send $15 billion to states to buy and fix up foreclosed property. Bush has also threatened to veto that measure, contending it rewards the very lenders who helped caused the housing chaos and could act as an incentive for them to foreclose rather than find ways to help struggling borrowers stay in their homes.Proponents say it will prevent blight in neighborhoods plagued by abandoned, foreclosed homes.

Featured Property of the week: 376 165th Court, Bradenton, Florida 34212

Enjoy the best of East Manatee County in Rye Wilderness. This three bedroom, three bath, two story home with 3 car garage, a study/office and a bonus room in 2,684 square feet of air-conditioned space in Rye Wilderness. Master suite features tray ceiling, wood cabinets in bath with upgraded tile in shower with separate garden tub. Ceramic tile and carpet throughout. Field stone accents with tile roof and motor court entry in a beautiful country setting on an over-sized lot in a nature preserve. This home is a Short Sale.