Davidson Realty, Inc.

Jacksonville FL Real Estate Trends in February

March 30, 2011

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Posted by in Northeast Florida Market Trends

Every morning in Africa a gazelle wakes up. It knows it must run faster than the fastest lion or it will be killed. Every morning a lion wakes up. It knows it must outrun the slowest gazelle or it will starve to death. It doesn’t matter whether you are a lion or a gazelle. When the sun comes up, you better start running. ~African proverb

I thought you might enjoy this proverb. It seems to describe most of us in the real estate industry these days. We are seeing a lot more buyer activity this spring and seem to be running hard every day!

I continue to be encouraged by the real estate market activity we are seeing. There were 1,525 pending sales in February 2011 compared to 1,377 in February 2010 for a 10.7% increase.  February 2009 pending sales were 1,001 so you can see steady improvement.

As you know, I pay the most attention to closings because it is so hard these days to get a transaction to close. Closings are showing the same encouraging trends as pending sales. There were 1,156 closings in February compared to 1,024 closings in February 2010 for a 12.9% increase. There were 873 closings in February 2009.

The trends for prices are not as positive. I believe this is mainly due to the amount of distressed closings. Sixty percent of all closings reported in February 2011 were lender-mediated meaning a foreclosure or a short sale. This is the highest percentage we have seen. The number of traditional closings in February 2011 was down 22% from February 2010 but the lender mediated closings were up 61%. The median sales price of the traditional sales of $165,000 was up 1.9% over February 2010 and the lender-mediated sales price of $82,900 was down 24.2% when compared to February 2010. Read more

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Top 10 Concerns When Renting Your Property

March 28, 2011

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Posted by in Rentals

Managing rental property is easy, even I can do it! Or can you? Legally you as an owner can manage your own rental property and save the management fees, but is this the best decision? Here are the top 10 concerns or situations to think about.

1. Who will prepare the lease? An attorney may charge you $100 or more to prepare it. You, of course, can use the services of a Property Management Company to secure a tenant for you. They will do this for a fee, which will include the lease.

2. If you do not use a Property Management Company to get the tenant then how will you “check them out?”

3. In the event the tenants don’t pay the rent on time or at all, can you “chase” them for it? Do you know the procedures and the Florida Laws for eviction?

4. If the rent is late you will be the one to confront the tenants for the late fees.

5. If you are managing the property, the tenant has access to you 24/7. Do you want to be contacted at all hours for even the most minor repairs?

6. What happens when a repair is really needed? Do you have a list of craftsman that you have investigated as to their competency, response time and fairness of fees? Read more

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Ask Sherry: Real Estate Questions Answered!

March 25, 2011

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Posted by in Ask Sherry

This month on the Davidson Realty Facebook Page we asked if anyone had any real estate related questions for Davidson Realty President Sherry Davidson. Sherry has over 20 years of experience in the real estate industry and is more than happy to answer your questions!

“I was laid off about six months ago and am looking for a new career. I saw you were having a Career Opportunity event in April, but I am out of town that week. Would you mind sharing what traits make a great Realtor and how much it would cost to get started? Funds are pretty tight right now…”

We are actually having three Career Opportunity events in April. There is a happy hour on April 7th at 6:30 PM, a lunch on April 15th at noon and a breakfast on April 22nd at 9:00 AM. I would love to see you at one of our events. The traits that make a great Realtor are:
1. Loves people. Is warm and friendly.
2. Has an entrepreneur spirit. Is a previous business owner or has a desire to have one.
3. Is willing to do whatever it takes to start their own business.
4. Is a problem solver. Is resourceful.
5. Is professional.
6. Is goal-oriented.
7. Is full-time and serious about making their job a #1 priority.
8. Is willing to go the extra mile and put the hours in!
9. Is computer literate.
10. Is trustworthy.
11. Is customer service-oriented.
12. Is resilient and has the ability to recover quickly from adverse situations.
13. Is a team player.

The cost to get started in a real estate career will vary depending on the firm you select. The first expense will be to get your real estate license. You can take the pre-licensing course online or attend class. The cost varies from $150 to $400.  You will also have to pay for fingerprinting, application and testing fees to take the State of Florida exam, which is approximately $100. After you are licensed, the largest expense will be joining the local real estate association. To join the Northeast Florida Association of Realtors and the MLS will be approximately $1,500. The fees are pro-rated depending on what month you join. With Davidson Realty, that is your only expense initially. You must be prepared to wait a few months to receive your first commission check. As you can see, the cost to get started in a real estate career is approximately $2,000.

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Florida Statewide Open House THIS weekend: Find your Perfect Jacksonville Home!

March 23, 2011

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Posted by in Events, News

rts5054Here at Davidson Realty, our Jacksonville Realtors couldn’t be more excited to open the doors to our listings from St. Augustine all the way to Ponte Vedra Beach for the second annual statewide open house weekend! Mark your calendars because on March 26th and 27th thousands of blue balloons will line the streets all over the state of Florida and the Northeast Florida Association of Realtors (NEFAR) is no exception! Davidson Realty will be participating in St. Augustine, Green Cove Springs, Jacksonville, and Ponte Vedra!

If you are interested in a St. Augustine golf course community, be sure to check out our listings in The Cascades, Waterbury, Heritage Landing, LakeWood, Bearsford, Isles of the World, and Turnberry. There are a million reasons to call World Golf Village home!

Have you visited Green Cove Springs? We have two homes available in Magnolia Point Golf & Country Club, a magnificent gated golf course community. 

Johns Glen is the perfect option for someone looking for a small established community off of County Road 210 in Jacksonville or if you prefer access to the St. Johns River, we have just the home for you with a decked, covered boat strip in Orangedale! We will also be showing a charming brick home with a pool located in the heart of Mandarin.

If a beautiful beach condo walking distance from the water calls to you then be sure to stop in 130 Vera Cruz Drive in Ponte Vedra Beach.

If you have any questions about our listings or need more information on the schools, nightlife, or neighborhoods of your desired location feel free to call one of our trusted real estate advisors today!

To view all Davidson Realty’s listings please visit http://www.davidsonrealtyinc.com/search and you can see all of the NEFAR open houses by visiting http://pub.realtyweb.net/cgi-bin/mainmenu.cgi?cmd=url+other/createlink/link_receiver.html&i=rkna80fxbgj,1

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Davidson Appreciates Teachers Announces Winners! Congratulations to Ms. Ledford and Ms. Kenyon!

March 18, 2011

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Posted by in Contests, St. Johns County schools, Videos

 

My daughter entered the St. Johns County school system in August of 2010. My expectations were exceeded in every aspect from the technology in the classrooms and even the detail into making sure that the children are placed into the “right” learning environment. Since day one, I have been so impressed with Wards Creek Elementary. Our friends that have children in Mill Creek Elementary feel the same way! After becoming one of the moms that talk about the schools and everything going on in our St. Johns County communities, I started thinking about a way we could give back to the teachers that make such a difference in our children’s lives. That’s how we developed the “Davidson Appreciates Teachers” campaign. We have made it through the first quarter focusing on pre-k, kindergarten and first grade. It has been such an amazing experience! 

184860_10150425359295385_243700390384_17202004_6571610_nI received over 75 nominations for teachers. The top 3 teachers from Wards Creek were Ms. Kenyon, Ms. Bielfeldt and Ms. Fisher. The top 3 teachers from Mill Creek were Ms. Ledford, Ms. Peska and Ms. Stewart. Over 200 votes were placed on Davidson Realty’s Facebook page for the top teachers. The winner for Wards Creek is Ms. Kenyon and the winner for Mill Creek is Ms. Ledford! Congratulations to both of them!!!184277_10150425361330385_243700390384_17202029_717259_n

I wrote a blog about the teachers at Wards Creek and Mill Creek being “bucket fillers”, so I thought it would be fun to fill some buckets with some goodies for the winning teachers. Thank you to Kathy Howell, store manager of Crocs. They donated new shoes for the teachers. I would like to also thank Andy Murray from Caddyshack’s for donating a gift certificate for each bucket. Thank you to Davidson Realty for the generous gift cards to Target and the other goodies that filled up the buckets! And last but not least, I would like to thank all of you for the time you spent nominating, voting and helping us fill the buckets of the teachers at Wards Creek and Mill Creek Elementary.

On April 1st we begin 2nd Quarter. This time we are focusing on 2nd and 3rd grade! So, get your nominations ready and send them to me, Kristen Calhoun at kcalhoun@davidsonrealtyinc.com or call me at 904.940.5000. Please share with me why you think your teacher is the best and enjoy our video blog!

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