Educated buyers move toward the closing table for homeownership and that is where the Realtor comes in. My buyer had the home inspection and the inspector found the usual items that you are going to find in a home that is eight years old. Yesterday I took a contractor over to get a bid on the work she wants to have completed after closing and the price came in much lower than anticipated, so more good news. My buyer is working with our in house lender and he reports that there are no anticipated bumps in the road ahead. I have reminded her that she should not make any purchases between now and closing for the new home and she understands that if she does, it could destroy the deal and change her credit score as well as change her debt ratio. It is so important to make sure that your buy... 01/24/2013

Palm Harbor Florida has some fantastic homes for sale right now in the Lake St George area! Lake St George is a deed restricted community of 470 homes, as well as a community playground, pool, basketball and tennis courts. Within this community is Lake St George, a small community lake just south of Tampa Road and east of Lake St George Blvd. There is both a dock and a boat ramp on the lake for residents. Zoned for A-rated Lake St George Elementary School, this community has 2-4 bedroom single family homes with a wide range of prices. Give me a call today or click this link to find out more about homes for sale in Lake St George. Let's begin your home search to begin living the Florida lifestyle in Palm Harbor's fabulous Lake St George. Ben Kinney's webinar 01/21/2013

Palm Harbor Homes For Sale Looking for a new home for the New Year? here are the most popular Palm Harbor homes for sale on the MLS. Click to find out more. What's happening in the Palm Harbor  real estate market? That's a question I hear often from buyers and sellers. Buyers are often shocked by the data- take a look at the market trends report for 34684 in Palm Harbor. Did you know you can check on this data for any zip code... simply click on the graph below to get started. Whether you are buying or selling, we are here to provide you with current data and solid market information so you can make a great buying or selling decision. Call us, Margaret Jackson, with the Tampa Florida Home Team at 855-MRS-SOLD Take a look at Real estate in 34684, Palm Harbor                   01/16/2013

Florida’s Gulf Coast is a fantastic place to live! Where else are you going to find the sun almost always shining, the Gulf of Mexico sparkling and sands of pure white quartz? We are indeed lucky to call Florida’s Gulf Coast home and this particular section of Florida is actually called the Suncoast. It only makes sense since we have so many days of gorgeous sunshine! Whether boating, fishing, scuba diving, snorkeling, hiking, bird watching, sun bathing, wind surfing, water skiing or participating in one of the other outdoor sports available it is here that you can do it almost every single day of the year! Florida’s Gulf Coast here in the Greater Clearwater Area is home to Honeymoon Island State Park, Caladesi Island and world famous Clearwater Beach! We also have the Pinellas Trail, 3... 01/16/2013

  Wendy Smith | Wendy Smith Real Estate | (727) 452-3301 SHORT SALE...WE DID IT!! Bank of America - Fannie Mae short sale! 3 bedroom 2 bath pool home Single Family House - SOLD @ $178,000 List Date January 2012 Under Contract three different buyers! Closed December 2012 DESCRIPTION SHORT SALE - despite total cooperation from the sellers and qualified buyers this short sale was one of those that short sale horror stories are made of! This file seemed to be jinxed as Bank of America continually closed the file without explanation and then actually reneged on the short sale approval letter! YIKES! Thanks to a whole lot of tenacity, hard work and cooperation between the sellers, buyers and Realtors - we closed this one just before Christmas. The sellers enjoyed $3000 incentive with full wa... 01/14/2013

Blue skies and sunshine off Wall Springs Park in beautiful Palm Harbor Florida is what greeted us this morning. While it may be snowing up north and out west, we are having a lovely day today with perfect temperatures for a nice long walk. It is in the high 60's right now and I am loving this weather! Perfect for showing homes! 01/07/2013

Indeed, Armadillo don't need the dark to come out and look for food in Brooker Creek Preserve. You really need to have your camera handy when out for walks in our local parks. From deer to armadillo to osprey, we have it all here in the Tarpon Springs and Palm Harbor Area of Florida. Brooker Creek Preserve actually ends on the northern end of Palm Harbor and is just east of lovely Tarpon Springs. What better way to spend a little free time than out in nature, taking a nice long hike? 01/01/2013

John Chesnut Park is located on the eastern shore of Lake Tarpon in beautiful Palm Harbor Florida.  This 255 acre waterfront park was built in cooperation with the US Army Corps of Engineers. Home to three fantastic nature trails, playgrounds, picnic areas, picnic shelters, restroom facilities, a horse shoe pit, fenced in doggie park and a public boat ramp with access to Lake Tarpon, this is one park you don't want to miss! Our morning walk brought us to this great park yesterday and I even got to see a buck deer with antlers. Unfortunately, I only had my iPhone with me and just could not get the shot quick enough. I was pretty disappointed that I did not get the photo but will have my Nikon in tow next time we head to this great park. 01/01/2013

Mystic Fish in Palm Harbor, Florida Is A Restaurant You Must Try Our office, Re/Max New Dimensions held our Holiday dinner at Mystic Fish Restaurant in Palm Harbor and we had a wonderful dinner.  Mystic Fish is Located at 3253 Tampa Road, Palm Harbor, FL 727-771-1800. Owned for 11 years by Chef, Doug Bebell, Mystic Fish doesn’t do just fish, Brandt beef is on the menu too; a natural, hormone-free beef; but the fish is wonderful too.Craig and I had the Kona Seared Atlantic Salmon which was wonderful. Their Maine lobster is great (we had that last time). And, the flourless chocolate cake made with imported chocolate is to die for. Check out the menu here. Today's special is Pan Roasted Swordfish "Mystic-style" with artichokes. Doug was too busy for a photograph but this is his lovely wife... 12/27/2012

Florida's Wild Coffee Berries grow in central and south Florida, Mexico, the Caribbean Islands, Central America, Ecuador, Columbia and Venezuela. While in the same family as the Arabica Coffee, they contain no caffeine. It seems that they were once used as a coffee substitute and are known to contain a compound that is a hallucinogenic. These pretty red berries are not something that should be consumed although they do have some medicinal properties.  These bushes grow up to ten feet tall, attract butterflies and are commonly eaten by birds. They make a lovely addition to any garden and are drought tolerant. That is a good reason to add this easy to grow bush to your yard. Nothing like growing native plants and saving on the need to water plants that don't belong here anyway. 12/22/2012

Florida's Beautyberry is a natural insect repellent and also makes a great jam, according to several sources. I have not tried either yet, but am planning on making some of the insect repellent when summer rolls around again. To make the insect repellent, you chop up a plant's leaves and stems up and then put it all into large pot and bring to boil. Once it has cooled, it is strained and the liquid put into a blender (that is about 1.5 cups). In a second pot melt 1 ounce of beeswax with a cup of organic neem oil. Once the wax has melted, add this to the blender, slowly as the blender is turning. It will slowly become a cream and I have been told that one application will last all day, even in the summer heat down here in Florida. This sounds like a healthy alternative to some of the thi... 12/22/2012

Yesterday I wandered into Shoppe Around The Corner in Old Downtown Palm Harbor Florida and found a true Christmas Wonderland! I have passed this quaint little shop many times on my way to someplace else and since my good friend, Alice and I had just had lunch in town, we decided to walk around and check out a few shops. When we wandered into Shoppe Around The Corner, we were not disappointed. A true Christmas Wonderland, the place is absolutely adorable. After Christmas is over, I was told it turns into a gift shop for all occasions but right now the theme is definitely Christmas! If you are in the area, I certainly suggest you check out Shoppe Around The Corner located at 1015 Omaha Circle in Old Downtown Palm Harbor Florida. You won't be disappointed! 12/14/2012

Palm Harbor Florida's 30th Annual Holiday Parade will be taking place this coming weekend on Saturday, December 15th in Old Downtown Palm Harbor. The parade will meander from Weslake Blvd and Nebraska Avenue down to the center of Sutherland (the original name of Old Downtown Palm Harbor Florida) and will conclude with Santa available after the parade for the little ones to visit with him. The parade starts at 3 pm so that the little ones have time to visit with Santa before dark. Just one more reason why the Palm Harbor Florida area is a wonderful place to call home. Give me a call today to begin your home search. 12/12/2012

A foggy morning walk to Wall Springs Park in Palm Harbor Florida. This morning, we took an early morning to Wall Springs Park. The temperature was 63 degrees and it was foggy....the fog was rolling in from the Gulf of Mexico. That made it seem 'other worldly' out there. Naturally, by early afternoon the sky was blue and the temperatures were up in the high 70's again. We are so lucky to live here in the Sunshine State. Give me a call today to begin your search for a home here in the Palm Harbor Florida area! 12/07/2012

Spring in December is indeed one more thing that I love about living down here in Florida! Ronnie and I took an early morning walk to Wall Springs Park here in Palm Harbor and I noticed pollen floating through the air everywhere. It was just as if Spring was here already and it is the first week of December. Naturally, I had to take a few photos to share with everybody that Spring does indeed come early here in the Sunshine State! 12/05/2012

ActiveRain MeetUp Going Hawaiian Style at Ohana Cafe in Palm Harbor, FL Ohana means family according to the Ohana Cafe website. Visit their website and take a look at their fresh, organic choices then join us for an ActiveRain MeetUp. Our usual suspects family will be there at 1pm Thursday, Dec 6. I haven’t seen our gang for months (since the last MeetUp) and I’m looking forward to seeing them and spending a couple of hours catching up on business, families, techie stuff and, especially, ActiveRain.   August Meet-up at Rusty Bellies April MeetUp at Billy's Tarpon Turtle What a great group! Barbara Jo Roberts will be our MeetUp guide. See you there at the ActiveRain MeetUp Going Hawaiian Style-Ohana Cafe in Palm Harbor,FL 12/04/2012

Lunar Eclipse, full moon and a drumming circle all come together at the Witch's Brew at 1219 Florida Avenue in Old Downtown Palm Harbor Florida tonight! The full moon is in Gemini and the drumming circle begins at 7 pm this evening, so bring your drum if you have one and join in the fun!  Naturally, the Witch's Brew also sells beer, wine, coffee, tea and other items so you can either come and participate in the drumming circle or observe from one of the tables out in the garden! Just one more thing that is right with Palm Harbor Florida! 11/28/2012

Palm Harbor Florida condo prices are rising and this is something that we Realtors have been predicting but many have refused to listen! The graph above is from Mid-Florida Regional MLS and it shows the price fluxuations month by month through the end of October 2012 for condos in the Palm Harbor Florida zip code of 34685.  The inventory is extremely low since everybody is realizing what is happening. Buyers want to purchase and sellers see that prices are going up, so they are reluctant to list their property right now. 2013 should prove to be a very good year for the Florida real estate market! 11/25/2012

Yesterday there was a birthday bash for my granddaughter at John Chesnut Park in Palm Harbor Florida.  Located directly on lovely Lake Tarpon, John Chesnut Park is a 255 acre park on the eastern shores of the lake. With miles of hiking trails and boardwalks, this fantastic park also has picnic shelters, restrooms, playgrounds, a doggie park, observation tower, boat ramp, fishing piers and even a few gators! Naturally, I had to take some photos of the homes on the other side of Lake Tarpon, over in the Cobbs Landing section of Lake Tarpon, while I was in the park. My granddaughter had a fantastic birthday party which included a mermaid pinata and plenty of other activities for the kindergarten aged kids. The skies were blue and the sun was out but there were white caps on Lake Tarpon and... 11/24/2012

Wall Springs Park in Palm Harbor Florida closed the day after Thanksgiving......or is it?  We made our morning walk down to Wall Springs Park and were surprised to see the gate closed and cars parked outside the gate. These were cars with people who had brought their bikes with them to the park and had intended on parking inside the park, leaving their cars there and going off on the Pinellas Trail on their bikes...........but the gate was closed and it was 9 am. I suggested to Ronnie that we continue on the trail to the next park entrance to see if that was also closed..........and it was open! Bikers and people out walking the Pinellas Trail could enter the park but it was closed for cars! That surprised me. As we left the park, I noticed a family about to walk away from the main gate... 11/23/2012