Real Estate & Port Orange Community Events blog. By Lisa C. Hill, "THE SMART CHOICE!" I was shocked when I recently read an article in our local newspaper, indicating that due to the economy, people are being forced to give up their pets. Of all the things I've heard about this horrible economy, this has to be one of the most depressing. I'm going to share something that recently happened with one of our pets. But make sure you read all the way to the bottom for a FREE way, yes I said a FREE way to help the pets that have lost their homes! Just last week, one of my cats came within hours of dying. I won't go into details, but suffice it to say, after one night in the animal hospital, and the next 4 days and nights at the veterinarian's office, the bill was very high. So high that since... 11/16/2008

Some time ago I wrote a blog Meeting a Russian Artist. Right Here in Port Orange  about a fascinating guy, who is an artist. Well, a real artist.  He has graduated from a college of fine arts, and then got his Masters from a prestigious Russian art school in St. Petersburg, Russia. He's been a Port Orange resident for several years now, absolutely legal (so all my AR friends can sleep tonight -LOL). I took the top photo, but I did not have a nice head shot, so I called Yuri and asked that sends me one. He sent two and told me to choose the one I liked. But I like them both. They are so much about him, his different "selves" (and a bunch of other "selves", that have escaped the film -yet). Anyway, a few weeks ago he got an invitation to participate in an art contest. A pretty prosaic on... 10/24/2008

The sound you hear is the thawing of credit markets. While I am not here to suggest that economy is going to ROARING BACK anytime soon, we did witness a very positive step today. Many investors had justifiable concerns as to whether the Lehman default swaps would settle properly, and thus we saw a pull back in the financial sector of the market today. The swaps settled without incident and economists were able to exhale in relief. I would anticipate an uptick on Wednesday as this fear will have been removed. I read a great article on this and put the link below. Lehmans Massive Debt Swaps Settle Smoothly Now that related institutions know that there is no longer a risk of Lehman debt appearing, more cash can be reallocated from reserve accounts, and moved toward acquisitions as well as ... 10/21/2008

I have just completed another futile attemptin my Port Orange office to help a homeowner that is in desperate need of a bailout from the government Hope 4 Homeowners Plan. This is the plan that started on October 1, 2008 to help homeowners that are in danger of losing their homes. The plan was designed to help stay in their homes, avoid foreclosures, and to bring stability to home prices. I am doing everything I can to learn the path to success that is hidden beneath an unforgiving field filled with financial land mines. FHA H4H Wesbite Three weeks into the launching of this plan, we find that the website designed to help us navigate the tricky waters of this plan is in a state of constant change. The approved lender list is not easily found, similar to one of those "Where's Waldo" game... 10/21/2008

Spending the majority of my life in Upstate New York, it was a shock to my football system moving to Port Orange Florida in 2004. I am a displaced Buffalo Bills Fan that had season tickets for 15 years prior to relocating for work. Back home, Sunday is for football. I lived in Rochester, which is about an hour from Buffalo. On days where the Bills were at home, you were most likely heading down the Thruway by 8:00 am. You wanted be in the parking lot Tailgating by 9:00, 9:30 at the latest. You didn't want to miss out on any of the activity. Its a big day of fun, and the game itself is only a small part of it. Once you are there, you set up your spot while saying hello to all of your football friends. Set up your grills, get our your munchies, and most certainly your adult beverages. Bri... 10/19/2008

Many of my fellow loan officers are actually not loan officers anymore. Initially we were advised that as people left the business, there would be more opportunities for those of us that stuck with it. The percentages were in our favor that deals would simply find their way to us. Therein lies the funny thing about advice. I guess if you are old school, you were questioned for sitting around waiting for the phone to ring. If you recently found the Internet, it is not enough to simply hit the refresh button of your inbox to generate business. The reality of the situation is that hard work and opportunity still go hand in hand. Many of us that had success in the boom years, are still holding things together in this not so boom market.  The secret is not that hard. Keep it Simple. Be invol... 10/18/2008

MetLife Home Loans Opened a new office in Port Orange Florida on September 2, 2008. The office is located in suite 1401, at 5889 S Williamson Blvd in the Westport Depot. Purchase home loans and refinance mortgages are pre-approved on site at this convenient location near Dunlawton Ave and Route 95. The office has a growing business partner referral center in the office to help identify quality service providers in the area. The local office is a member of the Port Orange Chamber of Commerce, The Daytona Beach Area Association of Realtors, and the Volusia Home Builders Association. The staff is available by appointment for Free loan consultations. For more information, please contact Ron @ 386-562-2651 or visit his website. Visit My Website 10/17/2008

Thursday found Wall Street in a schizophrenic mode. Hyper sensitive does not come close to describing the markets reaction to each and every piece of economic news. Earnings reports from dozens of firms caused buyers to enter, leave and re-enter the markets. Interest rates naturally followed suit, and there were several changes as the day progressed. Home buyers looking for a purchase loan have very little hope of comparing good faith estimates apples to apples. A rate from a early morning appointment can be obsolete at lunch time, but then be relevant at dinner time. I suppose if you went to an appointment in the morning, and then discussed it at dinner, you may find your quote as you left it. There is a  danger in shopping for a rate without considering the quality of the service, pro... 10/17/2008

This months after hours event for the Port Orange/ South Daytona Chamber of Commerce was held on Thursday night October 16 at the Volusia Memorial Funeral Home in Port Orange. The event was well attended, and the food and drink were excellent. The staff gave a presentation of their services available and had a feature video of Dignity Memorial to show all of the options available to families to remember their loved ones. Many that attended were surprised at the vast array of services available. There were numerous winners of door prizes, and the 50/50 raffle was worth over $100. There is also a jackpot drawing at each monthly event. A business card is drawn from a box that is used at each event where members can leave a card when they arrive to enter the drawing. You must be present to ... 10/16/2008

The President will speak this morning at 8:00 AM to outline the first stage of the Bailout program. Approximately $250 Billion will be invested in US Banks in an attempt to alleviate fears in the market. It is also anticipated that all deposits will covered in the event a bank becomes insolvent. We are told that this is a necessary step to un-freeze capital in the banking industry, and to stimulate the economy. I have yet to see that there is any help that will be readily available for home homeowners. We may see a freeze on foreclosures in the weeks and months ahead, but I do not sense that it is a top 5 issue. I have fielded numerous inquiries regarding the HOPE H4H Program in my Port Orange office. Upcoming posts will detail some of the guidelines for homeowners. Suffice it to say th... 10/13/2008

The Group of Seven industrialized nations met on Saturday afternoon in an attempt to display of show of unity in the face of the global financial crisis. The G7 is comprised of U.S., Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan. The U.S representatives worked diligently to seek increased unity among the G7 in an effort to bring calm to panicked investors in an attempt to stabilize rapidly deteriorating markets. Saturday evening, G20 leaders representing a mix of rich nations as well as rapidly developing nations including China, India, and Brazil. G-20 finance officials pledged to work together "to overcome the financial turmoil, and to deepen cooperation to improve the regulation, supervision and the overall functioning of the world's financial markets." The International Monetary... 10/11/2008

THE Port Orange Real Estate & Community Event Blog. By Lisa C. Hill, "THE SMART CHOICE!"   Isn't it amazing that as a REALTOR®, no matter how long you've been in the business, you're constantly encountering new situations in real estate? But there's a good chance that another real estate agent has already experienced a situation that you have not, and vice versa. So this blog post is to ask for advice from other real estate agents who may have already experienced what I did today. Or even if you have not experienced this exact situation, you might have some fabulous ideas and advice. So here's my story and some questions... Yesterday I got a phone call from a very pleasant man with a unique house to sell, and met with him today. His house is currently listed with another agent so I'm n... 09/03/2008

Port Orange Real Estate & Community Event Blog. By Lisa C. Hill, "THE SMART CHOICE!" If you're a golf lover and are interested in buying real estate in the Daytona Beach area, you should consider the golf communities in the beautiful city of Port Orange, which is just south of Daytona Beach. If you have your heart set on buying real estate in golf communities found in Daytona Beach just follow the link embedded in the text just before this. You may also be interested in the beachside golf community of Harbour Village in Ponce Inlet. That link is also embedded in the preceding text. I've actually written several blog posts about things to do in Ponce Inlet, including posts about the lighthouse, the Marine Science Center, and more. But this real estate post is going to focus on one parti... 08/27/2008

  Port Orange Real Estate & Community Event Blog. By Lisa C. Hill, "THE SMART CHOICE!"   I've previously posted many blogs about real estate and things to do in the beautiful city of Port Orange, which is just south of Daytona Beach, FL. It's so close that many people don't realize it's not part of Daytona Beach. Click here to read about the closeness of the cities in the Daytona Beach area. If you're not aware of this, August is by far, the hottest month of the year, every year! And trust me. It's HOT! When I have real estate buyers who need to buy real estate in July or August, I actually leave the car and air conditioner running, and bring my spare key in with me. Otherwise, even if we're only in a house or condo for 5 or 10 minutes, by the time we get back in the car, everyone is d... 08/10/2008

Port Orange Real Estate & Community Events Blog. By Lisa C. Hill, "THE SMART CHOICE" I've been meaning to blog about this for a while, but keep finding other subjects that seem more pressing. So I'm finally blogging about a Port Orange event that everyone can enjoy, no matter what city you live in. The All Saints Lutheran Church, located at 751 Dunlawton Ave. in Port Orange, offers a weekly concert that its sponsored by the Port Orange Ministerial Association. The title of this mid-weekly event is "Music for Healing: Body, Mind and Spirit" and it's not limited to any particular faith, regardless of where it's being held. Each Wednesday, from 12:15 - 12:45 p.m., musicians from local schools and churches play instrumental music to help attendees to find peaceful contemplation, reflection... 07/29/2008

Port Orange Real Estate & Community Events Blog. By Lisa C. Hill, "THE SMART CHOICE" Port Orange real estate buyers and sellers, I have some good news for you. I've been tracking the Daytona Beach Area MLS records regularly, so I've known for a while that Port Orange was faring better than Daytona Beach, Ormond Beach, or any of the other local cities. Last week I sold a Port Orange house that's been on the market for a long time. It's a great house on 1 acre, in a fantastic location near Spruce Creek High School. And the sellers were (and still are) great people. But the sale took so long because the price was always slightly ahead of what the market would bear. 2 other agents had it listed before me, but were not able to renew the listing each time it expired. I believe I was able to ... 07/28/2008

I met Yuri and his wife Lyudmila a couple of months ago, we met a couple of times at our mutual friends, they paid us a visit, and we were supposed to visit them but then we got busy, then we had to fly to New York, so we went to them only yesterday. He met us at the door, dressed in a T-top as close to "telnyashka" - a striped shirt with long sleeves worn by Russian navy. "Did you forget that the day of Russian Navy". I did, of course, but I wa not in the navy. Yuri, a former navy, remembers. He is more close to Russia than I am. I am an American speaking Russian. He is so far mostly Russian speaking some English. A modest two-level townhome in Port Orange is unmistakenly his... Pictures and murals are all over the place. Florida Room is converted to his artistic shop... He is an artis... 07/27/2008

THE Port Orange Real Estate & Community Event Blog. By Lisa C. Hill, "THE SMART CHOICE!" If you live in Port Orange, or any of the surrounding cities, you might find this to be a fascinating, educational seminar. It's being hosted by Full Moon Natives. Full Moon Natives is a well-stocked plant, flower and tree nursery. But the best part about Full Moon Natives is their knowledge of native plant species and how to plant your garden with the native plants that will help conserve our precious water resources. If you're not familiar with Florida's water resources or lack thereof, read my previous post about the pollution in the Floridan Aquifer, which is our primary source of drinking water. The chemical pollutants found in our Aquifer are beyond belief! You may also be interested in my po... 06/16/2008

I never have to look very far to find something great about Port Orange, which is why so many people choose to buy real estate here. But yesterday, we gained another fantastic reason for people to move to Port Orange FL. This weekend was graduation weekend for high school seniors all over Volusia county. My daughter was one of those graduating seniors. Oblige me with a brief history of my daughter's school years in Port Orange. If you've been reading my blog for a while, you know that I'm a Daytona Beach native. You probably also know that the Daytona Beach area actually includes 8 cities... Ormond Beach, Ormond by the Sea, Daytona Beach, Holly Hill, Daytona Beach Shores, Wilbur by the Sea, Ponce Inlet, South Daytona and Port Orange. I've lived in 5 of these cities at one time or anothe... 05/26/2008

THE Port Orange Real Estate & Community Event Blog. By Lisa C. Hill, "THE SMART CHOICE!" Home buyers who are thinking about moving to Daytona Beach, make sure you don't overlook the beautiful city of Port Orange, just 7 miles south of Daytona. I'm a Daytona Beach native, I've sold real estate in every city in Volusia county, and I personally live in Port Orange. One of the best things about Port Orange is the City Center. I've written several posts about events happening at the Port Orange City Center. The event that most locals are familiar with doesn't happen until October, called Port Orange Family Days. So you'll have to wait a few more months to attend that event. But this weekend, May 18 and again on June 8, there will be Concerts in the Park, at the Kenneth Parker Amphitheater. ... 05/16/2008