Taken this morning with my iPhone 4, looking west down a canal in the Broadwater neighborhood in St Petersburg. 08/19/2010

St Petersburg's Beach Drive is the best place to be reads the headline in this morning's St Pete Times. Their article talks about some of the history of Beach Drive and how it's become a very desirable place to live, work and play. We saw this in 2008 when an optical shop moved out along Beach Drive - before there was even a sign saying the space was available, we grabbed it - and opened our new boutique real estate company, ALVA International. Beach Drive has become real estate row, in addition to the many restaurants, shops & museums and of course the parks and waterfront. We love being right in the middle of all that. Dog walkers, joggers, bicycles and horse-drawn carriages - you never know what's coming next along Beach Drive. Several places to have your morning coffee, and sidewalk... 08/18/2010

I wanted to take a photo of a beautiful sunrise over Tampabay. When I got home to upload it I saw that I had covered the sun with my finger. So, the "crop" feature is a beautiful thing. I don't think anybody would have noticed if I hadn't said something.     If you think about buying or selling a house or condo in the Saint Petersburg Tampabay Florida area, please give me a call. Ask me about waterfront homes or condos in St. Pete beach, Treasure Island, Madeira beach, Seminole and other Clearwater Tampabay neighborhoods. Find out what we can do to sell your home or condo and what the value of your property is. Check out great real estate deals or visit condo associations like Seminole Isle. We also work with short sale, bank owned and foreclosures. Find a property or go to my website f... 08/12/2010

Friday architect Yann Weymouth was in St Petersburg to discuss the Salvador Dali Museum here in downtown St Pete that he designed. He's frequently here to oversee the construction, of course, but rarely do we have a chance to listen to him and ask questions. He was the speaker at the Vinoy Business Alliance lunch at the Renaissance Vinoy Hotel on Friday. The screen is showing a view of the spiral staircase in the lobby which extends up to what is perhaps the world's largest finial. It was fascinating listening to how his designs came about. You can see some renderings of the new museum here. The new building will open 1-11-1111.  Yann found that he really likes St Pete so has recently moved here to Pinellas County.  Welcome, Yann! 08/11/2010

Why do buyers call, e mail or write to a seller directly? Sellers do not want to be bothered; there is a reason why they have a listing agent. Once a property owner decides to sell their home or condo and they hire a realtor to help them and the property is listed the seller should not be bother by people knocking on their door say "I want to buy your home" I do not know what is going on, but just in the last 2 weeks I had a homeowner that was approached 3 different times by buyers, one in person, one letter, one e mail.................... Why as a buyer would you do this? The house is listed, you HAVE to deal with the agent anyway. I think it is very disrespectful to the seller and as far as I know it has never worked anyway. Is this a Florida thing or does it happen everywhere? 08/08/2010

BP oil spill, town hall meeting in St. Petersburg, what a waste of time and money and energy. Will we ever enter the 21 Century? I was at a town hall meeting last night in downtown St. Petersburg held by the secretary of the Navy about the Oil spill and recovery plan for the Gulf of Mexico.  An hour into the meeting it all of a sudden hit me, what am I doing here? What a waste of time and money and energy. The same day I had attended a sales webinar in the morning and an active rain webinar in the afternoon from the comfort of my home in Shorts and T shirt, with a coffee in my hand and my cat on my lap. Both meeting took an hour each and I went back to my work immediately, in fact I even answered a few e mails and searched for properties to show while being at the meeting. Now, 4.30 pm ... 08/04/2010

Jungle Terrace Pool Home is close to shopping and about a 5-10 minute drive to the beach.   Cris Burlew | Beach & Luxury Realty, Inc | (727) 641-9015 8069 25th Ave N, St. Petersburg, FL Jungle Terrace Pool Home - Foreclosure 2BR/1BA Single Family House   offered at $125,000 Year Built 1956 Sq Footage 990 Bedrooms 2 Bathrooms 1 full, 0 partial Floors Unspecified Parking 1 Covered spaces Lot Size 6,747 sqft HOA/Maint $0 per month DESCRIPTION Great starter home or investment property with pool and plenty of back yard space. Property acquired thru foreclosure and being sold "As-Is" with Right To Inspect.   see additional photos below PROPERTY FEATURES - Central A/C - Central heat - Living room - Bonus/Rec room - Laundry area - inside - Balcony, Deck, or Patio - Yard - Swimming pool   ADDITI... 08/03/2010

UNDER CONTRACT IN 1 DAY!   Cris Burlew | Beach & Luxury Realty, Inc | (727) 641-9015 3448 19th St N - UNDER CONTRACT 1 DAY!, St. Petersburg, FL North St. Pete pool home - foreclosure 2BR/1BA Single Family House   offered at $39,900 Year Built 1947 Sq Footage 1,160 Bedrooms 2 Bathrooms 1 full, 0 partial Floors Unspecified Parking None Lot Size 6,599 sqft HOA/Maint $0 per month DESCRIPTION INVESTOR SPECIAL, needs TLC. Will make a great investment property. Property was acquired thru foreclosure and is being sold "As-Is, Where-Is".   see additional photos below PROPERTY FEATURES - Central A/C - Central heat - Hardwood floor - Tile floor - Family room - Living room - Dining room - Laundry area - inside - Yard - Swimming pool     ADDITIONAL PHOTOS 3448 19th St N Living Room Dining Room Front... 08/03/2010

I am looking for a great deal in St. Petersburg but I don't want a Short Sale. This is something I hear from about 50% of my buyers. No, do not show my regular listings, I am only interested in Short sales or Per Foreclosure properties, that is what the other half says. I hardly ever run into a buyer that says  "I don't care"  Why are people so dead set on one or the other?  There are a lot of horror stories about Short Sales and Pre Foreclosure properties and there is a misconception that "regular "listing are all overpriced. None of the above is true. Sure, closing a Short Sale can be challenging but with the right Real Estate agent on your site you will know right from the start what you get into and you will be prepared. Every Short sale I have closed was a great deal and it was wor... 07/30/2010

The Skyway Bridge connects St Petersburg Florida (which is the southern part of Pinellas County) to Bradenton/Sarasota and is the dividing point between Tampa Bay and the Gulf of Mexico.  

The northern part of the causeway leading out to the Skyway Bridge is a favorite place for locals to go swimming, fishing and wind surfing! It is beautiful and since only locals know about it, there is never a large crowd! That is always a plus! 07/19/2010

07/14/2010

Want an Apple store at Baywalk in downtown St Petersburg?   Someone at Apple said that they would consider opening an Apple store if there was an outpouring of community support.  Now THAT would be a great addition to BayWalk in downtown St Pete.  Talk about a rebirth and excitement! Respond to Hal Freedman's plea on ilovetheburg and add your support there, as well as sending it directly to Apple. It would be great to have Apple here instead of having to go to International Mall in Tampa. Yes, Apple, YES! 07/13/2010

Waterfront  one bedroom condos that were over $200,000 now start under $50,000, two bedrooms that were from the $280,000's now below $70,000's! Can you believe those prices? Come see these great condos many with waterside views!  Homeowners will enjoy the resort-style amenities including pools, private dining,  fitness centers, and spa. Homeoners can even purchase their own boat slips and garages! Waterside @ Coquina Key is a gated complex in an ideal waterside island. You can walk in your neighborhood for 3 miles along the Tampa Bay coastline. You can enjoy watching the dolphins play, boats sail by or see the cruise ships go out to sea. You can also go swimming in the pool that boarders the Tampa Bay Coastline. Waterside at Coquina Key has a north village and a south village. Waterside... 06/26/2010

Real Estate Newsletter for St. Petersburg, Tampabay  and the Beaches Ok, I have to start with an apology. Sorry for not sending this newsletter lately but we have been extremely busy with work. Now the summer is here are things are slowing down a little bit. I have only GOOD Real Estate news for you guys this time. Since the beginning of this year our "numbers" keep looking better and better. Mortgage rates are extremely low, Sales have been up in Single family homes and condos all over Pinellas County, the number of new listing coming on the market is down, even foreclosure filings are down. In a lot of areas the prices have reached bottom.  If you ask me, the situation looks better today than at any time in the last 3 something years. We have lots of buyers that have waited and waited... 06/16/2010

                              The Simms Team is Splattered for Chihuly!  Remember my recent post on Painting Your Shoes to support the Chihuly Collection that is opening in downtown St Pete in July? Following that, ilovetheburg offered to splatter photos in anticipation of the Chihuly opening.  So here's our splattered photo.  We're using that on our ALVA International facebook page for the next month or so. The Chihuly Collection is opening July 11th at 400 Beach Drive NE in downtown St Petersburg.  We've been watching the construction for months and can't wait to welcome Dale Chihuly to downtown St Pete.  Thanks to Morean Arts Center for making it happen. 06/07/2010

St Petersburg is named the top mid-size art city by American Style magazine. St Pete has an eclectic art community, from the Salvador Dali Museum which opens in its creative new building on January 11, 2011 to the new Chihuly Collection opening in July to the Museum of Fine Arts which has expanded twice. Our Mainsail Arts Festival keeps moving from downtown park to park as it grows. Mehaffey Theater has Broadway plays, the orchestra, ballet and so much more. Private art galleries are all around. The Crisp Arcade has been revitalized into a number of galleries and workshops. We know that St Pete has more than sunshine - now more people know it! 06/02/2010

PFC Ehren Murburg's Family needs your Help this Memorial Day Weekend I am asking everyone who reads this to re-blog, copy/paste or contact their local representative to put pressure on the U.S. Army.  This is a local hot topic that needs to go National & viral so it never happens again. When sons & daughters, brothers & sisters, enter the military, everybody knows it is a possibility that they will pay the ultimate price in service of their country.  When it happens the family deserves to know how it happened.  Sometimes when a soldier dies in theater it is not possible to determine exactly what happened.  But PFC Ehren Murburg died during training to become a Green Beret at Fort Bragg in North Carolina. MyFox13 in Tampa has been putting pressure on the military doing an investigative p... 05/28/2010

First, being told over and over the pictures posted do not even come close to doing this house justice. It's a must see.  This is a beautiful 90-year old 2/1 home that the seller has spent the last 10 years restoring to her glory days, and is being sold as is. It is 90%% totally remodeled. No major issues with the house.  It has over 1,100 sq. ft. This is absolutely the most attractive house on the street. Anybody that loves to cook will fall in love with the huge remodeled kitchen with newer appliances. It has 2 bedrooms, but it also has a 3rd room that can be used as an office, den or extra bedroom . Master bedroom has walk-in closet It also has the original warm fireplace in the living room. The house has a large beautiful back patio area that wraps around the side of the house and i... 05/24/2010

Waterfront Villa in St. Petersburg for sale Manuela Baginski | South Beaches Real Estate Professionals | 727-487-4135 4740 Brittany Dr S, St Petersburg, FL Must see 2BR/2BA Condo offered at $319,900 Year Built 1981 Sq Footage 1,320 Bedrooms 2 Bathrooms 2 full, 0 partial Floors Unspecified Parking 1 Car garage Lot Size Unspecified HOA/Maint $567 per month DESCRIPTION RARE find !!! Beautiful ground floor Villa with wide open water views, a deeded boat slip, over sized garage and huge screened in waterfront patio. This unit is nicely done and updated; with 1320 square feet is the biggest floor plan in the Villas. Point Brittany amenities are the best in Pinellas County, very. Lifestyle with Pool, Hot tub, Tennis courts, Do all the fishing, boating or sunbathing you want right in your backy... 05/24/2010

Paint your shoes and help Morean Arts Center in St Petersburg by attending one of their Paint Your Shoes sessions: Saturday, May 22nd  10-3 Thursday, May 27th  5-7 On July 11th the Morean Arts Center will open The Chihuly Collection on Beach Driove. The suggested donation for attending one of the above paint sessions is $5. Why paint your shoes? What does this have to do with Chihuly? Chihuly is known for his glass work, but he also does splatter painting, which generally results in his shoes always being aplattered. What a great time to show your creativity. Bring in a pair of shoes, from sneakers to high heels, or even Cowboy Boota and use acrylic paints to show your style.  Read Chihuly, Shoe-huly.   Originally posted at florida.ssimms.com 05/21/2010