Looking out our office window this afternoon we saw the installation of this bronze statue across the street at the Museum of Fine Arts. Naturally I went outside with my camera and then started asking questions. This bronze is part of a coming exhibit The Baroque World of Fernando Botero which will be at the Museum of Fine Arts in downtown St Petersburg from January 9 - April 4, 2010. The Museum of Fine Art's Coming Events page tells more about it. If you're coming to the exhibit, please stop and say hello to The Simms Team at ALVA International, Inc real estate office right across Beach Drive from the Museum of Fine Arts. 12/21/2009

A St. Petersburg waterfront mansion that was once home to Perry Snell, a prominent developer in the early 1900s, has been listed for sale for $18 million. View The Listing Information By Clicking Here Read The Tampa Bay Business Journal Story About The Home By Clicking Here If you are searching for luxury homes and estates in the Greater Tampa Bay (Tampa, St. Petersbug, Clearwater) or Sarasota, please contact Steve Eckhardt at (813) 765-1182. www.TheFloridaAuthority.com www.SearchForTampaHomes.com Listing Information Courtesy of Realty Executives 12/14/2009

Check this out! Bayfair homes is building penthouse style luxury condos in St. Petersburg. Marina Bay are beautiful waterfront condos. Each of the units in this secure gated community is located on the second or third level of a building that houses only eight units. Each of the homes has beautiful lakefront views. Each building has two private secure elevators, with each one servicing half of the condos in the building. Under the building is two covered parking spaces for each homeowner. Each owner has a storage room. Bayfair is offering two floor plans in Marina Bay. Each of the floorplans is a three bedroom unit. The Sanibel is a 2,281 square foot unit and the Boca Grande is a 2,347 square foot unit. All of the units have high ceilings, large covered terraces, granite countertops in ... 12/13/2009

This was a fun sight from the window of the St Pete Yacht Club where we were having lunch today. The yacht club is decorated with trees, lights and decorations everywhere. The long hallway with trees along both sides is particularly spectacular. Then each dining room, the bar, meeting rooms and nooks all have their own decor. Mr. Snowman must be getting ready for tonight's annual St Petersburg Boat Parade. It leaves from Bayboro Harbor at 6:30 pm, goes out into Tampa Bay, around The Pier and around the Vinoy Basin, then returns. There are lots of places in the waterfront parks to watch the lighted boat parade tonight, or you can watch from some of the restaurants that overlook the water. Many of the downtown luxury condos have great views of the parade as well. You can even charter a ya... 12/12/2009

  Why didn’t they take my offer? Because it was a low ball offer! I do not know how many times I had to say this is the past year. I do not have a problem presenting low ball offers as long as my buyer understands what the real market value is and as long as he understands that he might not get the property and might not even get a counter offer. “Can’t hurt to try”  Right ????  Wrong !!!!!!!!!  I do not know how it is elsewhere in the country but here in Saint Petersburg the time for low ball offers is nearly over.  Properties here are either prices at current market  value which means they are already 30, 40 50% less than 3 years ago or they are completely overprices which means the sellers are not in distress and do not need to sell.  There are hardly any properties left on the marke... 11/29/2009

This area is often referred to as Causeway Isles and includes Causeway Isles which is on the north side of Central Ave, South Causeway Isle which is south of Central Ave and South Causeway Isle Yacht Club which is reached via 79th Street through South Causeway Isle. The area consists of approximately 770 single family homes built primarily in the 1950's and 1960‘s. A large majority of the homes are waterfront. There are canal front homes as well as homes with views of the Intracoastal Waterway and Boca Ciega Bay. The square footage of the homes range from 1038 square feet to 6773 square feet with the predominant size being in the 1500 to 2500 square foot range. Approximately 90 of the homes are more than 3000 square feet. A majority of the homes are located on lots that are less than ¼ ... 11/28/2009

NEW PRICE!!!! $265,000 Beautiful sort after Coquina Key Island! Over 2800' feet of living space and 2295' feet of heated space. I am giving a one year warranty . www.3997beachdrse.com for the virtual tour!!!Huge corner lot with alot of mature trees, block and brick work, lots of shrubbery all around yard, fences, pool area. New Bullfrog Spa 3-2007 added in the over sized screen porch. Lots of extensive security lighting all around house. Beautifully landscaped!! Lighting and sprinkler system all on timers. Reclaimed water. This Island has it very own Coquina Key Park with boat ramp, picnic areas, fishing docks, dog park, tennis, playground, running track, basketball court and soccer field. Coquina Key Island is most sought after because of its many features. Enjoy the Island's bird sanc... 11/27/2009

Sand Sculpture Competition in Treasure Island Tampabay Here are all of last week's Sand Sculptures. It was a great event in Treasure Island Tampabay. It was a three day festival with lots of food and drinks and music and fireworks etc. Which one is your favorite? I like number 7 the best. It looks like a real "sand castle" Not so sure about the gorilla, but hey beauty is in the eye of the beholder.       11/24/2009

  Saint Petersburg’s reliable appliance repair man, Lance Kimball, at Appliance Repair Specialists has a few tips to beat the manufacturers’ shrinking warrantees.       Appliance Repair Specialists have been a permanent fixture on West Kennedy Blvd since 1998.  Lance Kimball offered advice to his customers that may take some of the anxiety away from the appliance manufactures’ latest blow.  Lance suggests that big-ticket appliances be purchased with a credit card that offers product insurance.   In late 2005, appliance manufacturer including Frigidaire, General Electric, Maytag, and Whirlpool shortened their warranties on refrigerators, ranges, washers, and other major appliances from two or three years to only one year, and it appears they have no intention of reestablishing the longer... 11/16/2009

  A day in a Realtor's live here in Saint Petersburg Tampabay I just have to write this.  A few days ago we closed on a property in St. Pete for a client of mine and at closing when we talked about the little obstacles we run into during the process, my buyer said "I always thought it was easy to be a Realtor, I had no idea what you have to deal with" Ever since that conversation this sentence is stuck in my mind. What do our buyers and seller think we are doing all day long? I am one of the Realtor who tries to make buying and selling real estate  in Saint Petersburg a good experience for the buyer and seller and therefore I deal with most of the "Little Things" myself instead of bothering the buyer or seller with it. I aim to have two happy parties at the closing table and not a buyer... 11/16/2009

Recently listed by SI Real Estate Investments, this beautifully remodeled 4BR/2BA St. Petersburg home with attached garage will not last long. The single family home is situated on a large corner lot and has been fully renovated to include spectacular upgrades such as hard wood floors throughout, fresh interior paint, designer lighting and ceiling fans, and newly installed roof. The upgrades in the kitchen of this St. Petersburg home are spectacular. With brand new 42" cabinets, new countertops, new ceramic tile flooring, and high-end stainless steel appliances, this spacious gourmet kitchen is a dream. Attention was paid to every detail in order to make this home shine. Additional home features include formal living room, family room, open floor plan, ample closets throughout, master s... 11/13/2009

Direct Gulf front condos or house in St. Pete Beach, Treasure Island, Madeira Beach, and Redington Beach I have a lot of buyers from Canada or somewhere up north and most of them are looking for direct Gulf front condos or homes.   Buyers find a lot of real estate listing for sale on the internet and sometimes the description can be confusing and you cannot figure out "Is it direct Gulf front or across the street"? Here is a great thing to remember, look at the address. If the home or condo is located on Gulf Blvd and has an EVEN street number  it most likely is a direct Gulf front condo or home. Only in a few cases do we have a tiny little road that runs parallel to the west of Gulf Blvd,  but for most part Gulf Blvd here in St. Pete beach, Treasure Island, Madeira Beach, Redington, In... 11/10/2009

Short Sale in St. Petersburg Tampabay.  Start to finish in 3 month with Citibank. As always, Real Estate Short Sales can be difficult, it depends on a lot of things but I have to say this one with Citibank was painless. We listed a Short Sale property here in Saint Petersburg Tampabay on 8/5/09 had some problems with showings because of renters but managed to get an offer on it beginning of September. BPO was done end of September, bank countered the offer buyer did not accept the counter, property went back on the market the second week of September. We got another offer on this Short Sale the first week of October Citibank accepted it the first week of November and we got a clear to close and Citibank is forgiving the significant difference between mortgage amount and sale price.  So,... 11/10/2009

"Color Our World with Hope" is the theme for this year's Gala and Auction to celebrate and support the Pregnancy Center of Pinellas County and New Life Solutions.  The event held at The Historic Coliseum located at 535 Fourth Ave North in St Petersburg sponsors and celebrates the work of that the ministries continue to do each year with a silent auction, fine dining and entertainment. I am proud to sponsor and attend this exciting event in support of the Pregnancy Center of Pinellas county and New Life Solutions.  For more information go to www.newlifesolutions.org 11/06/2009

Sheryl Manor subdivision in St Petersburg FL is a neighborhood is nestled north to south between 22nd avenue N and 38th avenue N and east to west of 62nd street and 58th street. This area is a central location in St Petersburg close to Tyrone Square Mall, St Petersburg General Hospital, shopping centers, fitness centers, several A plus schools and other useful locations. Many homeowners that live in Sheryl Manor enjoy the local Northwest Park and the J.W. Cate Recreation center where sports such as softball, soccer, swimming, tennis, karate, gymnastics, cheerleading, basketball, volleyball, or dance are offer. Families can enjoy playing on the park or walking the dog around the 1 mile trail that surrounds this popular St. Petersburg park. Sheryl Manor consists of over 900 homes that wer... 11/06/2009

St Petersburg Florida Home Buyer's can continue to take advantage of the first time home buyer tax credit and current homeowners can benefit with a cash refund now also if they are looking to buy a larger home or downsize. This week the Senate and House passed the bill almost unanimously and tomorrow the President has announced that he will sign the legislation that will extend the first time home buyer $8000 tax credit and create a new $6500 incentive for current home owners who are buying a new property and have owned a property for 5 years.  This legislation takes affect immediately for current homeowners making a new home purchase that qualify and close after tomorrow.  St Petersburg homeowners if you are preparing to close on your new home you can collect the tax credit as long as ... 11/05/2009

In late September the U.S department of Housing and Urban Development released FHA Mortgagee Letter 2009-28 in efforts to reaffirm FHA appraisal requirements which relate to appraiser independence to support prudence lending practices.  This letter details a series of changes that will take affect as of Jan 1st 2010.  These changes will have a significant impact on the way that lenders currently do business.  Here is a list of the changes that will be made. 1) Mortgage brokers and commission based lenders will be prohibited from involvement in the appraisal process. 2) FHA-approved lenders have new responsibilities to ensure that FHA appraisers are ".compensated at a rate that is customary and reasonable for appraisal services in the market area." 3) "The fee for the actual completion o... 11/04/2009

According to the National Association of REALTORS(R) we are "almost there" in terms of extending the tax credit. Below are the details NAR listed on the process unfolding. The extension and expansion of the home buyer tax credit is the pending business in the Senate. After a long week of negotiation on the credit, an agreement on the scope of both expansion and extension has been reached. The extension is part of a larger bill that has not yet gone to a vote, however. A Senate vote on the underlying bill will occur in the Senate during the week of November 1. The package will then go back to the House. The House is expected to accept the Senate amendments, vote on the package and send it to the President for signature. The underlying bill is an extension of unemployment benefits. Other ... 11/04/2009

Do you see this too? 4% commission for the selling agent on a bank owned property in Saint Petersburg Tampabay. Over the last few weeks I see more and more 4% commissions for selling agents when it comes to REO properties. To say the least, here in Saint Petersburg Tampabay we have a very challenging real estate market. Regular sellers try to negotiate the lowest commission possible with their listing agent and now on top of being up against extremely low asking prices these sellers also have to face a 4% commission to selling agents on bank owned properties in our Saint Petersburg market.  Never a dull moment in Real Estate. Do you see the same trend in your area? 11/04/2009

I could not believe what I heard today  "I do not show Short Sales in St. Petersburg" It doesn't matter how long you are in the Real Estate business, there is something new every day. Imagine this, it is 7.30 am, I had one too many drinks last night, it is a full moon and my coffee pot was very slow........My phone rings, I answer in my best realtor voice (despite the above mentioned problems) and I have a not to friendly voice at the other end, asking if one of my listings was still available. She goes on telling me that she has been trying for more than two weeks to see the house but that I obviously make it impossible to show the listing. I had NO clue what this lady was talking about and she went on telling me that her realtor has been trying to make an appointment with me for over ... 11/03/2009