Central Florida & metro Orlando real estate services

This is a quick summary of our flat fee MLS listing program. We currently service 25+ counties in Central Florida, South Florida, West Florida, the Space Coast, and the Treasure Coast.

With a Basic MLS Listing Plan, your property information along with up to 10 color photos gets placed into the local MLS and gets advertised onto the many websites associated with it like Realtor.com, Florida Living Network, Google Base, and many others. You take care of the showings, the negotiations, and the closing. If another Realtor sells it, you pay them the pre-advertised commission rate (typically around 3% or so). If you sell it yourself, no additional commission is due.

This is a great way for people who want to be For Sale By Owner / FSBO to save thousands of dollars while getting the full exposure that only the MLS can give. Ask us about our special programs for multiple properties. Click here for more information about our special investor programs.

We do handle the routine phone calls regarding Realtor showing information and basic property information so as not to inundate you with phone calls, but any important calls like showing appointments or contract / offers are forwarded directly to you to handle. You can pickup a Sand Dollar Realty Group "For Sale" sign when you stop by our office with the forms and your payment, or a sign can be shipped to you at your request.

Blank contract forms can be emailed or sent to you. Also for just a little bit more money, we offer a Deluxe Listing Plan that offers many more upgrades to the Basic Plan including a 360 virtual tour, market updates, electric lockbox, & more. You can pay for our Deluxe MLS Plan or just pay for certain additional services as you need them.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Copyright © 2008. Sand Dollar Realty Group, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Rob Arnold, ABR, CPL, CRB, GRI, Managing real estate broker, Licensed mortgage broker, Notary Public

407-389-7318 / 1-877-389-7318    www.SDRhouses.com/   www.WeBuyHousesFlorida.com/

Your full service and investor friendly Realtor in Orlando. Learn to invest in Central Florida real estate and Orlando real estate. Investor mentoring and counseling available. I also provide flat fee MLS listings, For Sale By Owner, and menu-based services in most parts of Central & South Florida, the Space Coast, and the Treasure Coast including Orlando, Winter Park, Maitland, Ocoee, Winter Garden, Apopka, Altamonte Springs, Casselberry, Longwood, Winter Springs, Oviedo, Lake Mary, Sanford, Deltona, Debary, Deland, Mount Dora, Eustis, Clermont, Kissimmee, Winter Haven, Lakeland, Tampa, Sarasota, Bradenton, Miami-Dade, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, Port Saint Lucie, Melbourne, Daytona Beach, Ocala, Gainesville, Volusia, Brevard, and more.

We sell properties, list properties, and we buy houses cash throughout Central Florida and the metro Orlando area. 

If you are not aware yet, Governor Crist just signed into law House Bill 643 the Foreclosure Fraud law.  You can read the final version of the bill by clicking on "Enrolled" on the legislative website or simply clicking here.  

In general, I am against anything regulating free trade and capitalism.  The more regulation out there, the more expensive and difficult it is to do business.  This in turn reduces competition thus giving members of the general public less choices and higher prices.  If you don't believe me, just think of how lack of competition and high taxes and regulation have affected gas prices.

   

The good - I do believe this new law does more good than bad.  It is specifically targeting people who contact someone in foreclosure. It gives a homeowner special protection if they intend to retain any interest in the property after the closing occurs.  It also requires that the homeowner receive specific written disclosures notifying them of their rights with a "cooling off" period.  It also protects the homeowner from someone who might take money from them and then sort of disappear.  People do need to be protected from unscrupulous vultures who would take advantage of a vulnerable situation.  

The bad - The law requires a special written addendum with specific deadlines, timelines, and cancellation periods.  While this is good for the homeowner it is discouraging for the Realtor, investor, or entrepreneur who may be legitimately trying to help them out while still making a profit.  It allows wishy-washy owners to change their mind, shop the contract, etc. It also puts an additional burden of paperwork and disclosures onto everyone's backs. Like we need any more paperwork. 

The ugly - As with any law there can be "unintended consequences" as I learned in my little stint of lobbying in Washington a few weeks ago.  Here are the unintended consequences that I see:

1.     It specifically targets sale and repurchase agreements.  By placing restrictions in this area and limiting "unconscionable" profits to only a 17% markup, it basically eliminates repurchases altogether.  Any investor who has ever bought and re-sold a property (i.e. Flip This House) knows that 17% will barely cover the closing costs and holding costs during the period.  Thus sale and repurchase agreements will most likely become extinct and the homeowner loses one possible option that they used to have.  It also eliminates investors buying properties "subject to" the existing financing unless the homeowner moves out and does not retain an interest.

2.    Additional paperwork and disclosures will discourage some investors and Realtors from even fooling with the whole process.  Short sales and foreclosures are always iffy situations at best.  By putting this additional wrinkle with severe penalties attached to it, many people who might otherwise try to intervene in this situation will just stand aside and let the property get repossessed by the foreclosing lender.  Why do a short sale if you risk the chance that the homeowner might hire some ambulance chasing attorney to come track you down later on because you didn't fill out the papers correctly?

3.    By disallowing upfront fees to be paid from the homeowner, many Realtors, attorneys, and other short sale service providers will lose interest in trying to work with the homeowner.  Since we know that somewhere between 50% and say 80% of all short sale or negotiation attempts with lenders fail, there are less and less people willing to work for free on these negotiations.  The bottom line is that this new regulation will chase off some of the legitimate business people from the foreclosure arena. That cannot be good in a time when foreclosures are high and buyers are few.

4.    AND PROBABLY THE MOST UGLY OF ALL: Unless you do a title search verifying a lis pendens has not been recorded, you could violate this law unintentionally.  If you sign a listing agreement or a purchase contract with someone and a lis pendens is recorded, from what I read in the law, you have to get this disclosure signed. Even if the property goes into foreclosure after you listed it, you apparently need to get the disclosure signed prior to a contract.  If not you are subject to huge penalties. There is no exemption for licensed real estate associates/brokers (correction 6/1/08: as Cyd pointed out below FS 501.212 may exempt sales associates and appraisers, but I am still not 100% positive about all this) or just average Joe owner occupant buyers.  Talk about scary consequences. 

So that is the way I see it.  I don't have all the answers, but hopefully this analysis has at least helped to enlighten you on the subject.  My question is, "Do we really need any more laws on the books?" It doesn't matter, but this one has passed.

Also just because you don't live or work in Florida, do not think this does not affect you.  There is a similar federal bill in Washington right now sponsored by Senator Herb Kohl that is in the works.  Here is the link.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Copyright © 2008. Sand Dollar Realty Group, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Rob Arnold, ABR, CPL, CRB, GRI, Managing real estate broker, Licensed mortgage broker, Notary Public

407-389-7318 / 1-877-389-7318    www.SDRhouses.com/   www.WeBuyHousesFlorida.com/

Your full service and investor friendly Realtor in Orlando. Learn to invest in Central Florida real estate and Orlando real estate. Investor mentoring and counseling available. I also provide flat fee MLS listings, For Sale By Owner, and menu-based services in most parts of Central & South Florida, the Space Coast, and the Treasure Coast including Orlando, Winter Park, Maitland, Ocoee, Winter Garden, Apopka, Altamonte Springs, Casselberry, Longwood, Winter Springs, Oviedo, Lake Mary, Sanford, Deltona, Debary, Deland, Mount Dora, Eustis, Clermont, Kissimmee, Winter Haven, Lakeland, Tampa, Sarasota, Bradenton, Miami-Dade, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, Port Saint Lucie, Melbourne, Daytona Beach, Ocala, Gainesville, Volusia, Brevard, and more.

We sell properties, list properties, and we buy houses cash throughout Central Florida and the metro Orlando area. 

 

After 3 long years, the the U.S. Department of Justice and the National Association of Realtors have reached a settlement in their lawsuit. In 2005, the DOJ filed a lawsuit against NAR for alleged anti-competitive rules regarding sharing of internet data and usage of the MLS.  The DOJ even went so far as to create a website regarding anti-trust and anti-competitive practices.  The DOJ has also gone after specific State laws and Realtor associations that they believe had rules that violate federal anti-trust laws.

Here are some links about the lawsuit:  From Realtor.org and From the DOJ 

The good part of this settlement is that the MLS is still going to be privately owned by the local associations and not some quasi-public database.  Another good part is that this settlement has really forced NAR and many local and state associations into a corner regarding alternative business models.  These associations know now that the federal government is clearly on the side of the alternative models rights to be creative.

The bad part of this settlement is that NAR and the local associations by being so secretive and restrictive for years and years have allowed websites like Zillow, Trulia, Loopnet, and others to to compete in a big way directly against the MLS for business. 

If the Realtor associations do not get more pro-active with their internet advertising permissiveness, other private industries may eventually send them the way of the dinosaur on the road to extinction.  If you don't believe me just ask the full service stock brokerages what they think of ETrade and Fidelity.  Or ask a local travel agent (if you can find one) about Expedia or Travelocity.  Times change and the internet continues to revolutionize how we do business.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Copyright © 2008. Sand Dollar Realty Group, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Rob Arnold, ABR, CPL, CRB, GRI, Managing real estate broker, Licensed mortgage broker, Notary Public

407-389-7318 / 1-877-389-7318    www.SDRhouses.com/   www.WeBuyHousesFlorida.com/

Your full service and investor friendly Realtor in Orlando. Learn to invest in Central Florida real estate and Orlando real estate. Investor mentoring and counseling available. I also provide flat fee MLS listings, For Sale By Owner, and menu-based services in most parts of Central & South Florida, the Space Coast, and the Treasure Coast including Orlando, Winter Park, Maitland, Ocoee, Winter Garden, Apopka, Altamonte Springs, Casselberry, Longwood, Winter Springs, Oviedo, Lake Mary, Sanford, Deltona, Debary, Deland, Mount Dora, Eustis, Clermont, Kissimmee, Winter Haven, Lakeland, Tampa, Sarasota, Bradenton, Miami-Dade, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, Port Saint Lucie, Melbourne, Daytona Beach, Ocala, Gainesville, Volusia, Brevard, and more.

We sell properties, list properties, and we buy houses cash throughout Central Florida and the metro Orlando area. 

 

 

The Orlando Sentinel came out with an interesting front page article today.  It basically said that about 27% of everyone that enters the 9th grade in Florida does not graduate at the end of the 12th grade. It went on to badmouth our dropout rate.  Since Florida is a very transient state, I don't know if that number accounts for students that simply move into a different school district or completely out of the state.  I am sure that the transient number is probably quite high.

  I do want to say congratulations to everyone that is graduating.  Graduating from high school is an important accomplishment.  A high school diploma is a very basic education that everyone should try and achieve to obtain.  If you do not have one, most well-paying employers will not take you seriously.  At the same time though having one does not mean a whole lot anymore. It is a good foundation, but that is about all.  At least with standardized tests like the FCAT there is some accountability in the schools, but still not much and the school adminstraters and the teacher's unions absolutely hate accountability.

When I graduated from high school in Orange County, FL in the 1980's, there were some challenges in the various classes I took.  The advanced level classes were not easy, but they were not terribly difficult either if I took the time to study.  Back then, we had to take a standardized test called the SSAT in the 11th grade, and the teachers all made a big deal about it.  Supposedly if we did not pass it, we would not graduate. I don't know how it compared to the FCAT of today, but I remember taking the test and thinking "I don't get it.  What is the big deal?  Anybody that stayed awake during most of their classes should be able to pass this."  It was not that hard.  In fact it was quite basic from what I recall.

We also were required during each of 4 years of high school English class to write "WEP's" .  That stood for Writing Excellence Program. (I am pretty sure that is what the acronym stood for anyway.)  We had to write 20+ papers each year, some long and some short.  They were mandatory for all English students in order to show that we knew how to read and write. 

So I don't get what all this crybaby stuff about the FCAT and accountability is today.  We had it then too.  Without some standard of accountability, the diploma might as well be printed up on a roll of toilet paper.  If you don't think there are not standard tests to be a lawyer, engineer, real estate broker, cosmetologist, school teacher, contractor, barber, etc., then think again.  Sure if you want to be a clerk or some flunky working for one of these people, then maybe you don't need to pass a standardized test.

When I was in 7th grade, I remember for some reason I got put in a "basic" geography class.  For lack of a better word, the class was full of complete dumb-dumbs, and I felt like a genius compared to most of them.  I guess I was about 13 years old at the time.  There were at least 3 kids in my class where when they took a test, the teacher would stand behind them and read the questions to them.  The kids were 13 years old and could not read, and none of these kids had a language barrier of any sort.  All these kids were born and raised right here in the USA.  And some of the test questions were to "color North America red and South America blue" - wow my 13-year old brain was just throbbing from the difficulty - Geesh.  Just being around those kids in that class gave me a real education about people, far more than the geography class ever did.  (I remember in the mid-1990s running into one of those illiterate kids working behind the counter at a Blockbuster video.  We were both about 25-years old at the time.  I hope he has done something better with his life since then, but somehow I seriously doubt it.)

I also remember in the 8th grade. My mother taught some classes at my school, and she taught remedial English and math.  8th grade means you are 14 years old.  I would sometimes help her with tutoring or even grading papers.  I remember that one of the lessons was how to tell time - this is 8th grade now.  You know things like "If the big hand is on the 6 and the little hand is on the 8, then it is 8:30." Real basic stuff.  I joke with my wife now that those 14 year old kids could not tell the time, but my 6-year old in kindergarten can.  How pathetic!

I do applaud all the kids graduating that are headed onto to bigger and better things.  Please go to college or do something good with yourself and make this world a better place. 

This doesn't mean that not having a high school diploma will stop you from having a wonderful and productive life.  Hopefully you at least learned something during the 12 YEARS that you were in school.  However I deal with a lot of people that want to rent or buy my houses, and I honestly wonder if they even made it into high school let alone graduated from it.

As for the people that could not graduate from high school because it was "too hard and you couldn't keep up", I don't know what to say.  If you think high school is hard, just wait until you get out into the real world and they tell you to report to work at 8:30. I sure hope you can tell the time.  :-)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Copyright © 2008. Sand Dollar Realty Group, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Rob Arnold, ABR, CPL, CRB, GRI, Managing real estate broker, Licensed mortgage broker, Notary Public

407-389-7318 / 1-877-389-7318    www.SDRhouses.com/   www.WeBuyHousesFlorida.com/

Your full service and investor friendly Realtor in Orlando. Learn to invest in Central Florida real estate and Orlando real estate. Investor mentoring and counseling available. I also provide flat fee MLS listings, For Sale By Owner, and menu-based services in most parts of Central & South Florida, the Space Coast, and the Treasure Coast including Orlando, Winter Park, Maitland, Ocoee, Winter Garden, Apopka, Altamonte Springs, Casselberry, Longwood, Winter Springs, Oviedo, Lake Mary, Sanford, Deltona, Debary, Deland, Mount Dora, Eustis, Clermont, Kissimmee, Winter Haven, Lakeland, Tampa, Sarasota, Bradenton, Miami-Dade, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, Port Saint Lucie, Melbourne, Daytona Beach, Ocala, Gainesville, Volusia, Brevard, and more.

We sell properties, list properties, and we buy houses cash throughout Central Florida and the metro Orlando area. 

I wanted to make a quick post just to tell all of our veterans past and present a big "Thank you" for your service to our country.  It is because of people like you, and so many that gave the ultimate sacrifice with their lives and limbs that all of us can live in this wonderful country.  Regardless of all its faults and even the current troubled economy, this is still the greatest country in the world that so many other countries want to emulate.

I for one truly appreciate everything that our men and women that have served in the military forces have done to secure our freedoms.  There is no country in the history of the world that has done as much good out there as our country has.  Thank you and Happy Memorial Day!

  

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Copyright © 2008. Sand Dollar Realty Group, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Rob Arnold, ABR, CPL, CRB, GRI, Managing real estate broker, Licensed mortgage broker, Notary Public

407-389-7318 / 1-877-389-7318    www.SDRhouses.com/   www.WeBuyHousesFlorida.com/

Your full service and investor friendly Realtor in Orlando. Learn to invest in Central Florida real estate and Orlando real estate. Investor mentoring and counseling available. I also provide flat fee MLS listings, For Sale By Owner, and menu-based services in most parts of Central & South Florida, the Space Coast, and the Treasure Coast including Orlando, Winter Park, Maitland, Ocoee, Winter Garden, Apopka, Altamonte Springs, Casselberry, Longwood, Winter Springs, Oviedo, Lake Mary, Sanford, Deltona, Debary, Deland, Mount Dora, Eustis, Clermont, Kissimmee, Winter Haven, Lakeland, Tampa, Sarasota, Bradenton, Miami-Dade, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, Port Saint Lucie, Melbourne, Daytona Beach, Ocala, Gainesville, Volusia, Brevard, and more.

We sell properties, list properties, and we buy houses cash throughout Central Florida and the metro Orlando area.

 

The tenant moved out of this house, so I am rehabbing it and getting it ready to be marketed as a retail property.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Copyright © 2008. Sand Dollar Realty Group, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Rob Arnold, ABR, CPL, CRB, GRI, Managing real estate broker, Licensed mortgage broker, Notary Public

407-389-7318 / 1-877-389-7318    www.SDRhouses.com/   www.WeBuyHousesFlorida.com/

Your full service and investor friendly Realtor in Orlando. Learn to invest in Central Florida real estate and Orlando real estate. Investor mentoring and counseling available. I also provide flat fee MLS listings, For Sale By Owner, and menu-based services in most parts of Central & South Florida, the Space Coast, and the Treasure Coast including Orlando, Winter Park, Maitland, Ocoee, Winter Garden, Apopka, Altamonte Springs, Casselberry, Longwood, Winter Springs, Oviedo, Lake Mary, Sanford, Deltona, Debary, Deland, Mount Dora, Eustis, Clermont, Kissimmee, Winter Haven, Lakeland, Tampa, Sarasota, Bradenton, Miami-Dade, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, Port Saint Lucie, Melbourne, Daytona Beach, Ocala, Gainesville, Volusia, Brevard, and more.

We sell properties, list properties, and we buy houses cash throughout Central Florida and the metro Orlando area.

Over the last 2 years, I have seen many many Realtors, mortgage brokers, appraisers, home inspectors, and real estate investors drop out of the business and go and get a full-time job.  I also know many real estate and mortgage firms that have either closed up shop or sold their business for pennies on the dollar.  And saddest of all, I know of many colleagues that have basically gone from being high rollers (many millionaires) into near or actual bankruptcy. Wow! 

But I am not here to talk about gloom and doom.  I want to talk about what is working in today's real estate market.  I certainly don't have all the answers, and I am thankful for every customer and sales associate working with our firm.  Thank you to every single one of you for having faith in our firm and in me!!!

In a market like we are having, only the strong survive and change is constant.  These are my observations of what is working successfully for people. Myself and my successful sales associates are using some of these ideas and we are looking at all of these ideas.

(1) Anything to do with foreclosures.  Obviously there are lots of foreclosures in today's marketplace.  So that means opportunity.  Someone has to clean up the foreclosure mess and it is not going to be the banks or the government though they will have plenty of involvement in it. Currently my most successful Realtors are the ones focusing on the foreclosure industry.

             Short sales though often frustrating are resulting in sales.  There are tricks to getting them to go through.  Not all people in foreclosure will qualify for a short sale so screening out the bad ones is a must.  It is a volume business plain and simple.  The more you work, the more that will result in a closing.

         Bank REO's are not a simple business to break into, but it is an obvious trend.  Bank owned properties will eventually result in a closing for someone because the banks are not in the business of owning or managing properties.  Their bank repos will eventually have to be sold to someone either through a Realtor or through an auction.

         Foreclosure assistance for homeowners. While this is a more undefined subject, it is definitely a need that someone will have to be meeting.  Whether the person performing the service is a Realtor, a mortgage broker, an attorney, an investor, or a non-profit organization, there is a definite need.  These people will be helping homeowners modify their loan, somehow sell or refinance, file bankruptcy, negotiate with their lender for a forbearance or deed-in-lieu of foreclosure, negotiate with lien holders and code enforcement boards, or something similar.

         Foreclosure rehab and cleanup. Somebody has to secure, board up, winterize, trash out, clean up, and fix up these bank-owned properties.  The Realtors and lenders are not going to do the work (and actually get their hands dirty).  They will hire contractors to do the work.

(2) Loan rates are low. 

        It is time to refinance your loans and restructure your debt. Whether you are a homeowner with higher interest loans or an investor with rental properties or lines of credit, interest rates have dropped significantly in the last year.  Granted they have ticked up a little just recently.  Freddie Mac is quoting 5.98% interest rate for a 30-year fixed as of May 22, 2008.  The federal government has made some big changes to FHA and also the Fannie/Freddie jumbo loan limits.  If you can refinance, you can significantly lower your interest rates.  Personally I have refinanced 2 of my rentals since the first of the year and am working on others right now.  Also because the Fed has lowered the federal funds rate so much, HELOCS have very low rates.  I have paid off all my high interest credit lines (8-11%) and rolled them into my HELOCS which are around 5%. (I have some rehab projects that I have turned into rentals and the rehab money is borrowed from credit lines.)  This has lowered my payments by roughly 40% each month.

       Mortgage brokers and lenders need to take advantage of this opportunity. You need to be helping people refinance into these better rates or bail out of their ARMs using the FHA Secure program.  There is plenty of money to be made in helping people lower their monthly payments.

In Part 2 of this article, I will post some other trends that appear to be working.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Copyright © 2008. Sand Dollar Realty Group, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Rob Arnold, ABR, CPL, CRB, GRI, Managing real estate broker, Licensed mortgage broker, Notary Public

407-389-7318 / 1-877-389-7318    www.SDRhouses.com/   www.WeBuyHousesFlorida.com/

Your full service and investor friendly Realtor in Orlando. Learn to invest in Central Florida real estate and Orlando real estate. Investor mentoring and counseling available. I also provide flat fee MLS listings, For Sale By Owner, and menu-based services in most parts of Central & South Florida, the Space Coast, and the Treasure Coast including Orlando, Winter Park, Maitland, Ocoee, Winter Garden, Apopka, Altamonte Springs, Casselberry, Longwood, Winter Springs, Oviedo, Lake Mary, Sanford, Deltona, Debary, Deland, Mount Dora, Eustis, Clermont, Kissimmee, Winter Haven, Lakeland, Tampa, Sarasota, Bradenton, Miami-Dade, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, Port Saint Lucie, Melbourne, Daytona Beach, Ocala, Gainesville, Volusia, Brevard, and more.

We sell properties, list properties, and we buy houses cash throughout Central Florida and the metro Orlando area.

If you shop around on the internet, no doubt you will find plenty of Florida real estate companies to list your for sale by owner property in the MLS for a flat fee.  However, not all firms are the same.  Price is not the only issue.  When selling your biggest asset, your house or investment property, is it really that big a deal if you save an extra $200-300 and go with a cheapo flat fee listing firm?  Especially if your home does not sell as a result of your efforts.   Click here for Frequently Asked Questions about our flat fee MLS listing services.

So, what makes Sand Dollar Realty Group different from these other firms that may offer similar services? Many things.

(1) First our company is locally owned & operated in Altamonte Springs, Florida (just 15 minutes north of Orlando). You are not dealing with some far away out-of-state company that you can only access by internet or 1800 number to do your flat fee MLS listing. You can schedule an appointment to come into our office or depending on location you can have us come to your house. We would be glad to meet with you in person or talk with you over the telephone and help you analyze your property, your asking price, and develop a marketing plan to help sell your home.

(2) If your property is not located in the Central Florida area, we can still help you properly price and market your property. It will be at a distance of course, but we have lived in Florida for 30+ years and we have traveled extensively about the state and know the various regions quite well.

(3) Our firm has been in business since 1996 and is the largest and most experienced flat fee MLS brokerage in Central Florida. We know what we are doing and will not leave you hanging out there all by yourself. Many companies that offer flat fee services have not been in business very long and are greatly lacking in experience. And experience counts during a buyer's market.  Ask your flat fee broker how many properties they have sold for their customers.  Our firm has sold hundreds in just the last few years and our firm has consistently been one of the top firms in sales volume for many years in a row.  Most flat fee brokers won't even make it into the top 100 firms in sales for their area.

(4) Many of the super cheap priced firms provide poor customer service and don't return phone calls or emails promptly. Some firms simply want to list your home on the internet in order to keep the buyer leads for themselves. You will find that we are quite different. We will email or call you with all buyer leads. If we are not right there to answer the office phone, we will return your call within a reasonably short period of time. In fact broker Rob Arnold's cell phone number is listed right on our website, if you ever need to speak with him at anytime day or night. A little bit of extra money is a small price to pay to deal with experienced professionals.  Just read Rob Arnold's resume' and then compare it to other real estate brokers - most will not even dare to post their resume' online because they have limited education and experience.

(5) We have full-time sales associates that are working to find a buyer for your property and earn the buyer-side commission. At the time of this post our firm has over 70 Realtors out there selling properties.  See for yourself at MyFloridaLicense.com about our firm. Most flat fee firms have either none or just a handful of sales associates working for them. 

(6) We allow you to upgrade your flat fee MLS listing. We can provide you additional services all the way up to a full-service listing for a reasonable additional fee.  As mentioned before our firm currently has over 70 Realtors working for us. Our firm is actually a real company that works out of a real office and not just a big data entry factory often run out of someone's back bedroom at their house.

(7) We have many great affiliations with local experts, including an affiliation with a local title company, and contacts with many real estate vendors (inspectors, appraisers, insurance, home warranty, etc.) to help make your transition from listing to closing that much easier.

(8) We have full MLS membership in the Brevard, Daytona, New Smyrna, and Ocala / Marion MLS's and reciprocal memberships in Alachua / Gainesville, Citrus County, Desoto County, and others. Be wary of listing services that say they service those counties, but instead are only listing them in the Mid-Florida Regional or South Florida Regional MLS. These other areas are in a totally different MLS, and will not be seen by the local Realtors unless the listing makes it into those local MLS's.

We also offer full-service listing services similar to those offered by most other real estate brokerages. But unlike those other brokerages our agents have the flexibility to negotiate commission rates to help save you money.

Also we offer a menu-based pricing system (a la carte services), allowing you to only pay for those services that you actually need us to perform. That way you can still do some of the for sale by owner FSBO things yourself and save money. Some of our services include lockbox rental, online virtual/video tours, contract preparation and review, offer negotiation, closing coordination and attendance, etc. Click here for more information about our full-service listings. Or click here for more information about menu-based services that we offer.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Copyright © 2008. Sand Dollar Realty Group, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Rob Arnold, ABR, CPL, CRB, GRI, Managing real estate broker, Licensed mortgage broker, Notary Public

407-389-7318 / 1-877-389-7318    www.SDRhouses.com/   www.WeBuyHousesFlorida.com/

Your full service and investor friendly Realtor in Orlando. Learn to invest in Central Florida real estate and Orlando real estate. Investor mentoring and counseling available. I also provide flat fee MLS listings, For Sale By Owner, and menu-based services in most parts of Central & South Florida, the Space Coast, and the Treasure Coast including Orlando, Winter Park, Maitland, Ocoee, Winter Garden, Apopka, Altamonte Springs, Casselberry, Longwood, Winter Springs, Oviedo, Lake Mary, Sanford, Deltona, Debary, Deland, Mount Dora, Eustis, Clermont, Kissimmee, Winter Haven, Lakeland, Tampa, Sarasota, Bradenton, Miami-Dade, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, Port Saint Lucie, Melbourne, Daytona Beach, Ocala, Gainesville, Volusia, Brevard, and more.

We sell properties, list properties, and we buy houses cash throughout Central Florida and the metro Orlando area.

 

What can I say?  I won't lie.  The real estate market is definitely very tough right now, no doubt, for nearly everyone throughout the industry.  However, as in any industry there are also plenty of good things going on.  I have always been one to have a positive attitude as best I can and try and find the silver lining behind the rain cloud.

I have repeatedly said over the last several months (and maybe put my reputation on the line) that the market appears to have bottomed out.  A market bottoming out does not mean in any way that the market will be flying high like it was a few years ago.  The market bottoming out means that the market is not still heading down.  Just like if you drop a rock down a well and it hits the bottom, that doesn't mean it is now going to come back up. It just means the rock is no longer falling down further. I doubt that the market will get back to being a seller's market for many years to come. 

The real estate cycle is roughly a 20-25 year cycle where it goes from top to bottom and back to top.  The latest market top in Florida was somewhere around the Fall of 2005.  The real estate market tanked in the late 1980's and resulted in the savings & loan crisis and the creation of the Resolution Trust Corporation (RTC). (But at least mortgage interest rates now are not 12% or more.) The market was flat with minimal appreciation during most of the 1990's and did not start appreciating significantly until about 2001 or so.  Then from 2001 to 2005 prices in many areas doubled or even tripled in value - that was just plain hard to believe for me.  Now prices have come down to around 2003-2004 levels and probably will decrease a little more and stay basically flat for another 5-10 years.  Those are my observations, but who really knows what the future has in store.

I certainly don't know all the answers, but I base my conclusions of the market bottoming out on (1) actual market statistics, and (2) some actual positive headlines in the media and from people that I believe are smart and have done some research.  I am going to list this information below, and you can make your own conclusions.

Here are the Central Florida market statistics for April 2008 with my analysis. Market statistics for April 2008 in Orange & Seminole County FL . Now compare these to the market statistics for October 2007 October 2007 MLS Statistics for Orange & Seminole County Florida .  Do you see the how the inventory levels flattened out in June-July of 2007 and have actually slightly decreased?  Look at the pending contracts and solds.  Instead of decreasing, they are slowly (very slowly) increasing. 

Here are some positive (at least somewhat upbeat) stories in the media about the real estate market.  I figure when the media starts saying a few good things that is definitely a sign of some sort of turnaround.  The media thrives on negative stories.  It sells papers and makes headlines.  So the positive stores are a good sign to me.  Hopefully the stories will at least brighten your day a little.

From the Orlando Sentinel: Slowly, the pace of home resales is picking up

From the Orlando Sentinel: Existing-home sales in Orlando area may have bottomed out

From Realty Times.com: Real Estate Outlook: Worst is Over

From the Wall Street Journal: The Housing Crisis is Over

I sure hope they are right.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Copyright © 2008. Sand Dollar Realty Group, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Rob Arnold, ABR, CPL, CRB, GRI, Managing real estate broker, Licensed mortgage broker, Notary Public

407-389-7318 / 1-877-389-7318    www.SDRhouses.com/   www.WeBuyHousesFlorida.com/

Your full service and investor friendly Realtor in Orlando. Learn to invest in Central Florida real estate and Orlando real estate. Investor mentoring and counseling available. I also provide flat fee MLS listings, For Sale By Owner, and menu-based services in most parts of Central & South Florida, the Space Coast, and the Treasure Coast including Orlando, Winter Park, Maitland, Ocoee, Winter Garden, Apopka, Altamonte Springs, Casselberry, Longwood, Winter Springs, Oviedo, Lake Mary, Sanford, Deltona, Debary, Deland, Mount Dora, Eustis, Clermont, Kissimmee, Winter Haven, Lakeland, Tampa, Sarasota, Bradenton, Miami-Dade, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, Port Saint Lucie, Melbourne, Daytona Beach, Ocala, Gainesville, Volusia, Brevard, and more.

We sell properties, list properties, and we buy houses cash throughout Central Florida and the metro Orlando area.

 

ATTN REALTORS : Are you looking to work with a brokerage that will allow you some flexibility & creativity? Do you need a fresh breath of air from the name brand corporate offices? We offer generous commission splits & lots of perks.

ATTN INVESTORS & BUILDERS: Do you have a real estate license? There is a reason we are known as the "investor friendly" Realtors. Learn to be your own best customer with a great commission split.

This is just a sample of what we provide to you:

• 100% commission splits for a $200 monthly fee and a $50 transaction fee; OR
• 90%-10% commission splits with no additional fees. $275 minimum split on full service and Realtor-owned transactions. $150 minimum split on flat fee MLS listings.
• Negotiate your own commission rates with customers.
• Independence and flexibility of working from home.
• The creativity to offer full-service listings, flat fee MLS listings, menu-based (a la carte) services, buyer rebates, etc. 
• We have memberships in the Daytona Beach, New Smyrna Beach, Brevard County, the Ocala/Marion County MLS, and the Regional MLS in South Florida to let you assist buyers and sellers in those areas.
• If you know people with a real estate license who do not want to join and pay dues to the local Realtor association, you can have them sign up with our referral brokerage, Sand Dollar Referrals LLC . They receive a referral fee of 20% and you get to receive all their leads, subject to our regular brokerage commission splits with you.

What you don't have to deal with:

• No floor time.
• No mandatory meetings.
• No hidden fees or franchise fees. 
• No quotas of any kind.
• No bureaucracy.

We are not a fly by night operation.  We have been in business now for 12 years, and we are planning on being around for many more years.  Some of our Realtors are well on their ways to 6-figure incomes in 2008.  Why not be one of them??

For more details on exactly how we operate, please refer to our website: www.sdrhouses.com/jointeam.html , or call me for a confidential interview.

 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Copyright © 2008. Sand Dollar Realty Group, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Rob Arnold, ABR, CPL, CRB, GRI, Managing real estate broker, Licensed mortgage broker, Notary Public

407-389-7318 / 1-877-389-7318    www.SDRhouses.com/   www.WeBuyHousesFlorida.com/

Your full service and investor friendly Realtor in Orlando. Learn to invest in Central Florida real estate and Orlando real estate. Investor mentoring and counseling available. I also provide flat fee MLS listings, For Sale By Owner, and menu-based services in most parts of Central & South Florida, the Space Coast, and the Treasure Coast including Orlando, Winter Park, Maitland, Ocoee, Winter Garden, Apopka, Altamonte Springs, Casselberry, Longwood, Winter Springs, Oviedo, Lake Mary, Sanford, Deltona, Debary, Deland, Mount Dora, Eustis, Clermont, Kissimmee, Winter Haven, Lakeland, Tampa, Sarasota, Bradenton, Miami-Dade, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, Port Saint Lucie, Melbourne, Daytona Beach, Ocala, Gainesville, Volusia, Brevard, and more.

We sell properties, list properties, and we buy houses cash throughout Central Florida and the metro Orlando area.