Another Phoenix…Palm Coast Plantation

 

Wikipedia defines the Phoenix bird:

A phoenix depicted in a book of mythological creatures by F.J. Bertuch (1747-1822)

In Greek mythology, a phoenix or phenix (Ancient Greek φοίνιξ phóinīx) is a long-lived bird that is cyclically regenerated or reborn. Associated with the sun, a phoenix obtains new life by arising from the ashes of its predecessor. The phoenix was subsequently adopted as a symbol in Early Christianity. The phoenix is referenced in modern popular culture.

I recently went ‘all in’ with my real estate business and established an office in Palm Coast Plantation because I loved the place when it first opened, I mourned when they turned off the fountain and I thought it was going to go under, and I saw an opportunity when several builders started building on Heron Drive.

All those wonderful intracoastal lots waiting for smart folks with cash to snap them up at today’s bargain prices.  My agency had a listing for a Palm Coast Plantation intracoastal lot that expired last year.  It was listed for $165,000.  The owner paid $304,000 for it in 2009.  I called him about re-listing it.  He will talk to his financial advisor.  Thinks maybe he should keep paying the mortgage and taxes and hold on to it.  At the same time, there is a bank-owned lot on the intracoastal available for $119,900.

Palm Coast Plantation is just north of Grand Haven on Colbert.  It is a community of upscale homes, but not quite as upscale as Island Estates or Hammock Dunes.  They are mostly what I call “Personalized Homes”  Built by builders who take plans from houses they have built before, use them as a base, and then custom draw a new set of plans that incorporate the personal preferences of the customer.  They generally run from $100-$120 a square foot. 

 

 

 New builders are making plans to put up models and spec homes there as soon as they can get some money or credit.   “House/Lot” ads are beginning to spring up.  And “Talk To Ted” is learning everything there is to know about the new builders on the block here and in Palm Coast in general.  And learning that most of them are the old guys working under new brand names and company structures.  I am ready for the just started increase in the sale of new construction in Palm Coast in general and Palm Coast Plantation in Particular.  A local, knowledgeable Buyers Agent is waiting to hear from you! 

My office is in a beautiful, showcase home built by Florida Green Homes.  Health, Safety and Energy Savings are the hallmarks of a certified "Green" home.   I hold an open house there every Saturday and Sunday from 1-5.  It's located at 25 Emerald Lake Court.  Traffic is steadily increasing each weekend.  Find out more about Palm Coast Plantation.  Drop in or call me on 386-503-1101. 

Talk To Ted !

Not Staging is like Not Cutting Your Grass

 

If you are selling your home, nothing will help sell it faster that professionally presenting or “Staging” it.  Even if you need to rent a storage unit to put extra stuff in.  I read this article Trulia.com sent me and couldn’t help but think of all the ungroomed show dogs whose listings expired.  Next to overpricing it is a FISBO’s biggest mistake. 

Here are some quotes from “Staging Shockers: 9 of the Worst Staging Decisions Ever Made”.  The article is long, but interesting.  The comments are worth reading.  If you are planning to sell your home, read it and weep about how it really should look.  Here’s the link, hit your control button and click on it:

http://bit.ly/VhfhMT

And The Looting Begins…

Two of my relatives who live at the Jersey Shore reported to me today that daylight looting has begun.

The first report was about looters on bicycles with backpacks going into areas motor vehicles could not access and looting damaged houses.  Then my son, who lives at the shore, corroborated hearing about similar incidents. 

So far I am just hearing  ‘rumors of’...  but it seems logical.  There are those who want to accelerate the redistribution of income. 

 On Halloween kids went house-to-house in street clothes carrying bags and knocking on doors asking for handouts.  Now there are no doors.  Folks can just help themselves.

How can the homeowners defend against that?  They’re in gas lines trying to charge their cell phones.   

I understand why Palm Coast's gated communities are the first to begin to come out of this depressed housing market.  The days of unlocked doors and safe streets are over.

Talk To Ted if you are relocating to Florida! 

Explains the Differences But Not The Vitriol...Namaste'

n A. Byrne

Chairman & Editor-in-Chief at C-Change Media Inc.

Why Harvard MBAs Favor Obama Over One Of Their Own

October 31, 2012

 

Mitt Romney graduated from Harvard Business School in 1975 as a Baker Scholar, a distinction awarded to only the top students in every business class. By all accounts, he was the quintessential student, organizing an all-star study group of MBAs to prepare for Harvard’s case study classes.
Former classmates have described him as precise, convincing and charismatic. Not surprisingly, Romney has had a distinguished career in business with one of the most loyal recruiters of Harvard talent over the years.
But if you ask today's Harvard Business School students who they would vote for next week, Romney would lose in a landslide. Two surveys by The Harbus, the MBA student newspaper at Harvard, showed yesterday (Oct. 30), that Obama had the support of 65% of the students versus 32% for HBA alumnus Romney.
The lopsided result may seem surprising, especially because Romney used his MBA (he also graduated with a Harvard law degree as a dual-degree student) to carve out a highly successful career at Bain Capital, one of the most prestigious MBA employers on the planet. It's a path that many current Harvard MBAs would love to follow. The Harbus said the two latest surveys were completed by 668 students, more than a third of the MBA candidates on campus.
As Clark Peterson of The Harbus had pointed out in an earlier story, “Romney appears to be the ideal of what 85% of HBS students want to be—in private equity. Seriously though, the guy founded Bain Capital. Made a fortune in business. Managed high-profile projects like the Salt Lake City Winter Olympics. Raised a large, successful family. And he gives back to the community. God may have put Romney on Earth just to make HBS students feel downright inferior. What gives?”
Peterson, a second-year student himself who had been a legislative aide to conservative Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK), believes that “Barack Obama is just a damn likable fellow, particularly to younger voters like HBS students. He seems to get it. He seems to speak the same language. There’s a cultural and generational affinity.”
Then, there is the Republican brand, as Peterson put it. “The Republican brand is badly damaged among many voters whose preferences resemble our HBS sample: independent-minded, younger, upper-middle-class swing voters. To many of these voters, the GOP really puts the Old in Grand Old Party. It’s likely that this Party doesn’t like to party. And boy, the Republican Party is super white. There’s a cultural and generational gap.”
Indeed, the HBS vote could be little more than a reflection of the wide diversity of HBS students today, particularly compared to the 1970s when Romney strolled the campus and every member of his study group was a white male. Some 39% of the second-year MBAs at Harvard today are women, while 23% are U.S. ethnic minorities and 34% are international, representing 68 countries. It’s truly a melting pot.