Category: Orlando Real Estate

Are you a licensed real estate agent? Pan Am Real Estate is now accepting new agents into our company. We have welcomed four new agents in the past week! Pan Am’s broker and owner is a real estate attorney who has practiced real estate law for over 14 years. Our agents always have access to our broker/attorney for assistance with their real estate questions.

We don’t maintain an office where you have to come in and report to. You are an independent contractor who will be in business for yourself – and we will be there to help. So you can work from your home – or car! Marketing is a big part of what we do and we will work with you to help you prospect and obtain leads. Most big companies provide marketing assistance by giving monthly speeches to the group, or show you where to find videos online. And if you want personal coaching you normally need to pay a monthly fee. Times are changing. We always provide personal guidance and are available to help in any way we can.

Also, it doesn’t matter if you are a member of the local Realtor Board/MLS or not. We can set you up so that you legally pay no Board fees if you are not ready to do so at this time.

And did I mention there are no monthly fees? You will never pay a fee to be an agent with our company. So, if you sell properties full time, you will do great with us and keep most of your commissions. And if you just want to hang your license and only do a transaction if and when that opportunity comes up, you are welcome as well and it won’t cost you anything.

For further info on opportunities with Pan Am Real Estate, please contact Real Estate Broker and Attorney at Law David Dowell by phone/text at (407) 864-2265, by email at david@PanAmOrlando.com, or visit us online at www.PanAmOrlando.com.

Forbes magazine recently released its list of the fastest growing cities in the United States. Orlando came in second, with six of the top 10 fastest growing cities being in Florida. What a great time for us to buy or sell!

The official top 10 list is:

1. Cape Coral/Ft. Myers, FL
2. Orlando/Kissimmee, F
3. Provo, UT
4. Daytona Beach/Deltona, FL
5. Jacksonville, FL
6. Sarasota/Bradenton, FL
7. Seattle, WA
8. Tampa/St. Pete, FL
9. Portland, OR
10. Salt Lake City, UT

Orlando’s home price growth for 2016 was 9.52%, and is projected to have a growth rate of 8.64% in 2017. So what does that mean for us? Well, if you are considering buying a home, now is the time. Buying now could give you the opportunity for increases in your new home’s value in the near future. And if you already own, you home’s value is probably at its highest value in many years. So selling could be beneficial to you as well.

Either way, we all benefit when the real estate market is active and values are increasing. As home values go up and transactions take place, more people are buying appliances, yard tools, grills, and so on. More handy men have work. This means people have more money to spend in restaurants and stores, thereby benefitting servers, stock boys, and more. Also, the county collects more property taxes in order to provide all of us with better police and fire services and other benefits.

For your FREE Buyer book or Seller book, please go to www.FreePropertyGuides.com. They’re all free and there’s no obligation. For more general information on buying or selling, please contact real estate broker and real estate attorney, David Dowell, by phone/text at (407) 864-2265, or by email at david@PanAmOrlando.com, or visit us online at www.PanAmOrlando.com.

The St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital is a pediatric treatment and research facility focused on children’s catastrophic diseases. There are no costs charged to the kids to be treated at the hospital. It is located in Memphis, Tennessee, and is a nonprofit medical corporation.

Research at St. Jude has completely changed how doctors treat children with cancer and other catastrophic illnesses. Since St. Jude was established, the survival rate for acute lymphoblastic leukemia, the most common type of childhood cancer, has increased from 4 percent in 1962 to 94 percent today. During this time, the overall survival rate for childhood cancers has risen from 20 percent to 80 percent. St. Jude has treated children from across the United States and from more than 70 countries. Doctors across the world consult with St. Jude on their toughest cases. Also, St. Jude has an International Outreach Program to improve the survival rates of children with catastrophic illnesses worldwide through the transfer of knowledge, technology and organizational skills.

St. Jude needs your support in order to continue helping the kids. Please consider donating anything you can to help this cause. You are also invited to join friends for the third annual St. Jude Orlando Gala, benefiting the lifesaving mission of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Enjoy cocktails, dinner and a live and silent auction. Guests will be inspired by a St. Jude patient speaker, and will end the night with dancing and live entertainment. All proceeds from this gala further the St. Jude mission – finding cures and saving children.

For more information on how to support the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital or the upcoming St. Jude Orlando Gala, please visit www.stjude.org or contact real estate broker and real estate attorney, David Dowell, by phone/text at (407) 864-2265, or by email at david@PanAmOrlando.com

If you are looking to buy a home in Orlando or the Central Florida area, you will want to start with a search on the Orlando real estate MLS. MLS means Multiple Listing Service. The MLS is a service provided by all Realtors who are members of the Orlando Regional Realtor Association and the Mid Florida Regional MLS. Not all licensed real estate agents are Realtors. The term Realtor is reserved for those agents who are members of these two organizations and who adhere to a strict code of ethics. When dealing with a licensed Orlando real estate agent, be sure to inquire whether he or she is also a Realtor.

The Orlando real estate MLS contains every house listed for sale in Orlando and the Central Florida area. If you are looking to buy a home in Orlando then the Orlando real estate MLS is where you need to start. It is a powerful search engine that will allow you to search properties based on any parameters you desire. By zip code, community, house size, price, amenities, number of bedrooms, etc. You can combine as many of these parameters as you wish in order to find the perfect Orlando area home for sale.

Once you narrow your search to a few homes that you have an interest in, you will be able to see all details regarding those homes, such as location, size of rooms, amenities, year built, price, school district, and so on. Once you know what you are looking for, then you should contact a Realtor who can do a more thorough search and who can use his expertise to advise you on how to proceed and how to negotiate and prepare an offer that is right for you.

The Orlando real estate MLS is a great tool to use to get started on your search for homes in Orlando and Central Florida. You can access the Orlando real estate MLS on our website at YourOrlandoRealty.com. If you have any question on the Orlando real estate MLS please contact us for help.

So you are ready to move to the City Beautiful? Welcome to Orlando! People have many reasons for moving to Orlando, including the sunny skies, the golf courses, the outdoor activities, the dining and entertainment choices, diverse culture and interesting employment opportunities. No matter what the reason is behind the move, everyone runs into the same logistical challenges. This article pulls together a variety of resources to help you bypass the red tape and get your new life off to a smooth start.

Neighborhood

Most likely, your first priority is choosing a place to live. Whether you plan to rent an apartment or purchase a home, your search for a home is probably best started by selecting a neighborhood.

Where you live may depend on where you are going to work. Otherwise, you may just be drawn to a specific part of Orlando. Windermere is known for the upscale mansions and homes to celebrities. Dr. Phillips is known as an upscale residential and entertainment area, close to the tourist corridor. Celebration is Disney’s planned community with a combination of homes, business and entertainment. Lake Nona is the newest of Orlando’s upscale neighborhoods which is now the new home of Medical City, an enormous complex of medical facilities which will bring in thousands of high paying jobs and residents. Please visit the communities section at our website www.YourOrlandoRealty.com to get a better idea of the communities and neighborhoods in the Orlando area.

Housing

Once you’ve selected an area or two, take a look at our MLS search engine to locate homes with the specific details that interest you. This will give you a great idea as to what homes in your preferred neighborhoods, with your specific criteria, are selling for. You then can contact Orlando’s premier real estate and legal team to help you view and purchase the Orlando home of your dreams. Moving to Orlando does not have to be difficult and we at YourOrlandoRealty.com try to make it as enjoyable and stress-free as possible.

Utilities

In Orlando, your electric power will be provided by either Orlando Utilities Commission (407-423-9018), Kissimmee Utility Authority (407-933-9800) or Progress Energy (407-629-1010). Water service is normally provided by your local city. Because of so many people using cell phones these days, along with phone service provided by cable providers, there are not a lot of big companies providing home phone service any more. However, AT&T is still probably the largest provider in Orlando. The primary cable company in Orlando is Brighthouse cable (866-309-EASY). DIRECTV and Dish Network are also popular satellite TV companies.

Employment

Unless you moved to Orlando with a job offer in hand, your next concern will probably be finding gainful employment in our beautiful city. For this, we would encourage you to visit sites such as www.orlandojobs.com, www.orlandosentinel.com and www.craigslist.com.

Transportation

Once you’ve selected a job or school, you’re going to need a way to get there. Orlando is a city widely spread out so you will definitely need a car. It is not a city where you typically can walk from your home to work and play. However, Orlando offers a wonderful city-wide bus service called Lynx. If you’re going to drive, you’ll need to obtain a Florida Driver’s License and register your vehicle with Florida tags.Florida law requires that you get a Florida drivers license within 30 days of becoming a resident of Florida. You are a resident if you do one of the following:

1.  Accept employment
2. Enroll your children in a Florida public school
3.  Register to Vote
4.  File for a homestead exemption
5.  Reside in Florida for more than six consecutive months

We hope this information will help as you move to Orlando. For any further questions or help in your moving to Orlando adventure, feel free to call us at 407-864-2551, or visit us at www.YourOrlandoRealty.com and we will try to put you in touch with the appropriate information sources.

With so many people talking about short sales these days, we just wanted to give you some short sales information. These seem to be the most commonly asked questions that we receive regarding short sales?

What is a short sale?

A short sale is a transaction in which the lender, or lenders, agree to accept less than the mortgage amount owed by the current homeowner. In almost all cases, the difference is forgiven by the lender. This will be spelled out by the contract that the homeowner negotiates with the lender.

Why is the number of short sales rising?

Due to the recent economic crisis, including rising unemployment, and drops in home prices in Orlando and other communities throughout the country, the number of short sales is increasing. Since a short sale generally costs the lender less than a foreclosure, it can be a viable way for a lender to minimize its losses. A short sale can also be the best option for a homeowner who is “upside down” on the mortgage, because a short sale may not hurt their credit history as much as a foreclosure or bankruptcy. As a result, homeowners may qualify for another mortgage sooner once they get back on their feet financially.

Can the short sale be closed rather quickly?

Unfortunately, short sales can take from a few months to a year to close. For this reason, short sales are more popular with investors and others who do not need to move in to their new house promptly.

Can the seller make a profit from the short sale?

A seller cannot receive any proceeds from the short sale. Don’t forget that the lender is willing to accept a discount on their loan in order to minimize their loss. In return, the lender will not allow the seller to receive any money whatsoever from the short sale transaction. In fact, lenders also look very closely at other expenses associated with the deal and try to keep those low. The lower the fees and costs are, the more money the lender will receive – and the less the loss will be!

Are short sale houses in bad condition?

Short sale houses are not typically in bad shape like many foreclosures are. In a foreclosure, the homeowner has, in essence, been kicked out and they are sometimes bitter. This can result in damages to the house. But in a short sale, the homeowner is frequently still in the house and therefore tends to maintain the house in reasonable shape. The homeowner also realizes that the goal of conducting a short sale is to avoid other consequences, such as foreclosure or bankruptcy. So they definitely have an interest in keeping it in good enough shape to get a good sale price.

For more information on the short sale process, we encourage you to speak to a qualified short sale realtor or to an attorney at law. At YourOrlandoRealty.com, we can provide this to you. Please contact us today.

Are you looking for an Orlando real estate company? There are hundreds, if not thousands, of real estate companies in Orlando and the Central Florida area. Finding just one Orlando real estate company to work with you in your quest to buy or sell an Orlando home can be difficult. We understand that there are many good real estate companies that you can work with, and we appreciate very much those of you who have chosen to allow us to assist you in your search to buy or sell your Orlando homes.

We at YourOrlandoRealty.com are a part of La Rosa Realty in Celebration, Florida – an Orlando Real Estate Company with nearly 300 real estate agents located throughout Florida and New York. We believe that honesty and integrity are every bit as important as possessing the skills to market a house or to negotiate a purchase or sale price. When you contact us, you are assured that confidentiality is also one of our top priorities.

We are also a licensed attorney at law, who can assist and advise you on any issue that comes up regarding the legal process of trying to close the transaction. Real estate transactions never seem to go as smooth as one wishes, that’s why we are available to you with this service.

We are also an Orlando real estate company that provides you with one of the most advanced real estate websites out there. Our powerful search engine will allow you to search for any home or real estate for sale in the Orlando and Central Florida area. You have the ability to use any number of parameters to help with your search.

So we do hope that the next time you think of an Orlando real estate company, you will think of YourOrlandoRealty.com. Please browse through our website to look at all the Orlando homes for sale. At any time during the process, if you have any questions about the Orlando homes for sale, or about the real estate market in general, please contact us for assistance.

So you are ready to move to the City Beautiful? Welcome to Orlando! People have many reasons for moving to Orlando, including the sunny skies, the golf courses, the outdoor activities, the dining and entertainment choices, diverse culture and interesting employment opportunities. No matter what the reason is behind the move, everyone runs into the same logistical challenges. This article pulls together a variety of resources to help you bypass the red tape and get your new life off to a smooth start.

Neighborhood

Most likely, your first priority is choosing a place to live. Whether you plan to rent an apartment or purchase a home, your search for a home is probably best started by selecting a neighborhood.

Where you live may depend on where you are going to work. Otherwise, you may just be drawn to a specific part of Orlando. Windermere is known for the upscale mansions and homes to celebrities. Dr. Phillips is known as an upscale residential and entertainment area, close to the tourist corridor. Celebration is Disney’s planned community with a combination of homes, business and entertainment. Lake Nona is the newest of Orlando’s upscale neighborhoods which is now the new home of Medical City, an enormous complex of medical facilities which will bring in thousands of high paying jobs and residents. Please visit the communities section at our website www.YourOrlandoRealty.com to get a better idea of the communities and neighborhoods in the Orlando area.

Housing

Once you’ve selected an area or two, take a look at our MLS search engine  to locate homes with the specific details that interest you. This will give you a great idea as to what homes in your preferred neighborhoods, with your specific criteria, are selling for. You then can contact Orlando’s premier real estate and legal team to help you view and purchase the Orlando home of your dreams. Moving to Orlando does not have to be difficult and we at YourOrlandoRealty.com try to make it as enjoyable and stress-free as possible.

Utilities

In Orlando, your electric power will be provided by either Orlando Utilities Commission (407-423-9018), Kissimmee Utility Authority (407-933-9800) or Progress Energy (407-629-1010). Water service is normally provided by your local city. Because of so many people using cell phones these days, along with phone service provided by cable providers, there are not a lot of big companies providing home phone service any more. However, AT&T is still probably the largest provider in Orlando. The primary cable company in Orlando is Brighthouse cable (866-309-EASY). DIRECTV and Dish Network are also popular satellite TV companies.

Employment

Unless you moved to Orlando with a job offer in hand, your next concern will probably be finding gainful employment in our beautiful city. For this, we would encourage you to visit sites such as www.orlandojobs.com, www.orlandosentinel.com and www.craigslist.com.

Transportation

Once you’ve selected a job or school, you’re going to need a way to get there. Orlando is a city widely spread out so you will definitely need a car. It is not a city where you typically can walk from your home to work and play. However, Orlando offers a wonderful city-wide bus service called Lynx. If you’re going to drive, you’ll need to obtain a Florida Driver’s License and register your vehicle with Florida tags. Florida law requires that you get a Florida drivers license within 30 days of becoming a resident of Florida. You are a resident if you do one of the following:

1.  Accept employment
2. Enroll your children in a Florida public school
3.  Register to Vote
4.  File for a homestead exemption
5.  Reside in Florida for more than six consecutive months

We hope this information will help as you move to Orlando. For any further questions or help in your moving to Orlando adventure, feel free to contact us and we will try to put you in touch with the appropriate information sources.