Michael Schaefer

Are there differences? Oh heck yes….! Huge differences. Keep reading.

Americans are used to deal with Brokers / Realtors nearly every time when buying and selling Real Estate. Germans not so much. This Blog talks about the reasons and the huge differences in these 2 countries.

In the USA Realtors are educated, trained, incensed and insured and therefore somehow nearly on an equal level like attorneys or at least official professionals. In Europe, everyone can purchase a Real Estate license. It’s as simple as it gets: You need no education or continuing training, and only very few licensees are insured. They are somewhere on the level of car salespeople or vultures. Therefore let’s take a closer look at the differences:

US clients:

In nearly all states in the US buyers don’t have to pay their Broker to help them locate a property and deal with the paperwork and closing. The seller is responsible for the total commission. It would therefore actually be kind of stupid for any buyer NOT to hire a Broker. Each party has its own agent: The seller has his agent and he pays the full commission once a buyer was located and the deal closed. The buyer has his own agent who does not cost him a dime no matter if he finds him a property or not.

The seller’s agent only represents his seller and the buyer’s agent only represents his customer. The seller’s agent will be paid the full commission from his customer once the property sells. This means buyers won’t safe anything if they are not represented by their own agent because the seller’s agent has to spill the commission with the buyer’s agent. While under contract with the sales agent, buyers are usually not allowed to sell the property to anyone privately.

What about For Sales By Owners?

Yes, these properties are out there, but in order to understand why such properties usually are not a good deal, you need to understand how Realtors work and how they are educated.

How Realtors are born:

I was a Realtor and custom home builder in Germany from 1984 to 2005 before we moved to Florida. In order to sell real estate to customers in the States, I had to go through the same process as everyone else. No shortcut for anyone. No matter how old or how experienced you are. You get the same treatment as everyone else. This means you have to go to school for 2 long weeks. Sounds easy, but it’s not. There is a lot to learn in these 2 weeks. You then have to pass a class exam and after that comes the State exam. that’s a tough one and the failure rate is about 65% of all who try. I know a few people who never passed the exam and therefore aren’t allowed to sell real estate. Once you passed the exam you are a “Sales Associate”. You have to split a commission with the owner of the office – called the Broker and you can’t open your own office yet. You have to work under an experienced Broker fore at least 24 months. Then you could open your own office, but you still need to have a Broker in the office. This means you would have to split your commission.

The only way you don’t have to split your commission is to apply for your own “Brokers” license. For this, you have to go back to school again. Longer this time. Harder this time. Pass the school exam and the State exam and you are your own boss who can keep 100% of everything he or she earns. The failure rate is even higher this time. On top of this, all sales agents have to attend and pass their continuing education in order to keep their license active. Each sales agent has very high liability insurance. Usually 2 million coverage. Statements we make better be 100% correct. If not, customers can easily sue us and are covered through this insurance. Wouldn’t it therefore be stupid not to hire a sales agent if you want to purchase anything?

And in Germany?

There is a soft background check for applicants, but as long as you haven’t been in jail, killed anyone or have a background in tricking customers, chances are good you will receive your license. No training offered or required, no liability insurance and no regulation at all. Like selling cars – right? Everyone can do it.

Access to listings

In Europe, each Realtor has his own listings. Thanks to the internet, it is now a bit easier to find a property, but you might have to see several Brokers before you can close a deal. It’s not clear who is paying the commission. Sometimes its the buyer, sometimes the seller, sometimes both of them. One thing is sure though: No commission ain’t no option even if it’s advertised that way. In Europe, there is no law forcing Brokers to reveal if they are getting paid from both sides or if they have rolled in the commissions into the sales price of the property. Yes, that’s considered legal there.

Comparables:

In Europe, it’s tough enough to find comparable properties. Most properties vary a lot in style, size, and location. You might have a chance at Condos and Duplexes since they are built often and relatively equal, but there is no system to find such sales. You can try to go online and find sales, but you won’t find specific data. Therefore sellers can pretty much ask whatever they want. If you pay it and later discover you have been screwed, you can’t hold your sales agent responsible. He probably didn’t know either and he has no insurance to cover your loss. All you can do is sue the seller. Good luck! This will cost you a lot of money and the result is undetermined. Only death and taxes are certain.

Thank heaven for our MLS

I recall it was tried many times to establish the MLS ( Multiple Listing System ) in Europe but Brokers with good listings never put them in because they didn’t want to share their commission. Since there is no real Estate Commission who could force Realtor to get educated and force them to put each listing in the MLS , it is needless to say Europe is still the Wild West when it comes to buying and selling Real Estate.

US sales agents have to put every listing in the MLS and EVERY agent in the area has access to all of them. All the time. 24/7. As a buyer, you can work with any agent. Does this mean we are all the same? Heck no!! As in every market and job, the experience is extremely important. Although buyers don’t pay commission they should still do their due diligence and research the agent they want to work with. In the end, your gut feeling will still be a huge influence, but even the worst agent has sold properties in our area.

Sellers agent:

It’s a totally different picture when looking for an agent to sell your property. Let the rookies get their experience with someone else. Here we are talking about YOUR money. We make it look easy to tell you how much your property is worth, but it isn’t. An experienced Broker has different strategies on how to approach your sale. Since you are paying this agent, go and look for a good one. Research is absolutely necessary.

Facit:

Europeans need to understand the differences in the 2 systems. Sales agents in the US are different in education and reputation. As a buyer, you are only represented when you have your own sales agent. The seller’s agent has no reason to get you the best deal. He only represents his customer – the seller. He is not obligated to tell you everything. As a buyer get your sales agent and rely on him to get you the best deal for the best price. And if this agent messes up and something goes wrong, financially you are still safe thanks to our liability insurance. As a seller: Don’t try to save a few bucks and do it yourself: it ain’t worth it. Experience comes at a price. A price you have already saved and used when you bought the property.

Find out if I might be a good fit to represent you in your transaction while checking out my resume @ https://floridasouthwestrentals.com/about-us/

With this blog, I’m not intending to lure you to list or sell your property with me. Within the last 36 years in this industry, I’ve simply seen too many people get screwed and therefore I decided to give a quick overview of what you should know before you engage with any Realtor. In Europe, it’s way more complicated to find your dream property. Each Broker has ONLY his own listings. Most often you have to deal with a few salespersons until you find what you were looking for.

In the United States, we have the MLS ( Multiple Listing System ) in every district/city. All brokers/sales agents have access to ALL the same information and the same properties. This should actually mean it shouldn’t matter which agent you hire. Well: Let’s find out!

Experience especially counts when it comes to listing your home for sale. It is quite simple to find the value of a property since so many homes are alike. All a sales agent has to do is to find comparable properties within a decent neighborhood and distance that have about the same size, age, and condition. Sounds fairly simple but still so many agents mess up. In my opinion for them it’s often more important to get the listing no matter if the price is right. Whenever and for whatever price this listing sells, 50% of the commission is guaranteed to end up in their pocket. I haven’t seen many agents walk away when a listing is too high to sell. My experience with other agents is, that they list the property no matter what. Overpriced properties aren’t getting showings. These agents hope to convince their sellers over time to reduce the price.

The first few days a property is listed are most crucial. Nobody should waste these important first days with a listing too high to sell. Even if you find a buyer willing to pay the asking price, you might still lose the deal when the buyer orders an appraisal. As much as I understand sellers wanting to get as much as possible, I also understand buyers who won’t pay more than a property is worth.

This means, you should value an agent who has the guts to walk away from a listing if he can’t agree on a realistic listing price with his sellers. So here is your answer when talking about a “Listing” Agent: They are by far not all the same. If this agent can’t convince you 100% why what he or she tells you is the highest and best you can get for your property, then it’s not the right agent for you. Period.

Now let’s talk about buying a property. Since every agent has the same access to the same listings, it shouldn’t make a difference whom you pick. Not quite right either. When I talk to buyers who have worked with other agents before they wondered why these other agents haven’t shown them the properties I did, although these properties had been on the market already back then.

The system is quite easy to handle, but you still need to know what your buyer is looking for. I personally take the most time talking to my buyers about what they are looking for before we go out and tour listings. In my 36 years in the industry, I rarely showed a customer more than 10 properties, but I know agents working with clients whom they had shown hundreds of homes. Literally. I’m not kidding!! Needless to say, these clients are frustrated and probably don’t know what they have seen in the past and or even what they are really looking for

Miraculously even the worst agents close deals because their clients don’t know what their agents could have done better or simply cause another agent sold their listing. In this case, both parties are happy unless complications arise. And they often do. A buyer often needs further help before closing. The agent should help but often does not because they are afraid they give a customer a bad tip and might get sued for it. Each agent has to go to school and pass some serious tests before they are allowed to sell properties. Here they hear about what they are NOT allowed to do. And it’s a lot we aren’t allowed to do. A good agent will help you anyway. He knows his skills.

When it comes to complications or renegotiations, it always pays to have an experienced Realtor as your agent. Each sale and purchase involves some serious amount of money and I always advise to look for experienced partners in every transaction.

A bit of good advice: Follow your gut. Talk with a few agents before you hire anyone. Research each of them. How long are they working in the industry, how many sales have they done, how’s their website looking etc. The best agent might be the one you agree least on the sales price if you are a seller. Since you have to work with him, you should still kind of like him or her a little. This helps, but in the end, listen to your gut.

Educate yourself

You can do a lot yourself BEFORE you hire anyone. Go and check out the market and neighborhood for values yourself. If possible, don’t do it with Zillow. I’ve written a detailed blog why their content isn’t as realistic as it should be. This link gives you free access to our local MLS. No pressure. No time limit. No phone calls. You don’t even have to leave your contact info.

Fazit:

Not all brokers/sales agents are equal. We all get the same education and we all have the same tools to work with, but the experience is something you can’t learn in school. I would be thrilled to hear from you and be one of the agents you are talking to. Call or email me any time for your completely free 30 minutes consultation over the phone or in person. Read my Bio HERE

Usually every 2 months I’m performing a detailed market check about the supply and demand for real estate in our area. My last check performed beginning of November 2019 revealed a still healthy market of demand and supply. My gut feeling is bothering me a long time since I can see what’s going on and I wondered if the market had changed.

When driving around with customers it bugged me a long time seeing all these new constructions coming up. Especially when it comes to apartments. There are A LOT being built right now. When I was a builder in Germany, we also built Apartment complexes, but we NEVER started before we hadn’t sold at LEAST 50% of the complex. In Florida, nearly all of the new construction are SPEC Homes / Apartments. This means they are built, but there is no buyer yet. Especially in a buyers market, this can turn into a disaster.

Is it a buyers market again?

It’s a buyers market when the supply dramatically exceeds the demand. In order to find out if it got better or worse, comparing the numbers from 2 months with the current supply I think we are getting there!! These are numbers from single-family homes that aren’t located on any waterfront

And the winner is: LEHIGH

This confirms the reports on TV and on the web: Lehigh as the fastest growing City in SW Florida. It’s no longer this boring town off everything. It’s getting big, but it’s still the place where you can get the most for your money. It was the only city where the supply shrunk. In all other cities, supply grew. The next chart shows single-family homes again, but this time waterfront:

And the winner is Lehigh again

I agree: There aren’t too many homes in Lehigh sitting on any kind of Lake or Canal. BUT: If you can get one: Buy it. Lehigh again is the only city where it took less time to sell the current supply. Let’s take a look at apartments:

It wasn’t just my gut feeling: Supply really went up!

Supply went up nearly 20% within the last 2 months. This is the result of some of these complexes under construction are hitting the market. But we aren’t done yet: There are a LOT MORE apartment complexes under construction that aren’t considered in the chart. I assume my next comp in 2 months will look even worse. But now take a look at Apartments that are located on some kind of waterfront:

Result: Bad, but not as bad as “off water”

Here we are up 18% in supply and it will take 20% longer to get rid of the supply. This is, of course only if there are not too many new hitting the market. And keep under consideration, that it’s the season: Right now a lot of Snowbirds are here and since our population nearly doubles during this time, so might demand. But season sure ends in about 3 months and then what? Supply as I see it won’t.

Are prices already going down?

Honest answer: No, not yet, but this is to be expected. During the season this won’t happen, but these builders need the money from these sales and the closer we come to the end of 2020 season, I expect some to drop the price or offer other incentives. This could be the start of the downturn.

So what about Commerical then?

Commercial is everything that’s NOT residential. The statistic is not so easy to read since too many different property types are in this list. There are business parks next to warehouses next to gas stations next to malls next to car dealerships. Each of them has a different clientele. The chart would be way too complicated if I spilt it up, but after all these years in this market I can tell you one thing about Commerical real estate as an investment:

Don’t do it!! Or better: Hell no!!

I can personally show you properties that are on the market for YEARS. Right: Years – not just months. There is an office building I know on the market since 2016 and a car dealership right next to an off-ramp from I75 in perfect location vacant for more than 2 years. So unless you need a perfect write off where you nearly guarantee to lose your total investment: Well: Then go for it.

So now what: Am I telling you not to invest in Real Estate any more?

Of course not. All I’m telling you is to be a little more careful. Another crisis is somewhere on the horizon. How fast and how bad will we be hit? Ask me AFTER we have been hit since nobody knows. But waiting and doing nothing until we got hit and prices are dropping is also not a good investment. It might still take years where you can get a good return on your investment. People waiting for “The perfect moment” to get in or out of something usually never do anything.

Summary / Conclusion:

The rental market is going strong. In a real estate downturn, a lot of people will get hit. They will lose their home. These people need to live somewhere. Your rental home will make you money until a crisis hits and even more once we have been hit. So please feel free and take a look at our MLS system on my website. Go to “Homebuyer” and chose Option 1 or 2 to look if there is something that catches your eye and your wallet. I’m happy to assist you whenever you are ready.

About my background:

I was introduced to the industry in Germany back in 1984 selling life insurances and investments.  I could focus on what’s best for my clients instead of chasing money and don’t care. Real Estate is and was a great investment 35 years ago and it was just natural to get involved myself.   

I bought and sold homes and Condos and also became a home builder for brand new homes. Between 1995 and 2004 I’ve built hundreds of homes from single-family over Duplexes up to multi-family homes with hundreds of Condos per complex.    Feel free to use my longterm expertise. I’m not shy to tell you to walk away if it ain’t no fit or if I see anything you won’t. After many years in this country, I can tell you there is a difference between US Brokers and myself. Call me to find out what this might be.

Florida… Sunshine State. According to different weather websites Florida has about 260 days of sunshine per year. You would think the “Sunshine State” therefore is the leader when it comes to Solar energy. Well: think again because we aren’t. We are the taillight.

The short version is that it’s probably never going to happen. For sure not in the close future. Why?   Lobbyists and the 2 providers won’t let it happen. They are used to their great income because it leads to great pensions and a big influence on their CEO’s.

Maybe I hear a BUT: But there is the model town of Solar energy called Babcock Ranch. Right: let’s talk about this disaster later. First, let’s go back in time a bit cause of a funny story.  

I’ve built my home myself in 2005. Born and raised in Germany in an area where solar energy was a matter of course everywhere, it was simply normal I wanted my home to have solar panels and being self-sufficient.  I knew with enough solar panels installed on my roof, I would be able to skip my electric bill completely and maybe even make a few bucks when selling power to the grid. The “selling back”  part blew up in my face first. My provider simply told me they won’t pay me for any power I send back to the grid. OK: not good, but I was still excited and hoped to get away with a very small electric bill since I would only need power at night.

From friends and customers, I knew their energy bills were between a little below $100 to max. $250 per month depending on the temperatures for a home like mine. So I calculated an average $160 energy bill if going with my regular provider. After I heard I can’t sell anything back to the grid I was hoping to get away with about $50 / month. I didn’t expect what’s coming next:

Remember: This was back in 2005: I phoned around to find a dealer for solar panels. No luck. Everyone who had at least al little knowledge in solar power pointed me to British Petrol – BP in California. As a matter of fact, back then BP was the only company providing solar panels for private homes in the US. So I called and I was shocked to get the following facts:

• BP would be able to provide me with Solar panels
• Sales price: $30.000 – wow!!
• Shipping: Extra – of course
• And:  No warranty at all cause they had nobody in our area to install it.  
• Installation: About $5.000

My head started spinning: $35.000 for solar panels to maybe save about $110 per month. That comes down to 318 months to break even. That’s more than 26 years!!! No way the system would last this long.  Common sense made me drop the idea and hook up to the grid with the only provider in my area. Florida Power and light ( FPL )

Now let’s get back to Babcock Ranch: This is how they advertise the area:

• 343.000 Solar panels located on a 440-acre site
• 74.5 megawatts of quiet, zero-emissions energy, enough to power about 15,000 homes
• Emissions prevention equivalent to removing 12,000 cars from the road every year
• Combined with other FPL solar plants, customers will benefit from millions of dollars in savings due to several factors including system fuel savings
• Generating clean, solar power since 2016

Here’s the link to Babcock Ranch.

343.000 solar panels and they even have battery backup. Great. Does it mean homeowners won’t get an electric bill? NO!! Every homeowner at Babcock Ranch is paying exactly THE SAME price per KW than everyone else. The power goes to the grid and FPL sells it back to the homeowners with no credit at all. Ridiculous. If you point to this fact, they try to explain, that their homes only need about $70 per month for energy, because they are all built “High efficient” I’ll be darned: High efficient homes in Florida. Wow. Shouldn’t’ t it be COMMON SENSE to build all homes in Florida this way? I’m sorry, but under these conditions, I won’t point any homebuyers there because let’s not forget there is one winner in all of this: FPL!

• They got the land free from Babcock
• They even got the government to substitute money to build the solar field
• The panels can run up to 15.000 homes, but right now there are maybe 500 so far. Guess what happens with the exceeding power…… you got the picture!  

Babcock Ranch is far off everything and it will take years until this is a city of its own with more amenities. And even then: It’s not worth the extra money homes are going for. This is, of course, my personal opinion.

BUT what about help from the Government?  

Right now the Government grants a financial substitute to people willing to install solar panels on their roofs.  RIGHT!!!  Bit it’s no immediate Credit towards the purchase price but a tax Credit.  Does this mean we will see solar panels everywhere soon? Nope!! It still aint going to happen on a big scale. Here are a few simple facts pointing out why:  

• The financial substitute will decrease each year.
• The later you decide the lower your tax credit will be. 2022 no more Credit at all
• The price for panels is still incredible high: The estimate for my home  in 2019 came back with $32.000

Take a look at the numbers including the tax credit.  They are based on the $32.000 purchase price and an estimated taxable income of $100.000:

If installed in 2019:

If installed 2020:

If installed 2021:

If installed later than 2021:

Let’s do the math:

• Nobody is going to install a system in 2019 anymore. It’s too late in December to do this
• After the tax credit in 2020 the system will cost me $23.680
• This price is without any battery backup system for night use
• Meanwhile, FPL is buying back excess power from private customers at a retail rate of 10,8 Cent / Kwh. Great. Theoretically, you could install a system big enough to earn money during the day so your night usage would be covered. Theoretically. But the power companies allow their customers to install systems meeting up to 115 percent of their current energy needs.  More details see here: https://www.energysage.com/net-metering/fpl/
• These 15%  won’t cover the usage during the night but it’s at least something. See the chart below what uses the most energy. In our area, the AC during also runs at night. Let’s give some credit and assume we use only 30% of our monthly energy bill at nighttime.  
• My overall usage is about 1,500 kW / month.
• 15% ( 225Kw ) I can sell back to FPL for 10,8 Cent / Kw. That’s $24,30 per month.
• Your energy bill is never going down to ZERO, cause there is always some connection fee and government taxes etc.
• Based on the experience at Babcock ranch I heard the overall customer still has a $70 FPL fee. That’s because most homes are highly energy efficient. Let’s assume you build/buy such a home.
• If you now deduct the $24,30 net meeting, the energy bill now goes from $70 down to $45.
• The monthly saving is now about $135
• It would only take 175 months to balance out. That’s still 14.6 years

This is how it is supposed to work:

• Customers installing solar panels should not pay for power at all
• Everyone decides the size and power of the panels themselves
• The power company pays back the excess unlimited – maybe for a lower price
• This would cover the power for the night and the energy bill can be zero.  
• Then it would only take a few years

But this will never happen because a few lobbyists won’t allow it.

Summary / Conclusion:

This is the Sunshine State. But if you are not a real enthusiast or tree hugger and you do it to save our planet,  it’s not going to happen on a big scale.  With 10,8 Cent / Kw the financial incentive simply isn’t big enough. Some homeowners here and there and some smaller areas like Babcock aren’t’ going to save the planet.  It should be mandatory for new homes in the Sunshine State and all other southern States to install solar panels. For this to happen the Government needs to step in. This would mean they have to step on lobbyist’s toes. Therefore: It’s not going to happen.  Pity. We got the technology but as long as money and power are more important than our planet we won’t see it happen.

Americans find it difficult to understand European investors when problems such as non-payment of rent and, in bad cases, even nomadic tenancy arise. We actually almost don’t know such a thing in the USA. We will show you where the differences lie:

In general, it should be noted that the rights for rentals in the USA lie with the owners. Of course, tenants also have countless rights, but when it comes to unpaid lease payments, landlords in the U.S. do not have to stand idly by and often wait many months for often uncollectible payments. Here everything goes a little faster because for damage s up to $5,000 everyone in the US can go and claim it losses through a small claim court. Its a fast court process where you usually don´t need a lawyer to be present. experienced ex-lawyers and judges hear both sides in a court of arbitration and make suggestions on how a judge ruling might go.  More info about the small claim court process can be found here.

https://www.leeclerk.org/courts/small-claims

Let me show you the difference in both countries:

This is how it works in Europe ( especially in Germany )

• The tenant doesn’t pay rent.
• The landlord warns and sets a deadline. Nothing happens.
• Landlord sends the next reminder and sets a new deadline. Nothing happens.
• Landlord threatens with a lawyer, and sets a final deadline. Nothing happens.
• Landlord hires a lawyer. The lawyer writes a letter with a new deadline asking for payment from the tenant. Nothing happens.
• The lawyer writes another letter. Again he sets another deadline. Nothing happens.
• The lawyer announces the court date. Nothing happens.

Until we reach this step, often up to 4 months passed in which the landlord not only did not receive any rent but also had to pay the additional costs of the property to the property management. FINALLY, it comes to a court hearing. Since the tenant has not fulfilled his obligations, the outcome of such negotiations is quite often certain: The tenant is sentenced to the payments for rent, incidental expenses, interest and lawyer’s fees. Great. The rule of law has won. Theoretically….. But what if the tenant still does not pay? The landlord will be held responsible for all previous AND coming costs and expenses. After further often long periods it will come to forced eviction.  Of course, the landlord also bears the costs for this again. Often tenants have disappeared without a trace on the day of the eviction. In this case, the landlord even has to pay for the costs of evacuation and storage of the furniture left behind. A nightmare for everyone who has experienced it.  Loss of rent of 12 or more months (depending on how quickly the landlord reacted at the beginning) is the rule. The legal advice costs cause further costs which can never be collected again. Who has experienced this wants to hear from further lettings often nothing more.

Now let me show you how the same scenario is treated in the USA:

• The tenant doesn’t pay.
• The landlord sends a reminder after 12 days and sets a deadline. Nothing happens.
• The landlord sends another reminder and threatens to go to arbitration. Nothing happens.

Until this deadline max. 1 month has passed. For these cases, the landlord has a 1-month rent deposit. Thus no damage has occurred yet.

• The landlord goes now to the arbitration court. His court date is usually set no later than 3 weeks from now .

The costs for it amount to approx. $300. Depending upon the height of the outstanding amount also a little more.

• The tenant receives the court appointment PERSONALLY through the local sheriff. That leaves an impression.

After max. 2 months both parties meet at the small claim court for negotiation. Since we always collect the last month’s rent for our landlords in addition to the deposit, the landlord actually still has no loss of rent. The outcome of this arbitration procedure is always the same: The tenant is sentenced to payment with a single, but short deadline. It also happens tenants do not pay then as well. The landlord than simply takes his judgment back to court and tells he hasn’t received payment. The court immediately orders the eviction. This decision is handed over to the tenant again by the Sheriff personally.  Often the tenants have already disappeared by this time. The sheriff visibly clamps the note to the front door, which is clearly visible to every passer-by just because of the red color of the paper.  The eviction takes place within a few days afterward. This is carried out by 2 sheriffs in the presence of the landlord. If the tenant is still in the property, he will be arrested right away. If he has disappeared, the landlord has now received his property back legally and can immediately re-rent it. The landlord can keep all furniture and everything else in the property or put it on the street as bulky waste.   The maximum loss of the landlord amounts to approx. 1 month’s rent plus low court costs plus any possible damage to the property by the tenant. In contrast to Europe a dream state.

Not only the rights of the landlord are better in the USA – also the yield: 10% per year are the rule.

Single-family houses are often unaffordable in Europe and not suitable as a yield property. This is why apartments are usually rented throughout Europe.  In the event of a loss of rent, the owner must also pay the ancillary costs. Especially in our region in Florida, however, detached single-family houses are the better yield. Reasonable properties are already available from $150,000. Depending on location and condition, you get between $1200 – $1600 rent per month. In the table, I have calculated a small example, what kind of expenses and incomes you can count on based on a property purchased for $200,000.  I have calculated price and value increases at 6%. The costs for the acquisition of the tenant are only incurred in the 1st year:

• Average return on rental income: 5.72%. This is at least 5.72% more than on a savings account in Europe or even more on a negative interest rate policy.
• Rental income in 5 years: $ 57.190 that is approx. 30% on the invested capital
• Increase in value of the object: $52,495
• Total revenue/profit after 5 years: $109,685 – that’s almost 55% on invested capital or 11% per year

I understand that you are a little hesitant to believe these numbers. Thanks to the MLS search system in Florida, which is freely accessible to everyone, you can see for yourself. On my website under “Homebuyer” and Option 1 you have the possibility to verify the possible rental income yourself. I have searched for properties in Cape Coral with min. 3 bedrooms and a min. 1.500 sq ft ( approx. 140 m2 ) living space, which should not be older than 25 years. The input looks like this: 

And to find out how many properties are currently for sale in our area up to $200,000, you can easily test with these specifications on the same page:

When I checked today there were just under 1,000 properties in Cape Coral for less than $200,000. A dream for investors and all wannabees.  Feel free to try different entries on my site and feel free to contact me if you have any questions.

One more word about financing:

Financing, in general, is possible for foreigners in the USA with equity capital of at least 25%. The interest rates are much higher than in Europe. In addition, the bank charges (closing fees ) a quite high fee for the mediation of such a loan. In addition, the processing is lengthy and complicated. If you don’t want to miss our bargains and are dependent on financing, the procurement of the money via Europe is a much cheaper way.

Since 1994 I have been renting properties in Florida myself. So far there has only been 1 case where the arbitration procedure had to be applied.  As a property manager, I take over the search for suitable tenants. I perform a detailed background check for the costs of which the tenant himself pays. Suitable tenants must always hand over 3 months’ rent before moving into an object. This covers the 1st month, the last month and the deposit. This procedure alone ensures that you hardly get any defaulting tenants. Whoever has this much money usually also have sufficient income to pay further rent.

Conclusion:

Do it. Do it now. Negative interest for money in the bank in Europe is a clear sign. Don’t leave your money rotting away. I’m here for any questions you might have. Call me

Here all links again:

– Info about arbitration court: https://www.leeclerk.org/courts/small-claims

– Link to MLS on my page: https://floridasouthwestrentals.com/home-buyer/

The snowbirds are coming back and they often don’t like how their property looks. They thought they’d paid a management company to take care of their property, but it looks like hell. 

Did it happen to you too – or not YET???? Chances are, it might happen to you as well. I heard the excuse it seems to be in human nature to mess up. Crap. These boys are simply lazy and getting paid for not doing a ( good ) job which is better than working hard. Yes,  I agree: The summers in Florida are brutal. It ain’t funny to work. You sweat like hell whatever you do. But as a management company, you do have a responsibility towards a property owner who has often paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to purchase a lovely home and who also happens to pay a lot of money for regular maintenance to keep it up.

Here’s the problem: There are a few jobs where people think EVERYONE can do them. Cleaning homes and pools, yard work and of course property management. How hard can it be to look after a ( vacant ) property once in a while? Exactly!! It can be darn hard and very challenging if you aren’t in the real estate industry, if you aren’t very organized and if you aren’t detailed in your communication with the owners.

1. Managers who aren’t in the Real Estate business: it’s not an obligation to be a RE specialist, but it sure helps. When it comes to repairs, it’s always good to have some background knowledge. It happens often that unexperienced customers don’t get the best price for repairs. Since I’m in this business since 1984 and since I’ve built any kind of homes imaginable, I think I can get you a decent price for any repairs.
2. being organized: Let’s look at the fact of being organized: the property owner pays a monthly fee for management services. He expects whoever gets the money will look after his property on a regular basis. YOU THINK!! Let’s talk about a few stories I’ve personally witnessed with or heard from property owners that tell a different story:
   • Pool pump shot: This tells us the pool company responsible for the regular cleaning did not do what they were supposed to do AND the property management company did not check the property and the pool company. I can’t tell how many owners have complained about green pools and shot pumps.
   • Mold in the home: The owner comes back after several months up north and enters the home. Mold everywhere. As a fact, the company responsible for his home never went inside and therefore never noticed a water leak. Damage: Severe!!
   • Water invoice incredible high: Management companies are supposed to check everything. A leaking toilet can cause a serious amount on the next water bill. It happens often
   • Electric bill extremely high:  Pool heaters use a lot of energy. It’s the responsibility of the management to check they are off after tenants or even the owner left. Unattended they run every day for sometimes over a month and the owner has to pay for.
   • House dirty: Now I sure got your attention: It happens to the best and I know it’s hard to check the cleaning crew after each job. But we get paid for these services and we have to.  Vacation homes experience it most often, but it can be avoided. It’s tough to find a good crew, but people with honor and pride are out there
3. Detailed communication: Snowbirds and European owners are often far away from the properties for a long time.  They need to know what’s going on. The easiest way to make them feel comfortable is to talk to them. A phone call from time to time works wonder.  But even better are written reports. A simple email every week after each visit with information what was found ( or better what was NOT found ) gives owners peace of mind.  Since it’s hard to write detailed emails, I, for example, spent nearly $1.000 for the best speech recognition software you can find on this planet. With this, I can write detailed reports in minutes. My owners love it and it gives them peace of mind their property is in good hands.

I could go on for another few pages, but I guess you got my drift. A supposedly simple job turned out to be a nightmare for the owner. How can it be done better?

This business is based on trust and referral. People doing a good job are tough to find because they are busy. Never sign a long-term contract with a new company. Let them explain what they are doing and give it a try. 2 months should give you a good idea with whom you are dealing with.

Why is it owners don’t switch services to other companies even when they are unhappy?  I’m in this industry since 1984 and in Florida since 2004 and after talking to lots of people it’s often for the same reason: owners don’t know what happens with the next company and therefore give the old manager another chance…. And another…. And another. Until they got really frustrated.

If you are not ready to move, but still aren’t 100% happy, then why don’t we start working to build a business relationship with another topic. I can help you with getting more tenants. Our biweekly newsletter with news about Florida, vacation, real estate and other interesting topics goes out to about 800.000 business customers worldwide.  I’m not kidding or exaggerating. This is for real. I found a way to make this happen. This number of emails nearly a guarantee we will find people interested to rent your home.  Of course, we only charge if we find a tenant. You can list your home right on this website. Call or email me for further questions.

We are not saying we are the best. Nobody should say this. Mistakes happen. We all have good and bad days. We are all humans.  But maybe it has something to do with how we’ve been raised. We were born in Germany and we have been trained common sense, reliability, punctuality, and politeness.  That’s what we stand for and that’s what our customers appreciate and honor.  We are also not saying we are the only ones working this way in the area, but if anything of the above got your attention, right now  I’m the closest thing for you to get more bookings and probably a better service with managing your home.

I’m looking forward to hearing from you  

In the USA, the IRS office treats investors far more sensibly and fair than in many other countries – above all much more fair than in Europe.

Imagine the following scenario: You buy a property, remodel it a little and sell it for a profit. You invest this amount again in another property, repeat the same procedure and do not pay taxes again.  There is no limit to how often you can repeat this. And in fact: you never pay any taxes. Fantastic – isn’t it?

How much does my money buy? Find out for free right HERE

And everything is completely legal, you ask yourself? Absolutely! A dream state for European investors. While in Europe every profit has to be taxed, in the USA there is a legal possibility to prevent this. It is called: 1031 Exchange

In overall, that’s how it works:

If you sell your first property at a profit, the profit remains in a trust company. You may not use this profit for any other purpose. Now you have a certain amount of time to acquire another property. A small catch: this object must have at least the same or a higher purchase price than the sum of the preceding object and everything must go in a firmly regulated period over the stage.

Can everyone do this?

Yes: regardless of the immigration status, any person or company can take advantage of this tax advantage. Here is the catch: if a foreigner makes a profit in the USA (no matter with which investment), their worldwide income will be subject to taxation in their home country.

How much does my money buy? Find out for free right HERE

Too bad… Is it?

Not at all: Remember: Officially you are not making a profit yet. It’s tax-deferred and therefore there is no need to mention it in your income statement.   

You can also purchase the property in the name of a company.  Complicated – complex – expensive? Absolutely not. Starting and running a company in the USA is much easier than you know it from Europe. No constant calls, letters or other harassment from the IRS. The annual tax return is a joke. Income minus expenses result in either a profit or a loss. Annual total costs for a company: Approx. $500 which are of course also tax-deductible. If you wish, I can manage this company for you. You can find more about this topic in my blog about companies in the USA. 

Of course, there are a few more little things to consider that go far beyond the scope of this block. Nevertheless, I would like to address the basic questions here so that you can decide whether such an investment is suitable for you.

How much does my money buy? Find out for free right HERE

The term 1031 Exchange is defined under section 1031 of the IRS Code. (1) To put it simply, this strategy allows an investor to “defer” paying capital gains taxes on an investment property when it is sold, as long as another “like-kind property” is purchased with the profit gained by the sale of the first property.  It, therefore, allows a real estate investor to shift the focus of their investing without incurring tax liability. 

Normally when you sell an investment property, you are obligated to pay capital gains tax – if you made a profit. Now you can make a killing using this powerful strategy.

There are 7 primary 1031 Exchange rules. These include: (1) like-kind property, (2) investment or business purposes only, (3) greater or equal value, (4) must not receive “boot,” (5) same taxpayer, (6) 45-day identification window, (6) 180-day purchase window.

1: What are like kind properties?

It means, that the original and replacement property must be of “the same nature or character. In easy terms: you can’t exchange farming equipment for an apartment building, because they’re not the same asset. In terms of real estate, you can exchange almost any type of property, as long as it’s not personal property.

How much does my money buy? Find out for free right HERE

2. Investment or Business Property Only

In other words, you can’t swap one primary residence for another. But after you made a profit with a few swaps, you can purchase your private residence with the money. Now – of course, you finally have to pay your taxes. But imagine the leverage you had while not handing a good portion of your profit back to the IRS every time and instead of using it to gain more. What great leverage!!

3. Greater or Equal Value

the IRS requires the net market value and equity of the property purchased must be the same as, or greater than the property sold. Otherwise, you will not be able to defer 100% of the tax.

4. Must Not Receive “Boot”

In other words, you can carry out a partial 1031 exchange, in which the new property is of lesser value, or this transaction will not be 100% tax free. The difference is called “Boot,” which is the amount you will have to pay capital gains taxes on.  But it’s completely okay, and often used when a seller wants to make some cash, and is willing to pay some taxes to do so

5. Same Tax Payer

The tax return, and name appearing on the title of the property being sold, must be the same as the tax return and title holder that buys the new property. There are a few exceptions to this rule, but it would go to deep to explain in this publication.

6. The 45 day identification window

The property owner has 45 calendar days, after closing of the first property, to identify up to three potential properties of like-kind. This can be really difficult because the deals still need to make sense from a cash perspective

How much does my money buy? Find out for free right HERE

7. the 180 day purchase window

It’s necessary that the replacement property be received and the exchange completed no later than 180 days after the sale of the exchanged property OR the due date of the income tax return (with extensions) for the tax year in which the relinquished property was sold, whichever is earlier.

The most common like-kind exchange types include the simultaneous, delayed, reverse, and construction or improvement exchange

1: Simultaneous Exchange

A simultaneous exchange occurs when the replacement property and relinquished property close on the same day. As the name suggests, these closings occur in a simultaneous fashion. Here the exchange must happen simultaneously because any delay will most likely result in paying taxes.  Yes, it happens, but most common we see the

2: Delayed 1031 Exchange

It occurs when you sell ( relinquish ) the original property before you acquire a  replacement property. Once a buyer is secured, you ( the seller ) must hire a third-party Exchange Intermediary to initiate the sale of the relinquished property and hold the proceeds from the sale in a binding trust for up to 180 days while you look for a like-kind property.

For this, you need a middleman who holds the cash after you “sell” your property and uses it to “buy” the replacement property for you. This three-party exchange is treated as a swap.”

However, the exchange rules require that both the purchase price and the new loan amount be the same or higher on the replacement property.

For example: if you are selling a $500.000 property that had a $350,000 loan, then you would have to buy $500.000 or more of replacement property with $350,000 or more leverage.

For this you have a maximum of 45 days to identify the replacement property and 180 days to complete the sale of this property. In addition to the numerous tax benefits, this extended timeframe is one of the reasons that the delayed exchange is so popular

How much does my money buy? Find out for free right HERE

3: “Reverse Exchange”

Simply said, you buy first and you pay later. It’s tricky because it only works in cash deals. Not many banks offer loans for reverse exchanges. AND: A failure to close on the relinquished property during the established 180 day period that the acquired property is parked will result in a forfeit of the exchange. Therefore it doesn’t happen too often in our area.

4: But we sometimes see the “Construction  / Improvement 1031 Exchange

Here the taxpayer can use the tax-deferred dollars to enhance the replacement property while it is placed in the hands of a qualified intermediary for the remainder of the 180 day period.

In addition, there are 3 requirements the taxpayer must meet in order to defer all of the gains and instead use it as part of the construction or improvement exchange.

1. The entire exchange equity must be spent on completed improvements or as down payment by the 180th day.
2. The taxpayer must receive “substantially the same property” that they identified by the 45th day.
3. The replacement property must be equal or greater in value when it is deeded back to the taxpayer. The improvements must be in place before the taxpayer can take the title back from the qualified intermediary

1031 Exchange Rules, A Recap

It sounds kind of easy, but you should not do it all by yourself. Transactions like these are delicate and you should be sure they withstand further examination by the IRS. Therefore, we urge you to hire professionals who are familiar with these procedures. There are many rules and qualification requirements that you must comply with in order to perform a successful exchange. To sum things up, the biggest advantage of using this strategy is that you can avoid having to pay capital gains taxes on the sale of an investment property. 

How much does my money buy? Find out for free right HERE

As a real estate professional since over 35 years, I can help you with the sale of any existing property and the purchase of a fitting replacement. I will work with licensed professionals for the 1031 exchange so you can be sure everything works out. But in order to gain from this, you have to make the 1st step and purchase your 1st. property. For this take a peek on my website. Go to the “Homebuyer” link and choose from either option. I give you free access to our local MLS and you can search like a pro with no obligation at all.  

Therefore, if you are interested in an investment that does not involve tax payments, please do not hesitate to contact me for further information.

We have plenty of statistics showing us if a vacation home still is a good investment. I.e. let’s take a look at the Tourist tax received by Lee County over the last 12 months:

This is a look by the end of September and therefore right before the season kicks in again: We had the highest income taxes paid since 2012 in the month of September. Take a deeper look at more statistics and numbers at https://www.leeclerk.org/records/statistics That looks promising.  Even all the months before, we had higher income taxes than in previous years. Although, the numbers only went up slightly to a little over 42 Million because there is another issue: Not everyone is honest and reports their rental income. Therefore the numbers aren’t’ 100% correct. But take a look:

But as usual, here comes the “it depends”

In this case, it depends on what kind of home you offer for rent. As always “Demand” and “Supply” regulate the market. And what I’ve ALWAYS said to all my buyers was confirmed again: The bigger the home, the more often you can rent it. In this particular case “Size” matters…… But the size is about the number of bedrooms.  ( What did you think…:-) ? Look at the numbers:

At the beginning of November there were:

• 744 homes for rent with 3 bedrooms
• From them 408 offered a pool
• 351 are offered as vacation homes
• Only 254 homes are offered for rent with 4 bedrooms or more
• From them, only 149 offer a pool and only
• 125 are offered as vacation rentals

This means we got about 65% fewer homes with 4 bedrooms or more for rent.  I rest my case: Demand and supply always work. Although I have to agree by far not all vacation homes are listed in the local MLS. But I did the same check on the usual websites where customers look for vacation homes. The numbers are pretty much the same. 

But there are other factors that decide if you get more bookings. Here is my conclusion about renting vacation homes for the last 15 years:

• 3 bedroom homes get fewer bookings as homes with 4 or more bedrooms
• 3 bedroom homes on any kind of waterfront get more bookings than 3 br off water homes
• Homes with a bigger pool area get more bookings than homes with a small and boring pool area
• Homeowners allowing kids and bigger groups to rent get more bookings
• Homeowners who allow pets get a LOT more bookings as owners who deny pets
• And the most bookings by far get homes offering a big pool area, at least 4 bedrooms, located on any kind of waterfront and who allow bigger groups and pets. Period!

Do I hear a few complaints? Like pets are dirty and require a higher cleaning fee and the more people the more damages occur? All wrong. I rent homes since 2004 and until now I only had damages when renting to kids, but NEVER when renting to tenants traveling with pets. The opposite is true: Travelers with pets take great care of the homes. We had guests where we could not find anything to clean after they had rented a home for 4 weeks with 4 HUUUGE dogs. It was spotless. This happens often.

Pet owners don’t have the same amount of homes to choose from. Most owners are still concerned about the rumor of damages and hairs from the pets they might find. Crap. These tenants are happy to find a home and they have no problem to pay a higher cleaning fee and deposit – just in case. And they usually come back year after year. I have one home that’s already booked for March 2022!! They own 2 dogs.

I still hear some nagging: Yes, bigger homes are usually a little more expensive. I agree. But what sense does it make to save a few 10K and then sit on all these expenses cause nobody wants to rent the home? Tenants are supposed to pay your mortgage and expenses – right? I have one particular home that is ONLY rented during the season and sits empty for the rest of the year. And no: It’s not ugly – the opposite is true: It’s a lovely 3 bedroom off-water home in a good location. And this home has a lot of competition all facing the same problem: They badly need more tenants to cover for all the expenses such a home usually requires. The only solution they all come up with is to lower the rent. My suggestion: Don’t do it. It’s a bad idea. You often get what you pay for. In this case, you are attracting the wrong crowd. Teenagers traveling in big groups aren’t used to treat your investment with the necessary love and care. We’ve seen it. There are better ways to deal with this. I.e:

• Look for a home without a pool
• Bild the pool yourself and build it a little bigger and less boring
• Waterfront attracts people: But even waterfront homes without access to the open ocean rent pretty well

Tenants spending time in Florida come for the outdoor adventure.  That’s why a bigger pool area is what they are looking for. In addition: Don’t forget that when you offer your home for rent, customers decide if they klick your tiny little photo. If this photo shows a sexy pool area, then your chances have just increased by a huge percentage you might get a booking.  If your property isn’t going to be clicked then no booking is guaranteed. Your home must have something that’s different from other comparable homes.

And why do people mostly place the pool alongside the house? It’s the same price to put it straight away from the house facing the canal/waterfront. And adding an invisible edge is the kicker for no extra charge.

A nice kitchen and bathrooms also attract customers, but it’s usually tougher to get them to klick your home if you show a nice picture of your bathroom. But of course, once they are on your side, it sure helps.

How many days per year are homes usually rented?

In order to cover your expenses ( taxes, insurance, pool, lawn, property management, and repairs ) the rule of thumb is, you need to rent a home about 100 days per year to break even.  If you aren’t planning to use your home during the season ( January – April ) then renting 100 days is no problem at all. Snowbirds using their home during this time must try a little harder to reach this goal. I’m always desperately looking for more homes to rent, cause overall each home we manage rents about 150 days/year. The 4 bedroom homes rent up to 300 days per year.

This takes care of the WHAT – now let’s talk about the WHERE:

If you consider the above tips, you are already in good shape to attract vacation guests. If you intend to look for properties on the East coast of Florida, then there is no big difference all along the costs starting in Miami all the way up to Jacksonville. Homes rent easy. One important rule: If you plan or need to rent your home to cover your expenses, avoid gated communities at all costs. I’ve personally seen owners with a nice home being denied to rent their home from one day to the other because the HOA said so. Not much you can do about it.  And it can happen in any HOA. So just don’t go there.

If you are looking to spend your money on the Eastcoast,  I can’t help you with my free MLS access.  It does not cover this area. You have to find a local Realtor, or you can take a peek at Zillow, Realtor.org or Redfin. But only to get an idea. I’ve covered these websites with all their pros and cons in another Blog. They should only be used to get an overall idea.

If your supply of money isn’t endless, you will soon find out how much more you can buy for your buck on the Westcoast.  Cape Coral has the least HOA’s and the most request for vacation homes, while Lehigh has even less HOA’s but a  lot less demand. It’s hard to cover your 100 days in Lehigh although you get by far the most for your money. Upscaled homes still much cheaper than on the East coast, can be found in Fort Myers Beach, Estero and all the way south to Naples.   

What’s holding you back?

Why don’t you take a look at what kind of homes with these criteria are available right now? The easiest way to do this with no obligation and nobody bothering you or tracking your internet search is to go on my website. Click Homebuyers and choose for either option.

Call or email me for any help you might need. I hope this has given you and idea if vacation homes are an investment. For most of my owners, the investment is only a secondary issue.   It’s nice if all expenses are paid by renting the home. Even nicer if there is a decent surplus at the end of each year, but most important for all my owners is the fun factor for themselves.  If tenants love your home, then so will you. And if the rental income covers for all your expenses PLUS your own trips to tr home, then we got a winner.  Don’t worry about earning money with the home:  That’s what the market is for. Keep the home a few years – enjoy it and then sell it for a profit. What else can you ask for? Investment with a fun factor built-in. Great.

Are you in the market to purchase a property? How do you want to get started?  Does it bother you if your phone starts ringing off the hook just because you took a sneak peek?  Do you like to sometimes receive more than 20 calls from Real Estate agents during a short period of time, or do you just want to take a peek and decide yourself, when and if you want to hire help? Is there a better way?  

Rumor has it, Zillow is attracting real estate agents and brokers to their website and since they joined with Trulia, they seem to control about 70%  of online real estate searches.

In overall the big 3, Zillow ( founded 2006 ) , Realtor.com ( founded 1995 ) and Redfin ( founded 2004 ) are the main sources for nearly all buyers in the beginning. At least they take a peek to get a good first opinion. So they think!!

What buyers often are unaware of is the fact, that these websites exist to extract contact information. YOUR information!! These websites are to create leads for Realtors which in return leads to more revenue for the owner of these websites. What a great model – for them! Fact: Have you ever noticed the weird advertising days and weeks later after when you visit other websites? You have been tracked!! Even if your contact info are relatively safe, your general idea is not. You did look for properties. Now for the next few weeks, you get blasted with links and ads about it. In addition, the system is designed to lead to problems for both parties, because there is also a lot of false advertising, delays, and inaccurate data.

Founded back in 1995, Realtor.com is the grandfather of the whole online real estate industry. It’s the official site of the National Association of REALTORS. So you think their data should be accurate and up to date? They say, their data get updated every 15 to 30 minutes.  WRONG: Reality shows it takes about seven days for a home listed on the MLS to appear

Although most MLS’ give permission to these portals to republish their data, the MLS system is very hard to access.  There is no public API to just pull the data, and they restrict membership and access to real estate brokers and their agents.  This means a person selling his own home cannot put a listing for the home directly into an MLS.  This is the reason the data is never complete.

There is also the issue of false information on these sites:  Based on the above-mentioned delay factor, many homes are long sold while they still show “Active” on Zillow and Co. Not very helpful. I remember an email from one of my customers asking me for information about a property she saw on Zillow. After looking it up on our MLS it said “Sold” 4 weeks ago. Since it takes Title Companies a few weeks to close, these data showed wrong information for about 8 weeks.

Next: Take a look at the Agent listed on each property: You would think this is the “listing agent” or the “seller’s agent.” Wrong. It’s usually attached to a paying Realtor client of Zillow. Someone who is looking for leads. Someone looking for people like you. This is one of many Realtors receiving this lead and who will call you right after you enter your contact info. In my opinion, this is taking advantage of people and misleading advertising. OK: If this doesn’t bother you, then you are fine. Most people aren’t.  Most of my customers appreciate to only hear from me.

But what if you simply want to get an idea of the value of properties in your area? Theses free  “Zestimates ” on Zillow look tempting. Ooooh yes, they do, but it would even be better if they are more accurate.  Google Zillow’s CEO, sold his own home in Seattle for 40% less than the Zestimate.  Zestimate showed 1,75 Million – sales prices was only 1,05 Million.  You had to look fast for it on Zillow’s website, cause only days later the value showed a lower Zestimate. The good thing about computers is, the data is never lost. Google has the facts. Look it up.

Here comes the solution:

Zillow has the advantage to give buyers access to properties all over the US.  If you in the market to purchase multiple properties in multiple different areas than Zillow and friends are a great way to start your search. But leave it to this. A start. Try to avoid to hand out your information or your phone will ring off the hook with an unwanted solicitation from Realtors. If you know what you want, you should hire a  local Realtor.

ONE Realtor – but which one?

The basic training for all Realtors is the same. We go to school, take a few tests and we show up for our regular license renewal every 2 years.  And all Realtors have access to the same properties. No excuse. It all comes down to experience and personal liking. Me being in this industry for 35 years says all about my experience – I hope!! If you like me, is completely up to you 🙂 My German roots and my bilingualism often make it easy to deal with both worlds: The European standards and wishes and the tough rules of the real estate industry.

Remember: In Florida buyer aren’t supposed to pay for real estate services. You can hire a local real estate professional who will represent you throughout the whole process. This will not cost you a dime. In addition to professional help, you get the peace of mind, that each Realtor is insured. In case something goes wrong you are safe.

This is how to get started:

On my website, you find the Homebuyer link. There are 2 ways to start your search: One way even gives you the opportunity to search completely anonymous.  The 2^nd choice is to enter your search criteria and personal data in order to receive constant updates if any new listings pop up. Automatically.

The best at the end:

Either way: You get a live connection to our local MLS for free and I promise not to call you unless you ask me. You get all the information about the properties live. The results also include data about neighborhoods, schools, points of interest and demographics.

Pros Zillow:

• free
• listings from all over the US
• Quick and easy to handle

Cons Zillow:

• Price estimates not accurate
• listings often not up to date
• lot’s of unsolicited phone call’s from Realtors
• Zillow sells buyers information
• tracking of your browsing habits

Pros our website:

• no unsolicited phone calls
• live access to the local MLS
• automated updates whenever a new listing matches your criteria
• automated updates for prices changes on properties you like
• no charge
• full and absolutely free access to me and all my resources
• no tracking of your browser habits
• Only Cons: you can only look up LOCAL listings and the system needs info in order to work and get results

How can you make sure you aren’t paying too much with my system?

The only way to find out the value of a property is to look up comparable properties that have been sold in the past. Let me do it for you or do it yourself. Your choice. But give it a try. It’s interesting, it’s fun, easy and it’s free. I’m looking forward to meeting with you soon.

The answer to this question must be split: I subtly notice an increased building volume, especially in apartments in multi-family houses, and I also wonder whether this can go well for a long time to come. In such cases, facts help to find the truth about the market.

Important:

The first thing to do is to establish how many properties are currently being offered for sale on the market and how many have actually been sold in recent months. Thanks to the completely open MLS system, every broker can check and confirm these facts himself. Release 10 October 2019

For single-family houses, it takes an average of 4 – 5 months for the entire stock to be sold at current demand. In Cape Coral it is only 3.4 months and on the islands, it takes much longer. It is similar to apartments. Also here Cape Coral is ahead again. Only in Lehigh, it goes still faster to sell the only small stock. This is not a reliable value, as really only very few apartments are offered in Lehigh.

For Europeans, single-family houses in the water are of particular interest. The facts are quite clear: Cape Coral and Lehigh are far away from the islands. This is mainly due to the much higher prices for waterfront properties in Naples and Marco Island.

Restriction:

Only completed properties are included in this list. Especially in Fort Myers many new apartments are being built. Most of them should be finished during the high season and sold to “Snowbirds”. I myself know approx. 1,000 dwellings in the foreseeable future into the market to come. If the number of the sales should remain the same, then a supply of approx. 10 months results. This is a value that gives a reason for concern. Since freehold flats for the holidays letting hardly come into question and often unreasonable high additional costs have those not to the tenants to be passed on are, is not to be counted on an intensified purchase of these objects by Europeans.

My conclusion:

FOR NOW it does not look like the market is correcting considering these facts. The problem of condominiums remains to be observed and their sale to be awaited. Who therefore waits for a price collapse in order to be able to enter favorably, must practice itself in patience. If you consider to puchase or to invest, a personal consultation makes sense in order to shed light on the advantages and disadvantages of this strategy in detail and according to your specifications.