REAL ESTATE IS FUN AGAIN!

From time to time I like to share articles that are published in our local newspaper on this blog. This is one of those times. Positive news now out weighs the negatives that we have seen for several years:
http://www.theledger.com/article/20121220/NEWS/121229947/1178?Title=Polk-Home-Prices-Up-in-November-
It is refreshing to see this type of article being the new normal. Our phone is ringing once again and I am fielding calls from people who are now considering real estate as a career path. I am greatly encouraged by the number of people once again considering marketing their homes and the buyers who are becoming anxious that if they don't do something they are going to miss the opportunity to get a deal.  This is once again FUN!
We are still full speed ahead on our recruiting drive here in Lakeland and all accross Central Florida. Call me, Broker, Richard Castret 863-640-3127, to find out how you can become a part of this growing company! Or e-mail me @ RCastret@advantagerecinc.com    

RENTAL AGENT NEEDED IN LAKELAND

RENTAL AGENT NEEDED IN OUR LAKELAND OFFICE! We are turning away prospective rental clients on a daily basis. We do not have anyone currently on staff wanting to work with rental clients. We will offer an exclusive lead flow to anyone that is willing to work as a rental agent. Call Broker Richard Castret 863-640-3127 for details. Must be a licensed Realtor to apply.

ASSOCIATES NEEDED!

IT IS OFFICIAL WE ARE EXPANDING! OUR DBA HAS BEEN CHANGED FROM "ADVANTAGE REALTY OF LAKELAND" TO "ADVANTAGE REALTY FLORIDA"!

Advantage Realty of Lakeland was formed in 2003 under the real estate corporation Advantage REC Inc. Starting in Lakeland as a residential company we soon evolved in to Commercial Real Estate. We have a ratio of 50/50 commercial vs residential sales per $$$ value.
During 2005 we started moving our focus (commercially) to all of Central Florida. Our residential structure was restricted to the Lakeland area.
We are now prepared to take the total package (residential &  commercial) throughout our 20 county MLS service area.
Real Estate has started to recover and the need is imediate and wide spread. We need 10 to 20 assocaites to fill out Lakeland and we need primary associates (Broker Associates) in all other communities with support associates to follow.
We have NO COMPANY ASSOCIATE FEES and offer free signage and E&O Insurance. Institutional advertising and brokerage support provided at no charge. One of the best commission programs offered in today's market place.

CAL BROKER RICHARD CASTRET 863-640-3127 FOR A CONFIDENTIAL INTERVIEW TODAY! You will be glad you did! 

THE FISCAL CLIFF!

oh!!!! NO!!!!!.....Mr Bill!!!!

What to do, What to do???????

Just another example of the gridlock that our present political system presents.  A lot of rhetoric and then as if by magic a solution avails itself alas at the last minute. My politician my hero.....yuk!
Quite honestly I have moved on and am focusing on the matters at hand. Many businesses may be sitting back and waiting to see how this is going to play out prior to investing in expansion however I don't plan to be one of them.
The business of Real Estate has turned the corner and I am moving forward with our expansion. Right now our physical presense is limited to Lakeland where we are headquartered but we now have immediate plans in place to expand in to all 20 Counties that our MLS system covers. We still need about 10 Associates in Lakeland and will be needing needing Primary Agents (Broker Associates preferred but not required) in all other communities. Also once we have our primaries in place we will be hiring enough associates to service that given area. Check out prior blogs to see what we offer and then give me a call to discuss your future with Advantage Realty Florida! BROKER RICHARD CASTRET 863-640-3127 (CELL PHONE) All inquiries are confidential!

TIME TO SELL IS NOW!

 U.S. home prices rose 6.3 percent in October compared with a year ago, the largest yearly gain since July 2006. The jump adds to signs of a comeback in the once-battered housing market.
Steady price increases are helping fuel a housing recovery. They encourage more homeowners to sell their homes. And they entice would-be buyers to purchase homes before prices rise further.
Home values are rising in more states and cities, according to the report. Prices increased in 45 states in October, up from 43 the previous month. The biggest increases were in Arizona, where prices rose 21.3 percent, and in Hawaii, where they were up 13.2 percent. This holds true in Florida as well.
This is really great news and now is the time to take advantage of the positive uptick in the market. If you have been sitting on your home that you have been wanting to sell because you feel you won't be able to sell it for what it is worth you might be surprised. I recommend that if you are in the Lakeland Florida area that you consult with one of our Real Estate Professionals to run a comparative market analysis using up to date sales figures and see if we can get you what you need from your home. Buyers are out there and inventory levels in our area are low and real estate like all commodities is a supply and demand item.  Give us a call today! 863-646-4399

TODAY'S REAL ESTATE MARKET

I am very pleased with how the Real Estate Market is turning around. Sales are increasing and prices are starting to recover. My concern now is a lack of quality properties to sell. Inventories are surprisingly low and that does help to shore up pricing but you can't sell what you don't have. There are many foreclosed homes still bottled up in lender pipelines that need to be brought out and liquidated before we can return to any "normal" market place. This should be done carefully as to not flood the market once again with under valued properties and further erode prices.
I am so convinced that things are recovering that I have decided to expand the firm and hire associates to cover our entire MLS area of 20 counties here in central florida. http://www.advantagerecinc.com/midFloridaLinks.php
I am looking for people who are willing to work at selling real estate. Energetic people who will put forth the effort to be successful. Over the last six years many talented people have dropped out of the industry or have gone part time and secured other employment. This was done to make ends meet and believe me I understand. Our firm had to get in to property management so that we could pay the bills ourselves. That time has passed and I believe you can once again make a very good living in full time real estate. I am very excited and as the broker I am working on several new initiative's to secure new property listing sources. This being said I will be needing a pool of qualified associates to handle the expected volume.
We offer a virtual office environment that features ABSOLUTELY NO FEES. We provide free yard signs and posts, E&O Insurance coverage, full brokerage support and institutional advertising. We pay one of the highest commission rates of any firm out there. We are in the business of selling real estate not selling space and charging membership fees.
Let's all make 2013 one of the best years ever for the real estate industry!

Call for a confidential interview: Broker Richard Castret 863-640-3127 (cell). You will be glad you did!

JOIN US NOW!!!

Why Join Advantage Realty Group / Florida (Advantage REC Inc.)


1. Absolutely NO OFFICE FEES OR CHARGES!

2. Signs and posts provided at no charge.

3. Errors and omissions insurance provided at no charge.

4. Highest Compensation Program offered in today’s market.



Our business model is simple, if you sell Real Estate you make money! Many of the companies in existence today don’t really care if you are successful in selling Real Estate. Their business model charges their associates a monthly fee and deducts a flat fee if you happen to sell a property. They make their profits off the backs of large pool of agents who may or may not sell property. With these large pools of associates come very few office generated leads and less profit to the individual sales associates.

Here at Advantage we hire a small group of associates in any given area. This results in more office generated leads and thus more $$$’s per agent. Leads are rotated between our full time associates on an unbiased rotation.

If you are a licensed Real Estate Associate or Broker Associate or are thinking of becoming one you really need to contact Broker Richard Castret (863-640-3127) for a confidential interview. Check us out at AdvantageRealtyFL.com! We are expanding our coverage in 20 counties in Central Florida.

Associates Needed in Central Florida

The Real Estate Business is back! I can use at least 10 additional Associates in our Lakeland Service Area and we are now back on track to start once again to branch out throughout our Central Florida Coverage Area: http://www.advantagerecinc.com/midFloridaLinks.php
In Lakeland we are looking for Associates in our Rental Division and Sales Team. In other areas we are looking for team leaders in Rentals and Sales and Associates in both areas as well. There are no full service Brokerages that offer better compensation programs than we do with No fees or Expenses!  Team Leaders are not only compensated for their work but for the work of Associate Members in their area. Contact Broker Richard Castret @ 863-640-3127 (cell) for your confidential interview. If you are a licensed Real Estate Professional or are looking to become one you really need to make that phone call, you won't regret it!

June's Production Report

June has proven to be a very productive Month. My congratulations go out to my hardest working Realtor, Joe Baker. He has put together many deals and expects to have 5+ closings in July. He also has worked a couple leasing deals as well. Good job Joe.
I would also like to pat myself on the back as well. I finnally closed on the old Barry Motor Sports location this Month. I have had that property on the market for a very long time and it was nice to get the deal done.
Our leads traffic is picking up and it is getting difficult for us to keep up with our current staff of Realtors. I will be scheduling a recruitment luncheon for Lakeland sometime in July to illustrate to licensed professionals the value of joining Advantage. I will announce that here as well as sending out blast e-mails.

Homes Needed!

Homes Needed!  We really need some homes to sell. The inventory of quality homes is dwindling. Prices are beginning to edge up as the market improves. Real Estate like all other markets is a supply and demand market. If you have considered selling or if you have wanted to sell for some time and backed off when the market tanked you need to reconsider. When you select a Realtor try and select one that is looking out for your best interests and not just looking for a quick sale. Those that are looking for a quick $$$ may price your home on the low end just to get a quick sale. The Realtors here at Advantage are geared toward getting you the best dollar for your home! Call today for your no cost comparative market analysis. 863-646-4399 

2.9% 15 Year Fixed Rate Mortgage's!!!!

Every day the news keeps getting better. Today's published Interest Rates again broke records. 30 Year fixed 3.75% and 15 year fixed posted at 2.9%. There are still many properties available for sale but prices are starting to rise. I have my computer set to show me closed sales as they come in and there are several sales posted daily. March Home sales posted (Polk County) at 475 units and I look for April to be strong and May even better. 600 new jobs in North Lakeland and lower unemployment figures are encoraging as well. Our agents are scrambling to handle the call load and all the new leads and inquiries. It sure is nice to be able to expound on all good news on a Friday for sure. Did anyone miss us last week? Holiday weekend I took a break!

Real Estate Recovery in Florida

What is it going to take to accelerate a Recovery in Florida? Well the answer is hard work! We now have record setting low interest rates &reduced pricing working for us however we have diminished Inventory and much tighter lending criteria working against us. As Realtor's we have the power to effect change in both those negative areas. 1. DIMINISHED INVENTORY: Get out there and contact your previous clients that had given up on selling and bring them up to speed as to the markets status. Prepare a new CMA for that client and maybe consider a new pricing strategy giving careful consideration to a possible price increase from past numbers. To get prices to improve you first have to get these sales numbers up and at the same time effect an actual sale. You also will need to get out of the office and work the FSBO market. There arn't as many out there as in past years but they are still out there. 2. TIGHTER LENDING CRITERIA: Sit down with you buyers and review their credit situation. Get them oriented with one of your favorite lenders picking one that fits for their personal credit situation and move them forward on becoming pre-qualified. Spending the time up front and maybe waiting a few months to actually find them a property can avoid the embarrassment of a busted deal. In the last 10 years of selling Real Estate in Lakeland Florida I have customized a system of working with buyers and sellers with great success. Very rarely do I have a deal fall apart if my clients actually adhere to my advice. It is up to the Real Estate Professionals to make this Recovery a Reality. To quote a famous Pitchman "I KNOW YOU CAN DO IT" (Trivia Pursuit: Who is that Pitchman?) TODAY: AVERAGE 30 YEAR FIXED RATE MORTGAGE 3.79% AVERAGE 15 YEAR FIXED RATE 3.04%!

Weekly Update 05-11-12

A lot of positive news this week for the Real Estate Industry. According to Core Logic the average property prices in Florida have appreciated 4.5% for recorded sales in the Month of March. I look for April's figures to be good as well. Record low interest rates continue to be available. 30 year fixed rate average published today was 3.87%. The bank's are starting to loosen up their lending practices (not to loose) as they start to get their delinquent property portfolio's more manageable. All these thing combined should all work to accomplish a slow recovery to better times. Our phones are ringing and we are signing up new listing clients on a daily basis. We are also working with several qualified buyers. We really need to have the people who were hanging back on selling their homes to take a leap of faith and get it out there for sale. We really need to increase the inventory of quality homes for sale. I personally put a Commercial property that I have been trying to sell for sometime under contract yesterday. The Commercial market is showing very positive signs of recovery. Business owners & Corporations are once again feeling confident and are looking to expand. When business expands jobs are created and more jobs means more people can qualify and purchase area homes. We are still looking to increase our Associate base in the Lakeland Area as well as throughout Central Florida. The phones are ringing and there are plenty of referals to go around. We distribute leads fairly among our people on an equitable rotation with no favoritism given to higher performing players. As long as you provide exceptional customer service you will do just fine. Well it's Friday so it's time to start wrapping up this weeks paperwork. Wish you all a good weekend!

Weekly Update 05-04-12

I probably should apologize for not writing one of these last week, not sure if anyone noticed or actually reads these but here goes. I had some relatives in from up in Ohio last week (My sister and her hubby). One of the topics of conversation was their upcoming retirement. This really got me thinking, am I ever going to retire? The answer is probably not. Real Estate is a great career and is actually my second after kind of retiring from the automotive business. It is one of the few careers that you can do that you can be as busy as you want to be (or not). I amy wind it down a bit someday but probably will keep my hand in it as long as I can. Actually one of my more successful Realtors (Joe Baker) who is a retired engineer really enjoys the flexilbilty that we afford him with our Virtual Office concept. Work at your own pace and never have to come to an office. Pretty loose dress code too, except maybe when you are with clients :). Oh and did I forget NO FEES! This week too has been a busy one. Much news in the industry but probably the biggest is the fact that the homes available for sale are dwindling, more buyers than we have quality homes to sell. Hopefully the people who have been holding back on the sale of their home for fear that they can't get a fair price for it will catch hold of this and get it back on the market. I know my agents are standing by and all of them could use more quality homes in their listing base. Buyer activity levels are up and the good properties are once again fielding multiple offers. Well I am going to keep this short and wish you all a good weekend. If you get a chance and you actually read these an occassional like comment if you see this on facebook would be appreciated and maybe even join the blog (does anyone do that anymore???) would be great too. Maybe I should include recipes?? Those that require alcohol????

Weekly Update 4-20-12

Here it is 4:40PM on a Friday and I am ending a very busy & exciting week. I received good news on a Commercial deal I am working on just about an hour ago so am trying to tie up the files on that. Picking a topic for this week has been very difficult, a lot going on and I am glad to report all is positive. There is no doubt in my mind that we are on a comeback trail. If you were someone that is thinking about selling your home and had pulled it off the market with the idea you couldn't get what it is worth on a sale you might want to dust off your for sale signs or better yet have me bring one of mine over! My computer notifies me daily on all closings in my area and the list I receive daily is getting bigger and bigger. Inventories are dwindling and I think the buyers are soon going to have a lot less properties to choose from, in fact they already are experiencing that fact. I know that my Associates are really in need of some quality homes to market and are standing by ready willing and able to help potential sellers. As the demand increases and the supply restricts what happens to prices? ........up up up.......exactly! So my weekly update should be titled "good times ahead!" Everyone have a good weekend and we'll see you next Friday

Weekly Update 4-13-12

I am going to try and once again publish weekly updates in regards to the Real Estate Market. This weeks big news is that Bank of America is attempting to speed up their turn around times on Short Sale transactions. They claim the new changes taking effect will speed up the turn around time to 20 days on getting a short sale approved. They have been using the Equator System (Software) for some time which has been cumbersome at best however the changes I have observed are a step in the right direction. Less steps and less customer required documents to produce equates to quicker file processing. Let hope the reality matches the optimism.
On another note I expect REO (Bank Owned) property listings to once again increase with more banks cleaning up their backlogged deliquent accounts. These will be the properties where the owner has no hope of negotiating to save their home but will be given cash incentatives to quit claim off their deeds and move on.
Both of these scenarios will mean much more traffic for area Realtor's. Our office is fielding many more phone calls and inquiries from potential short sale clients and also from Bank Asset managers about listing their properties. I anticipate having to hire many new Associates to handle the upcoming work load.

Why Would You Join Advantage??

I often ask myself why would someone want to join our group and the answers are many! There is a big gap from a Franchise Firm that charges you a monthly fee for the priviledge to use their name and takes a large percentage of your commission for themselves and again for the franchise and the so called 100% companies out there that also charge you a monthly fee and a transaction fee per closing. We fill that gap!
First of all we have no monthly fees, period! We pay one of the best commision programs there is and provide most everything you need to hit the ground running. Signs & Post Services are provided,E&O Insurance is provided,Broker support is provided (I actually return your calls for support.) We require no office time, you work your own schedule from your own home and enjoy the benefits of the virtual office environment. Our forms requirements are minimal and there are no "specialty" forms that are unique to our Firm. Everything you need is part of the free forms provided to you in Forms Simplicity. And one of the best things is listing and sales calls are handed out equally to all full time Associates. Since we have usually less than 10 members per community the rotation of these leads is much quicker than you can expect of the larger firms. We are getting much busier every day and now may the best time if you are a licensed professional and are looking to better your position. I will keep any inquiries I get strictly confidential, call me today cell #863-640-3127. We are adding Associates throughout our coverage area: http://www.advantagerecinc.com/midFloridaLinks.php
We are looking for regualr Associates in Lakeland, and will be looking to fulfill primary agent positions in all other areas.

NEWS REPORT 3-21-12

STATISTICS:
Pending sales and median prices rose, while the inventory of homes for sale dropped in Florida’s housing market in February, Increased statewide pending sales for both single family existing homes, up 36.1 percent, and for townhouse-condo properties, up 19.8 percent. The statewide median sales price for single-family existing homes in February was $134,000, up 7.2 percent from the year-ago figure. In February, the month’s supply of inventory stood at 6.2 for single-family homes.
CONSENSUS:
While closed sales are down, so are listings and so is inventory. These are signs of a market that’s moving from being a buyer’s market to a balanced market. Back in 2001 when I entered the Real Estate Industry here in Central Florida it was not the best of times. Even back then you could count on single family home appreciation of 6% per year in our area. I am again confident that Real Estate is indeed a good investment and it is time to dig in and invest in the future.

Properties Needed!

We really have a unique problem! We are running out of the nicer homes to sell. We have qualified buyers ready and willing to purchase homes $150,000 all the way to $1,000,000!! The market is saturated with distressed homes for sale and the higher quality properties are rare. GUESS WHAT...... WE STILL CAN SELL HIGHER PRICED HOMES QUICKLY! There seems to be a common misconception out there that you can't sell your home in today's market for what it is worth. That really isn't truly factual. There are a lot of buyers out there that don not want to mess with a property in need of repair. They want to buy a home that is "move in ready" and are quite willing to pay a fair price for that convenience. The key today is to accurately determine that fair price and to market the property accordingly. Thats what we do here at Advantage. If you live in the Lakeland Florida Area and are considering selling you should contact one of our residential agents for an free evaluation of your home. You might be surprised!