Gia Martinez

Hi Chris,

I believe you will love our beautiful State - Welcome! On May 21, 2008, there was an article published that Palm Beach Schools are top in the nation - here is the link to the article:

( http://www.palmbeach.k12.fl.us/NatAnnounce1.htm ).

Boca Raton, which is in Southern Palm Beach County has some excellent schools from east to west both Public and Private. You can also find the information you may need on the website of the School District of Palm Beach County which is located at: http://www.palmbeach.k12.fl.us/ - this site also includes school information, technology information, school district information, learning tools, school board and public affairs.

Hope this information helps.

Best,

Gia - Wed Jun 18 2008, 10:26

Florinte,

I have to agree with Ines.

I am currently working with a buyer where we submitted an offer on a shortsale and the seller was represented by an Agent AND an attorney. The attorney was the only one authorized (by the seller) to submit the documentation to the lender. The attorney held all the contracts (he made a collection of them) and sent all of them to the lender - almost 1 month after we had submitted the offer.

Lenders are looking for the highest price they can get to mitigate the loss that they are taking on the short sale of a home. Unfortunately, the Seller's agent is not in control of what the lender does in this situation.

Hope that helps.

Gia - Sat Jun 7 2008, 04:19

Elena,

There will be costs associated with selling your condo beyond the real estate commission.

First, there is the deed transfer which is about $980 ($140,000 x .007=$980) and then there is the title insurance (Seller pays in Palm Beach County) which is approximately $775. There are also miscellaneous costs such as prorating taxes on the property (credits and debits), HOA fees, etc. and the title company fees (fedex, etc.).

The title company that you are working with can give you a more complete picture of what your costs are by giving you a preliminary HUD (closing statement) which will reflect those expenses.

I hope that helps.

Best,

Gia - Wed May 7 2008, 09:36

Julia,

I understand it to be in effect now based on what I read - but please double check with the tax assesor's office in Delray Beach on Congress Avenue - or give them a call as they should be able to clarify.

Best,

Gia - Tue Apr 15 2008, 02:58

Julia,

There was a good article in the Orlando Sentinal to which I attached the link. The Sun Sentinal also had a good article on this. I hope that it helps answer your question.

Best,

Gia - Mon Apr 14 2008, 15:51

I have one for you...I took this young gal out to look at homes as she was very excited to buy. We were looking in this very quaint neighborhood and pulled up to this house which looked like the owner was still doing a bit of "fixer-up construction" as well as the fact that the front yard was a bit disasterous - not that it was an issue as the Buyer was willing to do some fixing up.

The homeowner opened the door (there were 3 young kids running around) and was so excited to see us. "Please come in" she said. "We are in the process of building this new fireplace - wood burning" (Kindly note, we are in South Florida where the weather gets in the 30's for all of 7 days around New Years).

As we walked into the home to look around, the stench slapped us right in the face, making me go green! The smell was like a piece of meat had been rotting for a week. There was cat "stuff" on the kitchen floor - which was not in the kitty litter. The carpet was pulled up in the hallway and rooms, clothes strewn everywhere. Well, you get the picture. I couldn't take it anymore and told the Buyer that she was free to continue looking at the home but I had to get some fresh air fast or I would be in trouble. Needless to say, she was right with me out the front door!

The funny part about this story is that my mom called me (literally 5 minutes after I walked out of the home) to say she just bought this beautiful fish at the local fish monger and wanted to know if I would come over for dinner. I turned an even worse shade of green and said, "Mom, thanks but no thanks." I think I stayed that color green for 2 days. It was horrible!

Moral of the story - make sure your seller makes their home presentable (and CLEAN smelling). - Fri Apr 11 2008, 08:06