Jason Lindsay

Jay, I hope your move to Jacksonville is a good one. I really think you'll find excellent values on the market today in Jacksonville. Are you familiar with Duval County? Drop me an e-mail if you would like to talk briefly about your housing needs and hopefully I can be of assistance. Or call me direct, 904-894-6587. Please check out my profile on Trulia and then give me a ring,

Thanks, Jason Lindsay, REALTOR, Jacksonvillr FL
Historic District Specialist - Sun Oct 12 2008, 12:10

Hi Raj, Please check out my listing on Midway Road, one mile from the main gate of NAS Jax. This home is perfect for first time buyer and has clear title. MLS # 427933. Easy bike ride to NAS Jax.

Thanks, Jason L. - Fri Sep 26 2008, 13:16

Mr R. Jones, Thanks for your inquiry on Trulia. Real estate is an industry that benefits alot from the unique perspective the World Wide Web affords. That being said, the final decision you make will ultimately require the type of "boots on the ground" intelligence you get from actually walking a neighborhood, evaluating the homes, infrastructure, schools, and other amenities that are important to you. Even if you decide to go it alone in your efforts to purchase a home, meet with at least one Real Estate professional who will help you develop a buyers profile that can increase the chances you will get a property that ultimately satisfies all your needs. Shopping for Real Estate from overseas without actually going to the neighbofhoods and evaluating them in person will probably lead to a very unsatisfying outcome. Jacksonville offers a tremendous variety in terms of homes and lifestyle choices; when you get here you'll be amazed, maybe even overwhelmed at your options.
If you would like to get together and develop a Profile, let me know. This is the most efficient way to arrive at a satisfying outcome, saving time and money.
Thanks, and good luck, Jason L. - Mon Aug 25 2008, 12:51

Hi Raj.

Jacksonville is a great market for investment properties. Keep in mind a couple of basic points:

The best rentals are ones that stay rented.
Look for one bedroom one bathroom or 2 berdroom one bath units, they are always in highest demand. Multi-familiy properties are abundant in Riverside and Springfield, and these are very popular areas, so choose with location in mind before price.

Foreclosures are great opportunities but can take an awfully long time to close.

If you find a property in terrible shape that is sold to you as a fixer-upper, beware of the cost of renovation!! The biggest repair expense is often the one you cannot see hiding behind a wall or under the flooring.
I
f you are looking at distressed properties interview a few contractors and find one you trust who provides at least 3 references! If you get into fixing up distressed properties and end up going 20 or 30 thousand over budget, that can really hurt.

When you look at properties have your Realtor ask questions!! Try to find properties where the tenants are happy and want to stay inplace. A sudden vacancy or two immediately after closing can also set you back.

I hope these ideas are useful. Please check my contact info and call me if you would like to sit down and analyze some of the properties on the market right now.

Happy Hunting, Jason Lindsay - Thu Aug 21 2008, 06:06

Ron,
Housing markets and pricing for properties is a highly local issue. I'd be very skeptical of a website unless it has been operating for 10 years or more. Does the website you mentioned have 10 years of highly reliable "predictions" under it's belt. Perhaps you have friends who have lived in both Atlanta and Jacksonville for several years. They could probably provide better insight into actual housing conditions in neighborhoods you might actually be considering.

In both Jax and Atlanta some areas have tons of Foreclosures, while other areas have few if any. This factor greatly influences pricing from one area to the next. If you are considering an area with lots of Foreclosures, you can probably get a great deal. If you are considering an area with few if any foreclosures, then you will most likely pay more.

Mary Beth mentions an article from Forbes.com dated July 14 2008 which suggests that both markets are healthy. Job creation in Jacksonville is about to get a huge boost from 2 major international shipping firms going "online" with new North American headquarters at JaxPort, the Navy is transfering 3000 families into Jacksonville's Navy facilities, and DeutcheBank is bring a Derivative sTrading Center to town as well. These combined actions will create 4000-6000 new jobs in the area.

Before drawing conclusions from websites go and visit the towns themselves, find neighborhoods you like, and then compare "apples to apples." In the most desirable areas values have held up very well. In the less desirable areas prices have fallen much further.

Good luck, Jason

P.S. New York City is an excellent case in point. After the events of September 11 the "experts" predicted a big fall off in housing values in greater metropolitan NYC. The reality is NYC prices barely were affected at all. - Sat Aug 9 2008, 17:21