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Monday, March 9, 2009

Statistics for February 2009 condo activity in Aventura, FL






Aventura sales were up but so was inventory in February 2009.

Below please find a chart of activity, pending sales and closed sales for Aventura in February 2009.
New condos listings in the market
Feb 2009 - 199
Feb 2008 - 49
# of listings of condos available
Feb 2009 - 1821
Feb 2008 - 401

Pending Sales
Feb 2009 - 79
Feb 2008 - 6
Closed Sales
Feb 2009 - 261
Feb 2008 - 51
The most expensive condo on the market in Aventura in February 2009 was a 6 bedroom apartment in Williams Island asking price $4.9 million. The lowest price was a one bedroom condo in Point East (an over 55 community) for $65,000.
Stayed tuned later this week for statistics on homes in Aventura as well as condos and homes in surrounding areas.

If you are interested in seeing any of these properties contact the Golan Team at 786-271-1235 or visit us on the web at www.golanteam.com

Friday, March 6, 2009

Sunny Isles Beach - Ocean III Best Deal - Stunning 3 bed Oceanfront unit

Ocean III is a beautiful oceanfront complex in Sunny Isles Beach, Florida built in 2003 by The Related Group and designed by the architectural firm of Sieger Suarez. It soars 32 stories and boasts oceanfront amenities such as pool, gym, café, party rooms, tennis courts, roof top Jacuzzi and sundeck as well as conference rooms, valet, security and self parking privileges.

Most units feature private high speed elevators that open into private foyer areas. The building was specifically designed that every unit will have ocean views.

Currently there are 28 units for sale at Ocean III showing this is a very healthy building even though the economy is struggling. The building has 215 residences in total ranging from 2-4 bedrooms and 1591 sf to almost 4000 sf.

We have had the privilege of listing 2307, located on the 23rd floor. It is a flowthrough residence with 2649 sf under air + two huge entertaining style terraces.




This residence features 3 bedrooms 4.5 bathrooms and has two balconies allowing for direct east (oceanfront) and west (open bay and City of Aventura) views. In a word, “Breathtaking.” With brazilian cherry ¾” solid wood floors throughout, this residence is vacant and available for sale or rent. The bedrooms are all spacious and have ensuite bathrooms. The master suite includes his and her walk in closets, his bathroom and her bathroom with a jacuzzi overlooking the ocean. The kitchen is eat in and features Miele cooktop, oven, subzero Refrigerator and a Miele dishwasher.

The last sale of a similar unit was December 2007 when the same unit, two floors higher, sold for $1,270,000.

We have just reduced this unit to $1,065,000 an unbelievable opportunity for the right Buyer.
Please call us at 786-271-1235 to schedule a visit and we hope you can call this magnificent place “home” soon. PS It is also available for rent at $5000/month unfurnished.

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Keller Williams Family Reunion - Lessons for All

Last week was a real wake up call. The whole Golan Team attended the Keller Williams Family Reunion in Orlando, Florida. For most when you think of a “Family Reunion” you think of fun in the sun, maybe a cruise, but most likely a big party and a lot of good memories.

For Keller Williams Agents, Family Reunion definitely does include the spirit of fun but it is more about work, goals, ethics and taking your business to a new level of achievement. For the Golan Team, that was exactly what we went to Family Reunion to achieve.

Almost 7000 Keller Williams Agents thought the same thing. Gary Keller, who founded the company in 1983 talked about all the opportunities we have as Agents in this “Shifted” market. There were approximately 100 seminars to attend over the three day period and there many lessons to learn whether you were a Realtor, a Buyer, a Seller or an Investor. Below I thought I would share a few thoughts that I think we can all learn lessons from:




These were my top 5 lessons that have changed my outlook not only on the Real Estate market but also in my personal life…


1) FOCUS ON WHAT YOU GET FROM AN EXPENSE: This is universal.. if you are subscribing to a service are you getting the most for it? Cut your expenses to a minimum…ask yourself do you really need this? Is it producing more than it is costing you? Are you bringing in more than you are spending? This principle can be applied not only to Real Estate but to every expense in our everyday lives.

2) If you want to sell your house then, “BE IN THE MARKET NOT ON THE MARKET”. Listing a property today is not the hard part – selling it is. The truth is that if a property is priced right (defined as being in the bottom 10%-20% of the lowest property price point for your property) it will sell…These are the properties that are attracting Buyers and know THERE ARE BUYERS OUT THERE. So remember in order to achieve your goal of selling a property = PRICE IT RIGHT.


3) Know that the price given to you at a Listing Presentation has an expiration date just like the milk in your refrigerator!!! Again thinking about the principle above, you must always be aggressive in your pricing and watch what is selling around you and why it is selling and yours is not. Be diligent in reducing your price of your property to attract the most Buyers. This is called, “the worry price” the price at which Buyers will worry that if they don’t jump on it, they will miss the opportunity.

4) Be consistent, Be Persistent and think like a Warrior. We all need to understand that we are fighting for our survival (just look at the economy) so think like a Warrior and keep that mentality to achieve your goals in this marketplace.


5) “Qualify your expectations” Be realistic about your goals. If you are listing a property then be realistic about the selling price. This market is based on the principle of timing and opportunity. Opportunity is a result of attracting the Buyer who will pay the best price in this market for your property and it is up to you to capitalize on this.

If you would like to discuss any of this further, please feel free to comment or contact me via email : debra@golanteam.com or phone 786-333-6200. If you also want to know how to sell your property and attract multiple offers, again please contact us to discuss strategies.

Monday, March 2, 2009

Bal Harbour - BALMORAL - Best Priced Condo attracts Multiple Offers




Every day I am asked, “how is the Real Estate market doing…it must be dead?” It is asked as a question, but I hear it more and more like a statement. However, I always answer and say truthfully that the market is "Great" for us, business is "Great." The truth is it is "Great." This market is making us not only work harder but truthfully work better. It is a market of quality not quantity. What I mean by that is that if you have a property that you price right, stage right and market right – the Buyers out there will see the value of the deal and jump right on it…

Case in Point: Balmoral, Bal Harbour

We recently listed (just 3 days ago) a 2 bedroom with 2 bathroom, 1388sf (currently set up as a one bed convertible) with oceanview from every window at The Balmoral, in Bal Harbour, FL. The Balmoral is a large and elegant building comprising of 423 residences + cabanas. The building has many amenities including restaurant, gym, concierge, tennis, card rooms, business center and more. A few years ago it underwent a huge assessment and renovation and when you walk in you feel the elegance, richness and high level of service the building is famous for.

We met with the Sellers and their attorney (it is an estate sale) and discussed the pricing strategy for the unit. We agreed to price it correctly from the beginning to achieve a high volume of traffic and hopefully multiple offers. Below are a couple of pictures of the unit and views...
I am pleased to say after three days on the market we have had over 6 visits scheduled to the unit and two offers presented. I am confident through our correct pricing strategy and constant marketing approach we should have this property under contract within a week…Now again ask me, “how is the Real Estate market doing” and again I will answer, “GREAT!!!”.

By the way, if you want to check this unit out call us at 786-333-6200 to schedule an appointment.