Tampa Real Estate News Blog

Vegas style slot machines arrived on the scene at the popular Seminole Hard Rock Casino and the crowds have followed. But visitors are wondering if they pay as well as the previous bingo type machines Hard Rock offered previously.

Regardless, Casino president John Fontana is predicting a huge impact on the new slot machines appeal to customers. By the fall of this year, Hard Rock will have added more table games including blackjack, Pai Gow poker and baccarat.

Many people are signing up for the Players Club in Tampa because the rules for its loyalty program has been expanded to offer bigger discounts to bigger spenders. As it looks right now, the 250 room Hard Rock Hotel is being booked by Players Club members who are taking advantage of deep discounts and free night stays.

Is this a good thing for our city? I would welcome your comments. Not being much of a gambler myself, I can think of better ways to spend my time. There are many other things to do in Tampa.

Pinellas County Commissioners have gotten the go ahead to purchase 4.4 acres of Palm Harbor land and add it to the expansion of Wall Springs Park. There are a total of 12 parcels of five homes that will be demolished and turned into new parkland. The owners of the property have been approached by developers in the past and have turned them down. Dave Brinson says, “We always felt that once the county bought the spring, it made sense for us to make it part of the park system and not develop it.” “There are some of the most beautiful, gorgeous oaks anywhere in the county back there,” he said.

The county is negotiating still to buy an additional few more acres in the same area to add to the park.

Officials are counting on half of the money to purchase the property will come from a Florida Communities Trust grant but if that doesn’t work out then they will use “Penny for Pinellas Funds”.

Situated right off the Pinellas Trail, near Alt. 19, Wall Springs Park has been opened since 1989 with 84 acres. Once the county is finished with all the land acquisitions, the park will be 215 acres. Palm Harbor’s historic natural spring park is a popular favorite with Palm Harbor residents. Read more about Wall Springs Park on our website.

Tampa is considered a top choice in the real estate investor market of Florida for many reasons. The Tampa Bay area consists mainly of three counties beautified by the white sand and blue waters of the warm Gulf of Mexico. The area is comprised of about 2 million residents from various cultures and walks of life.

Tampa Bay offers a stable living environment in terms of both the natural and social climate. The abundance of natural resources promises a higher standard of living at a lower cost. One of the most favorable aspects of living in Tampa Bay is the benefit offered by the state government. There is no Florida state income tax in Tampa. Plus, the property taxes are much lower compared to those of the other northern states.

Many businesses have relocated to the Tampa Bay area because the prospects for doing business are very high in Tampa Bay. A few reasons are that we have the largest port of Florida here. Also, Tampa International Airport is ranked as the #1 airport in the United States. Tampa Bay is known to be one of the most popular destinations of the tourists, both American and foreign as well. The tropical natural environment and the welcoming sandy beaches, attract a wide range of tourists here.

Sports and leisure are a big part of the daily routine activities of Tampa Bay. We host a variety of teams, especially football and hockey, in every season. Thus it is the favorite hangout of the young population, especially students from different universities of Florida.

The beaches and the various large lakes in the area offer a wide choice of water sports and leisure activities. People come to enjoy sunbathing, boating, fishing, snorkeling, and skiing.

One notable fact is the educated population of Tampa, the most precious asset of the Bay. This contributes to an efficient workforce, which is a great asset to the flourishing business activities of this area. Tampa Bay is considered to be one of the most literate areas of the United States.

Our economic development gets a further boost with the healthy population. Tampa Bay boasts of some the best medical care facilities. To mention a few among the notable healthcare facilities are the three hospitals that bear the credit as ‘America’s Best Hospitals’ by U.S. News and World Report: Tampa General Hospital, St. Joseph’s Hospital and H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center.

If you wondered why many multinational companies are focusing towards Tampa Bay and many of them looking for a place to relocate their headquarters to this area, you would surely find the answer yourself from the above-mentioned facts. The reason to this shift of focus is nothing but the growing business activities in Tampa. This is thanks in part to the service offered by Florida’s largest deep-water port, which is located in downtown Tampa.

With the availability of rich natural resources and an excellent capacity of human power and values, Tampa Bay has become an irresistible choice for many real estate investors. The cheaper real estate in Tampa is attracting a wide range of investors, from baby boomers to retirees, who realize the potential of this area of Florida.

Annoucing a new Lipply Real Estate website! Tampa Homes By Area is a simple website designed for those that know the Tampa area by location and are searching for a home in a particular area. For example, if you know you want to live in Carrollwood, you can simply and quickly search for all the available MLS listings in Carrollwood. Go to our quick search feature at the top righthand side of every page of the website and look for Carrollwood. Or if you want to search for particular criteria just click on our MLS page where you can still search by area AND you will be able to choose different values like “gated community” or “pool”.

The websites also lists the subdivisions that are in each area along with a description of what you might expect when you live in any particular area of Tampa. Tampa is very diverse and is made of up many different styles of homes. Finding what appeals to you is hard enough, let alone trying to find the particular area you want. That’s what’s so great about this new webiste. We hope you find it easy to use!

Be sure to check out google street maps on this website. We went with the new google street view maps because this new feature has just been made available in Tampa. It’s really cool and a great thing for homebuyers because they can take a look at the street, the neighborhood and the homes next door and across the street to any home they are considering. How cool is that! Locate a subdivision in the Tampa area that you are interested and take a virtual walk down the street.

It looks like this:

On a budget? If you have the confidence and the know-how to help sell your own home, then you might want to consider our new $250.00 Flat Fee MLS Service. This is just a pilot service we are offering right now and there is no guarantee on how long we will offer it. But, if you would like to talk to us about our $250.00 home selling deal, give us a call at 888-423-5775 or contact us through our website.

What we do:
1. List your home in the MLS for 6 months.
2. Photograph the home and input up to 5 photos.
3. List your home on realtor.com.
4. Consult with you on the home selling process.
5. Answer any questions you may have.
6. Edits to price are fine anytime.

What you do:
1. Write up a MLS description on the home (with our help).
2. Show the home or allow other real estate agents access to the home.
3. Offer the buying agent a commission to show your home.
4. Handle all negotiations, contact signing, follow up and closings.

People sometimes ask me “what do you mean Tampa Bay?” — “is that a city?” What the heck does the term Tampa Bay mean anyway? Glad you asked! Let me explain. Tampa, of course, is our most well known city in this area. But, certainly there is a lot more to this area than just Tampa. We have the glorious beaches of Clearwater, the museums and night life of St. Petersburg — just to name a few. There are many more cities around Tampa that you may have never heard of. But, the Tampa Bay area is a large land mass that consists of Hillsborough County, Pinellas County, Pasco County, and even many people now consider Hernando County as part of the Tampa Bay area. Right in between Tampa and Clearwater is the Tampa Bay. It’s a small body of water compared to the Gulf of Mexico but on any given day you will find many boaters and fishermen in the bay having a great time. So, the Tampa Bay area got it’s name taking into consideration the land area that surrounds this body of water. You can see a larger map that grapically describes this explanation on our Tampa Bay Subdivisions section of our website.

Attention good credit Tampa Bay buyers!!! News flash from one of our preferred lenders here in the Tampa Bay area:

An A+ borrower can get a 30 year loan for 5.875% today. That’s good news!
–Dave Hoyt with Advanced Home Mortgage.

Search the MLS from our website, or send us an inquiry and we will get you in touch with Dave for the pre-approval process. It’s a great time to buy a home and now get a great rate on your mortgage. Don’t delay!

Pinellas County Housing Finance Authority wants to make your New Year Happy! And happy it will be if you qualify for their new program that offers low 6.1 percent fixed rate, 30-year mortgages to residents wanting to purchase a new home in Pasco, Pinellas or Polk counties. Certain conditions apply but don’t hesistate to call (800) 806-5154 to get all the details. If you have owned a home in last three years you may not qualify but don’t dismay, we can refer you to one of our preferred lenders who will work hard to find a mortgage that is right for you.

Don’t put off taking advantage of the current Tampa buyer’s market and the lower than average home sale prices we have to offer in today’s real estate market. There’s never been a better time to buy a home in the Tampa Bay area of Florida. And, once we get the financing and the preapproval process out of the way, we can help you find your new home.

Contact the Pinellas County Community Development and Housing Finance Authority, which is dedicated to assuring that financing for affordable housing remains available, at (727) 464-8210 or visit Housing Finance Authority

As part of this year’s St. Petersburg’s New Year’s Last Night Festival, the public wrote their hopes and desires, or a New Year’s resolution, on the side of a 24-foot sculpture with a nautical theme and at 11 p.m. on New Year’s eve, the sculpture was set on fire as a metaphor for journey.

This years sculpture entitled “Peace O’ Eight” was created by local artists Carol Mickett and Robert Stackhouse. According to Mickett, “It’s for all the wishes and good intentions to go out onto the universe.”

The St. Petersburg Last Night Festival is one of Florida’s largest New Year’s Eve celebrations with a family-oriented, alcohol-free, and great fireworks display. Mark your calendars for this event for next New Years Eve, 2008.

And, if you are interested in viewing any of the many homes for sale in St. Petersburg, contact us at your convenience.

Environmentalism has become a business advantage while home building is in a slump. There is a fast growing market for green homes and green homes are becoming synonymous with “buyer beware”.

Building green means incorporating environmental features over and above mandated code standards, it also means: a field that exists largely outside official regulation. Industry standards can vary across different regions in the country.

Agencies like the Florida Green Building Coalition (founded in 2000) set key statewide standards. It is a nonprofit partnership of builders, consultants and academics. Their green home designation covers conditions across eight categories including green features like energy and water efficiency which are well known features, but also lesser known aspects such as site, lot choice and disaster mitigation. And this is where things start getting murky.

Builders may be doing three or four ‘green’ items and they call themselves a green builder, but they have no documentation. Three or four things do not make a house green. The public needs to become more educated on what makes a house ‘green’.

Builders can choose any way they want to score at least 100 points out of 300 maximum on the list offered by the coalition green home designation. Unless they ask, a buyer may never know why a home is green.

For more information on Florida Friendly Green Builders in the local Tampa Bay area of Florida, contact us.