A 22% Return in 2 Years??? THAT'S Making Your $$$ Work - Keys Style! Just Sold $1,037,000 - Tropical Chic

You COULD buy vending machines... you could play the Stock Market, heck you could put some money down on some ponies in the third race at Hialeah, play the Lottery, or even place some bets at a Cock fight deep in the Everglades...and, I do mean, Roosters.

Yes, there are a myriad of ways to increase your financial stake in this world.  That being said...Real Estate... and Waterfront Real Estate on top of that constantly, offers unmatched, consistent returns. 

Case in Point...my recent sale of 4 North Drive in Key Largo.

A beautiful home with wide open water views, perched on the Bay Side of Key Largo.
The greatest part of this transaction for me was that I was able to work with repeat customers!!
I had the privilege of selling this home in 2013 for $850,000.  
I have just recently Sold is again for $1,037,000!! a 22% return in just two short years!!  
And for the most part in the same excellent condition but with no new upgrades. So very apples to apples.

Our Market has been red hot down here in the Keys, with supply becoming a real challenge for demand.
And why not....when you can buy a beautiful home that offers such Tropical Serenity, and the opportunity for world-class fishing and diving mere minutes from your dock, and the security of owning property in the good 'ole US of A??  And comparatively speaking our Keys prices are dramatically low for comparable properties in other waterfront locations both nationally and internationally.

Well, enough of business and finance..lets talk about this super home!!

4 North Drive
List Price:$1,124,900  
Sold Price: $1,037,000
Description: Tropical Chic! Everything you could want in a Florida Keys Home! Wide Water Views, Exceptional Finishes, Superb Dockage, and Caribbean Elegance. Come home to comfortable living spaces accentuated with Stone-worked bathrooms and a Granite and Stainless Kitchen. Kick back and relax or Entertain, this turnkey 2 bedroom + Studio CBS home is perfectly suited for both. World Class Fishing and Diving are
are mere minutes from your custom built Dock. A quick drive from the Mainland but an entire World Away!

This House just always makes me want to grab a seat outside, open up my dog-eared Hemingway, light up a Partagas, and imbibe a sweet Conch Colada (hit me up for the recipe..its awesome!) and ...soak...the Keys...in.

Get your BEST return!
Contact your REALTOR by the Sea!  Put the experience and expertise of The Conchquistador to work for you! For more information on the outstanding real estate opportunities that exist in the Keys, call me at 305.439.7730 or email me at DropAnchor@TheRealEstateConch.com.

Judge Offers Foreclosure Help

Foreclosures... probably THE real estate story of 2008. It is truly a shame that the abundance of these Foreclosures even exists. That being said...these conditions have created unprecedented opportunities for buyers that are liquid and willing to look at the long term picture. I saw this article in the Keysnews.Com and thought it really spoke to the heart of the matter.

"Judge offers foreclosure help
By STEVE GIBBS
Free Press Staff
A circuit judge has appointed five mediators to help stem the rising tide of uncontested home foreclosures.
Monroe County judges have heard 1,612 foreclosure cases so far this year, according to 16th Judicial Circuit Judge Luis Garcia, which is almost double last year's 932 cases.
"The cases we heard in 2007 were way up from cases in 2006," Garcia said. "I just want to get the word out to homeowners facing foreclosure not to give up."
About 95 percent of the foreclosure cases are uncontested, Garcia said. So he has made a move to remedy what he sees as a premature surrender: If homeowners come to the hearing and show a willingness to work with their lender, he will appoint a mediator at no charge to the homeowner.
"I called the local [Florida] Bar association and within minutes I had five attorneys volunteer to serve as mediators," Garcia said. "People simply do not show up at the foreclosure hearings. For those who have tried everything but have not given up, come to the hearing. There may still be hope for you to keep your home."
Nick Mulick is one of the attorneys who has volunteered.
"We can facilitate the negotiation of a feasible workout by bringing the decision-makers to the table with the property owners," he said. "I will serve as a moderator to ensure that the parties don't get bogged down."
Mulick said lenders are willing to negotiate.
"Banks and other lenders don't want to get bogged down with nonperforming loans," he said. "They want to avoid that at all costs."
A mediator can help by persuading the mortgage-holder to reduce interest rates, defer payments for a year or change the terms of the loan, he said.
Dirk Smits, regional managing member of Vernis & Bowling, has volunteered to mediate foreclosure cases.
"People are terrified of court, but there is relief out there, especially if you have found a buyer," he said.
"If you have a $500,000 home and come with a buyer offering $300,000, chances are good the bank will take that offer. They will have to sell [your home] anyway. With a buyer they get a chunk of their money and are better off than trying to sell it on today's market."
Besides Smits and Mulick, Russ Cullen, Tim Thomes and Bill Crispin have volunteered their services.
"Hopefully we can save some homes and help keep the banks solvent," Mulick said.
sgibbs@keysnews.com"

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TIB (The Islamorada Bank) gets lending money

This article is From the Key West Citizen:

"TIB gets lending money
By Robert Silk Citizen Staff

TIB Financial Corp. will receive a $37 million capital infusion from the U.S. Treasury Department under a deal that closed last week.
The money will help TIB's nine Florida Keys branches continue lending to individual homeowners and small- and medium-sized businesses.
"It will allow us to continue without interrupting our mission," TIB Bank President/CEO Mike Carrigan said. "So far this year, we have never stopped lending."

The funds come as part of a program authorized by Congress' $700 billion economic rescue package, approved in early October. Carrigan stressed that this portion of the package, called the Capital Purchase Program, is available only to banks that federal regulators deem to be sufficiently healthy.

"This is an investment. It is not a gift. It is not a bailout," Carrigan said.
Under the deal, the Treasury Department will purchase $37 million worth of preferred TIB stock with an annual dividend of 5 percent for the first three years and 9 percent in the ensuing years.
In addition, the government is to receive warrants for $5.5 million in common TIB stock at $5.22 per share. The warrants can be turned in for actual stock shares at the government's discretion.

TIB was trading at $4.50 per share as of late Monday morning, down slightly more than half from its 12-month high of $9.47.
Carrigan said TIB has not been immune to the economic crunch that has afflicted financial institutions across the country, but it has doled out $150 million in residential mortgages for homeowners and $90 million in commercial loans to businesses this year, he said. About half of those business loans have been provided in the Keys, he said.
TIB reported losses of $2.2 million in the third quarter, compared with a profit of $494,000 during the same period last year.
The total value of its commercial loans increased by $20 million from the end of June to the end of September and its residential loans increased by $17 million.
The company holds $1.23 billion in total loans, of which $27 million are either in default or nearly there.
TIB Financial Corp. is the parent company of TIB Bank, The Bank of Venice and Naples Capital Advisors. It has 17 banks in the Keys, Homestead, Naples, Bonita Springs, Fort Myers, Venice and Sebring.
Founded in Islamorada, the bank now has its company headquarters in Naples, and two branches in Key West, one in Big Pine Key, two in Marathon, one in Islamorada, one in Tavernier and two in Key Largo.
As of Friday, only two other Florida banks were in the queue to receive a capital infusion under the Treasury's $250 billion Capital Purchase Program, according to The Wall Street Journal."

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