Marina at the Bluffs sale

The Bluffs is a DiVosta-built community of single family homes and condominiums located on the south side of Jupiter near the ocean.  The Marina at the Bluffs is a collection of 5 story condominiums clustered around the Marina, many with Intracoastal views.  The units are typically 2/2 floorplans with nearly 1,400 square feet of living space.

A unit in the building above just sold after only 64 days on the market for $ 160,000.  Residents who buy here are a short bike ride away from the beaches at Jupiter and Juno Beach and some great surf fishing.  There are also dock spaces available in the Marina.

Condo fees run about $ 1,200 a quarter.  You might consider a condo here or across US One where two other large complexes are located as close to the ocean as you can get in Jupiter.  In Jupiter, condos were not allowed on the ocean side of the Beach Road although they are in Juno Beach.

To see any home listed for sale in the Jupiter to Palm Beach Gardens area contact Richard Sites at 561-762-4073 or by email.

Auction in Jonathan's Landing coming in October

Jonathan's Landing is a Jupiter waterfront country club with 3 golf courses, ocean access waterfront properties, 10 tennis courts and exquisite landscaping.  Located near other clubs like Admirals Cove and the Ritz-Carlton, there are over 1,200 homes priced from near $ 200,000 to over $ 4,000,000.

These homes are divided into 27 distinct communities usually about 24 homes in size.  There are condos, townhouses, single family home and waterfront estates.  The house below in Riverwind is going to auction on October 18.

It is a 3 bedroom, 3 bath pool home with nearly 2,500 square feet of living space laid out in a semi-courtyard fashion with the pool in the center off the family room.

Auctions have special terms so if you are interested or know someone who might be, please contact me Richard Sites at 561-762-4073 in the Jonathan's Landing Realty office.  JL Realty is located in the main clubhouse and is the exclusive, on-site real estate office for the Club.  We have a comprehensive collection or floor plans, sales histories, membership information and pictures of  Jonathan's Landing homes for sale.

Jupiter real estate, Botanica offers newer homes

When most people think of newer homes in Jupiter, they think of Abacoa.  Sure, Abacoa has plenty of great houses but many were built in the 1990's.  If you are looking at Jupiter real estate and like newer homes, there are limited choices.

A few homes are going up in Abacoa and Lennar is building Rialto out near I-95.  But for a central location with Jupiter schools, you might consider homes for sale in Botanica.

Botanica is comprised of 540 residences with townhouses, villas, single family homes and estates located north of Abacoa and east of Military Trail near Paseos.  These homes were built in 2005-2005 and so they are some of the newest homes around yet they have had a few years for the landscapes to mature so there are some beautiful palms and flowering shrubs like bougainvillea around.

The community also has other amenities like a community pool, walking paths, tennis courts and preserve areas.  And the schools are all Jupiter area schools.

Homes in Botanica

You can see all homes for sale in Jupiter including Botanica at Coastal Florida Real Estate or for some videos try my You Tube Channel.  If you need a little guidance getting started, I have lived here 22 years and can show you the best locations and some great opportunities.

Video email, how novel

Implix, an email marketing leader and online solution provider to global SOHO/SMB markets, has announced the results of an internal study conducted on almost one billion video emails sent following the July launch of GetResponse 6.0.

The analysis compared open and click-through rates (CTR) achieved by video emails and non-video mails. The emails containing video received, on average, 5.6 percent higher open rates, and 96.38 percent higher CTRs than non-video mails. With continued use, the expectation is that recipients will increasingly prioritize and open messages from known senders of video emails.

Rising to the top of recipients’ email “priority lists” is one of the biggest challenges facing SMB marketers today. With a 71 percent increase in online viewing time in the last year, video is clearly the fastest growing trend in Internet history. But small businesses don’t have the budget or the staff to create professional-looking videos, placing them at a competitive disadvantage.

Now to me this is a novel idea.  I mean isn't a video quite similar to...a phone call?  I hate to be old fashioned but I like phones and am not afraid to make a call.  My 19 year son uses his phone constantly to text, even when there is not response on the other end.  When I suggested that he call to speed things up he looked at me like I was crazy.

You may want to try this out, but if you are selling your house your agent may want to try this but we are so overwhelmed with email, and some fancy ones too, that I doubt if they will get opened.

Anyway, if you are looking at Jupiter homes for sale you can see them all at Coastal Florida Real Estate.  Every house and every picture is listed there in real time.  And before you leave this blog, be sure to subscribe.

Is everybody a specialist?

Jupiter real estate is some of the most fascinating in the world.  Out west there are estates with 20 acres in Ranch Colony.  Along the Loxahatchee River, guys like Steve Marino and Rickie Fowler have found waterfront estates to their liking.

On Jupiter Island, Alan Jackson built an oceanfront mansion.  Olivia Newton-John bought in a small community with views of the Jupiter lighthouse.  Tico Torres and Mike Schmidt prefer the seclusion of  Admirals Cove. And thousands of snowbirds have modest condos where they can escape the harshness of winter.

And sprinkled among all these Jupiter homes for sale are several thousand real estate agents.  Each agent hopes to uncover a few buyer/seller leads that might turn into some business.  Sellers know one thing for sure, they want to move.  Or say they do.

Buyers on the other hand may think they want to buy in a certain area then decide on something completely different.  This is where the phrase, "buyers are liars" comes from.  They aren't liars, rather their needs, wants and desires (and financial situations) change as they move through the buying process.  So while they may arrive on the scene thinking they want a certain type of house in a certain location by the time they get to the closing table they may have purchased something different.

Which leads me to this question?  Do you want to find an agent who is a specialist?  And further, when is a specialist a specialist?

Pick up the paper or look on the Internet.  Every agent says they specialize in a certain type of property which typically is:  country clubs, waterfront condos or estates.  Well, that covers about 80% of the properties around here.  So is this "specialist" really a specialist at all?

We have two other types of specialists.  One is the resident real estate agent who, so the theory goes, would know the Club better than anyone.  I would dare say the Membership Office knows the ins-and-outs of the Club better than anyone although the resident agent may know that a certain hole on the golf course always plays 20 years longer than the card says.  The resident agent is a myth.

The other specialist is the "geographic specialist".  These agents mark their territories by certain boundaries like only on Singer Island or only on the River or a certain city.  So if you choose a geographic specialist you should be prepared for them to hand you over to another "specialist" if you change your mind about what you are looking for.  This reminds me of the Andy Griffith Show where Barney would escort a wayward hobo to the town limits where they would be dropped off and told to move along.

What happens after you get passed off, see some new properties, then decide to come back to specialist agent #1?  Now, that's an interesting thought.  So conceivably you could work with several specialists until you finally decide to buy.  In fact, working with the geographic specialist might mean you would change cars several times in the same day and need a playbook to keep the agents straight.  Some companies have both geographic specialists and buyers agents who can move from location to location, so how can this work?  Either one model works or the other one works, not both.

So what should you look for in an agent?  How about a specialist/generalist?  What's that?  Well, someone who works across a broad spectrum of properties in a general location, like the North end of the County.  You are looking for the right agent, not the right business model.  When choosing a doctor do you inquire about their business relationship with the hospital?  I think not.  You are trying to find the right doctor not the right business model. 

So choose your agent the same way you choose a doctor.

You can see all Jupiter homes for sale at Coastal Florida Real Estate.  No other site has any more or more current data since we are all feeding our sites from the same MLS data.  And this site is designed to load as fast as possible.  You won't find any slide shows or links to the Chamber of Commerce, just every home and every picture.  Need some guidance?  Email me at: coastalflrealestate@gmail.com.

Jupiter real estate, the $ 600,000 shower

Every time you  think you have heard it all something comes along that rocks your boat...again.

One of the jobs of being a real estate agent is to counsel people on how to effectively get their homes sold.  However, someone once said that anyone who acts as their own lawyer has a fool for a client and the same could be said of real estate.  Just because you are selling your own house doesn't mean you won't fall into the same traps that keep only 1% of the For Sale By Owner homes from selling.

Remember, hope is not an effective selling strategy.

In selling your home, only five things make a difference.  And one of these five is accessibility.  Now I'm not talking about providing ramps to comply with ADA, I'm talking about making the home easy to show.

NAR statistics show that homes on lockboxes get shown 30% more than those that are not on lockboxes.  But what about the valuables we have around the house?  Move them out and lock them up, then put your house on a lockbox.

So what about the $600,000 shower?

Recently, I tried to schedule a showing on a home listed by the agent/owner for nearly $ 600,000.  I wanted to show it at 10 AM, but when I called her she told me she left for work at 11 and showered at 10.  Could I please make it another time?  Really?

Are you telling me that you wouldn't take a shower 30 minutes earlier than normal for $ 600,000?  YES!

Now, since every other house I had scheduled was "Appt. only" I took the only reasonable course.  We skipped her house.  If she thought I was going to reschedule my entire day so she could shower at her normal time she was really, really wrong.  Forget my schedule, what about everyone else involved.  Should I call them all again and ask them to move their appointments so she could take her normal shower?

Hope is not an effective selling strategy.

You can see all Jupiter homes for sale at Coastal Florida Real Estate where every home and every picture is listed for you in real time.  No other site has any more or more current information.

Tequesta home with private beach

Tequesta is Jupiter's sister city on the north side of the Jupiter Inlet.  Until very recently it was largely overlooked by home buyers since it had the connotation of being populated by mostly older residents, or as Rush Limbaugh calls them, "seasoned citizens".  And that might have been partially true.

Tequesta real estate was platted out in the 1970's so the home sites are larger and at one time it was a magnet for retirees.  Tequesta Country Club with its golf course was built as were homes on the Loxahatchee River.  Tequesta is surrounded by water on three sides and Jonathan Dickinson Park on the fourth so with limited land, no sprawling communities like PGA National could be built.

Although Tequesta waterfront homes are primarily along the Loxahatchee River and the finger canals that come off it, the Village also faces the Intracoastal Waterway and homes here look eastward to Jupiter Island.  These homes have a great location and some of the residents have installed private beaches that look like they came from a calendar of the South Pacific.  Take a look at the one below.

Tequesta waterfront home

This house is north of the Village of Tequesta and has nearly no neighbors.  But, you might ask, what about security gates and guards?  Well, there is very little crime of any sort here.  Once in awhile someone will leave their car unlocked and something gets taken but that's about it.

So if you are looking for an ideal waterfront location without paying high club fees, you might consider homes for sale in Tequesta.  The area has been discovered by younger families and gentrification is taking places, or another way to look at it is your real estate investment is safe here.

You can see all Tequesta homes for sale at Coastal Florida Real Estate.  Every home listed for sale and every pictures is there in real time and no other site has any more or more current data.  And the site doesn't have a lot of fluff so it loads very fast.

Who said 440 was the right number?

Sometimes in life it's hard to understand things.  Like what is the difference between something being a commodity and something being imaginative?  Simple, commodities are taken for granted and imaginative things become icons or classics or set trends.  Now what does all this mean?

Let's take rock n roll for example.  During the early 1950's, nobody saw the rising youth market for music as it started to swell up.  Before and during the war swing bands were the thing.  Sure there were some small offshoots here and there and there was "black music".  Then suddenly from Memphis, a swivel hipped young man showed up, then sang and danced his way into history.  Imagination made Elvis...Elvis.  Being good looking didn't hurt though.  Then what happened.  Madison Avenue and Hollywood commoditized him and we got Frankie Avalon, Bobbie Vinton, Fabian and anybody else they could throw against the wall to see if they would stick.

Then, the same thing happened with The Beatles.  Imagination morphed into The British Invasion and lastly, and ghastly, The Monkees.

So who decided that 440 was the right number?  George Carlin once said that while he wasn't looking and without being asked, someone changed toilet paper into bathroom tissue.  My question is who set 440 as the de facto standard for the number of sheets on a roll?  Who spread the word?   Why did every company do the same thing then try to redefine themselves with a cute campaign like, "Please don't squeeze the Charmin".  It is so much easier to be identified as unique by being unique.  Now Charmin even has a website called enjoy the go to try and be different yet they still sell 440 sheets on a roll.  Only Scott offers 1,000 sheets on a roll.  Yesterday, when in the grocery store, I did not find any other sizes available.  Isn't that odd?  Some companies are trying the "green routine" to sell more TP but nobody wants to change the number of sheets.

How about real estate?  I would ask the same questions?  Who decided that all landscaping is described a s lush?  Who decided that every view is spectacular?  Who decided that all open houses are Sunday, 1-4?  Once you become a commodity the only thing you have going for you is price.  Period.  This gives way to the discount agent.  And I could show you 100 examples of how taking this path leads to a smaller final check when selling.  Statistics will certainly bear this out.

When I started in real estate 8 years ago, I joined a company that sells many very large homes and was given a listing that had been in the company inventory for 2 years.  During that time, 2 very experienced agents handled it without selling before turning it over to me.  A quick analysis of the situation determined we had to do some things different and with only 1% effort I sold the house in one month for a million dollars.  The owner of the company called to say nobody sells a million dollar home as their first one.  Well, obviously experience wasn't on my side.  It was, as GE now says, Imagination at Work.

I guess I'm blessed (or cursed) with looking at things a little differently but I too would like to say Imagination at Work.  In 2010, GE sold about $ 150 billion so there's the proof.  So if you are trying to sell your home be a leader not a follower.  Sometime I'll tell you the story about another creative tool I used to sell a property when others weren't able.

Caloosa, horse country near PB Gardens

When most people think of Palm Beach Gardens, they think of golf.  And for good reason.  Palm Beach Gardens is the golf capital of the world.  And the Honda Classic will be played here in just a few days.

Palm Beach Gardens has many exquisite courses like Mirasol and Old Palm.  But just west of Mirasol on Hwy. 710 is Caloosa.  It's not really thought of as PB Gardens, but that is the closest city.

Here you will find an intimate equestrian community of larger properties.  Most of the homes in Caloosa are on 5 acres.  Caloosa faces Hwy. 710, also known as the Beeline Highway, and the back side faces Jupiter Farms.  Those that like to fly will find the North County Airport just a short drive away.

Caloosa is also surrounded by the Loxahatchee Slough which wraps from Riverbend Park down to PB Gardens and it thousands of acres of land set aside as a natural preserve.  It is open to hiking, biking and horses but not motorized vehicles.

You can also use the Beeline to access the Palm Beach International Airport which would be about 20 minutes away.  And the Florida Turnpike has an exit onto the Beeline as well.

Other communities close to Caloosa would be Ibis Golf and Country Club, Steeplechase, Ironhorse, BallenIsles and PGA National.

You can see all homes for sale in Caloosa by visiting Coastal Florida Real Estate where you will find the fastest MLS search results available.  If you need a little personal guidance I have lived here 22 years and can show you the best locations.  Contact me at coastalflrealestate@gmail.com.

Intracoastal homes view Jupiter Island

Here in Jupiter and Tequesta we are blessed with water on all sides.  Of course, the sparkling Atlantic ocean runs along the eastern side of us and makes this a true beach lovers paradise.  Tequesta, Jupiter and Juno Beach all have miles of free, clean beaches and County parks such as Carlin and Coral Cove where you can go to enjoy them.

Waterfront homes in Jupiter and Tequesta includes oceanfront mansions on Jupiter Island like Alan Jackson's home, private club homes like those in Admirals Cove and Jonathan's Landing as well as riverfront homes along the 3 forks of the Loxahatchee River.  We also have some "finger canals" off these main bodies of  water that provide ocean access and protected dockage at a more reasonable price (under $1,000,000).

However one more area that doesn't get as much exposure are the waterfront homes along the Intracoastal Waterway, technically the Indian River.  Some of the homes on Jupiter Island face this calm body of water and those close to the Jupiter Inlet have clear, blue ocean water come in twice a day on high tide.  Those that are further up the ICW don't see this change in water color.

On the mainland side near Tequesta and Hobe Sound, estate homes with tremendous views and ocean access dot the landscape.  Typically, these houses are not in gated communities so if you are looking for a guardhouse, you won't find them here.  But what you will find are views like the one below taken from the balcony of a master bedroom on a home listed for sale at close to $4,000,000.

Picture yourself having coffee out here in the morning and looking across to Jupiter Island.  There are few places anywhere in the world that are more beautiful than this.

If you are looking for a waterfront property anywhere between Tequesta and Singer Island, you can see them all at Coastal Florida Real Estate where the fastest MLS search results are available.  Every home and every picture is there in real time and no other site has any more or more current information.  If you would like some guidance when starting your search, unlike many agents I have lived here 22 years and can show you the best locations and some great opportunities.  You can reach me at 561-762-4073 or email at coastalflrealestate@gmail.com.

All eyes on sports around here

Jupiter and Palm Beach Gardens are coming alive with sports!  With the perfect spring weather we are having, there is no better place to be when it's time for outdoor activities.

On the south side of Jupiter is the planned community of Abacoa featuring many different neighborhoods all designed with the live, work, play idea in mind.  Abacoa was built around the Town Center and several important institutions.  Scripps, FAU Honors College, Wackenhut now known as G4S and the Max Planck Institute are all located here as is the Abacoa Golf Club and the Roger Dean Stadium.  The stadium is home to spring training for the Florida Marlins and the St. Louis Cardinals.  And right now every baseball fan is geared up for spring training.

Of course the thrill of seeing Albert Pujols is gone but the weather is tremendous, the field is in great shape and there are plenty of foul balls for the kids to chase.  I know this field was designed by very famous architects, but foul balls exit the field and if they don't land on an unlucky spectator can be found in front of the stands.

Over in Palm Beach Gardens, preparations are underway for the Honda Classic in a few weeks and many of the top touring pros live within a 15 mile radius.  Of course, the big news last year was the addition of areas where you could make cell phone calls.  The big news this year is that Jupiter Island resident Tiger Woods will be playing.  In the past, we was beneath him.  Now he hopes to rekindle the fire that characterized his early years and the Honda is turning into quite an event.

If you are looking for a great place to see pro sports, Palm Beach Gardens and Jupiter are the spots this time of year.

Just sold in The Bluffs

The Bluffs is a seaside community of single family homes near the ocean on the south side of Jupiter.  These large collection of homes is perched on the sand bluff ridge that runs inland from Juno Beach to Tequesta.  The increased elevation means the community is always bathed in warm, tropical breezes.

All of the homes in the different subdivisions, like The Ridge, are the same in term of floor plans and size which is about 1,900 square feet.  They all have three bedrooms and two baths and although there is a community pool, some have private pools.

All of the homes for sale in The Bluffs are within biking distance of both Juno Beach and the dog-friendly beaches of Jupiter.

This home just sold for $ 380,000 after 101 days on the market.

If you are looking for a community where there is pride in ownership and you like being close to the beach, you might want to consider homes in The Bluffs.  They were built by Divosta Homes of solid, poured concrete construction.

You can see all homes for sale in The Bluffs by visiting Coastal Florida Real Estate or if you would like some guidance before starting your home search, I have lived in Jupiter for 22 years and can show you the best locations and values.  You can also reach me at 561-762-4073 or coastalflrealestate.@gmail.com



Auction in the Bear's Club

Jack Nicklaus had eyed the choice piece of property just south of Admirals Cove for a long time as the ideal place to finally build his private club.  After building courses everywhere for others he was looking for that perfect location and close to his home.  So when he was able to acquire it he established The Bear's Club and the Ritz-Carlton chose to occupy one half of the property.

With careful attention to the existing flora and fauna, he created two courses, one for each development.  In fact, the Ritz is home to a nesting pair of bald eagles.

On the eastern side, he created a very exclusive club and still makes adjustments to the course on a continuing basis.  Homes in The Bear's Club are some of the biggest estate homes in the area.  In fact, Michael Jordan paid around $ 4 million for two lots where he is now building a house, if you can call it a house, that looks more like a resort.



Next week, an 18,000 square foot home is going to auction.  Typically auctions have the connotation of nasty bankers taking the family farm while the family weeps on the sidelines.  But auctions have long been used to move "one of a kind" items quickly.  And an 18,000 foot house qualifies as one of a kind.

Originally listed at nearly $12 million, the auction will start around $ 5 million but unlike absolute auctions where the highest price, whatever that is, takes the property there will be a reserve price that will have to be met in order to take ownership.

A couple of years back I attended the auction of two penthouses on Singer Island in The Oasis condos.  They had been listed at between $ 4-$6 million but never sold so they were auctioned and as I recall they went for around $ 2 million each.

If you are looking at homes for sale in Jupiter you can see them all using the fastest MLS search available at Coastal Florida Real Estate.  Every home and every pictures is there in real time.  No other site has more or more current information.  If you need a little guidance, I have lived here 22 years and can show you the best locations and some great opportunities.  You can reach me at 561-762-4073 or if you prefer email use coastalflrealestate@gmail.com.