Lisa Barton

If you’re wondering what to do next weekend you might want to consider the Beaches Gallery Tour. Art galleries from Atlantic Beach to Ponte Vedra Beach have united for the 6th year to celebrate the Beaches Gallery Tour. Nine beaches galleries will be open Saturday, September 26th from 10:00-5:00. They will be displaying art work by international, regional, and Jacksonville and Jacksonville Beaches artists. Art gallery staff as well as artists will be on-site for discussion and demonstration. Refreshments will also be served in each gallery. Sounds like a lot of fun!

Continue Reading “Beaches Gallery Tour coming on September 26.”

If you’re considering the purchase of a new home, you may be concerned with the issue of finance. Attaining the right mortgage is a key step in the home buying process, but it doesn’t have to be a stress-inducing one. Most lenders offer prequalification, pre-approval or both to help you know where you stand. Here’s the difference between prequalification and preapproval:

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A year after the financial collapse of 2008, the housing market is very different than it was before the foreclosure crisis. A great article in The New York Times gives new home buyers some guidance from economists and financial planners when contemplating a home purchase:
Here are the highlights:

Continue Reading “7 Tips for First-Time Home Buyers”

For those of you who don’t know me, I’m Lisa’s faithful real estate assistant!  From time to time, I’ll appear as a guest blogger on her website.  This summer, I had the opportunity to try a new (to me) yoga studio.  I’ve had a great experience every time I go and wanted to share some info that I thought might be of interest, particularly to those of you who play tennis.

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Recently I attended an informational meeting for St. Johns County real estate agents. The featured speaker was Ed Wuellner, the Executive Director of the St. Augustine-St. Johns County Airport Authority. I learned that the airport was established in 1963. There have been many changes in the last 46 years and in 2008 the airport had a budget of over $11 million. Mr. Wuellner explained that capital projects make up 80% of the airport’s budget and his goal is to have the airport be self-sustaining (and off the county tax rolls) by September of 2010.

Continue Reading “The St. Augustine-St. Johns County Airport Authority”

Tomorrow, June 20th, is the third Saturday of the month, and that means that Nocatee will be hosting its monthly Farmers Market again. Local farmers will be offering fresh fruits and vegetables (remember, it is peach season). There will also be handmade crafts, artwork and prepared food for sale, as well as live music and children’s activities. The Farmers Market will begin at noon and last until 4:00 and will be located off Crosswater Parkway. You won’t want to miss it!

Continue Reading “The Nocatee Farmers Market is Here Again”

FHA home loans are not just for first time homebuyers anymore! FHA home loans can offer easier qualification standards, lower down payment requirements, and lower monthly payments than comparable conventional loans. What is an FHA loan you ask?  It’s a home loan from a federally qualified lender that is insured by the govt. via the Federal Housing Administration. It’s only allowed for primary homes (no vacation or investment properties), and can be used for properties with up to four units. Manufactured homes are also allowed. 

Continue Reading “FHA Home Loans are Not Just for First Time Homebuyers Anymore!”

Last month I purchased a Toyota Prius and I couldn’t be happier. I’m averaging 48 miles a gallon and can fill the 11 gallon tank up with regular gasoline. Believe it or not, the interior is roomy and I can comfortably fit 4 adults in the car. When I’m working with a family or a larger group of people a bigger car is necessary, but usually I’m showing properties to only one or two people. I did purchase the navigation system and the blue-tooth capability--essential tools for any real estate agent. The car also has a back-up camera which projects onto the navigation screen. Very cool!

Continue Reading “The Prius is the Perfect Car for a Real Estate Agent”

As of May 29, 2009, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) gave FHA-approved lenders permission to develop programs that will allow first-time home buyers to use the federal tax credit (which can be up to $8,000) to help cover closing costs or to buy down the interest rate on a mortgage. The lenders can also develop programs such as bridge-loans that will allow new buyers to put down a larger down payment on their mortgage. Right now the minimum down payment on an FHA loan is 3.5% of the loan. It’s important to note that these bridge loans cannot be part of the initial 3.5%—first-time buyers have to come up with that money on their own.

Remember, the first-time home buyer tax credit is available to individuals who’ve never owned a home and to those who haven’t owned a home in at least three years. This tax credit does not have to be repaid and is worth up to $8,000 (depending on the purchase price of the house and the buyer’s annual income). For more information go to the National Association of Realtors.

Continue Reading “First Time Homebuyers Tax Credit May be Used on Closing Costs”

Given that my particular focus area is the Jacksonville Beaches, I investigated the first quarter sales indicators for my specific target areas: Atlantic Beach, Neptune Beach, Jacksonville Beach and Ponte Vedra Beach. Additionally, I looked at vital neighboring communities including Ponte Vedra South (which includes Vilano Beach and the Intracoastal), and NE St John’s County. The good news is that all aggregate real estate sales indicators for the Beaches area showed improvement in the first quarter of 2009 when compared to the same quarter last year. Specifically, home sales rose 5.1% from 117 to 123.

Continue Reading “State of the Ponte Vedra and Jacksonville Beaches Real Estate Market for First Quarter 2009 vs 2008”