Realizing that we have a playgound for adventure right in our backyard and only steps from the back gate, a group has formed for kayaking fun on the St. Andrews Bay.  A kayak rack was built in close proximity to the South Gate for easy access to the beach.  The water is shallow and sandy which helps in launching the boats.  We have several participants who kayak for premium fishing spots and the rest for recreation.  Our group includes young and old, and even a dog.  A shrimp boil is in the works as a kick-off for our paddling friends along with a sunset and full moon cruise.  Residents interested in joining the group or anyone else who would like to paddle with us may call the Association Office 215-5252 for Melinda's number to get information. 10/07/2008

Need to sell your Panama City, Lynn Haven, or Panama City Beach home?  The Payne Group at Keller Williams Success Realty has the experience to make it happen.  Our team is dedicated to customer service, honesty and integrity.   Being in the top 10 out of 1200 Realtors in our local market proves that we know how to sell your home in a buyers market.   We attend regular training and stay tuned to the local market trends and we know the numbers.  An agent in a buyers market CAN NOT continue to do business like it is a 2004 and 2005 sellers market.  The skill set to price and sell a home could not be more different in the two markets.  WE KNOW HOW TO SELL YOUR HOME IN 2008 and going into 2009 and our record proves it. Want to know what your home is worth, our Online Market Analysis is a gre... 10/04/2008

The Payne Group at Keller Williams Success Realty is your Panama City, Lynn Haven, and Panama City Beach real estate team of experts.  We have assembled a team to take care of your every need.   Our buyer specialists only work for you, the buyer to find the exact home to meet your wants and needs.  Brook Simmons, Matt Compton, and Brenda Rutherford take the time to assess your needs and wants through an extensive inteview process.  This important step in the home buying process will save you valuable time and money by "digging" deep to find out what really is motivating you to buy and finding out what is of the most importance to you.   Our buyer specialists will be able to find the home that fits your needs within the first 5 homes that you look at.   No need to look at 50 homes to fin... 10/04/2008

Cherokee Heights Open House Come on out and see what Cherokee Heights has to offer, Sunday October 5 at 1-4pm! MLS#: 379707 List Price: $259,000 ApproxSF: 1,857 Location: 5415 BLUE DOG RD, PANAMA CITY, FL 32404 Bedrooms:3 Baths: 2/0 Year Built: 2008 ElemSch: Tommy Smith Middle: Merritt Brown High: Bay Directions: Take HWY 231 North of the Panama City Mall for 6 miles, turn right on Cherokee Heights Road, left on Nicole Blvd, Right on McCall Lane, and then left on Blue Dog Rd to property. This New Nowell Construction built home, is ready for YOU! This unique Cherokee Heights home for sale features an open living, kitchen, and formal dining area PLUS a separate den or family room. Cherokee Heights Open House Custom cabinets, stainless appliances, and solid surface counter tops fill the go... 10/02/2008

So you want to buy a business… as featured in Invest Magazine  Perhaps more in today’s economy more so then ever before, people are looking to become business owners and work for themselves.  This is no surprise because there is a great level personal satisfaction that comes with owning a successful business.  However, there is also quiet a bit of work, long hours and levels of expertise that are required to make the business successful. There are many ways and categories of buying a small business such as; purchasing a franchise, purchasing a successful, existing business or financing a startup. In this article, we’ll focus primarily on purchasing an existing business and the planning and considerations of that process for owner owned and operated small businesses. Purchasing a busines... 09/28/2008

Thinking of selling your home?  You owe it to yourself to hire the best.  The Payne Group at Keller Williams Success Realty in Panama City Florida knows what it takes to sell your home.  Visit our website at www.knowpayneknowgain.com or Click here to find out what your home is worth in today's market. We just sold this  Brentwoods home, under contract in 17 days. Property report courtesy of The Payne Group Residential - DSF Click photo to enlarge or view multi-photos. MLS#: 384899 OfficeFile#: ListPrice: $205,000 Status: Sold Last Change: 09/26/2008 ApproxSF: 1,816 Address: 3534 BRENTWOODS PL $/Sqft: $101.87   PANAMA CITY, FL TotalRooms: Bedrooms:3 Zip: 32404 Baths Full/Half: 2/0 Con Docs: N Ownership/Sale Type: Foreclosure, REO MainArea: 02 BC-Bay County-Central Stories: 1 SubArea: 020... 09/26/2008

Hello everyone, It's been quite awhile since I've posted on my Active Rain blog, so I thought I'd bring it up to date... As a member of the Panama City Real Estate Team at Keller Williams Success Real Estate, my team leader Jennifer Mackay has been keeping me plenty busy. As many of you know, I am also her webmaster as well as webmaster for several other clients.  I am also a regular guest writer on her Panama City Florida Real Estate blog regarding technology and the internet. Between managing her #1 web site and the several new web site clients I've accepted recently I've barely had time to myself.  But that's ok. I enjoy what I do, and obtain great satisfaction from assisting my clients obtain postive results with their web site endeavors.  I also have plenty of room for more clients... 09/25/2008

I'm very pleased to announce several new sections to my website: My new Pre-sales and development section will feature currently available pre-sale opportunities as well as exclusive complete home development listings. I've also expanded the Bay County School section with new search features as well as school comparision data.  This new feature will allow local and relocating families to search for schools in their area as well as viewing how the schools are rated within the Florida School System. As if that's not enough, I've also added a new Panama City Business and Contractors Directory to assist local and relocating families who are in need of finding local services and businesses. There are more website updates coming soon, so visit my award winning site often. For the most complet... 09/12/2008

Just a quick thank you to everyone who I met and visited our booth at the KW Mega Camp in Austin, TX. It was a pleasure meeting so many successful agents and gaining wonderfully useful insights on improving my business. I will be sending everyone personalized "Thank you's" to each and every one as well as the information relating to the special projects and deals we were promoting at the booth. If you've never attended a Keller Williams special event I urge you to do so.  Even if you are not a KW agent, you are welcome to attend. To find out about KW special events, contact me directly or any other KW agent. You can never learn too much :) 08/29/2008

Per an article published by FAR (FLORIDA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®): New law gives first-time buyers $7,500 tax credit... Tell first-time homebuyers it’s time to commit: A provision of the recently-passed federal housing recovery bill gives first-time buyers an interest-free loan of up to $7,500 in the form of an income tax credit. The credit equals 10 percent of a home’s cost up to $7,500, and applies to any single-family residence (including condos and co-ops) to be used as a buyer’s principal residence. Read the full article here. Other news Freddie Mac reported Thursday that the nationwide average for 30-year mortgages dipped to 6.52 percent this week, down from 6.63 percent last week. Read the full article here. 08/15/2008

This week several of my customers are closing on Aqua Condo units, Calypso units and Sunbird units. What this verifies is there are still many Panama City condo opportunities available at fair prices. So if you're sitting on the fence waiting for that ultimate price reduction, you may be waiting a very long time and possibly may miss some good investment opportunities entirely. I've said this before and I'll say it again: If you're waiting for the Panama City - Bay County Airport to open before purchasing vacation or investment property, you will have waited too long! Contact me today, if you're interested in obtaining additional information about vacation or investment condo units in Aqua or Calypso or any other condo project. 08/14/2008

Tired of throwing away your hard earned money on rent?   Sick of paying your landlord's mortgage and seeing your net worth go down everymonth? Interest rates are low, prices have fallen and many sellers are offering closing cost assitance for you to purchase thier home. NOW is the time to buy, don't wait until the prices start going back up. Below are examples of how much home you can afford for what you are paying in rent....Assume $200 per month for taxes and insurance and a 6.5% interest rate with a 30 year mortgage... $1450 per month   $195,000 purchase price 100% financing  New construction in a most desired neighborhood in Cherokee Heights, 3 bedroom2 bath home by Nowell Construction.   $1350 per month...  $180,000 purchase price. This home is a 3 bedroom, 2 bath home on almost an... 08/14/2008

Recently, Country Home magazine, in conjunction with Sperling's BestPlaces, reveals that Panama City/Lynn Haven is one of the best 'Green' cities in the United States. As gas prices rise, home buyers have become more interested in exploring a green lifestyle. "The Best Green Places study, which is based on data discovered by Sperling's BestPlaces, examines 24 data metrics in 5 major categories -- including air and watershed quality, mass transit usage, power usage, farmers markets, organic producers, and number of green-certified building." Read the full article here. While we may not have made the top ten of this list, we did manage to obtain position #107 out of 379 edging out other major Florida metropolitan areas such as #111 - Tallahassee, #146 - Pensacola-Ferry Pass-Brent and #177... 08/13/2008

As usual, thanks to every one of my wonderful customers July has been a very exciting and busy month. With the addition of a new team member (Leslie J. Newmans) as well as additional resources to assist my customers, I continue to set the standard in the Panama City Real Estate market. As usual, I've posted the latest Panama City Florida Real Estate market summary from BCAR for your convenience here Single family home prices and the number of new listings dropped slightly from the previous month, however that's not necessarily bad news. Why? We've had quite a few homes on the market where the pricing has not matched the market trends. Typically, this means they are priced above market price and buyers pass them by without notice. As more of these over priced listings fall out of the mar... 08/13/2008

It's wonderful to live in an area where people pay to come on vacation.  We are on vacation everyday!  It rang true again the other night when a group of fun friends decided to go kayaking on St. Andrews Bay launching from the St. Andrews Marina.   This is a convenient spot for us to launch from, The Canoe Shop is right across the street and rents kayaks for those that don't own one.  Parking is easy and there is a small sandy beach great for loading the boats and launching as a group. The sun soon begins to set illuminating the sky with shades of orange and pink with dark shadows of clouds along the horizon simulating a mountain range with majestic peaks.  It was another fantastic sunset, no two being exactly alike.  As we headed east toward the rising moon, we realized that maybe our ... 08/12/2008

According to AOL Money and Finance, Panama City Beach is the Number 1 Place to Own a Summer Home (5/31/08).   "Panama City is an economy waiting to break out!" CNN/Money.com projects Panama City as the '#1 Fastest Growth City in the U.S.' and forecasts an appreciation of up to 72% over the next 5 years. Property prices low by Florida standards! Interest rates still at an all time low! New International Airport coming! New retail development at Pier Park! Restaurants, attractions, and continuing road renovation! New beach front development! Some of the lastest figures show that Panama City places in the top three cities in Florida for existing home and condominium sales! 08/10/2008

Now that Leslie Newmans is on board the team, she is associated with a program many of you may be interested in. It's called the HOP program, and here's how it works... Home Ownership Pool (“HOP”) Program Program Overview Florida Housing Finance Corporation’s HOME OWNERSHIP POOL (“HOP”) PROGRAM is designed to be a noncompetitive, ongoing program, with qualified Developers reserving funds for eligible home buyers to provide purchase assistance on a first-come, first-served basis in purchasing an affordable new home. Florida Housing will provide funds in the amount necessary. Eligible home buyers, whose adjusted income does not exceed 80% AMI, receive a 0% deferred second mortgage loan for the lesser of 25% of the purchase price of the home or $70,000 or the amount necessary to meet under... 07/20/2008

Residential - DSF Click photo to enlarge or view multi-photos. MLS#: 382119 OfficeFile#: ListPrice: $329,900 Status: Active Last Change: 05/31/2008 ApproxSF: 1,698 Address: 7238 SKYWATER DR $/Sqft: $194.29   PANAMA CITY, FL TotalRooms: Bedrooms:3 Zip: 32404 Baths Full/Half: 2/ Con Docs:   Ownership/Sale Type:   MainArea: 04 BN-Bay County-North Stories: 1 SubArea: 0414 - East Deerpoint/Bear Creek YearBuilt: 1976 Subdiv: DEERPOINT ESTATES OccStat: Occupied ParcelID: 05487-561-000 ImmOcc? Y     ConstrStat: ConstrCmplt ElemSch: Tommy Smith Middle: Merritt Brown High: Mosley Dir: From Hwy 231 North, take a left on 2321 North (app. 2 miles), right on 2311 North (app. 1 1/2 miles), take a left on Lakeland Dr, immediate right on Skywater Dr. first home on right hand side of cul-de-sac. Lot: 7 ... 07/11/2008

With the cost of gas weighing so heavily on Floridians, it’s no surprise that commuting distances are essential to new home owners. In 2008, buying real estate is all about location and how close buyers are to local amenities such as movie theaters, stores, banks, and their workplace. According to the Housing and Transportation Index, Floridians can expect to contribute more than 18% of their gross income to transportation costs. By living closer to or within an urban area, homeowners can dramatically decrease their transportation costs. The cost of gas is staggering. For example, on InventHP, consumers can calculate their current commuting costs. If you’re living in the suburbs with a 40-mile round-trip commute you can expect to spend $248 per month. Find a house within 5 miles of you... 07/10/2008

 Just a friendly reminder NO FRIDAY FEST IN JULY Downtown Panama City comes alive with Music, Food, and Fun on the first Friday of the month, starting in March and running through November. Local businesses stay open till 8pm and the festivities run until 10pm, providing a great opportunity to shop, eat and have a great time. If you are a regular or you have never attended, then grab a friend, grab your family and join us for Friday Fest!   **THE NEXT "FRIDAY FEST" WILL BE FRIDAY, AUGUST 1st** NO FRIDAY FEST IN JULY DUE TO "SALUTE TO FREEDOM" AT THE PC MARINA SEE YOU THERE 06/24/2008