With 1 out 4 homes on the market either being a short sale or foreclosure there are some things you may need to know. At Charles Stallions Real Estate Services Inc. we are here to help. All agents are board certified, spent countless hours in the field selling foreclosures and short sales not just class rooms thinking about. When you put you name on a contract to buy a foreclosed property, you better know more than just how to write. Such as How does a foreclosure sale work? Can a former seller take back the property and under what conditions? Do I need or even want a home inspection since the bank is not warranting anything? Are their leins against the property and am I protected against future claims? What makes this foreclosure sale different than my brother in laws or any other in l... 01/31/2009

As Pittsburg and Arizona get ready in Tampa, we are getting ready here for what should be the biggest block party in history or at least here. From 10 am to 5 pm on Sunday February 1st people will come rom Alabama and Florida as well as anywhere else people are from, visiting the panhandle. For eight blocks there will be bands, family fun and activities for everyone. The block party will end at 5 just in time for the game, so join me and the gang at Will Call to watch and enjoy the game. This will be the beginning of great times ahead as we kick off Mardi Gra as well. 01/31/2009

While doing a 5K run this morning, I got to thinking how late is to late to wait on someone. Whether it is a showing appointment or you being late for a listing appointment. You the race was scheduled at 7:30 am, I got there in the cold at 6:30, at 7:30 they ask for everyone to start lining up. In all at that time there was about 75 people who waited and waited for about 12 more all total to show up. They slowly trickled in with coffee, coats and laughter. Some of the people waiting were not too happy. But granted these were the best of the runners in due respect. But really how long should we have waited or should we have went on without them. How long would you wait for a customer at a showing or how long would you expect them to wait for you. 01/31/2009

Does anyone read Mike Papantonio's articles? This guy is a lawyer in Pensacola, I think he is trying to get elected to something one day I just don't know what. The reason I say that is because he has been riding on the shirt tail of a once popular House of Representative from Pensacolas for about three years now. He writes hilarious articles all aimed at either a fantasy of his or deemed to tear down someone that he is jealous of. Which brings me to his latest point which was to ridicule Rush Limbaugh, now I'm no fan of Rush either but the article just spewed of jealousy. Talking about how Rush wanted Obama to fail, which of course was probably taken out of context. He even said his church said a pray for Obama and that he was so proud of his church for doing that. But he never mention... 01/30/2009

I was attending a Governors Task Force meeting last Friday when Larry leaned over and said hey you heard the news. State Farm is going to announce on Monday that they will be leaving Florida in part because they cannot raise their insurance fees. I was thinking to my self that I hope they take about half the other thieves with em. But instead at lunch, it was the buzz around the table. So I said haven't, if anything from this last election cycle, have we not learned the scare tactics in politics and corporate america. Does anyone think that the second largest seller of auto insurance in the state is just going to give that up, h...no. Someone even said that they would still sell auto and life and I said not in the state of Florida. The governor and legislature is not going to set by and... 01/30/2009

Last weekend I had the privilege of joining twenty four other business people in an annual Christian Leadership event. The program runs for one year and is designed to teach communitiy minded folks how to become better leaders. During the year we meet once a week to go over local programs, economic plans and general ideas that we can use to better our areas. As well as six times during the ear we have weekend retreats to accomplish certain areas of each other lives that will create self improvement on an individual basis. We arrived on Friday afternoon around 1 pm and came back home on Monday around 11 am. We were split up into two - six people teams. One of the things we had to do was overcome a fear that we had. Of course when we were selected to go through the program we filled out a... 01/24/2009

We have been discussing what to put into our new relocation package and here is what we came up with. Please feel free to add to it if you like or use our example to make your own. Free area map, perferablly one with the MLS infromation. A local Newspaper. We print out off the internet the local businesses looking to hire. Local eatery coupons, we have talked to some of the eateries and they have provided us with buy one get one free or buy one and get the second one half price. A top ten things to do in the area. I have joined with some of the people I enjoy working with like the gym I joined to offer huge discounts from their business as well. I along with two mortgage companies, my insurance agent, my gym and my CPA put these together. We share in the total cost and all agree it has ... 01/24/2009

ZZ....? Yes the ZZ Plant ! This is the most sensational plant imaginable.... You stage a home beautifully...the look is to die for ......and your homeowners do not have a green thumb......no they don't even have a brown thumb...and you are beginning to believe they do not have a thumb. This conclusion was arrived by the deduction that it is physically impossible for them to operate a watering device ! Or better yet the house is empty and you are so busy ( Probably a Realtor with out a thumb, if the truth were known !) you cannot get back to water the pitiful plants.... FEAR NOT ZZ has arrived. These plants really can be abused beyond belief. Though I do not recommending going past a month to water them I know I have neglected mine for at least three weeks....Having gone on record as bei... 01/24/2009

Let me start by saying that everywhere you turn now, there is a short sale expert. SO much so agents have created a class and designation for it. Stastics show that 1 out every 4 people will be affected within the next five years by a short sale. If this is you or even someone you know, be a friend and gives this message to them. Print it, forward it or somehow get them to read this. No one needs to be embarrased or have to deal with inexperienced folks claiming to be experts. Short selling and pre - forclosures are tedious at best and require attention to detail. I did my first short sale in 1995, I was taught by one of the best. I know the talk and walk the walk sort of speak. Give me ten minutes on the phone or in person and I will tell you right then and there what you need to do. N... 01/24/2009

 Today America welcomed in our new President . Wasn't that an exciting history making event. I am sure so many of you watched this today. So many people !  They said 2 million were there . Americans are looking for " The Change"  I don't know about you, but I truly believe a change is going to come. I feel good about the change and our President seems to genuinely care about America and Americans as a whole instead of just "The Politics ."  It's truly a breath of fresh air. I feel like a new day has dawned in America.. Like they have been saying "I am fired up and ready, aren't you?"  Through all of this I have truly recognized that Realtors are truly survivors!   Sellers may not be doing as well but people are buying..... which means houses are still selling. In Pensacola over 300  hom... 01/20/2009

If I had a crystal ball......   I expect the Northwest Florida real estate values to drop another 12% by year's end.  Perhaps the downward spiral will stop in 2010 but the days of double digit appreciation are gone for many years, maybe forever.  I expect appreciation rates to be in the 2% range per year from 2010 through 2015.  Perhaps we'll see some normal appreciation rates in the 4 to 6% range annually after that.    If anyone tells you to "take your house off the market until next year when things get better," run like hell!  Believe it or not, I meet with sellers on a regular basis who have been told this by other Realtors! It's not getting better anytime in the near future folks!  Let's say your property is worth $100K today, by year's end it'll be worth $88K.  At 2% a year appr... 01/18/2009

Sales and Currently Active Listings of Single Family Homes, Towwnhomes and Condominiums in Escambia and Santa Rosa Counties for 2008. Source: Pensacola Association of Realtors. What's going on with the Escambia and Santa Rosa economy and local housing market? Here's the latest from a presentation I attended at the Pensacola Association of Realtors yesterday by experts Dr. Rick Harper, Hass Center for Business Research and Economic Development, Al Muller, Metro Market Trends and local appraiser John Priller: John Priller- Pensacola area appraisers have just received new, tighter HUD guidelines pertaining to the required number of comparable listings and sales in the last 3, 6, and 9 month periods as well as absorption times. Translation: appraisers have more work to do and we should be ... 01/17/2009

While we have been having some wonderful warm weather in Pensacola Florida, we are having a burr of a cold spell.  Thursday night there is an expected low of 23 degrees with a high in the 50's.  On Friday we will be having a high in the upper 40's with a low of around 20 degrees.  Baby it is extremely cold here for us that are use to having mild temperatures.  Just want all you in the Pensacola Florida area and by the way anywhere else that is freezing, to take special care of your pets, the elderly and make sure that you winterize your home and car.  And as a post note...........please, please be careful of those space heaters!!  There have been way too many homes that have caught on fire where the space heater was to blame.  01/14/2009

This open letter is for all my sellers in the Pensacola, Florida area.  Thank you for putting your trust in me.  I realize that you could have chosen any Realtor in the area to assist you in the selling of your home, but you chose me.  Please know that I am actively working each day to bring you a qualified buyer.  The Real Estate market has had its ups and downs just as other things in our economy. I have people ask me all the time..."when will the market pick up?"  I tell them that I am not able to predict the future and if I could...........I would be in the stock market speculating on that.  Real Estate is local, you can not judge our market by California's, Arizona, or the like.  I personally, have been busy since December.   If the buyers are waiting for some sort of bottom, they ... 01/14/2009

Looking for a Short Sale or Foreclosure in Pensacola, Florida (Click Here) The latest thing to happen in the Real Estate Industry is Short Sales and everyone is quite the expert. Don't be a victim twice, do the research and find out if this is for you. Every lender is different, but I have found that you have to get to the loss mitigation dept. and you have to stay on top of them to the point of calling sometimes as much as four times a day. Get your offer to the board as quickly as possible because they will ultimately make the decision no matter what you've been told. It has to go to the board and most boards meet every thirty days and go over short sales for the past thirty days, then make the decisions to accept, turn down or put on hold. Here is how I package a deal, hope it helps.... 01/10/2009

As we enter the New Year I have been thinking a lot about financial planning and happiness. Funny how intertwined the two tend to be! While many of us are rethinking our spending habits amidst the poor economic news and wondering if we really NEED all those things we tend to buy, the fact of the matter is that even if we simplify and downsize there are some financial realities that we just can't escape. And for women these financial realities can be much different than those faced by our male counterparts. I listened to a great talk by Carol Carlan, a consultant with "Our Collective Mind" at the Pensacola area Women's Council of Realtors yesterday. Some points she made deserve to be shared: U.S. Life Expectancy - for Women 83, Men 76 3 out of 4 Married Women will be Widowed 3 Common Mis... 01/10/2009

Unemployment, slow retail sales, falling home prices, and here we all go . . . circling the drain once again. Amid all this negative news isn't there a bright spot for Pensacola? Well, of course there is - or are- in reality (and realty) there are MANY positive things going on in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties: #1 - Falling mortgage interest rates - We actually saw rates hit 4.5% in Pensacola in mid December and many predict we will see rates this low once again. Those of us working in real estate and related fields saw a rash of activity in December as buyers scrambled to take advantage of the low rates and attractive home prices. #2 - South Santa Rosa County - Surveying is underway on the 100-plus acres owned by Pensacola Junior College in Gulf Breeze (Midway) for construction of a... 01/04/2009

  Father Hines  was the closest human manifestation to Santa Clause I ever saw. He had a wonderful white beard, rotund belly and a smile that made you glad to be in his presence. The resemblance was very important to me since when I first started my long spiritual journey our group of seekers were advised if you had no real god concept you could think of your higher power as a tree, or even the group as a whole....I chose my version of the most lovable image I had ever been exposed to ....Santa Clause. So when I went on my first silent retreat at the Cenacle in New Orleans I was dumbfounded when I realized Santa would be in charge. The retreat consisted of a series of lectures, prayer, and guided visualizations. The exercise that I will never forget was one in which you are asked to ima... 01/03/2009

2008 was a BIG YEAR for the Robin Sherman Realtors team. I just checked our stats and we finished the year as the #2 Coldwell Banker team in the STATE of Florida in terms of our sales volume. WOW . . . even if I do say so myself!!!! (To borrow one of my competitors slogans - just this once Sandy - I could say "I'm not bragging, just applying for a job.")   "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" - Robin, Harriett and Ruthie join Keller Williams The beginning of a new year is always a good time to make a new start. After seven very productive and successful years at Coldwell Banker in the Greater Pensacola Bay Area (Coldwell Banker JME Realty and later Coldwell Banker United Realtors) we have moved our team to Keller Williams Realty. Our new offices are located in Gulf Breeze, not too far from our p... 01/01/2009

Pensacola, Florida Real Estate We here at the Charles Stallions Real Estate Services continuously monitor local real estate statistics to keep our clients informed and ahead of the real estate trends.  Below you will find Pensacola, Florida real estate statistic, for last months stats scroll down. A Snapshot of the Pensacola, Florida Housing Market   Available Homes                         = 2164 New listings this month                = 253 Current Homes Under Contract      =213 Homes Sold In Last 30 Days       = 136 Average Dollar Per Square Foot   = $69.22 Average Days On The Market      = 134 Latest Assumption Rate             = 16 months (rounded) Average Sales Price                   = $142,593 List Price to Sales Price              = 95.36% Sell Your Home Now!! $1495 FLAT FEE: (To... 12/26/2008