St. Augustine events this weekend are many and varied including my annual Customer Appreciation Cruise aboard the Schooner Freedom. St. Augustine's Winter Wonderland is in full force. Yes, we have snow in St. Augustine, FL. This annual event is held at the St. Augustine Amphitheatre and includes an ice skating rink and ice slide. Enjoy a horse-drawn carriage ride at night through an enchanted forest. Kids will enjoy the "Elf Express" train and can take a trip to the North Pole to visit Santa Claus. Hours are noon to 10 p.m. daily through January 3, 2010 with special hours on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and New Year's Eve. Admission is free, but there are tickets for ice skating and the rides. For more information call 904-471-1965. The Cirque du Cabaret at the Limelight Theatre is Nov... 11/20/2009

"Bella Terra: Palencia Neighborhood by ICI Homes - Ted Tyndall" Davidson Realty is marketing the Bella Terra neighborhood in the exclusive Palencia neighborhood. "The Versailles Model"     Ted Tyndall and Carol vonRabenstein with Davidson Realty Inc. have formed an alliance with ICI Homes to market the Bella Terra neighborhood in Palencia. Palencia is a gated community with a Private Golf Course in St. Augustine, Florida. This is a gorgeous home with a Courtyard Entry and Pool design. it has a separate suite over the garage.                                    "The Castillo Model"   This is a phenomenal neighborhood with four Models built and professionally decorated for the consumer to view. These four homes are not for sale but will be available for viewing. Our team has agreed to have... 11/19/2009

  One of St. Augustine’s charming neighborhoods includes Fullerwood – a great little area just north of downtown with homes mostly built in the early to mid 1950’s.  It is within an easy walking distance to many and varied city events and a comfortable bike ride to the beach.  Currently I have a listing there that the owners have used as a weekend hide-a-way.  The seller had terrific fun accumulating cheerful art and distributing it throughout the house.   With so many homes for sale, preparing  the home for sale is important.  The sellers were instructed  to depersonalize as much as possible and to clean vigorously.  Since then, their motivation has increased and I became more specific with instructions.  The photos below tell some of the story as to what a difference a before and afte... 11/18/2009

"Sneak Peek Saturdays Open House: Homes for Sale - Ted Tyndall" Davidson Realty's Sneak Peek at World Golf Village have been so popular on the first Saturday of each month that we have extended the event to other area communities on the other Saturdays. Join us on November 21st from 1:00 p.m. at Palencia for a Sneak Peek Open House! This even has been phenomenal. It is a neighborhood Open House. We are showcasing three gorgeous homes as well as four Models and a retail condo. For information call Ted Tyndall or Carol vonRabenstein at Davidson Realty Inc. 11/18/2009

Almost too many important meetings this week concerning Vilano Beach and A1A. I will be busy. I hope you join in. DREDGING Tomorrow, November 17th at 3 p.m. at 2200 A1A in St. Augustine Beach City Hall is the St. Augustine Port, Waterway & Beach District Meeting that will be discussing dredging the St. Augustine Inlet and Intracoastal Waterway that I blogged about last week. Here is the meeting agenda. Please come hear the Army Corps of Engineers' plans to dredge around Porpoise Point and the placement of the sand on St. Augustine Beach. GROCERY STORE IN VILANO? Then on Wednesday, November 18th from 4 p.m. - 6 p.m. is the regularly scheduled Vilano Beach Main Street meeting held at the Hampton Inn in Vilano Beach. On the agenda are three items: 1. Grocery Store 2. Bluebird Restoration P... 11/16/2009

  A big boost  to the St. Augustine real estate market should come from the  tax credit law.  Some of the considerations regarding the tax credit for first time home buyers include an $8,000 rebate if a contract is submitted prior to April 30, 2010 and closes by June 30, 2010. But the bill has been enhanced to include owners of principal homes who sell and buy a different home.  The law has established a tax credit of up to $6,500 for qualified move-up/repeat home buyers (existing home owners) purchasing a principal residence after November 6, 2009 and before June 30, 2010 (with a binding sales contract signed by April 30, 2010).          The law defines a tax credit qualified move-up home buyer (“long time resident”) as a home owner who has owned and resided in a home for at least five... 11/15/2009

Cypress Lakes in St Augustine Florida is a wonderful golf community featuring a 27 hole golf course with homes ranging in price from the $170s to the low $300s. The St John's County Golf Club is located at Cypress Lakes, it is a very reasonably priced public facility and is home to the First Tee Program of St John's County. The community is conveniently located and within minutes to downtown St Augustine and Anastasia Island beaches. Rt 95 provides easy access to outlet shopping, World Golf Village and the Hall of Fame. Jacksonville and Daytona are only 45 minutes away. The Home Owners Association costs at Cypress Lakes are very low and there are no CDD fees. It's hard to find a better golf course community value in the St Augustine or greater Northeast Florida area. The quality of the ... 11/15/2009

"Slide Show Advice: Homes for Sale - Ted Tyndall" Need good simple advice from the Slide Show Gurus I need advice on the best way to attach a slide show to a post on Active Rain for posting Homes for Sale. I normally use Lightroom to create slide shows that are compatible for e-mailing. They only require the recipient to have Adobe Reader to open and view. However, it e-mails the entire slide show to the person so they view it from their computer or laptop as opposed to a link to someone else's server that host the slide show.   In order to post a slide show on Active Rain does it need to be hosted on a different server such as in a directory on my website or can I upload the entire slide show to the Active Rain server? if I can upload it to the Active rain server and have it viewed fro... 11/14/2009

                  James, Danielle, and Justin had lived in an apartment for a number of years.  They had aspirations of buying a home and attended a home buying seminar to see what is going on the in real estate market.  When they learned that purchasing a home for the first time might award them a tax rebate, they were very interested.                            At the seminar, they received information on the financing process, varying mortgage products, and considerations for buying a home.  We searched homes for sale in St. Augustine and Palm coast.  It took a couple of months to find a home that fit their needs.  It was even worth leaving their lease early to take full advantage of the tax credit opportunity.                Today they enjoy their new 3 bedroom 2 bath home with paym... 11/12/2009

The Federal Tax Credit Has Been Extended Up To $8,000* For First Time Buyers Who QualifyUp To $6,500 For Existing Homeowners Who Qualify The newly expanded Federal Tax Credit program makes now a great time to buy a home. I am ready to help you take advantage of this exciting new opportunity. Now, you may qualify whether you're buying for the first time, or have owned a home for at least five of the past eight consecutive years.  You must sign a purchase agreement prior to April 30, 2010, and must close before July 1, 2010. The income limit is $125,000 for single filers and $225,000 for joint filers. Available for the purchase of a principal residence with a purchase price of $800,000 or less. Tax credit does not have to be repaid as long as your home remains your principal residence for... 11/11/2009

November marks the beginning of the Winter Celebration here in St. Augustine Florida.  Save the date, November 21, 2009 – there is more to do today than usual in the Nation’s Oldest City. If you are not one of fortunate residents of St. Augustine, plan to visit here the weekend of November 21st. There are many bed and breakfasts as well as hotels and condominiums from which to choose. Click here to find out more: Marjorie Taylor, Watson Realty Corp. is a licensed Real Estate Broker and community leader representing Homes in St. Augustine. She holds the professional designations of CDPE, CRS, CSP, e-PRO, GRI, TRC and is passionate about helping clients buy and sell Homes in St. Augustine and Homes in St. Augustine Beach, Florida. 904-591-9121 www.TheBestAgentInStAugustine.com Marjorie@Ma... 11/10/2009

My favorite time of year is almost here, winter in St. Augustine, the Nation’s Oldest City. When the sun goes down, millions of white lights will soon create a magical holiday atmosphere throughout the historic Downtown district. The 16th Annual Nights of Lights Celebration in St. Augustine, Florida begins November 21st and lasts through January 31st. Business as well as homes in St. Augustine will be illuminated during the event. I remember talking with St. Augustine City Commissioner, Bill Lennon, when he introduced this tradition to the City Council about 18 years ago. He wanted to transform the city into a winter wonderland that the locals could come out and enjoy as well as attract visitors from far and wide. This Spanish town had a tradition of displaying a lighted white candle du... 11/10/2009

"Jazz For Peace: St. Augustine Sertoma benefit - Ted Tyndall" Special Benefit Concert for Goliath and BeBe's World Sertoma 2nd Time Around Store Friday, November 13, 2009 The Jazz for Peace concert will be at the King and Bear at Laterra Links in The World Golf Village. We are hoping this event to be a success and would greatly appreciate everyone's support. The proceeds will be going to Sertoma and Goliath and BeBe's World, 2 awesome community service organizations. It should be awesome! For additional information call Ted Tyndall or carol vonRabenstein at Davidson Realty Inc. 11/10/2009

"Homes for Sale: Davidson Realty Partners with ICI Homes in Palencia" Ted Tyndall & Carol vonRabensten, Realtors with Davidson Realty Inc, were chosen by ICI Homes to sell existing homes in The Reserve neighborhood of Palencia as well as pre-sales in the Bella Terra neighborhood of Palencia. As an example, this is the Model  located in The Reserve. It is called the "Stonebridge III". All three homes are finished and built on golf course lots. This particular home has two fountains in the front yard with a waterfall that leads under the side walk entry.         Palencia Community, located in northern St. Johns County, is an upscale master-planned golfing community that affords residents easy access to Jacksonville, St. Augustine, Ponte Vedra Beach and the World Golf Village. Ted Tyndall ... 11/10/2009

This is my first blog and I thought long and hard about what I would write. I finally decided it had to be about some thing I am passionate about.  I have loved living, and selling real estate in St. Augustine since 2003. It is truly a magical place to live. St. Augustine is located in northeast Florida on the Atlantic Ocean and is about 35 minutes south of Jacksonville. It is the oldest continuously occupied city in the United States and was established in 1565. It was settled by the Spanish, French and English.  St. Augustine has a very European feel with it's narrow cobblestone streets and historic buildings dating back to the 1700's. You'll enjoy strolling the plaza, the great restaurants with outdoor dining and live music, lots of shopping, wonderful art galleries, museums, world c... 11/10/2009

"Benefit for Aids Orphanage: Pattaya Thai Grille" On November 14th 2009 from 5pm-10pm Pattaya Thai Grillewill be hosting a benefit for Baan Gerda an aids orphanage in Thailand which also has a medical staff to care for the children. For information on the orphanage please go to their website www.baangerda.org For a $30 donation included is a buffet with eclectic American and Thai cuisine by the chefs of Secret Garden Cafe and Pattaya Thai Grille.Also included are free wine and beer tastings by Premier Beverage, Singha Thai beer and Chang Thai beer. Performing acoustic music inside is Ron Rodriguez and on the Patio with Reggae music are DJ Matt Abercrombie, Dj Infader and Natti Sound System of local Reggae group The Lions Of Jah. Your ticket from the benefit will also get you into Mark's... 11/09/2009

"Homes for Sale: National Flood Insurance Questions & Answers" Do I need Flood Insurance if I buy a Home?    Here are some facts from the FEMA Handout. Good to know, especially here in Florida. A lot of customers think they only need Flood Insurance for storm damage. First off, the need for flood insurance may be required by your lender. Homeowners insurance does not cover flood damage. Even if it is not required you may want to recommend it to your customers. Flood damage can be caused by storms, melting snow, hurricanes, and water backup due to inadequate drainage systems, dam or levee failure, new construction, etc. Nearly 25% of all flood insurance claims come from medium or low risk flood areas. Who can purchase flood insurance?Anyone in a community that participates in the NFIP ca... 11/09/2009

"VA Nursing Home in St. Augustine, Florida: Ted Tyndall" Ground Breaking Ceremony The Clyde E. Lassen State Veterans Nursing Home is under construction along State Road 16 in St. Augustine, Florida. This will be the first such home built in North Florida. It will be the seventh VA nursing home in Florida. St. Johns County was selected by the then-Gov. Jeb Bush on January 31, 2006. Tom crawford, the county's director of Housing and Community Services notified the commission that the county already owned a 12 acre parcel in World Commerce Center which would save the county as much as $7,000,000 for the cost of the land. It was located of I95 and had been identified by veterans councils as the best location for a nursing home, which would serve veterans within a 75 mile radius.   Mary Ann ... 11/09/2009

"Palencia Golf Community: St. Augustine, Florida - Ted Tyndall Located in northern St. Johns County, Palencia is an upscale master-planned golfing communitythat affords residents easy access to Jacksonville, St. Augustine, Ponte Vedra Beach and the World Golf Village. With an estimated population of 7,200 residents by project end, the property spans 1,450 acres, with more than two miles of land bordering the tidal marshes of the Intracoastal Waterway and Marshall Creek. Out of the 1,850 planned, 650 homes are already completed, while community amenities include an athletic park, swim and fitness center, 18-hole championship golf course designed by Arthur Hills, 10-court tennis center, golf clubhouse, and 30-plus acres of parks and walking, biking and jogging trails. Expansion is underwa... 11/08/2009

"Selling Homes to Generation Y: St. Augustine, Florida, Ted Tyndall" I went to a seminar Friday where they handed out an article by Mathew Ferrara & Company that was great. I will not attempt to reproduce the entire article. It broke down dealing with the different generations in reference to real estate. The dilemma for real estate companies today: Can their agent successfully build relationships with the next generation of real estate buyers? How are you preparing to deal with the 45 million Generation Y buyers starting to enter the housing curve? Generation Y is in their 20's.Graduating college, these kids are the new first-time home buyer.No, it's not the Generation X anymore. First, the Y'ers are highly networked. They have grown up online, playing online games with friends thousan... 11/08/2009