Is Your Pinellas County Home Value on the Rise?

I was browsing the latest real estate news when I came across something that might interest you.   

According to CoreLogic’s Equity Report, “256,000 properties regained equity in the third quarter of 2015.” Anand Nallathambi, their President and CEO, expects home values to continue appreciating in 2016. In fact, he predicts a 5% rise in home prices this year!

 

This is obviously fantastic news for Pinellas County homeowners. The problem, however, is that many people are unaware that their equity has increased. According to a study by Fannie Mae, only 37% of Americans believe that they have “significant equity,” when in reality, 74% of homeowners have a great deal of value in their properties.

 

 

Essentially, 37% of homeowners have no idea how much their home is actually worth. Not only that: they are completely unaware that their home is worth more than they think!

 

I just thought I would share this information with you today because you could be one of those people. If you’ve been on the fence about selling your home in Pinellas County, it’s time to reevaluate your situation and take advantage of your equity before market conditions change!

 

You can take a look to see if your home is worth more than you thought by following the link:

http://valuemyhometoday.com/

This is a free, no-obligation tool that will give you an idea of how much your home is worth. You may be shocked by how much value your home has accrued!

 

If you have any questions about how you can cash in on your increased equity, or if you need real estate assistance of any kind, I’m always here to help!

Prepare Your Home for the Holidays with these Decorating Tips!

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The holidays are approaching. Today, we thought we'd do something a little different and share this festive video on holiday decorating tips from HGTV. Designer Angelo Surmelis shares several great ideas to spread holiday cheer throughout the home. Here are some of our favorites.

1. Pay attention to the mantle. If you don't have some already, buy some kind of garland to drape over the mantle. Next, use leftover ornaments and candles to add light and texture. When choosing ornaments and candles, ensure they are in the same color-palette. This helps make your mantle a great focal point! 
2. Use smaller Christmas trees. Every house has their main Christmas tree. In addition, you can also purchase smaller, inexpensive, eco-friendly trees to place throughout the home. Decorate these trees with strips of fabric from a T-shirt in holiday colors to save money for the main tree.
3. Use what you have. Be resourceful. Adding a plate charge and place mat to your everyday dining set adds some jazz to your table. Fresh-cut flowers and candles will help finish the look. You don't need grand, expensive candles -- a little candlelight goes a long way!

“

MAKE THE MANTLE A
BEAUTIFUL FOCAL POINT.

”

As you can see, it doesn't take much to make your home feel more festive. If you have any questions, give us a call or send us an email. We would be happy to help you!

A Reason to Close Before December 31

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Around this time of year, people are always asking me questions about buying towards the end of the year. A lot of people have been asking lately if there is a taxable benefit to closing on a home by the end of the year. The answer is yes, and it’s called a homestead exemption.

With a homestead exemption, you can get up to a $50,000 reduction on your home’s taxable value if that home is your primary residence. Let’s use some numbers to give you a better example of what this means. Say you have a home that has an assessed value of $200,000. With the homestead exemption, your taxable value drops to $150,000. This lower taxable value will give you lower property taxes if the home is your primary residence.

The way it works, is if you purchase the home, close by December 31st and file on time and correctly, you will get that exemption for 2016, lowering your property taxes. If however, you don’t close until after the 1st of the year, you will not be eligible for the homestead exemption until 2017, and you’ll have to pay higher property taxes for a year.

If you have any questions about the homestead exemption, or anything else real estate related, give us a call or send us an email. We look forward to hearing from you!