1303 Edgewood Avenue, Jacksonville, FL 32205

Just Listed! This perfect shake shingle bungalow that oozes charm is located in the heart of Avondale. Among its many special features are a brand new roof, doubled paned replacement windows, high ceilings, renovated kitchen with stainless steel appliances, gas range with 5 burners & two ovens, granite counter tops and walk in pantry. There’s also a very large laundry room with enough room for lots of storage and/or an office.

The master suite is very spacious and has it’s own bath. There’s a darling family room adjacent to the kitchen with french doors to the back yard. The house has wood floors and is decorated to the nines — don’t miss this one — it’s a real charmer!

The house has 3br’s, 1.5 baths, approximately 1,800 square feet and one car garage. It’s located within walking distance to the shoppes of Avondale and is a very quick commute to both downtown and the Naval Air Station (NAS). Priced at $250,000.

Please call us at 904-252-5181 for an appointment to see this great house –  it’s easy to show and will go quickly!

Caroline and I specialize in the Avondale, Ortega and Riverside markets and are experts in helping you price your house for a quick sale as well as being “on the hunt” for that special home of your dreams! Call us today.

View from House at 2721 McGirts Blvd.

If you’re looking for your chance get to “get on the river” – it’s just come available. Listed at only $570,000, this 4br/3.5ba home needs some cosmetic updating like changing carpets, kitchen & bath updates but it’s located on a quiet cul de sac within walking distance to neighborhood schools, churches and parks.

Vaulted Ceiling Family Room with Beautiful River Views

Add to the fact that this house has GREAT bones including a Vaulted Ceiling Family room with fireplace, large foyer, very large laundry room, a large two car garage, huge deck perfect for riverfront parties and gorgeous views. The person who can look beyond the current cosmetics and is willing to put a little sweat equity into this home is going to see a big upside! The Ortega neighborhood of Jacksonville is highly sought after and is only a 10 minute drive from both the Naval Air Station and Downtown. Take a look and call us right away at 904-252-5181 to see this gem! This house is listed by Shannon McKinnon and Nelson Higgins of Prudential Network Realty.

1257 Edgewood Avenue, Jacksonville, FL 32205

When I saw this house pop up as a new listing for only $199,000 day before yesterday in Avondale, I knew it would be gone in a minute.  I was right, it’s already under contract.

I’ve got buyers coming in this weekend from South Carolina and I called the listing office to make an appointment for Sunday afternoon. They called back a few hours later to tell me they had two written offers in hand. The house is listed as a 3br/2.5 bath home with approx. 1,960 square feet and  offered by Doris Arnold of Watson Realty.

Why not hire us to be on the lookout so you don’t miss great opportunities like this one? We’ve got our eyes wide open, ears to the ground and notice great deals like this right away. But there is a catch……you have to be ready to act!

This is a short sale and banks require pre-approval letters with short sale offers so call your lender, get prequalified and then call us at 904-252-5181. You’ll be the next one in line for a great opportunity like this!

We specialize in Avondale, Ortega and Riverside and offer no pressure evaluations of how much your house is worth or can help you snag a great deal like this one on Edgewood Avenue.

This is YOUR window of Opportunity

If you’ve been waiting and waiting and waiting for just the right house, just the right price or just the right interest rate, you’d better stop waiting!  23 percent (17 homes) of the 74 properties that have gone under contract in the Avondale, Ortega and Riverside neighborhoods in first quarter of 2012, sold within 30 days of being listed.

If you increase the days on market to  60, the number jumps from 17 to 29 homes sold and accounts for a shocking 40% of the sales! That’s a pretty high percentage!

As a buyer, you’ve had nothing but time on your hands. LOTS of houses to sniff around at, PLENTY of time to decide if you’re REALLY ready to buy and LOADS of time to drive your real estate agent crazy as you look at house after house after house!

I’m here to tell you (you heard it here first) that the time is NOW. Interest rates WILL NOT remain this low forever. INVENTORY is low in certain neighborhoods like Avondale. The good (renovated or dirt cheap) houses are going UNDER CONTRACT quickly. So, if you’re one of those buyers who’s been circling and circling and circling – it’s time to get off of the merry go round and put your money on the table.

Click here to see a list of homes that have recently been listed and give us a call at 904-252-5181 if you see something you like! But you better hurry — they might sell quickly!

Caroline and I specialize in Avondale, Ortega and Riverside and can guide you to getting a great deal in the neighborhood.

3576 Pine Street, Avondale

If you’ve got a turn key home that’s been renovated in Avondale and you price it right, you’re likely to have good luck in finding a buyer who’s ready to act. There are lots of buyers out there — just waiting pounce on something great when it pops up.

A great example of this is the house located at 3576 Pine Street in Avondale. It was listed last month by the Fred Miller Group for $399,000. It’s a 3 bedroom, 2 bath bungalow with a beautiful front porch, gorgeous brand new kitchen, renovated master bathroom, tall ceilings, screened porch in the back and has new landscaping — the perfect example of a “turn key” home.

The house came on the market, had two competing offers within weeks of being listed and is already under contract.

If you’re thinking of selling, there is a lot of pent up demand for houses in Avondale and lots of buyers out there looking for them. Please call us at 904-252-5181 for a market evaluation of your home if you’re considering selling – the time is now!

3643 Pine Street, Jacksonville, FL 32205

3643 Pine Street sold last week for $490K ($222 per square foot). Built in 2006 with approximately 2,200 square feet, the house has 3 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, a nice kitchen open to the family room, a den, a large loft space, big laundry room, two car garage, large front porch and is within walking distance to the shoppes of Avondale. The house was listed and sold by Wade Griffin of Coldwell Banker.

1864 Challen Avenue

1864 Challen Street sold for $495K ($200 per square foot) in October 2011 and also has 3 bedrooms, 2.5 baths.  Originally built in 1926 but extensively renovated in 2011 with approximately 2,475 square feet the house has new everything, windows, plumbing, air conditioners, roof, water heater and kitchen — so basically not much different from the “new” house on Pine Street.

The lot on Challen Avenue was quite a bit bigger than the house on Pine Street and offered more of a traditional layout with a nice big backyard and location only one house in from the St. John’s river.  This house was listed by Brad Dermond of Manormor Sotheby’s and sold by Maria Raymer of ReMax.

The house on Challen sold for $22 less per square foot (which is why we caution our buyers not to get overly focused on this), it was in a better location and had a larger lot but lacked the front porch, loft space and garage that the house on Pine Street had.

As they say, beauty is in the eye of the beholder — what’s important to one buyer (more land, or a garage) may not be important to the next one!

So….who do you think got the better buy? Please send us  a comment with your vote!

We specialize in Avondale, Ortega and Riverside – and know the numbers in the area. Call us at 904-252-5181 for an honest evaluation of what your house is worth or what you might have to pay for the house of your dreams!

Cash is King with Condo Purchases

I did a quick study and found that 39 condos were sold over the last year in Avondale, Ortega and Riverside and when I dug a little deeper to see how they were financed, I was shocked to see that 9 out of the 10 units sold in Avondale were cash transactions.

There were four sales in Ortega and 50% of those were cash.

The bulk of the sales (25 of them) were in Riverside but Riverside also has the most condo buildings/inventory in the area. 11 of the 25 units were paid for with cash.

So out of the 39 total sales, 22 of them were paid for with cash. That represents nearly 56% – well over half.

Why the large number of cash transactions?

There are strict regulations for financing a condo. Most lenders require a 20% down payment on a condo and others have requirements about how many units are owner/occupied and how many are rentals. If there are a high number of rental units, then it can be hard to get financing.

Additionally, some of the units are very inexpensive – the lowest priced sale was for only $50K at the Avenues building in Riverside. In other cases, a “family” home has been sold which frees the seller to both downsize and pay cash.

When there are multiple offers on a condo, cash buyers often have an advantage over buyers seeking financing. This is because a lender may or may not approve the loan for a condo and since a cash offer is not contingent on the ability of the buyer to get financing, the seller could be more inclined to take the cash offer (even if it’s a little lower than the non-cash offer).

So if you want a condo in the Avondale, Ortega or Riverside areas, you might consider raiding your piggy bank and paying cash – particularly if you’re competing with another buyer.

To see a list of all available condos in the Avondale, Ortega or Riverside neighborhoods, click here. If you see something you like, please call us at 904-252-5181 and we’ll be happy to show it to you!

Bi - Lo is moving their headquarters to Jacksonville, FL

The Jacksonville Business Journal reported on March 12, 2012 that Bi-Lo is moving their headquarters to Jacksonville, FL. This will bring quite a few new people to town and guess what? They’re going to need houses.

Considering the fact that the offices aren’t too far from Avondale and Ortega, we will probably see quite a few new buyers looking for homes in our area.

So….if you’ve been thinking of putting your house on the market but just weren’t quite sure if you’re ready – NOW is the time! A word of caution – in today’s market, it’s critical that a house must be priced right in order to sell so please consult with us on where current market values are.

Caroline Powell and I are local area experts and were the top producers in the Avondale office last year. Please call us at 904-252-5181.

4853 LongBow Road - Gourmet Kitchen

As the saying goes, timing is everything! If you’ve been patiently waiting for a great waterfront house that offers quick access to the St. John’s River in the Ortega neighborhood of Jacksonville, FL, then you’ve got to schedule an appointment to come see this fantastic house.

Purchased in 2008, the homeowner made extensive renovations including a brand new gourmet kitchen The space which would certainly qualify for inclusion in any luxury living magazine like Veranda or Coastal Living has professional appliances like a 6 burner Thermador range, honed black granite and white marble countertops, hammered sink, wine cooler, coffee bar and even a warming drawer!

All the baths are new and have exquisite tile work, there are two new air conditioners, 3 new water heaters, all doors and door hardware are new, wool are seagrass are new, baseboards and crown molding are new and all new lighting makes for a finished product that is simply stunning.

4853 LongBow Road

If the inside renovations weren’t enough to win you over, throw in a sparking pool with diving board, private dock with both boat and jet ski lifts and location on a protected waterway in the highly desired neighborhood of Ortega. Add in the fact that you’re in a great public elementary school (Stockton Elementary) district and you’ve got a home that’s nearly priceless — but the recent $100,000 price reduction makes this house one of the best buys in Ortega. Now only $1.1M for nearly 5,000 square feet of totally renovated space!

Take at look at our virtual tour of 4853 Longbow Road and then call us today at 904-252-5181 for a showing appointment – this could be your lucky day! Take a look at other waterfront homes in Avondale and Ortega between $500K and $1,500,000 and you’ll see for yourself what a great value this house is!

]]> http://jaxrealestatefacts.com/2012/03/27/fantastic-price-reduction-in-ortega-neighborhood-of-jacksonville-fl/feed/ 0 http://jaxrealestatefacts.com/2012/03/26/foreclosure-on-mcgirts-blvd-in-ortega-neighborhood-of-jacksonville-fl/ http://jaxrealestatefacts.com/2012/03/26/foreclosure-on-mcgirts-blvd-in-ortega-neighborhood-of-jacksonville-fl/#comments Tue, 27 Mar 2012 01:47:25 +0000 steilberg http://jaxrealestatefacts.com/?p=2270

4250 McGirts Blvd. - Exterior Front

If you’ve been patiently waiting to snag a great real estate deal, then your wait has ended. The house located at 4250 McGirts Blvd, is a foreclosure and an amazing buy. Reduced by another $20K today to the incredible price of only $909K, this is the best buy on the St. John’s river right now. Listed by Duval Realty, the house is over 4,000 square feet with 5 bedrooms, 4 and a half baths, huge fireplace, screened in porch, large laundry room, big piece of property, three car garage and a private dock, this house is a steal.

It does need some updating, but at this price, there’s plenty of room built in for the needed repairs.  In my opinion, just changing the exterior color to a more neutral tan with white trim would totally transform this house and give it immediate equity.

4250 McGirts Blvd. - Private Dock with Boat Lift

The neighborhood of Ortega is a wonderful place where you can walk, ride bikes, send your kids to school and get to your job downtown in just minutes. The naval air station is also minutes away and then there’s the Super Target – a place we all love to go!

4250 McGirts Blvd. - Back of House showing Large Yard

Please call us immediately at 904-252-5181 for a showing appointment – this last price reduction is sure to make this one go.