I recently added this handy little freebie which you can get from this website:  www.polldaddy.com You can set it up to do polls or surveys.  They have a nice selection of skins and the setup was pretty painless.  I currently have it on the sidebar on my blog....so if you're in Florida and going to the FAR convention, please take the poll.  You can specify a date you would like the poll to stop,and several other useful choices.  Below is a screenshot of the poll currently on my site (it will be removed by Mid-September).  BTW, this company is based in Ireland, it really is a small world!                                         I can help you find your Home Sweet Home in Florida ~ TODAY! Home Sweet Home Florida Realty, Inc. At Home With Diversity (AHWD)Certified Residential Specialist (C... 08/20/2008

      Last Friday the Space Coast Association of Realtors sponsored a luncheon which featured our very own Port Canaveral - the soon to be #1 cruise port in THE WORLD.  Ralph Kennedy, Member Canaveral Port Authority gave a compelling talk about the future of The Port and it's impact on the local economy.  Most people think of the Space Program as the heavy hitter in local employment.  I was happily surprised to hear that Port Canaveral (directly and indirectly) employs some 23,000 people.  The expansion of the Port will create an additional 3,500 jobs.  The impact on the local economy is huge with more than $43 million paid in local taxes and $87 million going to the state of Florida.   I never knew!  Did you?  I don't want to bore you with a lot of figures but this one is staggering: ... 08/19/2008

Friday kicks off the 2008/2009 season for the Titusville Playhouse at the Historic Emma Parrish Theater OPENING NIGHT - Friday August 15th, come on out and enjoy SWEENEY TODD THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET A musical thriller in two acts. Book by Hugh Wheeler, from an Adaptation by Christopher BondDirected by: Christina Robinson.  Music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. Here's a teaser to whet your curiosity!!!"Victorian London, a mighty industrial city, the heart of a great empire: The Ballad of Sweeney Todd begins, setting the scene for the awful tale about to unfold." Box Office: Open Mon.-Fri. - 9:am-5:pm Will call opens one hour before show time. Tickets may be reserved with VISA, MasterCard or Discover: 321-268-1125 301 Julia Street, Titusville 32781 08/13/2008

    We moved to Titusville almost 6 years ago. I'm a city girl, born and raised in Montreal; lived in St. Petersburg, Boca Raton, Ft. Lauderdale (Lighthouse Point) and West Palm Beach (Lake Worth) areas. Point being these are large areas, full of infrastructure, shopping, restaurants and things to do at every turn. Titusville's a small town by comparison - about 45,000 folks call it home. It took some time but I finally feel at home here myself. At first all I really liked was the lack of traffic which is a big reason why we moved north. As the first holiday season approached I began to have second thoughts about the decision. There were clearly only two choices - sit around and mope or get out there and make things happen. Being a spirited Scottish lass I opted for door #2. We hosted ... 08/06/2008

    I want to take you back to April 2005.  Harbor Pointe, the stunning new condo development in Titusville Florida, directly on the Indian River, was pre-selling in Building 3.  The market was booming and sales were brisk.  Here's a price sheet showing what you would have paid to own a unit in Harbor Pointe in April 2005 That was then..... Here are some of the amenities at Harbor Pointe          Here is a complete list of the amenities you get at Harbor Pointe Fast forward to August 2008....this is now! There are currently 31 units for sale in Harbor Pointe priced from $275,000 to $595,000 (I left off 2 penthouses).   I will post the floor plans below so you can compare prices to models.  There are 10 short sales (pre-foreclosures).  Here's the breakdown:   3 Dory                     ... 08/03/2008

Titusville FL Market Report - MLS Areas 102, 103, 104This is a quickie report to give an overview of market activity in Titusville without regard to MLS areas.  If you own a house, condo, or townhouse in Titusville (MLS areas 102, 103 or 104) this information is for you, without having to wade through all the numbers. There are currently 837 active listings in Titusville There have been 238 closings in the past 6 months Simply stated it will take 21.10 months to absorb the inventory of properties for sale at the current levels. The formula is simple:  # of sales in 6 months divided by 6 = absorption rate # of listings divided by absorption rate = number of months to absorb. There are 9,384 single family residences currently listed in Brevard MLS 6,913 single family houses 1,935 condos  ... 07/29/2008

THIS IS A COMPREHENSIVE REPORT ANALYZING ACTIVE LISTINGS, PENDING & CONTINGENT SALES, AND SHORT SALES ALL BROKEN DOWN BY PRICE POINTS. If your listing is in this market area, you will have to be patient and work with your agent to get the pricing right.  Read on for absorption rates, it's not pretty!MLS Area 103 - Garden St. to S.R. 50 (Cheney Highway) - Titusville FL In MLS Area 103 Currently there are: 508 active listings priced from $19,900 - $999,999 109 listed from $  19,900 - $100,000  (12 short sales)155 listed from $104,900 - $150,000  (12 short sales)  91 listed from $153,000 - $200,000  (14 short sales)   36 listed from $202,900 - $250,000  (  2 short sales)   27 listed from $255,000 - $300,000  (  4 short sales)   15 listed from $309,900 - $349,900   25 listed from $355,000 -... 07/29/2008

MLS Area 102 - State Road 46 to Garden St. - Titusville FL Currently there are: 220 active listings priced from $29,950 - $695,000   53 listed from  $29,950 - $100,000 108 listed from $104,000 - $199,900   30 listed from $205,000 - $250,000   12 listed from $255,000 - $299,900     9 listed from $315,000 - $389,900     6 listed from $424,900 - $499,000     1 listed at $510,000     1 listed at $695,000*22 are marked as short sales There are 22 properties awaiting closing, breakdown as follows:  7 properties are pending (contingencies removed) list price ranging from $116,990 - $199,900  7 properties are under contract with contingencies, list price from $62,900 - $89,900  6 properties are under contract with contingencies, list price from $104,000 - $164,900 1 property under contract, lis... 07/28/2008

                    I hate it because I receive more than my share of the obnoxious stuff, it really hate it because it wastes too much valuable time.  A little background before I continue might be helpful - my website is with Point2Agent and to make a long story short, I use their POP3 for my email. If I apply even the smallest filter against spam I end up not receiving important email which means nothing gets filtered. I receive several hundred spam emails a day, it's making me crazy!!! A year or so ago, while looking for a solution I came across www.mailwasher.net. I tried the program but had a hard time getting it to work seamlessly with my mail program - so I uninstalled it.  Well.... since I still have so much spam I went looking again and found MailWasher was still around and de... 07/24/2008

MLS Area 104 - State Road 50 (Cheney Hwy) to Kings Hwy - July 12, 2008 105 active listings priced from $69,500 to $1,500,000  *10  short sales11 properties are under contract ranging in price from $88,900 to $875,000 *1 short sale 45 houses have closed since January 1, 200844 houses have closed in the past 6 months (used for Absorption Rate) The Absorption Rate Formula would indicate the market taking 14.32 months to absorb the current inventory of homes in MLS Area 104. However if I add in the homes under contract (without accounting for any new listings prior to these closings) the absorption period is reduced to 11.45 months.  This is the second improvement in a row, further supporting an improving market.  See links below for comparison.  This is a great time to buy Titusville FL re... 07/12/2008

I've had CUTE PDF on my computer since April and it was working fine.  Yesterday when I printed a 4-page contract to a file folder this is all that was in the folder: ERROR: undefinedOFFENDING COMMAND: get STACK: /quit-dictionary--mark-                The proper converter is downloaded but when I checked it's properties I saw a message about possibly blocking the program for security reasons.  I unblocked and tried to print again, but had the same result.  I checked the company name to make sure it hadn't been blocked, but all looked fine there.  Next uninstalled and reinstalled - no change.  Then downloaded PrimoPDF and couldn't get that to work either.  If anyone has any experience with getting either of these programs to work, please let me know.  I've not had CUTE PDF long, but sure... 07/09/2008

Very successful New Life Christian Church (pastor Larry Linkus) moved to larger building. Seats 500. Distinctive steel roof, sturdy steel beam construction, baptismal, classrooms, offices, full kitchen, room for daycare. Residential zoning with C.U.P. for church. Ample parking under shady oak trees. Easy access off SR50. Price reflects needed repairs. Customize your way. Last sale $2.5 million. Reduced for quick sale. 19k sqFt per tax rolls. Vacant land next door may allow for expansion. MLS#  5084024525 APOLLOTITUSVILLE, FL 32780Offered at: $700,000 07/08/2008

Heads-up!  This website is making the rounds (via email) and not a word of it is true.  It gets people all riled up thinking there's very bad people living around them.  I have no idea what what the creators of these menaces hope to gain, but I'm sure it's not good.  I received it yesterday and, of course, plugged in my address (minus the street number).  Lo and behold the bad guys were everywhere.  I was talking with the friend who sent it and she had a felon living on the golf course(?)  So we checked Snopes.com and learned the truth:  http://www.snopes.com/inboxer/hoaxes/felonspy.asp .  It would probably be best if we don't click the link at all!  But I had to just once more.  I wanted to see if the fake felons were generated from the people who had just put their address in.  So I..... 06/27/2008

  It's Tuesday morning and yesterday's garbage is still at the curb, not just ours, but the entire neighborhood.....and it's going to be there till Friday.  The new cans for the automated garbage pick-up system were not delivered in time for this week's pickup and.....so..... the garbage will not be gathered until Friday. That means no pick-up on Thursday either for many parts of the city.  I don't want to imagine what it will look like around here by the end of the week.  PLEASE....if you can, put your garbage in your vehicle and bring it to the dump - it's not far from anywhere in the city, on South St. between Cheney and Knox Mc Rae.  Many thanks.......mine's already gone :-) UPDATE:  Enough of us called the city and they sent the trucks out - YAY!!!  But there will be no pickup this... 06/24/2008

I've often been asked how to identify specific MLS searches by the corresponding area number assigned by our local MLS - Space Coast Association of Realtors and Melbourne Association of Realtors.  The MLS numbers below will isolate listings specific to the area selected which will help fine-tune your search.  This information should be useful to anyone needing or wanting an MLS breakdown for Brevard County FL. and those who are out of State or out of the country who don't know about our MLS:  www.brevardmls.com MLS Area Numbers - Brevard County FL 101 Mims/Scottsmoor102 Mims/Titusville SR 46 - Garden104 Titusville SR50 - Kings Highway107 Port St. John210 Canaveral Groves211 Sun Lake212 Cocoa213 Mainland East of US 1214 Rockledge215 West Rockledge216 Viera/Suntree North of Wickham217 Vi... 05/10/2008

  Area 104 - State Road 50 (Cheney Hwy) to Kings Hwy 107 active listings priced from $70,000 to $799,000  *8  short sales 17 properties are under contract ranging in price from $89,000 to $875,000 *2 short sales 35 houses have closed in the past 6 months Applying the Absorption Rate Formula would indicate taking 18.35 months to absorb the current inventory of homes in this particular area. However if I add in the homes under contract (without accounting for any new listings prior to these closings) the absorption period is reduced to 12.34 months. It is my belief that the market has stabilized and we are entering a period where the public begins to understand that a shift is in progress. We are coming out of a buyers' market which began August 2005. It was long and it was hard, but nor... 05/03/2008

As of 04/15/2008 The Titusville Florida Housing Market UpdateThis information includes specific details on Titusville Foreclosures.Titusville which is located in North Brevard County, within 60 minutes of downtown Orlando, 60 minutes to Walt Disney World, and 40 minutes to Cocoa Beach Florida (Orlando's Beach), and 20 minutes from Playalinda Beach (Undeveloped nature preserve). Titusville is composed of just over 19000 homes in all, 61% of which are Single Family Housing.Titusville is a large town with a small town values, rich history, and minimal traffic.  The city has a few challenges ahead with increasing tourism, new industries, and the challenges of the 21st century.  The area was made familiar by astronauts and companies like TWA, McDonnell-Douglas, Boeing, North America, Grumman... 04/15/2008

When it comes to homeowners insurance FLORIDA gets a lot of bad press.  I frequently get calls from out-of-towners wanting to move or invest in Central Florida, but worry they can't get reasonable insurance to cover their investment.  I've sold manufactured homes as well as older frame homes and have yet to see the buyer refused coverage.  In fact, in the last year I've seen some quotes that were surprisingly low.  Rather than me go on about it, let me show you an article from The Florida Association Of Realtors website today.  New insurance companies are mentioned by name along with their phone numbers.  Hopefully this will help quiet the perceived insurance issue in Florida.  It's a bit wordy but worth the read: Smaller insurers, more options TAMPA, Fla. - Feb. 22, 2008 - As the big n... 02/22/2008

  Area 104 - State Road 50 (Cheney Hwy) to Kings Hwy 117 active listings priced from $88,900 to $819,000 16 properties are under contract ranging in price from $89,000 to $875,000 30 houses have closed in the past 6 months Applying the Absorption Rate Formula would indicate taking 23.5 months to absorb the current inventory of homes in this particular area.  However if I add in the homes under contract (without accounting for any new listings prior to these closings) the absorption period is reduced to 15.25 months. It is my belief that the market has stabilized and we are entering a period where the public begins to understand that a shift is in progress.  We are coming out of a buyers' market which began August 2005.  It was long and it was hard, but normalcy is returning to the area... 02/22/2008

The following Article and Study by FAR (Florida Association of Realtors) and NAR (National Association of Realtors) helps put things in perspective when it comes to our housing market. The thing I take away is the fact that 2007 was the 5th best year on record for existing home sales. It was only normal that some of the enormous gains we saw during the boom years had to be given back. We now have tremendous buying opportunities, interest rates are terrific (years ago one of the houses I bought was financed at 16.5%, refinanced at 13%, refinanced again at 10% and again at 8.5%). People will always need houses; it's estimated that 1000 people a day move into Florida - however, I've not seen a number published about how many a day move out of Florida ;-) More insurers are writing in Florid... 02/17/2008