Naples FL Blog

In the thirty one years I have been selling real estate I have learned to think about who my clients are, where there are coming from both physically and emotionally, and what their expectations will be for a home in Naples Florida.

Last night I started think about how my cliental changed when I moved from Downers Grove, IL to Naples.  When I worked up North I dealt with a HUGE number of young first time home buyers. Purchasing a first home was a scary emotional event for these buyers.  Would they be able to afford the mortgage payments?  Would they have enough money if they needed to do a repair on the house?  Would they be happy in the neighborhood?  Could they raise a family in the house they liked?  I counseled these buyers about different types of loans, had them pre qualified by a lender I trusted, and explained every step of the buying experience to them.  VA and FHA loans were common place to me as most of these first time home buyers had limited funds.  Many of these buyers ended up purchasing other homes from me as their families expanded.

When I started selling in Naples, my sales were second home purchases.  My cliental was older and more real estate savvy.  I was also working with people from all over the globe.  The real estate process was not as scary to these buyers. The emotional aspects were still there.  Would they be able to retire here full time one day?  How would they feel about living so far from their grandchildren? Would they enjoy living in another State?  Should they keep the home up North and buy a place in Naples?   Would they like the neighborhood? How would they feel if a tenant used their home for a seasonal rental?  What would it be like to renovate the home and not be here to oversee the work?

While the age of my clients has changed and the emotions in buying may be different then those of a first time home buyer, the emotions of buying are still present.  Whether a buyer is purchasing a small residence or a mansion in Naples there will be an emotional experience that occurs.

I have always explained to my buyers that my job is not to sell them a home.  My job is to educate them to the market so that they feel comfortable making a buying decision.  Part of that education is providing my buyers with the facts and figures of owning a second home.  The other part of my job is making sure their emotional needs are met before they decide to purchase a home.

Looking for a home in Naples?  Search here, once at the search page, you can search by development or map area, save your search and new listing updates will be e-mailed to you.

Should you be thinking of selling your home in Naples and would like a candid assessment of what it would take to sell your home in today's market, I would be happy to provide you with a free market evaluation.  Feel free to give me a call at 239-594-2780 or e-mail me at Lynn@NaplesBuys.com.

Care to share a comment with us?  Just click on the comment link at the bottom of this blog entry.  Comments are always welcome.

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About the author:

Lynn Wilber is a Real Estate Professional who lives in Naples.  Her 31 years of real estate experience and her area expertise have been valuable resources for Naples Sellers and Buyers.  For more information, please contact Lynn Wilber or call 239-594-2780.

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The Naples Board of Realtors® recently released the August 2009 statstics .  Not surprisingly out of the 862 pending sales made in Augst 2009, 633 were pending sales under $300,000.00.  Out of the 545 closed sales for the same time period, 396 were for sales under $300,000.00!  Closed sales in all other price ranges except for the $300,000.00 -$500,000.00 range fell from August of 2008.

If you have plans to purchase a second home, please talk to a lender before you start your home search.  Why, you ask?  Qualifications for a loan have changed dramatically.  Before I show my buyers homes, I have them speak with a lender so that they know exactly how much money they will need for the purchase and how much their closing costs will be.  In the past Buyers could purchase a second home with very little money down.  In today's reality, Buyers will need between 25-30% down for the purchase of a second home.  Plan to roll up your sleeves to have the lender draw blood in addition to all the mounds of paperwork you will need to bring in for documentation.

Buyers who need to obtain a mortgage and have been hoping to find a home in Naples that is a foreclosure or short sale have been disappointed because multiple offers are coming in on these properties.  Many of these offers are cash offers and banks have been taking lower cash offers over higher offers that have financing contingencies.

The bottom line is that no matter what price range you are, it would be wise to speak with a lender before you begin your second home search.

All that being said, I am excited to tell you that the love of my life, Don Wilber, recently purchased a Flip video camera for me.  I LOVE my Flip video.  It is soooooo easy to use that even a non-techie such as I can use it!  I have found many ways to use my Flip video.

A very dear friend of mine recently fell and tore all the tendons around his left knee.  This friend's children are all out of state.  When Don and I went to visit him, I took my Flip video and recorded him sending a video message to his family.  I know that if our friend was my Dad, I would have appreciated seeing him, his injury and hearing his voice.  While there are days I curse technology, that day was not one of them.

Below is the first sunset video I have ever taken.  Click on the white triangle in the blue circle to start the video.

As time goes by, I will learn more and get better at this!

Looking for a home in Naples?  Search here, once at the search page, you can search by development or map area, save your search and new listing updates will be e-mailed to you.

Should you be thinking of selling your home in Naples and would like a candid assessment of what it would take to sell your home in today's market, I would be happy to provide you with a free market evaluation.  Feel free to give me a call at 239-594-2780 or e-mail me at Lynn@NaplesBuys.com.

Care to share a comment with us?  Just click on the post a comment link at the bottom of this blog entry.  Comments are always welcome.

Want to subscribe to this blog?  Just click on the Subscribe link at the bottom of this blog entry.

About the author:

Lynn Wilber is a Real Estate Professional who lives in Naples.  Her 31 years of real estate experience and her area expertise have been valuable resources for Naples Sellers and Buyers.  For more information, please contact Lynn Wilber or call 239-594-2780.

YouTube | Linkedin | Google | Website | Twitter | Facebook