WARNING....WARNING....WARNING

HOUSE FOR RENT SCAM

Another Craigslist SCAM...Craigslist SCAM

Today's message from our Daytona Beach Area Association of REALTORS!

The Port Orange Police Department wished to notify our citizens about a scam involving houses being falsely advertised for rent on Craigslist. It appears the criminal has found houses for sale on-line or snowbird residences and copied the information onto a Craigslist ad claiming it up for rent.

The criminal claims to have moved to West Africa after winning a petroleum land bid and after much consideration decided to rent out the house instead of selling it. The e- mail states that they are looking for someone who cares about the house as much as they do. At the bottom of the e-mail there is a questionnaire for the potential renter asking the Full Name, DOB, Occupation, Number of People living in the house, etc.

The catch is that the security deposit and rent money need to be sent to Africa and then the "home owner" will send the keys to the renter. The e-mails are coming from an account set up in the real homeowner’s name. This especially should be of interest to our "Snowbird" citizens.

Please make your friends and neighbors aware of this scam that is sweeping across Florida. Real homeowners are checking on their properties and finding them occupied without their knowledge.

If you have any questions about this or other alerts, please contact Crime Prevention Officer Dave Miller at (386) 506-5822 or e-mail at dmiller@port-orange.org

In truth it really doesn't surprise me...ever put your services on Craigslist?..spammerama...scammerama..a service that once proved very effective is just another grabber of unsuspected victims!

Cypress Head is a great golf community. The Cypress Head golf course which was built in 1992 is owned and operated by the City of Port Orange so the community of Cypress Head has all the advantages of a golf course but none of the expense. Cypress Head has 2 bedroom 2 bath golf villas and 3 and 4 bedroom homes. Several of the homes have 2 car garages with a golf cart garage. The golf club has a restaurant and there are tennis courts and a community pool. Part of the community is gated. There are currently 20 homes on the market starting at $169,900 for a golf villa up to $449,900 for a 4 bedroom 3 bath home. The residents love this community, it is one of the best kept secrets in central Florida. It is also conveniently located close to Venetian Bay, which has another golf course and will have shopping and restaurants.

Visit one of my websites at http://selldaytona.com/ or http://www.venetianbay.org/

Oops! I'm a little bit late getting my Speechless Sunday blog posted. I'm now about an hour into Monday. Doh! But when you read my next blog post, you'll understand the delay.

I received an e-mail from Trulia, with a question from a distressed home owner, and I felt obligated to answer. Once I finish this post, I'll post my next one, featuring the Trulia question that distracted me, and I'll ask others to add their 2 cents in helping to cheer up this unhappy home owner. But for now, here's my photo for (yesterday's) Speechless Sunday... Hmm. I just realized that not only is this post not on Sunday, it's not even "Speechless" LOL!! I guess if I'm gonna miss the mark, I might as well go all out! =P

Coquina Cove is located in Port Orange off of Williamson Blvd north of Dunlawton. It is convenient to shopping, the beach, and the Daytona International Speedway. There are single story and two story homes and townhomes to choose from. the single story homes start at $149,000 from the builder and are 1263 sq ft. The two story homes start at $190,000 and are 1937 sq ft. All the homes are built by DR Horton. The lots are smaller than I would like, but there are lakes and other common areas. This is a nice community and a great value for first time home buyers, especially with the USDA's 100% financing. As an added bonus DR Horton pays all closing cost on a new home purchase. Remember to call me before you go so I can help you negotiate the best price.

Visit one of my websites at http://selldaytona.com/ or http://www.venetianbay.org

I've lived in Port Orange for over 10 years, and in the Daytona Beach area since I was born. And my daughter is a 5th generation Floridian =) but I digress. I just think it's cool to have all my family nearby since it's somewhat rare anymore.

This blog post is about some information I recently discovered. When I found this page on the web site for the city of Port Orange, I started asking people if they were aware of this ordinance. (We do have a lot of unique ordinances. Many of them help keep Port Orange a city that's a step up from some of the others.) In this case, I discovered that many people were not aware of this ordinance, and some knew about it and were knowingly in violation. But it's for the good of our residents and our environment.

Ironically, I was planning to blog about our water restrictions anyway. But this seems to be more pressing. Port Orange home owners already know we have water restrictions and most people comply with them. Very few people choose to blatantly disregard our water restrictions. But I'm not sure what to think of this water ordinance.

Here's the simple, short paragraph about a Port Orange ordinance pertaining to our water restrictions.

"Rain sensors are required on all automatic irrigation systems by March 2003 according to City Ordinance 01-63. You can get rain sensors at local hardware stores. It is recommended that a professional electrician install the sensor. For information on the sensor requirement, please call Mary Kronenberg in the City’s Public Utilities Department at 506-5756. If Mary is not in, please leave your name and telephone number, someone will contact you as soon as possible."

Do you see the date in the very first line of this ordinance? This went into effect six years ago! But in my little poll, I discovered that approximately half of Port Orange residents even know about this water ordinance, and about another half had chosen to disregard it. And what I really don't get is how real estate builders are building new construction, and the irrigation systems do not have this required rain sensor. How is that possible!?

OK. Here's the deal. I'm not a fanatic about most things. But about a year and a half ago I discovered and blogged about some unbelievable problems with Florida's ecosystem, wetlands, and aquifer. My first post along these lines was titled "Florida's Vanishing Wetlands". (You can follow the link to read that post.) Part two of that mini-series was downright alarming. The second post was titled "Florida's Aquifers (Vanishing Wetlands Part 2)". Read that post for the full information, but here's what everyone needs to know.

The Floridan Aquifer is Florida's primary source of fresh water. The details of that are in the second post. but the bottom line is, the Floridan Aquifer is becoming more and more polluted. Here is a partial list of the polutants in our aquifer.

• Antimony
• Asbestos
• Barium
• Cadmium
• Chromium
• Cyanide
• Fluoride
• Mercury
• Nickel
• Selenium
• Sodium
• Thallium
• Nitrate
• Nitrite

Please read the post to learn the effects of these chemicals, and to develop a better understanding of why it's so important for us to preserve our water resources.

If you're a Port Orange resident, or even a resident of anywhere in Central Florida, please educate yourself about the pollution of the Floridan Aquifer, and have your automated irrigation systems fitted with rain sensors, as required by city ordinance.

If you're interested in buying or selling real estate in Port Orange FL, make a Smart Choice and contact Lisa Hill with Adams Cameron REALTORS®, for all your real estate needs.

www.PortOrangeRealEstateSales.com

www.LisaHillRealtor.com