Carol Clawson

With the 2009 winter season wrapping up, there are great deals to be found on homes in Palm Beach Gardens' country club communities.

BallenIsles, for example, has 26 homes on the market priced under $500,000. The least expensive single family home in BallenIsles is just $299,000 for three bedrooms, two baths and fewer than 2000 square feet under air. Just two of the 26 homes are listed as short sales.

There are a total of 108 homes for sale in BallenIsles in all sizes and price ranges.

BallenIsles is one of the high end country club communities in Palm Beach Gardens with many homes priced above $1 million. Today, the most expensive home for sale in BallenIsles is a 6000 square foot fully furnished homes with a lake and golf course view for $3.2 million.

The community required membership in the country club and there are several level of membership from social to full golf. The club boast two golf courses and a large tennis center.

The Weiss-Clawson Team is very familiar with home sales in BallenIsles and researches the real estate market in communities throughout Palm Beach Gardens and Palm Beach County. If you are interested in buying or selling a home in the area, or know of someone who is, we want to talk with you. You can contact The Weiss-Clawson Team directly.

We look forward to talking to you and to working with you.

Homes in the Palm Beach Gardens area are selling!

Foreclosures, short sales, job relocations, and desperate sellers continue to drive down home prices in most communities throughout the area. And these provide outstanding opportunities for savvy buyers.

Last year home prices declined 34 percent so that the median home today is selling for about what it sold for in March 2003. The significant appreciation that occurred from 2004 through early 2006 is largely gone.

But what's selling, what's not and where are the bargains?

Sales are best in communities where there are large numbers of short sales and foreclosures providing unique opportunities for buyers. Over the past 16 months, 54 percent of the homes on the market in Osprey Isles sold. During the same time period, 33 percent of the homes on the market sold in Mirasol, 33 percent sold in PGA National, and 36 percent sold in Mirabella.

In other communities sales were weaker. In Ironhorse just 17 percent of the homes on the market sold, Frenchman's Reserve saw 18 percent sold and in Steeplechase only 20 percent of the 41 homes for sale in the past 16 months sold. In fact, this year in Steeplechase just one home has sold: a mold infested foreclosure which brought $435,000!

A closer look at one upscale estate community can provide some insights. From January 2008 through early May 2009 just 6 of 24 homes on the market sold in San Michele, an upscale Palm Beach Gardens residential community with most homes priced over $1 million. The sale price of these 6 homes averaged 27 percent less than the original list price with most selling for 30 percent or less of the original asking price. Of the 12 homes for sale today in San Michele, nine have been on the market for more than 6 months, some for more than a year.

Pricing is key in today's market. Buyers want bargains and they will settle for nothing less than the best value when they purchase a home. There is still too much on the market for today's buyers to pay more than they believe the home is worth. Bargains can be found throughout the area. There are short sales and foreclosures in almost every community, but short sales may take months before the bank renders a decision and it is not always a decision favorable to the buyer.

In Frenchman's Reserve there is a 4100 square foot home on the market for a third less than the owners paid the builder. In Mirasol there is 3200 square foot home for sale for 55 percent of what was paid to the builder. There are values to be had in Abacoa, Mirabella, Ironhorse, Ibis, Mirasol, BallenIsles and throughout the area.

The Weiss-Clawson Team researches housing prices and trends throughout the Palm Beach Gardens and West Palm Beach areas to provide the best market information to our clients and our neighbors. Our information comes from the Regional Multiple Listing Service and from property tax reports. If you are interested in buying or selling a home in Palm Beach County, or know someone who is, we would like to talk with you. Please contact us directly.

There are more than 500 homes for sale in the vast area of West Palm Beach called the
Acreage where property averages an acre or more and homes are as varied as their owners.

Prices for a traditional three bedroom, two bath home can start in the mid $100,000's, but those probably need some work. But you can find a wonderful 3/2 on over an acre with a pool that is ready to occupy in the mid $200,000's

Of the more than 500 properties on the market in the Acreage, about 350 are listed as short sales -- that is where the owner owe more to the bank than the property is worth today. And there are some fantastic buys out there for the first time home buyer who may also be eligible for an $8000 tax credit or stipend from the government following the purchase.

The Weiss-Clawson Team works with first time home buyers and all home buyers throughout the West Palm Beach, Palm Beach Gardens, Jupiter, Juno Beach areas as well as in all of Palm Beach County.

We will research properties for you and take you to see all homes that meet your criteria. Contact The Weiss-Clawson Team directly if you are interested in buying or selling a home in West Palm Beach, Palm Beach Gardens or throughout Palm Beach County. We look forward to hearing from you and to working with you.

There are more than 1500 homes for sale in the Palm Beach Gardens area with a number of communities still finding short sales and foreclosures forcing prices down.

And there are bargains for the savvy buyer in many communities, but it takes time to find them and buyers have to be knowledgeable about recent sales to determine whether the house they want is a bargain or is overpriced.

From the high end to the lower end there are great deals to be had.

In Frenchmans Reserve there is a 4000 square foot home selling for a third less than the seller paid to the builder. And there are coach homes available in the mid $300,000's when owners paid $100,000 more for the properties as new construction. In Mirasol there is a 3200 square foot home on the market for about 55 percent of what the owner paid the builder.

In the moderate price range, there is a home on the market in Mirabella at 30 percent less than the owner paid the builder just two years ago.

In Montecito, buyers have already put under contract 16 of 23 homes on the market, and 14 of the 16 under contract were short sales or foreclosures.

In the lower price ranges there are more 500 homes on the market in the Acreage with more than 350 of these classified as short sales or foreclosures.

You can use the search feature on our website to find homes by map, by community or by city.

The Weiss-Clawson Team researches the housing market in Palm Beach Gardens, West Palm Beach and throughout the area to provide the best and most up to date information to our clients. Please contact us directly if you are interested in buying or selling real estate in the Palm Beach Gardens area or throughout Palm Beach County.

We look forward to talking with you and to working with you.

More than 800 homes are for sale in Palm Beach Gardens' leading residential and country club communities as we enter the 2009 summer season. There are many wonderful homes on the market in these communities at prices not seen since the early 2000's. With interest rates at their lowest point in a generation, it is a wonderful time to buy that vacation home, or new full time residence in Palm Beach Gardens

The number of homes available is down slightly from earlier in the year even though sales in these communities were about 12 percent fewer during the first four months of 2009 than during the first four months of 2008.

Communities studied include Ironhorse Country Club, Steeplechase, Mirasol, PGA National, BallenIsles, Ibis Country Club, San Michele and Frenchmans Reserve.

There are 36 homes for sale in Ironhorse. During the first four months of 2009 just two homes soldwhile there were three that sold during the first four months of 2008.

In Steeplechase there are 21 homes for sale. From Jan through April, 2009 just one home sold while four sold in the same period during 2008.

In Mirasol there are 122 homes on the market. In the first four months of 2009 16 homes sold wile just 14 sold furing the same period in 2008.

PGA National has 239 homes for sale. There were 54 homes sold in the first four months of 2009 and the same number for the first four months of 2008.

In BallenIsles there are 129 homes on the market today. Just seven sold from January through April 2009 while 14 sold in the same period of 2008.

Ibis Country Club has 188 homes for sale. From January through April 2009 21 homes sold while 25 sold in the same period during 2008.

In San Michele there are 12 homes for sale today. Just one home sold in the first four months of 2009 while three homes sold in the same period of 2008, and

In Frenchmans Reserve there are 59 homes on the market. Six sold during the months of January through June 2009 and six sold in the same period of 2008.

The Weiss-Clawson Team is knowledgeable about all Palm Beach Gardens communities. We do extensive research to stay current on market trends throughout the area. If you are interested in buying or selling a home in Palm Beach Gardens or throughout Palm Beach County, please contact us directly.

We look forward to hearing from you and to working with you.