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Michael Sahlman e-PRO - Miami Beach Florida Luxury Homes

A Great Idea To Inspire Buying In Miami

A friend of mine mentioned to me a good idea worth mentioning here. He was watching Cramer's Mad Money a couple of weeks ago and heard Cramer interviewing Robert Toll of Toll Brothers, one of the largest housing companies in the country. They both agreed that the housing prices are the key to fixing the economy. Toll suggested a plan similar to the one instituted by President Gerald Ford back in 1975 when Ford offered home buyers a $15,000 tax credit if they bought a home before the end of the year. Consequently, the market took off almost immediately.

I do not pretend to be an economist, but I think it is a better idea than many of the others out there like the current stimulus package and other solutions proposed. At least some variation of the tax credit idea might be the jump start our economy needs. We can't do anything about the oil crisis short-term, so perhaps this is an idea worth looking at more seriously.

I believe a lot of the buyers sitting on the fence just need one good reason or incentive to buy, and the floodgates might just open. In my opinion, we are close to the bottom of the market in Miami Beach and in other submarkets in the Miami-Dade area as well as in the Broward area. Some of the buildings and neighborhoods are more stable than others. There are a ton of buyers that I have talked to over the last several months that are just looking for an excuse to buy. It might just have to be the government that gives them that excuse, instead of another ineffective stimulus package.

For information on real estate in Miami Beach, Miami and the surrounding areas or how we can help homeowners avoid foreclosure, contact Michael Sahlman at 786.553.0697 or email him at Michael@HomesForVIPs.com. Our website is www.HomesForVIPs.com.

South Beach FL Real Estate Statistics for April 2008

80 homes and condos sold in South Beach in April with sales prices that were 89% of asking price. The average sales price was $895,000, and the median price was $414,000 stayed on the market for 145 days. Obviously, several sales in the higher price ranges have brought the average price up since the median price is much lower.

There are currently over 2,250 condos and homes for sale in the South Beach area. Inventory levels are actually down slightly over the past few months. Overall, the inventory in South Beach has been level for the past year. Sales and pending sales have steadily increased since December 2007, which was the worst month in several years here. Miami Beach had similar numbers.

While sales have increased some over the past few months, the number of pending sales (deals in contract now) has made a SIGNIFICANT increase up 137% to 109 PENDING sales from 37 pending residential sales in December 2007. This is a major indicator of increased buyer interest. In other words, the buyers are starting to wake up and are doing deals now.

For more detailed information on real estate in South Beach, Miami Beach and other nearby areas, please contact Michael Sahlman at 786.553.0697 or email Michael at Michael@HomesForVIPs.com. See my website at www.HomesForVIPs.com. Call 1-800-639-3520 Ext. 9149 for Free Reports on South Beach (our 24-hour recorded info line).

Michael and Cristina specialize in waterfront residential property, bulk sales, hotels and distressed property throughout Miami, Miami Beach and South Florida. Michael is a Certified Distressed Property Expert. For more information about them, see their website page titled About Us.