Tips for Selling Miami Beach Real Estate

Miami Beach has special regulations


Every area has its own building regulations. You need to know how these restrictions will affect the design of your Miami Beach home. Issues to consider include zoning, setbacks, rights of way and easements. Most subdivisions have CC&Rs (Covenants, Codes and Restrictions). Studies of Miami Beach demonstrate that these carefully to make sure they are not too restrictive for your needs or create excessive building costs.

Miami Beach Home Improvement


Don't underestimate how much projects will cost. Expenses usually are added, not subtracted. Homeowners, even Miami Beach homeowners, routinely go 20% to 30% over budget. Remember, it is common to under budget cost and time.

When remodeling for resale, don't waste time with renovations that won't pay off. If you must have a pool, you still may have to lower your expectations on who will be interested in buying. The National Association of Realtors/Remodeling magazine study has identified four renovations that show the greatest return at resale: improvements to siding, windows, kitchens and bathrooms. Remember you have a lot invested in Miami Beach.

Guidelines for Buying Miami Beach


Let’s say everything is a GO! You have found the perfect Miami Beach home. You know you can afford it and it is actually priced below what you expected to pay. What a bargain! Yes there are bargains to be found in Miami Beach. At this point it is fine to put in an offer on the property but only with a well-planned contingency. Of course, it the home is going to be financed, the lender will want a Home Inspection before agreeing to lend money on the property. However, you need to protect yourself by making an offer SUBJECT TO a clean bill of health from the Home Inspector of your choice. This kind of a contingency gives you an out if the inspector finds a problem with the roof, or foundation or other structural problem that was not apparent to the seller or to your agent. This does not mean you will not buy the house but you will have a good reason to renegotiate the price with the seller.


Miami Beach Real Estate Title Insurance


Buying a new home is the single largest financial investment for most families but there are risks. What if the seller doesn’t really own the home? What if there are mortgages, judgements or liens against the property? What if the property taxes have not been paid for several years? Miami Beach real estate Title insurance protects you against these types of risks and against the risks of human error. It is your basic home ownership protection.

Miami Beach Title insurance protects you against future losses arising out of events that have happened in the past. Unlike other types of insurance, title insurance is paid when the policy is issued and is good for the life of the policy. The premium required is based on the amount of the sale or the mortgage.


Miami Beach. How Much Should You Offer?


Comparable sales figures is a good guide for homeowners who are pricing their Miami Beach and a good guide for prospective buyers. Make sure you compare homes that are similar to the one your are considering...the same neighborhood, the same size, the same condition. Also, make sure you compare sales within the past six months.

Ask your REALTOR for a comparison of the list price and sales price of comparable Miami Beach sales. This information may give you a trend and a guideline for your offer. For example, maybe homes in the area have consistently listed for more than they actually sold for. If that is the case, find out what percentage of reduction occurred. Use this information as a basis for your offer.


Choosing Your Miami Beach Neighborhood


The fact is that much of the value of Miami Beach and real estate in general rests in its surrounding economic and social environment, which means it’s neighborhood. In addition to being located in the right neighborhood, the Miami Beach that you buy must not clash with its surroundings. To picture what we mean here, visualize the most expensive home you can imagine and then place it in the middle of a run down neighborhood. Not so desirable is it?

To sum up, the Miami Beach that you buy gets its value from a combination of the home’s location and its size, style, age and amenities. You can change the home’s size, style and amenities but you are stuck with the location.