BiggerPockets

St. Petersburg Sports and Recreation

Tuesday, December 15

It wouldn't be Florida if we didn't enjoy water activities. Two of my favorite that come to mind fishing and sailing.  La Gringa at the Municipal Marina offers half and full day sailing cruises.  And John’s Pass is a hot spot for chartering a fishing excursion with some local guides who know all the right locations.  You can fish for a variety of great catches, while spending the day enjoying the Gulf waters.

If you enjoy watching sports, the Tampa Jai-Alai is a seasonal sport that runs from December to April.  This fast paced sport is said to be the world’s fastest game!   The Florida Downs Racetrack in Oldsmar offers horse racing, and St. Pete’s Derby Lane is the world’s oldest Dog Track.   Each can make for a great day of action packed recreation, complete with food, drinks and good old fun!

It wouldn’t be spring if we didn’t mention Baseball!  Al Lang Field in St Pete is home to the spring training New York Mets and the St. Louis Cardinals.  In Clearwater, you will find Threshers or the spring training Phillies.  And Dunedin is home to the Toronto Blue Jays.  Everyone enjoys grabbing a hot dog, and sitting down to a great ball game.   But the Rays are the fan favorite in this area, and always pack the house with a great night of major league fun!

Lastly, let’s not forget golf.  With so many wonderful greens in the area, you can take your pick of some wonderful courses.  Bardmoor Country Club in Largo is the largest with 54 Championship Holes.  Offering  a full restaurant and country club, this facility also has a great tennis camp.  Also a challenge to play, are the Pasadena and Twin Brooks Golf Course’s with 18 holes each.

No matter, what your sport, St. Petersburg has it.  There are many ways to keep active and just enjoy a great day or night activity.  So get out of the house, and join in the fun. 

What a great place to live! We can help you find your place in paradise, just give us a call at 1 888 423 5775.  One of our real estate agents will be ready to serve you.

Florida! We're All About the Water!

Thursday, November 19

Dive In!

Freshwater? We've got plenty.

Saltwater? Certainly, would you prefer Ocean or Gulf?

Florida has the perfect place to take the plunge into the blue and explore new worlds ruled by living coral, fish, manatees, dolphins and exotic plants.

Seeing the beauty of what lies beneath the surface brings tens of thousands of visitors to Florida year-round. With a quick stop into a local supply shop, you can outfit yourself with everything from snorkels and masks for the shallow places to wetsuits and tanks for those places a little deeper down.

Take a swim with some traveling turtles as they pay their annual visit to West Palm Beach from locations greater than one thousand miles away. Many different kinds of these distinguished animals make the journey to Florida’s east coast each year to take in some sand and sun and do not mind sharing the water with you.

While we cannot guarantee that you will find sunken treasure, mermaids or ghosts of an old sunken Brigantine, we can point you to the right places for shipwrecks, manatees and natural springs.

The Crystal River is home to our much beloved manatees who don’t mind sharing the river with you. Crystal River also boasts underwater caves and naturally occurring springs which give home to many species of fish including bass, snapper and tarpon.

The Florida Keys offer spectacular views and have also caught the eye of millions of diving enthusiasts. With lots of coral reefs the keys are host to many points of interest including the only living reef in the Continental 48 states. After you dry off don’t forget to check out the many offerings of Key West’s festive nightlife.

The Pensacola area has lots of shipwrecks and underwater graveyards for old boats that include many naval vessels. These usually require formal operations, so please make sure to find a proper location.

And, if you are looking for that perfect Florida waterfront home, just ask us!  We will find it for you.

Get Your Home Ready To Sell

Sunday, October 18

In this competitive market, first impressions are essential. When preparing to sell your home, start by looking from a buyer’s prospective. The best place to start is from the outside. Since many buyers will not even enter a home that looks trashy or overgrown, you need to ask yourself: What type of curb appeal does my home have? Sometimes, adding some flowery plants for color, laying a fresh coat of mulch, or pulling weeds is all you need to do. Other ideas are to paint worn objects such as mailboxes, light fixtures and even your front door. Also look at your exterior paint. Is it chipped or faded? A couple days of hard work, can really pay off!

And don’t forget to tidy up such areas as cleaning the roof and gutters, sweeping the walkway and washing the windows. Stand back and imagine you are looking at your home for the first time….would you want to buy it? And don’t forget the garage or basement. Investing in some organizers or shelving can take a junk filled space into another functioning room of the home. I have been in homes where the three car garage looks like a trash zone. It’s time to clean out! If needed rent a storage unit, but you want to make sure buyers can see the space and everything it has to offer.

Next go inside. Again, take a tour from a buyer’s prospective. Do the rooms look spacious or cluttered? Often times, removing a piece of furniture or scaling down on knick knacks can declutter a room and take it from cramped to manageable. Next, look at the carpeting. Is it worn and stained? Sometimes steam cleaning is all it takes! And other times you may know it’s time to replace the carpet. If this is the case you need to decide whether to replace it, sell the home as is, or whether you plan on giving the new homeowners a flooring allowance up front. This way they know they can pick out flooring that suits their style. Many people find putting in an allowance is the best answer. You would hate to replace your carpet with more carpeting, just to find out a prospective buyer is passing on your home because they wanted hardwood floors.

Another thing to consider is to look at indoor paint. Neutral tones tend to sell better. People feel as though they can just move in and won’t have to put in the time or cost of repainting. One of the biggest suggestions I will give you is to look at the kitchens and bathrooms. These are huge, selling features. An updated kitchen or bath can add thousands to the bottom line. Replace broken appliances, or chipped countertops. Paint worn cabinets if you cannot replace them. And many times replacing old hardware with newer modern styles can liven up a dull space.

Secure your sale even after you’ve been given a contract. Make sure broken appliances, leaky faucets and other damage is taken care of before it is found during the inspection. Many buyers will get a negative impression of the home’s overall condition if a large number of flaws are found during the inspection leaving them to retreat from the sale. The rather minimal expense of fixing small problems beforehand will pay off in the long run.

Bob Lipply and his team sell Tampa Real Estate - contact us if you have further questions about getting your home SOLD!

How To Find A Good Tenant

Thursday, October 16

Finding a good tenant is so important if you have a home or a condo to rent. If you are reading this you probably have a piece of investment property that you either paid a sum of money for or are paying monthly mortgage payments for. Plus, I am sure you want someone who is going to take good care of it while making their rent payments on time. Seems like this is an easy thing to find? Not!