Life In Bonita Springs

The weather at Bonita Beach has been stellar.  Hopefully, you’ll be enjoying Easter weekend at the beach.

Chris vs. Windows Live Writer

I know what you’re thinking …

That’s fierce looking hamster you have there,missy.  We’ll you’re right.

He’s a ninjahamster.  I am his third owner.  Nobody is sure what happened to the other owners.

Thank you for putting up with this test of some new publishing software for my blog.  Tomorrow we’ll resume our regularly scheduled programming.

Oh, by the way, that’s Goober the hamster.  A little parting gift one of my kids left behind on their way to college. *sigh*

The College is here:

I hate to be a menace but I’m testing map inserts, links and video.  I’ll do anything, at this point, to save time publishing.  I nearly ripped my hair out the first time I tried to install this program.  D. Patrick Lewis and Ray Nellum got a good laugh out of my mini nervous breakdown.

Now, I’ll hit publish and see if it all explodes.  The hamster probably has it rigged with explosives.

Getting Lean and Green

I know you're wondering but, yes, I can tie sheep in with this.   So, what does going green, sheep herding and Clyde Butcher have in common?  Nearly nothing but a little something. I'll let the cat out of the bag with this one but here goes:  I'm a nerd and  I listen to NPR.  There, I said it.  It's out in the open.

Anywho, I was listening to NPR on my way back from showing foreclosures and short sales in Golden Gate Estate and Clyde Butcher was being interviewed.  For those who don't know Clyde Butcher is a genius photograph, artist who specializes in the Everglades.  He lives in the middle of the Everglades, on the only piece of real estate above water.  It's outside of Ochopee and that little post office.Clyde has been taking is gallery green and in an effort to do so has switched to LED lighting and will save tens of thousands of dollars, approximate $50,000, alone on his electric bill.   That's huge money.  Because the bulbs use less energy and produce less heat there isn't as much air conditioning needed to offset the heat they generate.  The entire interview was fascinating. You can listen to the podcast, here: Gulf Coast Live (you don't need anything fancy, just go to that link and click "listen" - the first two minutes is a news report, be warned.)

If the article fascinates you, you may find yourself digging around the web trying to find out more about solar hot water tanks, 35 seer air conditioning units, LED lights and anything else to help promote a more sustainable living in your home and in your city.  In my search I found this viral video that is meant to show how little power LED lights require, yet how dynamic they really are.  I not only wanted to buy LED lights after this, I wanted to buy sheep.  I wanted a sheep dog. I wanted to go to Australia, even.  Well, not really, but I did enjoy the film.  I hope you do, too.  

Things to Do at Riverside Park | Bonita Springs, Fl

This Friday, April 10, enjoy Evenings in the Park
Six Artists - Six Cottages - 5:00pm - 8:00pm
A delightful evening with friends, meeting the artists while enjoying music, wine and refreshments.

Sunday, April 12, 2009, 2:00pm (Happy Easter!)
Free Concert - Bonita Springs Concert Band
Bring chairs and refreshments!

Every Wednesday - 8:00am - 1:00 pm NOW THRU MAY!
Farmer's Market

Here’s a handy, dandy map to the Bandshell at Riverside Park.  It’s on Old 41, you can’t accidentally drive by it. I swear.

The Road to First Time Home Ownership

As anticipated the month of March belonged to the first time home buyers. About fifty three percent of all closed sales in the Sunshine MLS were under $200,000. Short sales and foreclosures accounted for about thirty seven percent of the under $200,000 sales.

If you’re considering buying a home in the competitive under $200,000 market or a bank owned property you should first get prepared for the common pitfalls and mistakes made by buyers.

Making an offer without being prequalified – First, if you don’t speak with a lender you will waste a great deal of time looking at homes that you’re not qualified to own. Second, if there is a bank involved with approval of your offer they will likely not consider your offer until it is accompanied by a mortgage preapproval or proof of funds. Yes, you have to prove you can pay for it or get a mortgage.

Not shopping your mortgage and getting the best deal – Every mortgage brokers offer different programs and it doesn’t hurt to ask around. Just remember it’s not solely about the interest rate. If the lender can’t explain, in great detail, all facets and costs of your mortgage you need to move on to another mortgage professional. This loan is going to be long term and mistakes will be costly. There are no mulligan’s in bad mortgage choices.

Sabotaging your credit – If you’re on the verge of buying a home do not make any major financial changes in your life. That means don’t open any new lines of credit; no big purchases, no large sums of money shuffling, make no changes in employment; don’t change jobs and don’t quit your job. The banks frown upon loaning money to unemployed people these days.

Trying to find a home yourself – Find an experienced, committed agent who is also tenacious and responsive. Anyone can buy and sell real estate without the help of a real estate agent but at a competitive price point great deals and foreclosures priced well hit the market and are often gone within the day, frequently with multiple offers. You just can’t compete with technology and the mass of people buying entry level homes at this time. You’ll be looking at the leftovers because the best deals will be swooped up before it even gets syndicated to the web or craigslist.

Bidding on a home before you get a CMA – Sure the home may be a great deal and if you’re expecting multiple offers you need to know the highest price you’ll be willing to bid without making a poor investment. Your agent should be able to give you a range price for the home so that you make the best offer without overpaying.

Buying a cheap house and not a good investment – Price is nothing if you can’t sell the home in the future. You can an ugly kitchen but you can’t fix a highway, huge power lines over head, the convenience store next door or any other incurable defect.

Finally, do not sign any paperwork with a lender, bank or real estate agent that you do not fully understand. If the “deal” gets away from you, there will be another one. The term “measure twice, cut once” isn’t limited to carpentry.

Real Life in Bonita Springs is a project by Chris Griffith dedicated to writing useful blog posts for consumers about the Bonita Springs, Florida area.  Find out what it is really like to live in Bonita Springs, Florida by reading about our fair city. You’ll get the latest in local real estate information, Bonita Springs real estate market reports and a little bit of humor.  If you have topic ideas, feel free to request a story about the idea, after all, this site is just for you.

You can subscribe to a weekly email newsletter by visiting www.LifeInBonitaSprings.com and entering your email in the subscription area on the left pane of the web page or by adding us to your reader by subscribing to this blog. Oh, and if you’re reading this content anywhere else but www.LifeInBonitaSprings.com or the Naples Daily News it is probably stolen.

Picking The Best Lane

Don't ask me why I felt compelled to take this picture, but I did.  Today, I coasted up to a traffic light that is red and I'm behind three cars.  They're at the traffic light at US 41 and Highland Woods Blvd.  You see, I have places to go and peoples homes to sell so I find myself strategizing which lane will be the fast one, which one is Mr. Magoo and which one is Hoke and Daisy.

Here's my theory, proven at this light and now shared with the masses, on how to get across town in tourist season by picking the best pole position.  These are my top six tips.

1. Never get behind a car that you can't see the persons head over the headrest.
2. If you see a cell phone, texting, cigarette, double bacon cheeseburger or hands flailing indicating speaker phone use avoid that lane.
3. If you're behind a pickup truck with a window decal that reads "Bad ass ladies don't drive Mercedes", line up behind her.  She has something to prove and no doubt has a turbo deisel.
4. Avoid cars with turn signals on for excessive amounts of time.
5. Avoid out of state license plates.  A position behind  a northern plate is an exercise in futility.  Yes, I understand you're pished, Mr. Yankee, but some of us are working and not driving 18 miles an hour looking for the golf outlet store.
6. In the photo above, the car had an Illinois plate leaving two pick up trucks from which to choose?  What is the tie breaker in this situation?  The Toyota Tundra had a V8.  Never get behind a four or six cylinder if there is an eight available.  The eight totally dusted in the situation, Magoo and the Hoke/Daisy Team are still sitting at the light.

Go forth and prosper motorists of Bonita Springs.  I guess it would have been more helpful for me to drop these insights on you at the beginning of tourist season, huh?

If you don't see the video below click this link: Why Won't My Mortgage Company Help?The video is complements of the Consumer Warning Network.  You can read the entire article about how Wells Fargo isn't cooperating with these home ownersHERE.

Fun Under $10 at Bonita Beach

These kids were having so much fun.  Their parents were having fun too. If I were to tell you how badly those kite strings were tangled and still flying, you wouldn't believe it.  These are just those little cheapie kites you buy at the check out at a Target or Kmart.  It couldn't have cost more than ten dollars and the exercise was free.

When's the last time you flew a kite or spent time with little people at the beach?  This was at beach access number two, parking eases up around 5:30 and of course, it's free.

Death Becomes the Postal Box

Sometimes I have pretty busy days.  A few weeks ago I had a few busy weeks that were chalk so full of rediculousness I don't think I could have made it up if I tried.  One random Friday on my way to a closing, after I picked my mom up and dropped her off at dialysis, gave the dog intravenous food, water and such and dropped someone off at the airport I decided to ask Mini Me to go with me.

My theory was that if we went to the closing in Naples we would be just a few minutes from Pei Wei and it would be a supreme idea to have lunch there.  I am all about the Blazing Noodles at Pei Wei.   Mini Me was on her way back from college and I told her to park at Taco Bell on US 41 by the Devoe Building and I'd pick her up.  There are two morals to this story.

One:  Taco Bell is open late and people that eat way late might have been drinking way late.  That could be why this mailbox (gawd rest its soul) is pushing up daffodils.

Two:  Bonita Springs, Florida is just small enough for someone in our inner circle to notice Mini Me's car at Taco Bell during our outing and call her to ask if she was really eating at Taco Bell because they couldn't find her inside.

Welcome to Bonita Springs, Florida ladies and gentlemen.  If your cat gets pregnant it's the talk of the town.