Advice on buying a home in Florida

When is the best time to view a property?

One of the intuitive things I knew before obtaining my real estate license in 1982 was that the best time to look at property was during or right after a good rain. Not only is it a way to see if a roof is leaking, it’s a good way to see if the immediate location floods. And anyone who opts to live in a flood plain is asking for trouble. Large bodies of water also are fuel for hurricanes, so intensity of storms may be a factor in where the weather tends to visit.

There are other things to observe as well – which I can see on my own property – related I think to common sense: how is a property graded, and how are the streets graded. Where does run off go?

Having said all of the above – at slightly over 100 feet above sea level, which in Florida is like being on a mountain – I don’t think we’ll end up with beachfront here at my specific address, but I do think the beaches will move closer, from east as well as western coasts, all being a matter of timing. I’m ready – for that would mean high and dry land values also will rise, and being homesteaded, thus protected from inevitable corresponding rises in ad valorem taxes, it works personally.

For every downside, there can be an upside – “positioning” of a certain kind.
Sheila M. Anderson, Realtor
Commercial Property Services, Inc.
Licensed Real Estate Broker
305-372-9200
352-245-7441
<http://www.floridapropertytaxappeals.com/>

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