Leaving a brokerage in favor of another is like leaving your parents home when your 18...you know your ready to leave, you realize there is so much more out there for you, but the trepidation of leaving the "comfort level" of the brokerage is nerve-wracking and downright scary!


So now, as I prepare to leave the nest, I would like to inform my valuable clients, friends, and family that I have proudly joined the Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate family! Aside from my brokerage affiliation, none of my personal contact info will change - my email, cell phone, website, logo, and vendor affiliations will stay the same. I will have a new office phone and fax number.

Here's what will change:

1. I will be able to offer my sellers increased Internet visibility exclusively provided to CB agents such as ColdwellBanker.com, FloridaMoves.com, and EVEN http://www.nytimes.com/.



2. Showings will be scheduled by the Coldwell Banker call center vs. a message on my cell phone (I sometimes miss calls while with clients or on lengthy appointments).



3. I will be offered cutting-edge Continuing Education classes to harness the latest technology in buying and selling real estate.



4. Color advertising on the FRONT PAGE OF THE ST. PETERSBURG TIME REAL ESTATE SECTION - only available through Coldwell Banker.



5. Access to innovative, proprietary software called TrendGraphix, which instantly illustrates various real estate trends at the click of the mouse.

Here's a few questions you may have:


Will Rich Cornelius be able to serve his clientele as well as before?


Will Rich Cornelius be able to offer his Sellers more advertising visibility for their homes?


Will Rich Cornelius be able to offer enhanced services to his Buyers?





The answer to the above questions is a resounding "YES" - my hope is that all of my clients make the transition with me so they can personally experience the difference.



If you have any questions, please call 727.417.8814 or email me at your convenience...

This is a special blog post......

The Florida Legislature announced yesterday they have voted on and passed comprehensive tax relief for Florida homeowners. Some decry it a not enough while others say the cuts go to far...only the future can tell. As a recently new homeowner myself, I will see my property tax bill decrease substantially - from $5100 to $2200. If you have the Save Our Homes cap and have a tax bill LOWER than what the new legislation amount would be, you CAN KEEP YOUR ORIGINAL TAX AMOUNT. Should you decide, for whatever reason, to switch to the new "Super-exemption", you can - but you cannot go back to Save Our Homes.

Here's an exercpt from the St. Pete Times http://www.sptimes.com/2007/06/15/State/QA__Lower_bill_won_t_.shtml:

When will I see lower taxes?
In November, the tax bill you get will be an average of about 7 percent lower than it was last year. This is the result of the rollback plan and tax cap that was approved by lawmakers Thursday. It requires local governments to reduce their tax collections.

I thought the plan was in trouble. What happened?
The rollback plan never was in trouble, but the proposal to create a new "superhomestead" exemption to replace Save Our Homes had drawn skepticism from some GOP senators. Very late Wednesday night, lawmakers agreed to one final change that provided the comfort the skeptics needed to support the new homestead plan, and they did.
That change will allow homeowners to decide between keeping the existing Save Our Homes tax cap, which favors longtime owners, and the new superhomestead, which would offer the best tax breaks for relative newcomers.

So, is it all done?
Not exactly. The rollback needs only the signature of Gov. Charlie Crist, who will likely sign it soon, but the homestead exemption change must be approved by Florida voters. It will appear on the ballot Jan. 29, the day Florida holds its presidential primary.
However, since it's an amendment to the state Constitution, the new homestead plan will have to win a 60 percent majority, which is a very high threshold. Not many constitutional amendments have been that popular.

So, how would the superhomestead exemption work?
Under the proposal, 75 percent of the first $200, 000 in home value would be exempt from taxation. Then another 15 percent of the next $300, 000 in home value would be tax exempt. A minimum exemption of $50, 000 would be guaranteed for homes worth less than $200, 000, and a maximum exemption of $195, 000 would guaranteed for homes worth more than $500, 000.

When will I get to decide between keeping Save Our Homes and taking the new superhomestead?
Not until after the Jan. 29 election. If voters approve the new superhomestead, then homeowners will have a decision to make.

How will that process work?
The details are still to be ironed out, but here's what we know: The Save Our Homes exemption will remain on your house until you decide to switch. If you want to have the superhomestead applied to your house, you will have to contact county officials, probably your tax collector, and let them know. But, once you've switched to the new homestead, you won't be able to switch back.

How long would I be able to keep Save Our Homes?
For as long as you live in your house. Once you move, you would lose your Save Our Homes exemption and you would be switched to the new superhomestead.

How will I decide between taking the new superexemption and sticking with Save Our Homes?
That's a tricky question. For most homeowners, the new exemption would lower your tax bill right away. But it is possible that Save Our Homes could be a better deal on your tax bill over the long term. Even though the new homestead exemption offers a steep cut in the taxable value on your home, that may not be as beneficial as having the Save Our Homes cap, especially in areas where property values are likely to keep rising.

When they talk about "rolling back" taxes for cities and counties, what exactly would get rolled back?
The "rollback" refers to the revenue that cities and counties collect from property taxes; it's not the entire budget. Local governments also raise money through such things as fees and franchise agreements with cable companies, which wouldn't be affected. Still, property taxes are an enormous part of a local government's revenue stream, and property taxes also fund an array of specialty taxing districts for such things as mosquito control and hospital service. All of those tax-raising groups would have to roll back their tax rates.

What about school districts?
School districts would be exempt from the rollback.
How much money would I get back under the rollback?There are tons of variables for individuals because each city and county has many different taxing districts with many different tax rates. But lawmakers have calculated a statewide average of $174 for homeowners. Commercial land owners would save $941.

Can my local government refuse to lower my tax bill and override these plans?
Yes, but it's difficult. Depending on the cuts they want to override, they will need anywhere between a simple majority to a unanimous vote. Also, if they want to raise your taxes, they would have to ask first by a public referendum.

Calculate you new taxes below:

http://www.sptimes.com/2007/webspecials07/graphics/taxbill-calc/

Homeowners, renters, and visitors:

If you will be in Florida at any time between now and November, you need to have a hurricane plan in hand. Sometimes these hurricanes spawn in the Gulf of Mexico and cause widespread cancelleations and traffic jams - what will you do then?

From www.PinellasCounty.org:

Pinellas County’s 2007 Hurricane Guide, Surviving the Storm, Releases Countywide June 12

Pinellas County will release its 2007 hurricane planning guide, Surviving the Storm, June 12 to 14. The headlining message “It’s Everyone’s Responsibility,” stresses citizen preparation for the active season forecasters have predicted. Surviving the Storm, Pinellas County government’s official hurricane guide, includes a unique decision-making flowchart, preparation and safety tips, a special needs page, evacuation maps, shelter lists, pet information, contact numbers and much more.

Neighbors and friends, please plan accordingly...

UPDATE UPDATE

Just released...

Legislative leaders agree to presidential primary tax relief voteTALLAHASSSEE, Fla. (AP) –

June 5, 2007 – Voters would get a chance to approve property tax relief and restructuring proposals during the Jan. 29 presidential primary election, legislative leaders agreed Monday. Rep. Dean Cannon, who chairs a joint select committee on property taxation, announced the agreement during the panel’s last scheduled meeting before a special legislative session set for June 12-22. Cannon, though, said another meeting may be held the day before the special session.

The election date agreement between House Speaker Marco Rubio, R-West Miami, and Senate President Ken Pruitt, R-Port St. Lucie, follows their approval last week of a basic outline for the pending property tax reduction and overhaul.“There is already a statewide election on that date,” Cannon, R-Winter Park, said. “There will be no additional cost to the people of Florida to have the election.”

The Legislature, during its regular session that ended a month ago, passed a new law that moved the primary up from March so that Florida would have more influence on the selection of presidential candidates.Gov. Charlie Crist made a brief appearance before the committee shortly after returning Monday from a trade mission to Israel and Jordan, where he said he ran into a Florida couple who urged him to cut taxes.

Crist greeted the lawmakers with “shalom,” the Hebrew word for hello, and thanked them for their hard work on the tax issue.“It’s complex and it’s difficult. Most importantly, it is very important to the people of our state,” he said.

The committee then heard presentations on some secondary property tax issues but took no action. They included a non-controversial proposal to exempt the first $25,000 of value on equipment and other personal property that taxes businesses.

The panel also discussed options for providing additional tax breaks to affordable housing, low-income senior citizens and working waterfronts such as marinas and commercial and charter fishing docks.Piggybacking a vote on one or more amendments to the Florida Constitution onto the presidential primary also would give local governments plenty of time to comply with the revisions before their next budget year begins Oct. 1, 2008, Cannon said.

If voters reject the proposals – it takes 60 percent approval to amend the constitution – lawmakers also would have time to offer them something else on the November 2008 general ballot, he said.Cannon said putting property taxes on the ballot at the same time that presidential candidates are seeking Florida primary votes also may make them more sensitive to issues important to the Sunshine State.

The long-term constitutional approach to which Rubio and Pruitt have agreed would do away with the existing $25,000 homestead exemption for primary homes and, for most homeowners, the benefits they get from the Save Our Homes Amendment, which limits increases in homestead assessments to 3 percent annually.Instead, primary homeowners would get a tiered, percentage-based super exemption. For example, the first $100,000 of a home’s value might be 70 percent exempt, the next $100,000 would be 50 percent exempt and so on. Homeowners, though, would be able to keep their Save Our Homes benefits if those are better than the super exemption.The percentages will be worked out after other details of the legislation are agreed to, Cannon said.

Pruitt and Rubio also have agreed to short-term property tax relief the Legislature can pass immediately without a constitutional amendment.It would include cuts linked to how much each local government has increased taxes in recent years. Cities and counties that raised taxes the most would have the biggest cuts.Future taxes then would be capped, but local government bodies could exceed the limit either through a vote of something more than a majority or by putting the issue before voters.

Details haven’t yet been worked out.The leaders also have agreed to exempt schools from the tax cuts.

So just what is going on in the housing market?!? Here's a brief summation of what we are looking at IN THE SHORT-TERM:

• Slightly decreasing Inventory with little absorption
• Selling prices have dipped 20% - 35% in some cases, which is a return to 2003-2004 pricing levels.
• Interest rates have slowly increased to an 8-month high (6.37% avg on a 30 FRM in the Southeast sector - www.freddiemac.com)
• Little movement expected for interest rates in the future (relatively stable indicators)
• Insurance rates appear to be a fact of life now, as much as $3+ gas
• Tax relief is on the way (hopefully)

June will be a telltale month for Florida's housing market - I expect a stabilization in the marketplace SHOULD the correct tax relief legislation be passed and voted in soon thereafter.