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Canadian snowbirds may soon be able to spend two extra months nesting in their favorite spot, the sunshine state!  Each year Canadian snowbirds find their way to sunny south Florida. Currently, Canadians, aged 55 and older have a 182 day annual limit to stay in the U.S. without a visa. Winding its way through Congress is a provision that would extend that limit to 240 days – about eight months total.

Canadians represent a major boost to the economy in the U.S., particularly southern states such as Florida.  Florida recently dropped the requirement of an international drivers permit after strong objections from the Canadian Lobby.  Canadians are flocking to the sugary sand beaches of the Jupiter and Tequesta areas.   The surrounding areas are well known for…

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With more than 1,300 miles of coastline, it is no surprise that Florida has an active and thriving seafood industry! Florida fishermen harvested more than 106 million pounds of seafood, including grouper, mahi-mahi, pompano, shrimp, mullet, snapper and Spanish mackerel.  Florida fishermen provide 100% of the entire nation’s domestic spiny lobster and 97% of the stone crabs.  According to the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services more than 85 different varieties of seafood are harvested from our coastal waters.

Florida is ranked among the top 12 in the nation for fresh seafood production.  During the past five years, the dockside value of Florida seafood has grown by more than 25% to $222 million.  According to a recent University of…

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After five grueling years, Americans are feeling optimistic about the housing market and rightly so! “National home prices have been on the uptick for eight straight months and jumped 6.3 percent year over year in October – the largest increase since June 2006” according to CoreLogic.  CoreLogic is a North American corporation providing financial, property and consumer information, analytics and business intelligence.  The company analyzes data and information to clients and government with analytics and customized data services.

Bidding wars are making a comeback here in South Florida, and many properties located here on the desirable waterfront in Jupiter, Tequesta and surrounding areas are seeing multiple offers.  Buyers need to prepare themselves…

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Did you know that there are over 21,000 public high schools in America? All three traditional high schools in Martin County ranked among “Newsweek Magazine’s America’s Best High Schools of 2013” list.   These high schools have proven to be the most effective in preparing high school graduates for college with quality education, teachers, administrators, and staff.  Congratulations to Jensen Beach High School (#969) in Jensen Beach, and  Martin County High School (#1,273), and South Fork High School (#1,322) in Stuart!

Martin County is a school district where it is not uncommon to take your child out of private school or charter school and enroll them into the local public high school.  Some advantages to the Martin County public high school system: …

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Photo courtesy of Palm Beach Post.

Good news for Jupiter area residents and visitors of the "golf capital of the world", a beautiful Courtyard Marriot hotel is now under construction in the Abacoa community!  Construction for the 128-room hotel began on April 24.  It is scheduled to open in February, 2014 and slated to include 2,500 square feet of event space, a bistro style restaurant, a Starbucks coffee shop, full service-bar, state of the art fitness center, outdoor swimming pool, business center, and guest laundry. There will be street level commercial space for lease and parking will be handled by an existing parking garage adjacent to the hotel.

The hotel will be located at Main Street and University, across from Roger Dean Stadium for an…

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Get Your House Sold

Getting a house to sell takes much more than just listing it in the paper or on the internet and letting it get gobbled up, it simply doesn’t work like that. Today’s successful agents are tenacious, proficient and skilful and they aren’t a dime a dozen. Agents and brokers of today are a new breed. With the market being more challenging than ever, the task of selling a home or finding your buyer their dream home isn’t just a snap of your fingers. It takes effort, hard work and dedication! 

Several years ago when the market was bustling, homes were selling like hotcakes and the market was flooded with buyers and sellers. Consider the nation’s economic standing; the economy is struggling, banks aren’t lending nearly as much and buyers don’t have the…

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Celebrate EARTH WEEK with the Town of Jupiter at ECOFEST on Saturday, April 27, from 11:00am – 4:00pm at Riverwalk Events Plaza (under the Indiantown Road Bridge). The event will focus on recycling and earth friendly food and crafts.  This is a FREE event for the family with an abundance of entertaining events planned -  including  live music, arts and crafts, food vendors, kayak and paddle boarding demonstrations, and a free fishing clinic. This will be the town’s first earth friendly family festival and 4,000 people are anticipated.

Today, April 22, 2013, is EARTH DAY!  Over one billion people in 192 countries are taking action in their communities and helping depict “The Face of Climate Change”.  Do something to lower your carbon footprint.  We, at…

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marina-district_388The 10-block long Marina District in Riviera Beach that stretches from Blue Heron Boulevard to the Port of Palm Beach will undergo a major redevelopment over the next few years. There is a lot of talk that it will increase market value, with the goal to revitalize the beautiful waterfront area and make it another great area for Singer Island residents and guests to go and enjoy all that South Florida has to offer.

Included in the redevelopment is the addition of 150 new boat slips as well as a re-construction of the Marina, new restaurants, hotel, retail, and office space, and new housing. Bicentennial Park and Newcomb Hall will also undergo reconstruction.

Renovations have already started in the marina and everything is expected to be completed in phases…

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Price Gaps are Closing!

Catching a lot of attention this week in the real estate world, are the results we are seeing in “list-to-close price gaps.” This price gap is the difference between the price of a listed home and the price you want to pay for it. According to an article in MainStreet, the difference between the seller’s asking price and the final sale price is diminishing. This means that sellers are getting offers and eventually sales near their original asking price. According to the study by MainStreet, the average home in America sold for 98.3% of the asking price in December of 2013, a nice increase from the 97.1% in January of 2011. 

There are different ways you can look at this news. Some may think that it is only good news for the seller because they are…

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Time to get your shenanigans on!  The inaugural “ShamRock Fest” is from 6pm to 11pm Saturday at Gazebo Park in downtown Stuart.  Dance and jig to live music by Uproot Hootenanny and enjoy green beer, traditional Irish food, dancers, and bagpipers.  A king and queen will be crowned for looking the “luckiest”.  Proceeds from the event will benefit the families of the fallen soldiers through the Moustache March for Military organization.  Tickets are $5.00.  Please call 772-284-3007 for more information visit http//KaleidoMinds.com.  Kids under 12 get in free.

Downtown Jensen Beach is about to be shaken up with Gaelic fun. Festivities run from 11:00am to 7pm. A puppy parade begins at 3pm with canine friends dressed in all things green and shamrocks. Join the…

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