#1 Realtor in Clearwater, FL

Introduction to Clearwater, Florida

Clearwater is located on the Florida's Gulf coast in Pinellas County. Clearwater is just west of Tampa and north St Petersburg. Clearwater is conveniently located near two major airports: Tampa International Airport and the St. Petersburg/Clearwater International Airport. 

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Pinellas and Hillsborough county in general may have some nuances to other areas of the country as we have many more condos, homeowners association communities, and communities that are strictly for those 55 years and older. 

 

Typically condominium complexes will be far less expensive than purchasing a single family house. Buying a condo here is a great way to establish a residence here with lower costs and much less upfront expense. Condo communities are often purchased by snowbirds (those who come to bask in the sun and warmer weather in winter) and locals and foreigners who spend a significant amount of time traveling. 

 

One of the great things about condominiums is that they often provide all exterior maintenance, trash and water service, security, and things like basic cable and internet services all in exchange for a reasonable monthly fee.  

 

Our 55+ communities typically require at least one of the residents to be above the age of 55 and offer many social activities to meet, greet, and enjoy the company of your neighbors. The average community here will offer a nice pool, shuffleboard court, club house, gym, and some will have very nice golf courses as well.

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Clearwater

You may not realize that Clearwater and Clearwater Beach are two totally different cities and have a completely different feel to them. The city of Clearwater is much more affordable to the average person and has much less tourist type activities that cause significant traffic. 

 

Clearwater itself is part of the peninsula and extends clear across it from east to west. You have all the things that you would find familiar from every other city in the United States, however, the weather and beach activities nearby can add a lot of additional and typically free or low cost entertainment options.  

 

A home, condo, or townhouse here will typically cost you about half to one third the price of a similar property out on Clearwater Beach. For the typical person living in the city of Clearwater, they can get to several local beaches within about 15 minutes depending on traffic. 

 

Clearwater Beach

Clearwater Beach is known for its soft white sand, which draws around 4 million visitors per year for jet-skiing, parasailing, and swimming in its calm waters. Cyclists and rollerbladers glide along a relaxing beachfront promenade lined with incredible seafood, gift shops, and cafes. Just prior to sunset, Pier 60 hosts a nightly festival with street performers and local arts and crafts vendors.  

That brings up the question, is it legal to be on the beach at night? The straight answer is that Clearwater Beach is open 24 hours a day. It is recommended to swim within the "Safe Bathing Limit" at all times when in the water. This area extends 300 feet west of the high water line and is clearly marked by buoys or pilings. Boaters and jet skiers are not allowed within this area.  If you would like to see our incredible city from above, and possibly even what may be lurking just outside that “safe bathing limit” area, I highly recommend taking a helicopter tour.

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Buying A Home In Clearwater or Clearwater Beach

Purchasing a home here is a very big decision both emotionally and financially, whether you are purchasing as a primary residence, a vacation home, an investment, or some combination of these. Searching for and selecting the right property to purchase will have a huge impact on whether you truly enjoy and keep the home for years or will be dissatisfied and ultimately end up deciding to sell the house a few years later for greener pastures. 

 

After you or one of the realtors in Clearwater, FL have determined whether a house, townhouse, or condo is the best and most practical option for you, it is time to consider your budget, favorite activities, and lifestyle. If you are primarily planning on hitting the beach and enjoying the outdoors, then finding an affordable home very close to the beach will be important so you are able to enjoy it with or without getting in the car and worrying about parking. 

The majority of locals however will not be at the beach too often after first few years of living here.  Often we hear that people have decided that they really thought they wanted to live in one area, and then just a few years later they wish they had explored other areas as their lifestyle would really improve just by moving 5 miles or so away.  This is why if someone has not lived here locally for several years, I often encourage them to view homes in and seriously consider multiple cities prior to purchasing.

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Buying A Home Here... So you found the perfect place for you? 

First, Congratulations! Now comes the part you may not have gone through in quite a while. The initial offer to let the sellers know you are interested. Believe it or not, there are many things to think about and many strategies that you may consider. 

 

First, did you really get a good look at the property? A second showing with fresh eyes looking for potential issues may save you from receiving a horrible inspection, having to back out of a home sale, and waiting to get your deposit back.  Your initial offer should not be so low as to completely insult the seller as this will usually ensure that they won't negotiate much with you on any future offers.

 Second, you typically shouldn't just say "okay I like it, let's offer full price or maybe over asking price." When coming up with an offer your Realtor should quickly look at a few data sources to ensure the price is good so you don't end up overpaying or finding out that it appraised for tens of thousands less than you are offering.

 

Making Your Offer

Your offer will have many details that you have already gone over with your real estate agent ahead of time. These details are often used by the seller's listing agent to present the offer in a stronger or weaker way to the sellers (especially in a multiple offer situation). Often the terms end up having a bigger impact on the listing agents and sellers decision whether to accept or not then the price itself. Let's go into a little detail on included contract terms below. ​​​​

 

• Price: The price will obviously be top of mind for both buyer and seller.

 

• Payment Details & Source: Your contract will stipulate whether you are paying Cash, Conventional, FHA, VA, USDA, or other. It will also show your down payment dollar amount or percentage with a letter or pre-approval. The proof of funds should be as up to date as possible and is usually just a screen shot of your online banking or investment account balance that clearly show your name and the date. Your Realtor should already have your pre-approval or proof of funds before you start looking at properties in person. This is because you cannot submit an offer without it that would even be considered. 

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• Closing Date: Often times how fast the deal closes will be critically important to one or both of the parties and the other party may not even think to ask prior to submitting the offer. While a typical closing date is 30 days out, many times both buyer and seller are ready and able to close in under two weeks. This just leaves both buyer and seller stressed and nervous for two weeks for no reason at all. Other times I will talk to a seller who absolutely cannot accept a timeframe under 45-60 days. 

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• Expiration Time: Your offer will automatically be good until this time and date unless you or your real estate agent revoke the offer early. This is the emotional roller coaster time for most people. You will keep wondering endlessly whether your offer has been accepted or rejected by the seller. Do not worry about calling your Realtor once or twice wondering as this is completely normal. Typically an offer is revoked early do to personal emergencies or you unexpectedly had a change of heart and decided to go with another home. While highly unusual, you should know that you do have this option. 

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• Inspection Period: Your Realtor must also put in an inspection period unless you plan on skipping the inspection. Typically only investors and cash buyers who have experience buying multiple properties feel comfortable skipping inspections. I always recommend that buyers outside of these groups get an honest and competent home inspector to come and thoroughly review the homes condition. You also can bring up multiple points in the home inspection to negotiate having work done or a price adjustment based upon cost of repairs.

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• Furnishings: Do you see something in that house that just feels like you've gotta buy the exact same thing if they take it? Good news, this is the line where you can compliment their style and ask for anything not bolted down or attached to the house! Imagine trying to replace one of a kind items that you truly love that took the sellers years to find for just that particular spot in the home.

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• Assignment Of Contract: This line only applies to real estate investors and wholesalers, and yes every competent Realtor will catch it! need to be able to sell the property or the rights to it before you've even purchased it? These boxes must be checked properly to do that, otherwise you cannot just change your mind and try assigning, transferring, or double-closing on the property. 

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• Additional Terms Area: This space is primarily for those unique scenarios where you want to add something unique to either strengthen your offer with terms or protect yourself further with additional terms to add to the contract. 

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Submitting Your Offer:

Your offer is now submitted with your pre-approval or proof of funds to the sellers. You should expect about a response prior to the expiration of offer time that you put on the agreement. 

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Disclosures: 

Depending on the agent that we are submitting your offer to, they may ask for some or all of the disclosures to be signed and submitted with the offer. Many however will wait until the seller accepts your offer. 

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Permits & Zoning: 

Clearwater Central Permitting is very easy and straightforward to work with. They offer many permits online, but for some items you or your contractor must come in person to fill out the basics. My experience has been that they are very good about directing you to the right place in the building whether you may need help with planning, zoning, code enforcement, permits, or virtually anything else with the city for your residential or commercial property. 

Located in: City of Clearwater Municipal Services Building

Address: 100 S Myrtle Ave, Clearwater, FL 33756

Monday 8AM–4:30PM

Tuesday 8AM–4:30PM

Wednesday 8AM–2:30PM

Thursday 8AM–4:30PM

Friday 8AM–4:30PM

Phone: (727) 562-4567

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Tampa Bay Aviation is a local reasonably priced (roughly $125 per person) way to get a very enjoyable sight seeing overview of the entire city. I heavily recommend this as part of your home search if you are not afraid of heights as it can give a completely different perspective on where you may choose to live when you mover to the area. You can take to the skies on a helicopter tour of Clearwater Beach and the surrounding area. You'll have birds-eye views of the white sands, turquoise water, Pier 60, Sand key, Honeymoon Island, Caladesi Island, and the general layout of the entire city in around 20 minutes. This is a great way to escape the crowds and gain another perspective on this popular vacation destination. Booking in advance is recommended.