Looking for a great contractor or local company? Check out these companies I endorse.

Real Estate Services (.xls)

http://www.bankrate.com/

Panel considers property tax plans

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – March 17, 2008 – Florida’s best chance of voting on another property-tax revision this year happens Monday, when the state tax panel that has the ability to put constitutional amendments directly on the November ballot votes on three proposals.

If the 25-member Taxation and Budget Reform Commission approves any of the three ideas and voters agree, it would become the largest tax change in Florida history since legislators passed the failed services tax 20 years ago.

Each of the plans would reduce property taxes by at least a third for all property owners, and save taxpayers statewide between $7 billion to $8 billion a year. The lost revenue would be replaced with either a half-cent or one-cent increase in the sales tax and a requirement that the Legislature make major budget cuts to accommodate the tax relief or find new taxes to make up the difference. Continue Reading »

Sinking dollar gives foreigners ‘upper hand’

MIAMI – March 11, 2008 – From atop any gleaming, half-sold condo project, South Florida’s housing market looks bleak.

Viewed from abroad, it looks brighter.

Just like everyone else, foreigners turned away from Florida’s housing market as the downturn took hold. Now, international shoppers from Europe and Latin America to Canada and South Africa are again scoping out bargains, agents say.

So far, most shoppers are just looking, and high property taxes and maintenance fees and the tightening mortgage market are a deterrent. But the outsiders see opportunity: The U.S. dollar has slid to record lows against the euro and some other currencies, home prices are falling, and the selection is huge and getting bigger. And the region remains a safe haven for sheltering wealth from tyrants and turmoil. Continue Reading »