MICHAEL GONICK REALTOR- Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate.
9.28.2011
by Michael Gonick

I would think that the idea of living on a beautiful Orlando lake close to restaurants, shopping, possibly work and everything else downtown would be appealing to many.  Imagine your home as your vacation home- and being able to live the dream all year long? Not bad!

However not all lake front homes are created equal. 
Not all Orlando lakes are created equal.
If you are in the market for a lake front home close to downtown Orlando Florida you may want to ask the following questions:

  • Is the home truly "Lake Front"?  There are many homes that are advertised as lake front and many of them are not.  For example, a home that faces a lake is actually lake view if there is any sort of  road between the house and the lake. The house might have spectacular views, but it is not true lake front property and will not be valued as such.
    • 
    1225 Bryn Mawr St 32804 we have currently listed on "private" ski lake-  Lake Silver
    
  • What kind of lake is the home situated on?  Basically, you have recreational lakes which allow skiing, and the rest that do not.  From what I have seen  lake homes on recreational lakes-  which allow fishing, boating, skiing etc. can garner greater sales price cost per square foot than one equal in all ways (including location) but not situated on a recreational lakes.  Furthermore, when I asked Kelly Kellogg, State Certified Residential Appraiser she said there was no comparison because "a skiable lake is not comparable to a small lake which is not skiable".   
What kind of public access does the lake have?  If you look at the City of Orlando Lake Finder Map you can search each of the lakes downtown.  Click on one and you will see the different ways the public may or may not access the lake.  For example, if you click on Lake Silver you will see that there is no fishing, boating, and no public park access whatsoever.  This means, unless you are a resident surrounding Lake Silver, you will not be able to access its 70 acres of skiable lake.  Yet less than a mile away is Lake Fairview for which the city allows public access for fishing, boating and public parks. You might come to the conclusion that a home on a private lake would be considered more valuable than one equal in all ways to one that is "open to the public". 

My advice is to find out the answers to these questions if you are pursuing lake front property. If you have any questions, or would like to see our beautiful listing at 1225 Bryn Mawr in College Park please get in touch.

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6.27.2011
by Michael Gonick

The idea of owning a custom designed built home would be very appealing to today’s home buyers. By definition, a custom home is one that is especially designed to meet the needs and desires of the one who commissioned it. What could be better than that?   
Consider this. What if homes that were commissioned  by renowned designers or an acclaimed custom home builder, built to meet their specifications as their own personal residence came on the market?....
"Parade of Homes" winner- 1401 Green Cove Road Winter Park
I would imagine such homes would be given immeasurable amounts of consideration by a savvy buyer and here is why-

●      Designers and Builders have access to materials that you and I might not have access to. They have ongoing relationships with craftsmen and vendors who might make available higher quality commercial grade materials for them- their professional colleagues than the norm available to the general consumer.  Certainly a vendor or craftsmen would be eager to bring the “A-game” to a personal residence project on behalf of the people with whom they have a well established business relationship. After all, it is an incredible chance to “show their stuff” to people with great influence. It would only make sense that a vendor or contractor, under these circumstances, would utilize only the finest materials, their best design and top employees.
●      Often times, personal residences  of  builders/ designers  also becomes a showplace of  their work and inspiration. Knowing this, vendors often initiate calls to leaders in the  building and design industry hoping to land their top end products or appliances in these personal homes so they can be shown off and displayed.  A home of this caliber might be a serious contender for awards in design.  This was the case of my current listing,  1401 Green Cove Road in Winter Park.  Originally built by Tatro Custom Home Builders LLC to be lived in by their family, the home was so compelling it won 2 awards in the 2009 Parade of Homes including first place.  Since the home was both a personal residence  and a show home, owners Don and Lisa Tatro knew they needed to utilize the very latest products which are on the forefront of technology and that quality was imperative.
A kitchen designed like no other- 275 E Webster Ave Winter Park
●      Naturally, builders and designers have a better understanding of the latest trends, availability and quality of the products on the market today. In the case of another listing of mine, 275 East Webster Avenue in Winter Park, the world renowned design team of Joan and Roland DesCombes chose to surround themselves with the most effective and efficient products possible.   It’s reasonable to think there won’t be any “skimping” or cutting corners in a residence that they built specifically for their personal use.
●      Of course if you were to purchase a home built by a professional, you have now received their special skills, knowledge base, time and expertise for free.
●      Yet another benefit, and this can be monumental- you wouldn’t  be forced to wait months or possibly years for architects to sketch, contractors to show up (hopefully) , and a home to be built.

      You may find that a home like this in a perfect location could be better than anything you have ever imagined.

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