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Are you considering selling your Florida home? If so, you are probably asking yourself what is the best time, and can I time the market to my advantage?
In my experience, the best time to sell a property is when most people are buying, and in Florida, historically most of the sales activity is generated during the first six months of the year, but there are a few other things to consider when trying to time the market. Waiting for sales activity to be the highest may not payoff, because during the height of sales activity is when competition is at its peak. Once the high sales season is over, yes there may be fewer buyers, but there are also fewer homes on the market for sale. The fact that inventory is lower gives your home a chance to stand out. I recently did a Closed Price to Original List Price Ratio Study and found that in our area, sellers got the closest to their original asking price in June. They closed the furthest from their original asking price in February. Of course, market conditions change from year to year and right now the market is steady and homes are selling. Interest rates are still low and consumer sentiment is strong. The results of this exercise lead me to believe any time is a good time to sell your property in the current market. If you are considering selling your home, please contact me. I will perform a complete Sales Analysis for you and provide you with any help you will need to get your property listed and sold.

1 TBSP Honey
1 TBSP Orange Marmalade
1 TBSP Orange Juice
¾ TSP Dijon Mustard
½ TSP Light Soy Sauce
1/8 Tsp Ground White Pepper
¾ Pound Grouper Fillets
 
Preheat broiler. Combine all ingredients except grouper, mixing well. Place fillets on an oiled broiler pan and brush with honey glaze to cover. Broil 5 to 6 inches from heat for 4 to 5 minutes until browned. Turn fillets, brush with honey glaze and broil additional 5 minutes or until fish flakes easily.

Bell peppers, squash and snap beans are being harvested and available in our gardens and markets this month. I love to slice the peppers and squash into cubes, toss the beans in and add olive oil, a touch of salt and roast them in the oven. Easy and delicious. Not to mention a great side dish to Honey Glazed Florida Grouper.

On Memorial Day, before we light the BBQ or enjoy a swim in the pool, I would like to ask all my readers to say a prayer of thanks to all the brave men and woman who died in service to America. It is through their sacrifice that we enjoy a free and wonderful America. Happy Memorial Day.

We recently met with family and celebrated a birthday at Buca di Beppo in Celebration. I must say we had a really good time. This is a fun restaurant –  loud, happy, filled with locals and tourists all out for a fun experience. Not a fancy restaurant, but clean and comfortable, and a great place to celebrate. The food was generous, hot, and delicious. The service was good, and the laughter was plentiful – all the ingredients needed for a great night. Celebration is only 30 minutes from Solivita and an evening in Celebration is always a good night out. Lots of restaurants, a wine bar, a tavern, a pizza store, a lake to stroll by, a few shops to poke around in and a nice pastry shop to complete your evening.

April is Blueberry Season in Central Florida.

Whether you get your blueberries from a bush, a roadside stand, or the local Publix, this season’s berries are predicted to be sweet and delicious. Florida’s blueberry industry is estimated at $82 million dollars a year, making Florida one of the larger berry growers in America.
Central Florida has lots of “Pick Your Own Fruit” farms. We recently took a ride north and found a few farms in Clermont, Yalaha, and Tavares. You can always search the web for a farm, by visiting www.pickyourown.org or just enjoy a ride in the country and see what you find. We enjoyed a great day in the hills of Central Florida, visiting a farm, stopping at the Yalaha Bakery for lunch, and returning home with a loaf of delicious bread and lots of berries. Central Florida is quite diverse and offers a range of activities beyond the giant resorts and parks. We brought home quite the bounty of berries, that I washed, dried, and then put some in the freezer for later. In addition to eating some fresh from the blueberry bowl, I tossed a few in a green salad with feta cheese, we had blueberry pancakes, and I cooked up a batch of blueberry muffins, that I’m freezing to server when company comes.
Please enjoy my blueberry muffin recipe:

Blueberry Muffins

3 ½ Cups All Purpose Flour
1 ½ Cups Granulated Sugar
4 ½ TSP Baking Powder
1 TSP Baking Soda
1 TSP Kosher Salt
2 Cups Buttermilk shaken
1 (1/4 lb) stick unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 ½ TSP Grated Lemon Zest
2 Extra Large Eggs
2 Cups Fresh Blueberries
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line Muffin Tins with paper liners. This should make about 20 muffins.
Mix the dry ingredients together in a bowl. In a separate blow, mix the buttermilk, butter, lemon zest and eggs. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix with a fork just until blended. Fold in the blueberries. Do Not Over Mix. Scoop the batter into the muffin liners, filling them almost full. Bake for 20 – 25 minutes until golden.