Jill Kushner - Specializing in The Colony Golf & Bay Club, Bonita Springs, Florida FL - Downing-Frye Realty Inc.

Having lived in southwest Florida since 1984, I have observed this modest little community all of the sudden fetch the attention of those finding conspicuous consumption rather fashionable...biggest and most exotic cars, huge palatial estate homes in gated communities and of course exclusive club membership. Why not? If you got it, flaunt it...right?
Yet what appears more "fashion forward" in buyers, of late, seems a bit of return to that more modest approach.
In keeping with that theme, I represent a community where real estate buyers and sellers are looking for a lot of value for their dollar..."bigger" is not necessarily better; dollar efficient is better. Take for example a lovely home in Navona at The Colony.

The Colony is a gated community with all the creature comforts appealing to the aforementioned million dollar resident with tennis, equity Golf, beach, canoe/kayak/sailing parks available at their fingertips.
But not everyone feels particularly comfortable investing millions of dollars in a secondary home-even if they have it. And at The Colony, residents enjoy fitness, management overseeing operations, guest suites within their high rises.

#1903 Navona is a perfect example of how to make a modest financial involvement (relatively speaking) and have all the amenity value afforded to those who have paid substantially more.
Views from the 19th floor are spectacular, reaching far west over the Gulf of Mexico, and perched over The Colony Golf course & protected lands. This home is fitted with automated hurricane shutters, custom furniture desing and all the new contents are negotiable...all under $500,000! A spectacular view, professionally furnished, turnkey ready. Come take a look and consider what a really prudent investment is this lovely Navona residence at The Colony Golf and Bay Club.

With due respect to people who have an uncanny certain knowing how to fix stuff, as a licenced real estate agent, I think it best to use those who have a tried and true reputation for getting a job done well and guaranteeing performance on home service or repair.
But even more important than that, is the question, What if a repairman or "handyman" gets hurt in your home? Have you requested the proper insurance evidence of that contractor to protect you and your own insurance policy from some unforeseen claim?
Experience has taught us much in our Colony high rises. The path causing the least aggravation is to request a copy from the management of licensed approved contractors. From La Scala north to Navona, each high rise keeps copious notes on those contractors whose coverage protects both the association and the individual homeowner from workers unanticipated accidents. And what a wonderful resource available to you!
Residents who have come before have learned these lessons the hard way and ended up having to bring in the true professional. Why not just avoid all of that and ask for a list of those who have worked within your building.
I also keep a copy of this information, should you want a few good suggestions on anything from dog walkers to painters and plumbers. Please feel free to email me your request.

My 85 year old father announced that he was ready to sell the home he had built just a few years prior and transition into the less maintenance intensive home style of a condominium. He was quick to share with me why he felt his home should command at least a 20% increase over the homes recently sold in his neighborhood. His home had many unique features....things he thought were really valuable such as wood floors, a drain in the garage floor, "highboy" toilets, etc.
Now while the reader may find these things rather humorous, these are examples of features that sellers, with all their mental faculties, feel should merit a listing price $100,000+ over closed sales comparable property in The Colony.
Sellers are loathe to see themselves as "pedestrian" as their former high rise neighbor's (identical floor plan & floor height-mirror image) closed sale and certainly not as desperate. "Well, this side of the building is much more desirable than the other side," the seller insists.
I report to these sellers on how many days on the market (regularly over a year and often two) those former neighbors waited to get a contract on their high rise residence. How many price reductions and lost opportunities occurred with prospects flying in from points north for the expressed purpose of purchasing in The Colony and never even seeing their home because the listed price was so far inflated over the true market price.
Don't we want to list the price with more "wiggle room" than that, Jill?   Try as I may to explain my years of experience dealing with Colony prospects and the critical path area real estate agents use to investigate The Colony, and subsequently conveying to their client what value/price formula they should expect to pay, sellers insist on a listed price well above Colony average cost per square foot closed sales.   To the seller, it's all about how much better his place is than the other homes for sale.   This is not a proactive approach.   This is a version on the over-used seller retort, "Let's just test the market and see what we get. List it at the price that I feel our place should warrant".
Generally speaking, I thank the seller for the opportunity and then take a pass on these Colony sellers request to market their property.   From my own experience, these are folks who live in beautiful homes that, myself included, feel are undervalued in this market, who end up being disappointed when showings are rare, if ever.
Marketing a Colony home for sale is a partnership I enter into with the seller.   I invest heavily in the advertising, professional photography and the regular open houses.   The Colony is my turf and I frankly believe our community is the best value proposition in Southwest Florida.   But it's my responsibility to sell Colony homes not just list them.
Sure enough, these sellers are successful in finding some agent who will accept any price the seller proposes only to report that the reason the place isn't selling is because the price is too high.   This is a strategy of many an agent whose business model is about a lot of listings....not about performance.   These agents enter into this listing agreement with the full knowledge they will bludgeon the seller into price reduction submission over the course of listing period.
Inevitably, when this seller fatigues from lack of showings, proper marketing, attention of his property and contracts, he calls me back with a respect for my having enough courage to tell them the truth about his home in first place.   It is then that the home sells.

Almost without fail when I am becoming acquainted with prospects considering a purchase in The Colony I hear, "We really like new. What do you have that's new and furnished?" This can be challenge but there are a few Colony homes that have lived in very seldom or never at all. In fact, that may be one of the motivations to listing it in the first place: the seller's needs have changed and they are no longer available to take advantage of their Colony home. The follow up request is often, "...And I want a REALLY GOOD DEAL!"

Case in point, Navona #1903; available furnished, "turnkey", this residence has the electric hurricane shutters already installed. Very gently used, you can see by the photos that this home looks practically new! The sellers really want to be closer to the children and new grandchildren and have decided the least path of resistance is to sell their Navona home as they are still working in Michigan and already rarely use it.

All of this, totally furnished, all appliances, some never even used, 2bed+den, 2 bath for under $500k.

I have some really great Colony values right now. Give a call and we will together investigate the million dollar, highly amenitized Colony Golf and Bay Club for unheard of prices!

A unique little Colony sanctuary set forward of the high rises and surrounded by protected lands is the neighborhood of Castella. Originally, Castella was to be a very exclusive Colony address, as it offered something very unique as it compared to the high rises and at the same time presented a sort of classic Florida style condominium offering.

"An exclusive resort within in a resort", is how we used to describe Castella. The pool would be something recreated from a Caribbean retreat.
Residents would have a certain appreciation for Florida wildlife, being among it's authentic, untouched nature.
But Castella debuted right at the wrong time, during the real estate decline. What people fought to reserve, on pre-construction basis with 20% down of $1.4m, was now worth (and just in terms of the dollars and cents), less than half and short sales and foreclosures resulted.
But among those who were seeing only the potential profits were those who appreciated Castella in a way that no price tag could properly describe. And they live there and love it. And from time to time, a new Castella fan comes along and has a tremendous opportunity to buy in at less than half the other residents paid. Two I sold just in the last week, marvelous deals both of them with grand views of the Bay and all the protected surrounding lands. Now is the time. Come see for yourself!