September 13, 2024 • 28 mins
Sandra Pinkley is an experienced real estate professional in the central Florida region. Sandra, originally from Oklahoma, has made central Florida her home sweet home. Sandra walks us through the diversified housing and why central Florida is a favorite pick amongst those looking for 55+ communities. Sandra Pinkley is a licensed real estate agent with The Ellis Group brokerage-Keller Williams Realty At The Lakes.
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Speaker 1 (00:04):
Ok, great. Um We will, we're here with uh Sandra
Pinkley from Central Florida Home, sweet Home. Um And that
is a brokerage um with over uh 200 property transactions
a year. Um Sandra is a very knowledgeable expert in
(00:25):
the Central Florida region. And um
today, we're going to talk with Sandra about the opportunities
for being, becoming a homeowner
in the state of Florida and in this wonderful region
of Central Florida and
Sandra, tell us a little bit about how you came
(00:48):
to Central Florida, out of all the areas to move.
What was your journey originally? Uh your move from out
of state?
Speaker 2 (00:56):
Yes. Yes. So my husband and I moved to Florida
about 3.5 years ago from Oklahoma, uh Tulsa area. And
one of the reasons was beca well, there was a
few reasons but some of the reasons were because we
liked going to Disney World all the time. Uh Universal Studios,
going to the beach and of course, cruising
(01:18):
and being closer to the ports. Uh here in Central Florida,
there's two main ports. You got Port Canaveral, you know,
it's outside of Orlando and then you got Tampa that
is close by, uh, within an hour, hour and a half.
And so that was a big decision for us because
living in Oklahoma, we always had to drive down to Texas,
you know, to go on a cruise. So we love
(01:41):
coming here. So instead of flying back and forth all
the time, we thought, ok, we're in our getting in
our golden years. So why not go ahead and just
make the move.
Speaker 1 (01:52):
So, lifestyle choices are what is a huge trend um
across the country and with your lifestyle of wanting to,
to take your cruises be close to en uh entertainment.
Um or Orlando is just a perfect uh fit. It's
a hub of all of those things. Like you said,
the Tampa um seaport where the cruises come out and
(02:14):
out and then all of that entertainment Disney um entertainment and,
and Universal Studios, you have everything
in your backyard. We, we noticed that there was quite
a bit of uh activity um move in migration to,
to Florida and Oklahomans uh were part of that uh
migration back in 2022 in the heart of the pandemic.
(02:36):
There was almost 3000 people um that they uh uh
uh the outbound came from Oklahoma into Florida. Now you
said mentioned you were from the Tulsa area. Tulsa is
a metro area, right in, in the state.
Speaker 2 (02:48):
Yes. Yes. Um
Yes, it is a metro area. Um And I mean,
we lived actually out right outside of Tulsa in Broken Arrow,
which is kind of a suburb, but, uh, we loved
it and, uh, lived there, you know, most of my life. So,
uh, that's where I was born and raised and we
just decided that now was the time, I mean, we
(03:11):
had just like everybody else has. Um, we were mostly
concerned about the affordability of moving to Florida and I
know that's on the back of most people's minds.
Um, because living in the Midwest, you know, everything is,
you know, economically everything is really good in the Midwest. However,
(03:32):
uh we did some research and uh we just decided
that uh moving to Florida wasn't gonna be near as
expensive as we thought it was gonna
be.
Speaker 1 (03:42):
Now moving to Florida has some incredible uh financial benefits
for retirees.
Um And so the um income tax
in the state of Florida um does not exist. So
you're not taxed um on your income. Um, as a,
(04:03):
someone who is in the workforce or uh for someone
who is um collecting their social security benefits or retirement funds.
So there's no state income tax in the state of
Florida whi which makes it very attractive when you brought
up the, the point of taking, doing some research and
looking at affordability. Um
(04:24):
So, uh, so that's a, a huge um, perk also
property taxes. Um, the homestead law,
you did, you did, how was that an attractive point
for you and your husband.
Speaker 2 (04:37):
Yes,
we did the homestead. Of course, as, you know, after
we moved here, as long as soon as we were
eligible for that, we went ahead and did that. And yes,
Florida is one of seven states. Uh, that does not
have the state income tax. Um, and according to Forbes, uh,
Florida has the 19th high
minimum wage, which is at $12 an hour as of
(04:59):
last year. So, you know, people that are still wanting
to work after they move here, uh That's uh a
huge plus. And then of course, there is an abundance
of new homes, always, constantly being built and pre owned
homes that's here for every budget. So, you know, in Oklahoma,
the average medium home price is around 330,000 and of
(05:21):
course around the Orlando area, it's around 390.
However, there are various price points. So, you know, there's
a price for everybody. Florida um is 11 of the
top three along with Texas and North Carolina with affordable
housing options with manufactured home communities.
(05:42):
And I was really surprised when I moved here because
it's totally, I shouldn't say totally different than Oklahoma, but
it's quite different than Oklahoma because they are so, so nice.
I mean, some of these communities, especially the 55 communities,
uh my husband and I bought a fixer upper for
$30,000 in one of these communities and fixed it up.
(06:03):
It had a $1 million amenity center that they had
just built,
which was gorgeous. So, you know, there's so many, um
there's so many options here. So you don't have to
come and buy a $500,000 house moving to Florida,
Speaker 1 (06:19):
right? So what um so one of the things that
you're saying is when you're looking in the state Central
Florida has the entertainment has the amen has the all
of the things to do, but also uh the housing,
there's all, there's various types of housing to fit every lifestyle.
Um You mentioned um mobile homes and mobile home parks.
(06:42):
Um I think um from what I understand, the amenities
are not, are untouchable by any other state in terms
of mobile home parks, having some of the amenities you
mentioned a million dollar uh amenities in a mobile home
park that you can't compare that I think to any
other state that you would find um that type of
amenity um with mobile homes and manufactured homes.
Speaker 2 (07:05):
No, no, you can't. I mean there's so many of
them that are built around uh water views, which is
a big plus the people there are just so connected
with each other. They love doing things together. They have
numerous clubs and activities for people. So it's whether you
live in a 55 plus, you know, community like I
(07:26):
live in a Dell Web or if you wanna live
in a uh manufactured home community, all of them have
those options that are great for you.
And um I did a little research on the home prices.
Of course, the further north you get in Florida uh
seemed like the prices are uh really affordable. I mean,
you get, you know, the Mill State around Orlando, you're
(07:49):
looking at around 390 to 420 for an average, but
you go down south,
you know South Florida has some of the highest prices
you get around Miami, you're looking at 486 to 520
or Naples is a 700,000 plus. So Orlando is very,
very affordable.
Speaker 1 (08:09):
Central Florida is a very affordable uh region. Um That
is that, that, that's uh that, that's great to, to
know um because it provides access to all types of budgets.
Um You mentioned 55 and over age restricted communities can
be great for uh socialization. People are very friendly and
(08:32):
you're surrounded by a support team of folks your age.
Um How about the um single family um living? How
are families thriving in central Florida?
Speaker 2 (08:43):
Well, again, you have, you have the different price points
on that as well. Uh There's a wide variation and
I can tell you that Florida is building so many
new homes uh that is offering so many incentives for
new home buyers. And also um there's ways to buy
(09:05):
down the rates. I have a great lender uh that
keeps me in tune with what's going on. He uh
watches the feds with the rates going up and down and,
you know, right now, uh the rates are starting to
drop somewhat. So, you know, conventional is hovering around 6.87%
and FH a around 5.75.
(09:26):
But one thing I try to educate my buyers on
is to get with their lender and to try to
maybe do like a rate, buy down uh with seller
credits in order to get them a more affordable payment.
And if I can get a buyer a rate in
the force, then interest rates are no longer a challenge.
And that's why it's a great time to buy right now.
(09:48):
So first time home buyers, um you know, people that
are are wanting struggling and that want a home instead
of having to pay the high prices of rent, you know,
the apartments around here, some of them are, you know,
$3000 a month.
So if there's a way that you're not, you're not challenged,
(10:09):
you know, credit wise. And even if you are still
get you with a lender, um the the home prices
being able to make a home payment sometimes is so
much more uh of a better deal for you than
it is, you know, trying to rent
Speaker 1 (10:26):
Sandra, you mentioned um interest rates.
Um Can you talk to us a little bit about
how um with new construction, there's some room for negotiation
and how you help folks in new construction uh with
some developers and builders. What's the environment right now with
(10:47):
so much inventory um in down in the central Florida area.
How is that a be benefiting some first time home
buyers right now?
Speaker 2 (10:57):
Well, with the, the new homes, of course, you know,
a lot of times they won't negotiate price. Uh but
if you will wait, there are a lot of incentives
out there on new homes and,
you know, it's just a matter of figuring out what
area that you want to be in. And that's the
main thing is once you figure out what area that
(11:18):
you wanna live, then you can find out who's offering
the best deals as far as incentives go again. Um
Sometimes they offer, I know right now there's some uh
some builders out there offering, you know, rates in the force.
So that can be very competitive, you know, with the
banks as far as getting a, a good price. And
(11:41):
I know that also just for instance, like the villages,
you know, that is a 55 plus community, but it
is
one of Florida's largest 55 communities. And I can tell
you that they are offering numerous homes at discounts right
now just because they're building such an abundance of new
homes and new areas that they're discounting some of the
(12:04):
homes that have been sitting in the other neighborhoods. I mean,
I've seen uh price uh decreases of like $20,000. So
that is a great time to be able to get
into one of those homes.
Speaker 1 (12:19):
Yes, there's a lot of buzz right now about, um, Florida's, um, uh,
increasing of affordability. Um, some of that is driven, sounds
like by inventory that hasn't sold, um, due to, um,
elevated interest rates over the last 8, um, to 12 months.
(12:39):
So, working with someone like you though is the only
way we would know about that. Um So talk about,
can we talk about the fact that if I'm in
New York City or if I'm in Missouri or Michigan,
um I, I'm not privy to that information. So it's,
it's one of the great things that you offer.
Speaker 2 (12:59):
Yeah, 11 thing um about me is that, you know,
I'm here to help people, you know, as much as possible.
I this is a full time job for me. It's
24 7. I have my phone on at all times.
Uh Sometimes I'm sitting there watching TV, with my husband
and he's like, are you gonna watch this show with
me or are you just gonna keep working?
Speaker 1 (13:21):
That sounds like me. I'm tap, tap. I'm watching the
movie and I'm tapping away,
Speaker 2 (13:26):
right?
So, you know, as a realtor, um you know, I
always say it's uh God first family and then business
and that's the core values of uh Killer Williams as well.
So
I, I'm, I truly believe in that. Um
So my, my clients know that I'm partnering, partnering with them.
(13:48):
It's not just putting a for sale sign in their
yard uh with phone calls, a multi the multitude of
social media that advert ties on the follow ups, open
house and so forth. But people, I get numerous people
from out of state and I always tell them I
can do a walkthrough video for you. I can,
(14:08):
you know, start at the front of the neighborhood, go
through from the gate on. It's not just about the home,
it's about your surroundings as well when you buy a home.
So people from out of state, I know that's super important.
And one thing that I'm,
you know, I really think about a lot is that
when I moved here,
(14:31):
you know, I had to find a realtor online. I
didn't know anybody from Florida. And when I found this realtor,
I asked her, ok, my husband works in North Orlando,
find us a place that's fairly close to that, but
she was more focused on price. And when she found
us a place, she said, ok, you're only 30 minutes
or uh, excuse me, 30 miles away. Well, after we
(14:54):
moved here, it ended up being his drive was an
hour and a half away.
So I think it's important to have somebody that's knowledgeable
about that and understand that aspect because it's not just
about how many miles away it is. It's what is
important to you, you know, are you retired? Are, are
you wanting just the, the amenities? Um what kind of
(15:15):
amenities are you interested in? You know, what's your passion?
Are you just about the neighborhood or are you about
your surroundings and going to different events and entertainment? What's
important or do you have to work somewhere where you
have a uh drive a certain amount to drive to
go somewhere? So,
so yeah, those are all factors
Speaker 1 (15:37):
if you did want to work. Um, how's the, the
uh workforce there? Um I, it, or, or are there
jobs in central Florida if um, 01 of the retirees
still wants to work, um, or a family moving down,
um to be able to sit, to live more affordably
and earn a decent income.
Speaker 2 (15:58):
Uh Yes. Uh I don't have the statistics in front
of me, but I can tell you that Florida is
a booming economy. There are plenty of jobs here. Um, and,
you know, it doesn't matter what age you are. I,
and just, uh shocked at, you know, me living in
a 55 plus community, you know, you would think everybody
(16:19):
would be retired, but that's not the case. Uh I
am surprised at how many people that live here and
work at Disney.
You know, whether it's full time or part time and
they're doing it just because they don't want to sit
at home and be bored all day.
Speaker 1 (16:35):
I think it's, I think for many retirees it's a
dream job. You're around people. Everybody's happy, you're having fun. Right. It's, it's, um, yeah,
it's the happiest place on earth who would?
Speaker 2 (16:48):
Yeah. So, so, you know, there's, there's always so much
to do. There's so many jobs. It's a booming, you know, uh,
economy and, like I mentioned before, uh, Florida is one
of the highest minimum wage states that there is, you know,
starting at $12 an hour. So, you know, that's, that's
great for anybody.
Speaker 1 (17:08):
It's been cited that um that the, the south, the
reason why there's so much migration um to southern states
like Florida is because it is um much cheaper. Um
um And even within the cities of a booming uh
city and great economy like uh Orlando, one of the
largest um uh with the largest cities in the central
(17:30):
region is still cheaper than living in the west coast
or in the northeast,
right?
So it's just been wonderful. Um You know, demographic wise.
Um It's, it uh Orlando area, central Florida has been
ranked um one of the best places to live. Um
(17:50):
You're talking about um a population of just under half
a million people. Um So it's um you know, it's
not a rural community but it's not uh
um New York City either. So you have that um
sounds like you have mentioned lifestyle. So it sounds like
you could live in an area where there's lots of
space and um quaint communities or you can live in
(18:11):
a very populated condo type of, of region where there's
a lot of housing units. Um or you can um
not be in any of those subdivisions and live um
still live on a, a nice country road. So sounds
like there's lots of housing um lifestyle opportunities um uh
uh housing for your lifestyle. Um I in, in the
(18:33):
um in the region give um we, we are talking
about Orlando quite a bit. What other towns in Central Florida?
Um Are you helping homeowners relocate to?
Speaker 2 (18:44):
Well, I service all of central Florida. So, you know,
I'll go up as far as, you know, Saint Augustine
area and I've, you know, helped people as far south
as Tampa. So I'm pretty wide range all over the
state other than the Panhandle. So, you know,
(19:04):
one thing about, um, our team is that it's not
just about helping people that are just in Central Florida.
I mean, we're global. So we help on a wide
range even if somebody wants to move out of state. Uh,
we partner with other agents from out of state to
help help people if they want to move to New
York or move to New Jersey, we can help people move,
(19:27):
find a place out of state as well and vice versa.
You know, people that want to move here. I partner
with other agents, um having a client from out of
state wanting to move here. So So that's not, uh,
that's not an issue at all. But, but yeah, I mean, we're,
we're here to help, um, anybody that wants to find
something here in Central Florida or wants to sell their home.
Speaker 1 (19:52):
Well, it sounds like you make it so easy. You
talked about virtual tours. Um, you talked about, uh, the
communication that you send out. Um, you guys are clearly,
what you're doing is working by the number of transactions
that you're doing and you have a nice uh sized
team uh that, that um can help, um, a, a
lot of people, you work together as a team and that,
that's really the, the sounds like the success of how
(20:14):
you're helping, whether it's domestically, someone moving within the region
or in the state to your out of state. And
then it sounds like you also work with international buyers.
Um I know that Orlando had been very attractive um
during the pandemic to all uh re regions. How is
the uh interstate buyers? How are you helping interstate international
(20:35):
sorry buyers um, in the Orlando market?
Speaker 2 (20:38):
Well, it's basically the same thing as anybody from out
of state. It's about, you know, communication and being able
to know what it is that they're interested in and
what their, their likes and needs are and to help
them find that perfect dream home uh within their budget. And,
you know, if they need help with a, a lender
(20:59):
or help with financing that's something that we offer as well.
Uh, so we have a great team. Uh, we base
ourselves on a concierge service on helping people. Uh, we
go out of our way to help people, uh, whether
they live here or they live, you know, like you said, international, uh,
there's no limits on that. So it's basically on, on
(21:22):
what their needs are. I, I've had
being a, a country girl from Oklahoma sometimes that can
be a little bit of a challenge, you know, understanding
some of, of the diversity, the languages. However, um it,
it makes it uh I love the diversity. It makes
it very interesting, very fun for me because I'm able
(21:43):
to help the different type of um people from all
over the world to be able to move here. And
if I can't, then of course, I have uh others
as well that I can rely on to help me
with that.
Speaker 1 (21:55):
Well, it's great. Central Florida continues um to break all
sorts of records uh for best place to live more affordability,
um diversity in the housing structure um and offering um
individuals and families of all levels and budgets to be
able to have access um to a wonderful
(22:16):
uh central Florida lifestyle. So the Central Florida Home, Sweet
home.com um is a great place for people to go and,
and really look at what your team has to offer
the services that you provide to make sure that people
have access to the wonderful lifestyle that you now enjoy
with your husband in Central Florida.
Speaker 2 (22:37):
Well, thank you. Well, one of the things when we
um created this Home Sweet Home website was to help
educate people on different levels. Um We showcase some of
the homes that we currently have for sale. We put different,
uh we have different youtube videos on there showcasing like
(23:00):
uh hidden gems, some of the places that locals love
to go to that maybe you can't find on the internet.
Uh And I love that because, you know, being new
here and not knowing anything at all about Florida when
I moved here or basically, other than Disney World in
the parks, um being able to get an education on
(23:22):
where the locals love to go is huge and for
me to be able to share that experience. And um
I also also ask other people to share their experiences
with me as well so that I can let people
know and
whether it's favorite uh destinations, favorite restaurants and even maybe
personal care services. I mean, where do you go get
(23:45):
your nails done? You know, if you live in Davenport, Florida,
which that's where I live at, you know, who do
you recommend? So, you know, I think that's very important
information but,
you know, just putting the information on there on what
my team can do to help you, whether it's selling
your house or buying a house. Uh I think is
huge and having resources on there for buyers and sellers
(24:10):
uh to help educate them
and let them know about uh different services that are
out there for them or whether it's uh a lender or,
you know, knowing what the current rates are, that's something
else that we're gonna be doing as well as having our,
our lender do. Probably a monthly blog so that he
can keep people in the know on what's going on
(24:31):
with the market. Because I know that's a big question.
People are always wanting to know, you know, what is
the current rates? So for him to be able to
get on there and do that, I think it's gonna
be a big plus as well.
Speaker 1 (24:43):
That is wonderful rates are changing hourly, but to be
able to have some sort of um information that talks
about where they are today and where they're going directionally
um would be a huge um Those insights would be
a huge help to folks that are in their decision
making process. Um I have visited the site. It's a
wonderful uh resource tool, not only for
(25:04):
folks looking to move into other region but uh newcomers,
um like you said, what uh best restaurants, places to
get your hair done cleaners, dry cleaners and all of
those great things are on the site. So it's a
wonderful tool for folks who um are are just uh
landed in Central Florida. Um And to make that, that
has just made it their home. Sweet home.
Speaker 2 (25:25):
Well, thank you. Well, you know, when I, when we
were researching, my husband and I was researching about moving here,
uh we noticed on a lot of the youtube channels,
there was some old, older information. So
we wanted to make sure that this site is in
real time as far as current information, as far as
(25:47):
like when we did the 55 plus comparison chart that
we added on this site, you know, how many homes
are in each neighborhood? What's the price point? What's the
current ho A fees? Is there a CD D?
You know, these are all questions that instead of having
to call each one of these 55 plus communities. If
(26:07):
you're wanting to move to Central Florida, I have it
for you on this spreadsheet. So at a glance, you
could sit there and see the comparison how many pickleball
courts there is or, or golf course and so forth
because
you can spend countless hours trying to research all this information.
And I want it to be easy for people. I
(26:29):
want to help educate people. And that's my mission as
a realtor is to not just sell your house or
help you find a house but to help people uh
get educated.
Speaker 1 (26:41):
That's wonderful. That's wonderful. Well, this is great. This, we
have a lot of uh great information um uh from
the website to giving you a call Um This is
great information. Um The folks listening um to this uh
uh
podcast episode, we get lots of great information and to
(27:02):
be able to know that there's someone out there, there's
a resource that will help um with getting into the
central Florida lifestyle from the entertainment to the diverse um
amount of housing that you have. Um uh Sandra Pinkley. You're,
this is a, you're doing a great job helping people
have access to all of this wonderful um uh information
(27:23):
so that it can be a decision making as to
where in central Florida they want to move.
Speaker 2 (27:28):
Well, I, I, well, sure, I appreciate your time. And,
you know, again, whether you have somebody that's wanting to
move into Florida from Oklahoma or vice versa, uh We have,
you know, over 16, we have 16 agents right now
total between the LS team and the LS group. Um
(27:48):
You know, I've been a realtor for over eight years.
Um and I joined the LS team uh in
Oklahoma before I moved to Florida. And I can tell
you last year, we did 100 and 86 units with
closing 53 million in volume.
And that's what we did last year. This year, we're
(28:08):
gonna even exceed that. We've already done 34 million with
8 million in pending right now. So we started this
expansion team in Florida three years ago and we're building
on that. We're in the building phase of our Florida team.
I'm blessed to have phenomenal business here, but uh
looking for avenues to help the Ellis group grow, you know,
(28:30):
whether it's referrals, community connections, social media and now this website.
So we're hoping we can help educate people in real
time about this um the various communities, especially the 55 plus.
But I do really appreciate your time and let us
be a part uh of your podcast.
Speaker 1 (28:47):
Oh,
wonderful. Thank you so much, Sandra. This was great. We have, look,
look forward to speaking with you again in the future.
All
Speaker 2 (28:55):
right. Thank you so much.
Ok, great. Um We will, we're here with uh Sandra
Pinkley from Central Florida Home, sweet Home. Um And that
is a brokerage um with over uh 200 property transactions
a year. Um Sandra is a very knowledgeable expert in
(00:25):
the Central Florida region. And um
today, we're going to talk with Sandra about the opportunities
for being, becoming a homeowner
in the state of Florida and in this wonderful region
of Central Florida and
Sandra, tell us a little bit about how you came
(00:48):
to Central Florida, out of all the areas to move.
What was your journey originally? Uh your move from out
of state?
Speaker 2 (00:56):
Yes. Yes. So my husband and I moved to Florida
about 3.5 years ago from Oklahoma, uh Tulsa area. And
one of the reasons was beca well, there was a
few reasons but some of the reasons were because we
liked going to Disney World all the time. Uh Universal Studios,
going to the beach and of course, cruising
(01:18):
and being closer to the ports. Uh here in Central Florida,
there's two main ports. You got Port Canaveral, you know,
it's outside of Orlando and then you got Tampa that
is close by, uh, within an hour, hour and a half.
And so that was a big decision for us because
living in Oklahoma, we always had to drive down to Texas,
you know, to go on a cruise. So we love
(01:41):
coming here. So instead of flying back and forth all
the time, we thought, ok, we're in our getting in
our golden years. So why not go ahead and just
make the move.
Speaker 1 (01:52):
So, lifestyle choices are what is a huge trend um
across the country and with your lifestyle of wanting to,
to take your cruises be close to en uh entertainment.
Um or Orlando is just a perfect uh fit. It's
a hub of all of those things. Like you said,
the Tampa um seaport where the cruises come out and
(02:14):
out and then all of that entertainment Disney um entertainment and,
and Universal Studios, you have everything
in your backyard. We, we noticed that there was quite
a bit of uh activity um move in migration to,
to Florida and Oklahomans uh were part of that uh
migration back in 2022 in the heart of the pandemic.
(02:36):
There was almost 3000 people um that they uh uh
uh the outbound came from Oklahoma into Florida. Now you
said mentioned you were from the Tulsa area. Tulsa is
a metro area, right in, in the state.
Speaker 2 (02:48):
Yes. Yes. Um
Yes, it is a metro area. Um And I mean,
we lived actually out right outside of Tulsa in Broken Arrow,
which is kind of a suburb, but, uh, we loved
it and, uh, lived there, you know, most of my life. So,
uh, that's where I was born and raised and we
just decided that now was the time, I mean, we
(03:11):
had just like everybody else has. Um, we were mostly
concerned about the affordability of moving to Florida and I
know that's on the back of most people's minds.
Um, because living in the Midwest, you know, everything is,
you know, economically everything is really good in the Midwest. However,
(03:32):
uh we did some research and uh we just decided
that uh moving to Florida wasn't gonna be near as
expensive as we thought it was gonna
be.
Speaker 1 (03:42):
Now moving to Florida has some incredible uh financial benefits
for retirees.
Um And so the um income tax
in the state of Florida um does not exist. So
you're not taxed um on your income. Um, as a,
(04:03):
someone who is in the workforce or uh for someone
who is um collecting their social security benefits or retirement funds.
So there's no state income tax in the state of
Florida whi which makes it very attractive when you brought
up the, the point of taking, doing some research and
looking at affordability. Um
(04:24):
So, uh, so that's a, a huge um, perk also
property taxes. Um, the homestead law,
you did, you did, how was that an attractive point
for you and your husband.
Speaker 2 (04:37):
Yes,
we did the homestead. Of course, as, you know, after
we moved here, as long as soon as we were
eligible for that, we went ahead and did that. And yes,
Florida is one of seven states. Uh, that does not
have the state income tax. Um, and according to Forbes, uh,
Florida has the 19th high
minimum wage, which is at $12 an hour as of
(04:59):
last year. So, you know, people that are still wanting
to work after they move here, uh That's uh a
huge plus. And then of course, there is an abundance
of new homes, always, constantly being built and pre owned
homes that's here for every budget. So, you know, in Oklahoma,
the average medium home price is around 330,000 and of
(05:21):
course around the Orlando area, it's around 390.
However, there are various price points. So, you know, there's
a price for everybody. Florida um is 11 of the
top three along with Texas and North Carolina with affordable
housing options with manufactured home communities.
(05:42):
And I was really surprised when I moved here because
it's totally, I shouldn't say totally different than Oklahoma, but
it's quite different than Oklahoma because they are so, so nice.
I mean, some of these communities, especially the 55 communities,
uh my husband and I bought a fixer upper for
$30,000 in one of these communities and fixed it up.
(06:03):
It had a $1 million amenity center that they had
just built,
which was gorgeous. So, you know, there's so many, um
there's so many options here. So you don't have to
come and buy a $500,000 house moving to Florida,
Speaker 1 (06:19):
right? So what um so one of the things that
you're saying is when you're looking in the state Central
Florida has the entertainment has the amen has the all
of the things to do, but also uh the housing,
there's all, there's various types of housing to fit every lifestyle.
Um You mentioned um mobile homes and mobile home parks.
(06:42):
Um I think um from what I understand, the amenities
are not, are untouchable by any other state in terms
of mobile home parks, having some of the amenities you
mentioned a million dollar uh amenities in a mobile home
park that you can't compare that I think to any
other state that you would find um that type of
amenity um with mobile homes and manufactured homes.
Speaker 2 (07:05):
No, no, you can't. I mean there's so many of
them that are built around uh water views, which is
a big plus the people there are just so connected
with each other. They love doing things together. They have
numerous clubs and activities for people. So it's whether you
live in a 55 plus, you know, community like I
(07:26):
live in a Dell Web or if you wanna live
in a uh manufactured home community, all of them have
those options that are great for you.
And um I did a little research on the home prices.
Of course, the further north you get in Florida uh
seemed like the prices are uh really affordable. I mean,
you get, you know, the Mill State around Orlando, you're
(07:49):
looking at around 390 to 420 for an average, but
you go down south,
you know South Florida has some of the highest prices
you get around Miami, you're looking at 486 to 520
or Naples is a 700,000 plus. So Orlando is very,
very affordable.
Speaker 1 (08:09):
Central Florida is a very affordable uh region. Um That
is that, that, that's uh that, that's great to, to
know um because it provides access to all types of budgets.
Um You mentioned 55 and over age restricted communities can
be great for uh socialization. People are very friendly and
(08:32):
you're surrounded by a support team of folks your age.
Um How about the um single family um living? How
are families thriving in central Florida?
Speaker 2 (08:43):
Well, again, you have, you have the different price points
on that as well. Uh There's a wide variation and
I can tell you that Florida is building so many
new homes uh that is offering so many incentives for
new home buyers. And also um there's ways to buy
(09:05):
down the rates. I have a great lender uh that
keeps me in tune with what's going on. He uh
watches the feds with the rates going up and down and,
you know, right now, uh the rates are starting to
drop somewhat. So, you know, conventional is hovering around 6.87%
and FH a around 5.75.
(09:26):
But one thing I try to educate my buyers on
is to get with their lender and to try to
maybe do like a rate, buy down uh with seller
credits in order to get them a more affordable payment.
And if I can get a buyer a rate in
the force, then interest rates are no longer a challenge.
And that's why it's a great time to buy right now.
(09:48):
So first time home buyers, um you know, people that
are are wanting struggling and that want a home instead
of having to pay the high prices of rent, you know,
the apartments around here, some of them are, you know,
$3000 a month.
So if there's a way that you're not, you're not challenged,
(10:09):
you know, credit wise. And even if you are still
get you with a lender, um the the home prices
being able to make a home payment sometimes is so
much more uh of a better deal for you than
it is, you know, trying to rent
Speaker 1 (10:26):
Sandra, you mentioned um interest rates.
Um Can you talk to us a little bit about
how um with new construction, there's some room for negotiation
and how you help folks in new construction uh with
some developers and builders. What's the environment right now with
(10:47):
so much inventory um in down in the central Florida area.
How is that a be benefiting some first time home
buyers right now?
Speaker 2 (10:57):
Well, with the, the new homes, of course, you know,
a lot of times they won't negotiate price. Uh but
if you will wait, there are a lot of incentives
out there on new homes and,
you know, it's just a matter of figuring out what
area that you want to be in. And that's the
main thing is once you figure out what area that
(11:18):
you wanna live, then you can find out who's offering
the best deals as far as incentives go again. Um
Sometimes they offer, I know right now there's some uh
some builders out there offering, you know, rates in the force.
So that can be very competitive, you know, with the
banks as far as getting a, a good price. And
(11:41):
I know that also just for instance, like the villages,
you know, that is a 55 plus community, but it
is
one of Florida's largest 55 communities. And I can tell
you that they are offering numerous homes at discounts right
now just because they're building such an abundance of new
homes and new areas that they're discounting some of the
(12:04):
homes that have been sitting in the other neighborhoods. I mean,
I've seen uh price uh decreases of like $20,000. So
that is a great time to be able to get
into one of those homes.
Speaker 1 (12:19):
Yes, there's a lot of buzz right now about, um, Florida's, um, uh,
increasing of affordability. Um, some of that is driven, sounds
like by inventory that hasn't sold, um, due to, um,
elevated interest rates over the last 8, um, to 12 months.
(12:39):
So, working with someone like you though is the only
way we would know about that. Um So talk about,
can we talk about the fact that if I'm in
New York City or if I'm in Missouri or Michigan,
um I, I'm not privy to that information. So it's,
it's one of the great things that you offer.
Speaker 2 (12:59):
Yeah, 11 thing um about me is that, you know,
I'm here to help people, you know, as much as possible.
I this is a full time job for me. It's
24 7. I have my phone on at all times.
Uh Sometimes I'm sitting there watching TV, with my husband
and he's like, are you gonna watch this show with
me or are you just gonna keep working?
Speaker 1 (13:21):
That sounds like me. I'm tap, tap. I'm watching the
movie and I'm tapping away,
Speaker 2 (13:26):
right?
So, you know, as a realtor, um you know, I
always say it's uh God first family and then business
and that's the core values of uh Killer Williams as well.
So
I, I'm, I truly believe in that. Um
So my, my clients know that I'm partnering, partnering with them.
(13:48):
It's not just putting a for sale sign in their
yard uh with phone calls, a multi the multitude of
social media that advert ties on the follow ups, open
house and so forth. But people, I get numerous people
from out of state and I always tell them I
can do a walkthrough video for you. I can,
(14:08):
you know, start at the front of the neighborhood, go
through from the gate on. It's not just about the home,
it's about your surroundings as well when you buy a home.
So people from out of state, I know that's super important.
And one thing that I'm,
you know, I really think about a lot is that
when I moved here,
(14:31):
you know, I had to find a realtor online. I
didn't know anybody from Florida. And when I found this realtor,
I asked her, ok, my husband works in North Orlando,
find us a place that's fairly close to that, but
she was more focused on price. And when she found
us a place, she said, ok, you're only 30 minutes
or uh, excuse me, 30 miles away. Well, after we
(14:54):
moved here, it ended up being his drive was an
hour and a half away.
So I think it's important to have somebody that's knowledgeable
about that and understand that aspect because it's not just
about how many miles away it is. It's what is
important to you, you know, are you retired? Are, are
you wanting just the, the amenities? Um what kind of
(15:15):
amenities are you interested in? You know, what's your passion?
Are you just about the neighborhood or are you about
your surroundings and going to different events and entertainment? What's
important or do you have to work somewhere where you
have a uh drive a certain amount to drive to
go somewhere? So,
so yeah, those are all factors
Speaker 1 (15:37):
if you did want to work. Um, how's the, the
uh workforce there? Um I, it, or, or are there
jobs in central Florida if um, 01 of the retirees
still wants to work, um, or a family moving down,
um to be able to sit, to live more affordably
and earn a decent income.
Speaker 2 (15:58):
Uh Yes. Uh I don't have the statistics in front
of me, but I can tell you that Florida is
a booming economy. There are plenty of jobs here. Um, and,
you know, it doesn't matter what age you are. I,
and just, uh shocked at, you know, me living in
a 55 plus community, you know, you would think everybody
(16:19):
would be retired, but that's not the case. Uh I
am surprised at how many people that live here and
work at Disney.
You know, whether it's full time or part time and
they're doing it just because they don't want to sit
at home and be bored all day.
Speaker 1 (16:35):
I think it's, I think for many retirees it's a
dream job. You're around people. Everybody's happy, you're having fun. Right. It's, it's, um, yeah,
it's the happiest place on earth who would?
Speaker 2 (16:48):
Yeah. So, so, you know, there's, there's always so much
to do. There's so many jobs. It's a booming, you know, uh,
economy and, like I mentioned before, uh, Florida is one
of the highest minimum wage states that there is, you know,
starting at $12 an hour. So, you know, that's, that's
great for anybody.
Speaker 1 (17:08):
It's been cited that um that the, the south, the
reason why there's so much migration um to southern states
like Florida is because it is um much cheaper. Um
um And even within the cities of a booming uh
city and great economy like uh Orlando, one of the
largest um uh with the largest cities in the central
(17:30):
region is still cheaper than living in the west coast
or in the northeast,
right?
So it's just been wonderful. Um You know, demographic wise.
Um It's, it uh Orlando area, central Florida has been
ranked um one of the best places to live. Um
(17:50):
You're talking about um a population of just under half
a million people. Um So it's um you know, it's
not a rural community but it's not uh
um New York City either. So you have that um
sounds like you have mentioned lifestyle. So it sounds like
you could live in an area where there's lots of
space and um quaint communities or you can live in
(18:11):
a very populated condo type of, of region where there's
a lot of housing units. Um or you can um
not be in any of those subdivisions and live um
still live on a, a nice country road. So sounds
like there's lots of housing um lifestyle opportunities um uh
uh housing for your lifestyle. Um I in, in the
(18:33):
um in the region give um we, we are talking
about Orlando quite a bit. What other towns in Central Florida?
Um Are you helping homeowners relocate to?
Speaker 2 (18:44):
Well, I service all of central Florida. So, you know,
I'll go up as far as, you know, Saint Augustine
area and I've, you know, helped people as far south
as Tampa. So I'm pretty wide range all over the
state other than the Panhandle. So, you know,
(19:04):
one thing about, um, our team is that it's not
just about helping people that are just in Central Florida.
I mean, we're global. So we help on a wide
range even if somebody wants to move out of state. Uh,
we partner with other agents from out of state to
help help people if they want to move to New
York or move to New Jersey, we can help people move,
(19:27):
find a place out of state as well and vice versa.
You know, people that want to move here. I partner
with other agents, um having a client from out of
state wanting to move here. So So that's not, uh,
that's not an issue at all. But, but yeah, I mean, we're,
we're here to help, um, anybody that wants to find
something here in Central Florida or wants to sell their home.
Speaker 1 (19:52):
Well, it sounds like you make it so easy. You
talked about virtual tours. Um, you talked about, uh, the
communication that you send out. Um, you guys are clearly,
what you're doing is working by the number of transactions
that you're doing and you have a nice uh sized
team uh that, that um can help, um, a, a
lot of people, you work together as a team and that,
that's really the, the sounds like the success of how
(20:14):
you're helping, whether it's domestically, someone moving within the region
or in the state to your out of state. And
then it sounds like you also work with international buyers.
Um I know that Orlando had been very attractive um
during the pandemic to all uh re regions. How is
the uh interstate buyers? How are you helping interstate international
(20:35):
sorry buyers um, in the Orlando market?
Speaker 2 (20:38):
Well, it's basically the same thing as anybody from out
of state. It's about, you know, communication and being able
to know what it is that they're interested in and
what their, their likes and needs are and to help
them find that perfect dream home uh within their budget. And,
you know, if they need help with a, a lender
(20:59):
or help with financing that's something that we offer as well.
Uh, so we have a great team. Uh, we base
ourselves on a concierge service on helping people. Uh, we
go out of our way to help people, uh, whether
they live here or they live, you know, like you said, international, uh,
there's no limits on that. So it's basically on, on
(21:22):
what their needs are. I, I've had
being a, a country girl from Oklahoma sometimes that can
be a little bit of a challenge, you know, understanding
some of, of the diversity, the languages. However, um it,
it makes it uh I love the diversity. It makes
it very interesting, very fun for me because I'm able
(21:43):
to help the different type of um people from all
over the world to be able to move here. And
if I can't, then of course, I have uh others
as well that I can rely on to help me
with that.
Speaker 1 (21:55):
Well, it's great. Central Florida continues um to break all
sorts of records uh for best place to live more affordability,
um diversity in the housing structure um and offering um
individuals and families of all levels and budgets to be
able to have access um to a wonderful
(22:16):
uh central Florida lifestyle. So the Central Florida Home, Sweet
home.com um is a great place for people to go and,
and really look at what your team has to offer
the services that you provide to make sure that people
have access to the wonderful lifestyle that you now enjoy
with your husband in Central Florida.
Speaker 2 (22:37):
Well, thank you. Well, one of the things when we
um created this Home Sweet Home website was to help
educate people on different levels. Um We showcase some of
the homes that we currently have for sale. We put different,
uh we have different youtube videos on there showcasing like
(23:00):
uh hidden gems, some of the places that locals love
to go to that maybe you can't find on the internet.
Uh And I love that because, you know, being new
here and not knowing anything at all about Florida when
I moved here or basically, other than Disney World in
the parks, um being able to get an education on
(23:22):
where the locals love to go is huge and for
me to be able to share that experience. And um
I also also ask other people to share their experiences
with me as well so that I can let people
know and
whether it's favorite uh destinations, favorite restaurants and even maybe
personal care services. I mean, where do you go get
(23:45):
your nails done? You know, if you live in Davenport, Florida,
which that's where I live at, you know, who do
you recommend? So, you know, I think that's very important
information but,
you know, just putting the information on there on what
my team can do to help you, whether it's selling
your house or buying a house. Uh I think is
huge and having resources on there for buyers and sellers
(24:10):
uh to help educate them
and let them know about uh different services that are
out there for them or whether it's uh a lender or,
you know, knowing what the current rates are, that's something
else that we're gonna be doing as well as having our,
our lender do. Probably a monthly blog so that he
can keep people in the know on what's going on
(24:31):
with the market. Because I know that's a big question.
People are always wanting to know, you know, what is
the current rates? So for him to be able to
get on there and do that, I think it's gonna
be a big plus as well.
Speaker 1 (24:43):
That is wonderful rates are changing hourly, but to be
able to have some sort of um information that talks
about where they are today and where they're going directionally
um would be a huge um Those insights would be
a huge help to folks that are in their decision
making process. Um I have visited the site. It's a
wonderful uh resource tool, not only for
(25:04):
folks looking to move into other region but uh newcomers,
um like you said, what uh best restaurants, places to
get your hair done cleaners, dry cleaners and all of
those great things are on the site. So it's a
wonderful tool for folks who um are are just uh
landed in Central Florida. Um And to make that, that
has just made it their home. Sweet home.
Speaker 2 (25:25):
Well, thank you. Well, you know, when I, when we
were researching, my husband and I was researching about moving here,
uh we noticed on a lot of the youtube channels,
there was some old, older information. So
we wanted to make sure that this site is in
real time as far as current information, as far as
(25:47):
like when we did the 55 plus comparison chart that
we added on this site, you know, how many homes
are in each neighborhood? What's the price point? What's the
current ho A fees? Is there a CD D?
You know, these are all questions that instead of having
to call each one of these 55 plus communities. If
(26:07):
you're wanting to move to Central Florida, I have it
for you on this spreadsheet. So at a glance, you
could sit there and see the comparison how many pickleball
courts there is or, or golf course and so forth
because
you can spend countless hours trying to research all this information.
And I want it to be easy for people. I
(26:29):
want to help educate people. And that's my mission as
a realtor is to not just sell your house or
help you find a house but to help people uh
get educated.
Speaker 1 (26:41):
That's wonderful. That's wonderful. Well, this is great. This, we
have a lot of uh great information um uh from
the website to giving you a call Um This is
great information. Um The folks listening um to this uh
uh
podcast episode, we get lots of great information and to
(27:02):
be able to know that there's someone out there, there's
a resource that will help um with getting into the
central Florida lifestyle from the entertainment to the diverse um
amount of housing that you have. Um uh Sandra Pinkley. You're,
this is a, you're doing a great job helping people
have access to all of this wonderful um uh information
(27:23):
so that it can be a decision making as to
where in central Florida they want to move.
Speaker 2 (27:28):
Well, I, I, well, sure, I appreciate your time. And,
you know, again, whether you have somebody that's wanting to
move into Florida from Oklahoma or vice versa, uh We have,
you know, over 16, we have 16 agents right now
total between the LS team and the LS group. Um
(27:48):
You know, I've been a realtor for over eight years.
Um and I joined the LS team uh in
Oklahoma before I moved to Florida. And I can tell
you last year, we did 100 and 86 units with
closing 53 million in volume.
And that's what we did last year. This year, we're
(28:08):
gonna even exceed that. We've already done 34 million with
8 million in pending right now. So we started this
expansion team in Florida three years ago and we're building
on that. We're in the building phase of our Florida team.
I'm blessed to have phenomenal business here, but uh
looking for avenues to help the Ellis group grow, you know,
(28:30):
whether it's referrals, community connections, social media and now this website.
So we're hoping we can help educate people in real
time about this um the various communities, especially the 55 plus.
But I do really appreciate your time and let us
be a part uh of your podcast.
Speaker 1 (28:47):
Oh,
wonderful. Thank you so much, Sandra. This was great. We have, look,
look forward to speaking with you again in the future.
All
Speaker 2 (28:55):
right. Thank you so much.
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