Find Your Dream Home Today

   Parkland Golf and Country Club once again had its highest sale of the month delivered by our favorite resident Real Estate Broker, Rick Rapp.  With the high monthly sale of $486 per square foot, Rick proved once again why it’s important and smart to work with him directly when selling in the club.  We have found it odd that when people list with others they tend to list for much lower values than Rick is setting.  Whether that is due to a forced sale, bad information or lack of care, we can’t report.  What we did do was go direct to the source to get Rick’s thoughts on PGCC’s current Real Estate market.

        We asked Rick how he continues to get great numbers for his clients and he told us, “If I had to attribute it to one thing, I’d say it’s truly understanding the market as it currently sits.  Many agents will opt to use generalized or radius comps, meaning they will go outside the gates to comp PGCC homes, or they won’t factor in the influential differences that each home has. These factors are imperative, as I’ve continued to prove.  I’ve had many agents on the buy side tell me I’m crazy with my pricing, and over and over again, I prove them wrong.  I understand homeowners may list with other agents, and I accept that. I just wish they would get a FIRM understanding of their ACTUAL value before going to market.  Believe it or not, I do have a lot of agents who call me direct for advice on what they should list PGCC homes for, and while I’m always available for help, I do wish the owners would just call me direct.”  

    The answer is clear, if thinking of selling, reach out to Rick to get the absolute most for your PGCC home! 

   Parkland Golf and Country Club has seen some great trends in what some in the country are calling a ‘buyers market’.  Even with continued high mortgage rates, we’ve been happy to report a continued increase and/or hold in value when selling with the right agent.  As reported previously, while some sellers are closing for what we consider much lower than market value, Resident Real Estate Broker Rick Rapp has continued to raise values to the benefit of his sellers.  

    Out of 22 sales in the past four months, Rick has shown proof positive of his barometer of the market and holds the two highest sales by square foot, as well as 2 of the top 3 highest dollar sales.  As a deeper dive, we see Rick has actually sold 1/2 of the top sales since June. As generally intrigued, we reached out to Rapp to get his take on his current stats.  Rick told us ‘you know, I always push value as much as I possibly can, but didn’t realize my stats were in that range. It’s great to hear.  My ultimate goal, as I hope all PGCC homeowners know, is to truly bring max value for all of my sales.  I have always felt we offer something at Parkland Golf that no other community can provide, and in the end, at least in my mind, that deserves and calls for a premium.  The truth is, you need to ask for it. A recent sale of mine had a ZILLOW ZESTIMATE close to $300,000 less than what I was able to obtain for sellers!’

    The answer is clear, if thinking of selling, reach out to Rick to get the absolute most for your PGCC home! 

   Parkland Golf and Country saw a nice increase in price per square foot averages last month and we couldn’t be happier to share the news!  Of most importance in our eyes is that 3 of the sales were on market for over 4 months, PROVING that a fast sale isn’t always a good sale.  These owners held out for the right buyer and their patience paid!  As has become customary we reached out to Resident Real Estate Broker Rick Rapp to get his thoughts on a potential rising market.

When asked if he see’s a continued climb in our future, Rick was quick to tell us ‘as much as I love seeing these numbers rise, we have seen this in the past followed by a decline in the coming months. However, homeowners here in PGCC need to take this nice uptick into account when selling their homes.  It is imperative that the agent you choose truly understands our community market and not base their list price on what’s happening in Parkland as a whole. We are a much different and specific community which commands and deserves a premium.’  

As we’ve tracked sales in Parkland Golf for quite some time now we couldn’t agree more.  PGCC is an outlier and always has been.  Parkland residents outside the gates know it and often desire to live in the gates; out of state buyers that purchase in bordering communities often wish they had moved to Parkland Golf once they get a ‘lay of the land’. So if we know that buyers want to be here, and we feel that we deserve a premium, how do we achieve it?  We’ve  witnessed Rick sell many homes at prices that   other agents, owners and buyers may have assumed was too high. Is there a trick to it?  Rick told us  ‘you know, that’s funny.. My tagline  is No Tricks.. No Traps - Just Rick.. Just Rapp - so no, there isn’t a trick.  What there is is knowledge and the desire to share it.  When buyers see the full picture of what we are as a community..  value is much easier to understand.  This is why I always say, whether selling with me or another, it’s prudent to use an agent with FULL knowledge of our club and the pulse of the market.  I think you all know by now that I hate seeing low sales when I know the owners can get more..  I guess if there was a trick, it would be asking for it’ 

Call Rick when ready to sell in PGCC!!

   Parkland Golf and Country Club Real Estate sales have been steady since the 1st of the year, and we’ve noticed that Resident Homeowner and Real Estate Broker, Rick Rapp, has held a large portion of the sales thus far.  Always a leader in pushing value, we were happy to be able to report his figures at this time, as they show true depth of knowledge and care when selling to the club.  With 9 sides of the total 35 sales so far this year (6 listings sold, 2 buyer transactions and 1 double-sided closing), Rick has proven to continue to be a market leader here at PGCC.  While it’s no surprise to report, we were curious about his thoughts and why a large percentage of the community choses to work with him.  As usual, we reached direct to the source to get his input.

      Rapp told us, “It always means a lot to me when people put their trust in me and see how much I truly care about holding and raising values here in the club.  I’ve been here for quite some time and the community really does mean a lot to me.  Seeing people sell for less than I feel they can get does bother me at times, but it comes with the territory. Luckily, a lot of my sellers choose me for the simple fact that they know that I want absolute top dollar for their home no matter what it takes. With 8 of my 9 sides averaging $441 a square vs market average of $413 is probably what I’m most proud of to be honest with you."

       As usual, Rapp seems to be the go-to guy when selling Parkland Golf.  True community knowledge combined with care only adds up to one thing.  More in your pocket! 

Parkland Golf and Country Club homeowners may be confused by the continued variables we are seeing in price per square foot values. While we continue to see homes selling in the high S450-475 per square area, with some topping $500, we are still met with very low sales in the $350 per square range. What we unfortunately see quite often are these low sales touted as 'SOLD FAST', maybe in the 2-5 day range. Curious if these quick-to-contract homes are actually obtaining their true top value, we turned to Resident Real Estate Broker Rick Rapp to give us some insight.

When asked his opinion on this, Rapp said, I'm really glad you asked, this is something I've been seeing all too often lately. Some agents will list at ridiculously low numbers only to tout a 'Sold in 1day' declaration. One-day sales are very often below-value sales. l've seen homeowners leave hundreds of thousands on the table for no other reason than bad information. These low sales also affect our neighborhood as a whole."

Like most of our readers, we were left wondering why an agent would list so low. What is the advantage? When questioned, Rapp told us, "You know, my goal is always to obtain the highest dollar amount possible, and that takes time, mar- keting and patience. I can't see an advantage to a low sale other than a quick commission and less work for the agent. As a homeowner ni PGCC, ti may bother me more than others, but Ifeel Iknow our true value and fight to hold and raise them on a daily basis. I'm much more keen to earn my commission by bringing top dollar than taking the first offer that comes our way to simply move on to the next. We hear nationwide that people are still flocking to Florida, yet we see these low valuations just too often.  If Ican implore any PGCC homeowner to do anything, it's to get a second opinion on the value of your specific home. Don't trust a Zestimate or an agent looking for a quick sale and a fast buck."

   Parkland Golf and Country continues to be an outlier in the South Florida Real Estate market.  While many homeowners read of a declining market nation wide and see local agents listing homes at lower than standard prices, it’s easy to see how confusion exists. To get a read on what the market is doing in Parkland Golf as a whole, we turned once again to Resident Broker Owner, Rick Rapp. When asked his thoughts on the PGCC market vs. outside of our gates, Rapp told us 

“It’s a question I got almost daily, ‘hows the market’, and I see a lot of confusion due to low listed homes.  People have become savvy to their Real Estate investment and do enjoy tracking value as any would track a stock portfolio.  Zillow offers a quick and easy way to view not only estimated value, which is often severely off, but price per square foot pricing as well.  I myself do use price per square to track new inventory, recent sales and the pulse of the Parkland Golf market myself, so I understand the concern people have when they see some homes listing and selling below $350 a square.  The good is, we as a community are actually UP in the past 100 days VS. the previous 100 days of market.  With an increase in average price per square of $32 per foot - a jump from $415 a square previously, to $447 a square currently.”

Thats great news for ALL Parkland Golf homeowners We’ve found when tracking sales history in the community, Rapp is always a great resource for what’s actually happening in the market vs what you may be being told. Rick did remind us “The Realtor you choose matters more now than ever before, with comparables all over the board your Realtor needs to know how to push while proving value to buyers and appraisers alike. Saying ”It’s easier for an agent to list low for a quick sale than it is to push the market for absolute top dollar.  A fast sale is often 

not a great sale”

If you’re thinking of selling in the near future, remember to call Rapp, he truly understands PGCC’s market and value! 

   Parkland Golf homes have seen a continued trend of upticks in what many would consider a declining market. However, we’ve noticed some homeowners and agents coming to the market and listing their homes at VERY low prices.  While Resident Broker/Owner Rick Rapp provides us with a monthly recap of how our values are trending, and viewing a continued uptick in high price per square foot sales as well as a healthy pattern of low sales per square, we were curious.... just why is it that some owners choose to list and sell so low in a community that often shows significant buyer interest.  As we generally do, we turned to Rick to get his opinions this month.

When asked what the reasoning is for seeing such low sales, Rapp stated, “It’s an interesting question as I’ve been witnessing and wondering the same myself. I’ve seen homes with very popular floor plans and features coming to market at what I would call ‘’courthouse’ pricing. These are foreclosure numbers at times, and while life can affect decision-making, it surprises me that some sellers are willing to give up so much equity. It also surprises me that they put their trust in agents that don’t seem to have their best interests at heart.” Rick seems to be on point here as we’ve tracked new inventory as well as closed sales for some time now. While some parts of the country, as well as surrounding areas, may be showing signs of slowing down, Parkland Golf and Country does seem to be an outlier in most cases.

Rapp reminded us that PGCC offers amenities and features that no other Parkland community even comes close to, and that buyers are WILLING to PAY for that! However, Rick did remind us, “The Realtor you choose matters more now than ever before. With comparables all over the board, your Realtor needs to know how to push while proving value to buyers and appraisers alike. Saying ”It’s easier for an agent to list low for a quick sale than it is to push the market for absolute top dollar”

    If you’re thinking of selling in the near future, remember to call Rapp. He truly understands PGCC’s market and value!

   Parkland Golf homeowners have seen huge swings in values in recent months, and in what we would refer to as an oddity, in both directions. Residents have seen sales topping our high price per square foot variable while at the same time witnessing some homes going for what we’d consider under market value.  As most attribute current market ‘corrections’ to continued high interest rates, we note that the high valued sales do not reflect nor support this theory.  Curious as to why we are seeing what we are seeing we turned to our #1 Real Estate source in PGCC and asked resident broker Rick Rapp for his opinion. 

Rick stated that what the market is experiencing can be confounding to most, but can be explained when looking at each sale individually.  Rapp stated “Parkland golf is approaching it’s 20 year anniversary as a community, and when most any community hits that time line homes that have remained in original builder spec condition no longer offer the panache that today’s active buyers are looking for.  However, owners that have upgraded their homes in the past five years are reaping the rewards of doing so.  With high interest rates buyers are seeking true turn key homes, and if not found will negotiate value down to have room to upgrade as they see fit” 

As usual, Rapp’s comments ring true as we dig into these recent sales.  The good news for all is that many long term owners do have the ability in this market to reap the benefits of the high equity that their homes hold.  Some selling for less may end up with a stronger ROI  than many would expect.  However, Rick did remind us “The Realtor you choose matters more now than ever before, with comparables all over the board your Realtor needs to know how to push, explain and prove value to buyers and appraisers alike. It’s easier for an agent to list low for a quick sale than it is to push the market for absolute top dollar, I implore all sellers to keep that in mind when listing”

If you’re thinking of selling in the near future, remember to call Rapp, he truly understands PGCC’s market and value! 

    Rick's monthly Real Estate update is here! What have recent sales told us in the past few months in Parkland Golf and Country Club? 

With only one sale in January, with one following in February - both brokered by Rick - our average price per square remains at $450.  A strong and respectable number which we've been holding on to for a bit. However, with very few sales in the past 3 months, we asked Rick his toughts on the current market. He replied  “we need to be wary of where we are pricing our homes when coming to market as well as negotiating correctly with today's savvy buyer.  We are seeing a lot of inventory sit stale for quite some time.  Buyers are much more aggressive than they've been in recent years.  Many would assume mortgage rates have a lot to do with this, but as we dig deeper there are other factors at play.”

That said, with the lack of steady movement and trending low sales volume, Rick is still happy to report he was able to put two more PGCC homes under contract which will be closing this month, as well as has some great new inventory on the way!  

Who you choose to represent your home matters more now than ever!  If you truly want to obtain top dollar for your home, there is one broker to call -  Rick Rapp.  No Tricks, No Traps - just Rick, just Rapp.