AVERAGE PRICE PER SQUARE IN THE GROVE DROPS TO $283.00.

The median sales price for homes in Coconut Grove FL for Jun 10 to Aug 10 was $510,200. This represents an increase of 27.6%, or $110,200, compared to the prior quarter and an increase of 34.3% compared to the prior year. Sales prices have depreciated 22.5% over the last 5 years in Coconut Grove. The average listing price for Coconut Grove homes for sale on Trulia was $1,044,661 for the week ending Sep 15, which represents an increase of 0.9%, or $8,975, compared to the prior week and an increase of 1.9%, or $19,629, compared to the week ending Aug 25. Average price per square foot for Coconut Grove FL was $283, a decrease of 1.4% compared to the same period last year.

PHOEBE IS TAKING A BREAK

Phoebe enjoyed the weekend cooling off in our pool. I spent the weekend enduring a total computer crash. I'm up and running now and will begin some serious real estate posts tomorrow.

CLICK ON ME FOR SIGNIFICANT GROVE SALES DATA FROM TRULIA.COM

Pleae click on the headline above. Really an accurate look at what reality is in Coconut Grove today. Trulia.com did a good job on collecting and representing the data.

SORRY, TIME TO BE JUDGEMENTAL

In the last week, I've called a few of the really big names in our business to make appointments to show my clients their listings. These are Realtors who take up a page in the newspapers with all the listings they have. They're listing machines! They take pride in the numbers of their listings and even get more listings because of the number of listings they have. It's all a numbers game, isn't it. The more listings one has, the more sales and that's the way it works. Forget about personal care. Forget about service to a client. Just keep listing and let the homes sell that sell, and the others can fall by the wayside.

With one agent I was told, "Sorry, we're committed and can't show the home for 5 days". The other said they're just to busy and to call back after the weekend. The third never returned the call. When will sellers realize a listing agent with a "big" personal staff of three or more people, can't necessarily serve in the client's best interest. I find it just so aggravating.

We never exceed a dozen listings because we can't PERSONALLY serve more. I don't remember when we didn't show a listing because it conflicted with out schedule. It has never happened in 20 years! Sylvia and I always......and I mean always.......present our listings to buyers ourselves. We pride ourselves in PERSONALLY staying in touch with our client-partners. You will see us beyond the listing appointment. Do this just for me. The next time you're inclined to list with one of these "big names" in our business, make demands. Demand they show your property personally. Demand they contact you within 5 minutes of the showing to give you feed back. Demand they give you a written report weekly. Demand they return your phone calls or emails within 1 hour. You deserve this kind of care because selling your home is everything in the world to you.

And still may I add, with the dozen or so listings we carry, and because of our devotion to client service, THE CHERRY GROUP has been the TOP PRODUCING REALTORS, for homes between $1 million and $5 million for twelve months running in zip code 33133. This simply reflects our commitment to selling your home, while taking all the hassle out.

GOOD LUXURY HOME AUGUST SALES DATA FOR THE GROVE

CLICK ON THE HEADLINE to see what went pending and sold in The Grove in August. Even though I check daily, was surprised we had activity about every three days. The Coldwell Banker Previews Luxury brand is still outperforming all others in the marketplace.

ONLY PHOEBE KNOWS

This is our one of our dogs Phoebe. Statistics in this market often contradict reason, so Sylvia and I sometimes turn to Phoebe to "sniff out" reality. As an example, in the midst of large inventory and declining sales, home prices are actually on the rise; they rose a half point in July and another half point in August. One possible reason is a seller often tosses the buyer a bone in the form of closing credits which still nets the seller less, but isn't reflected in the closed sale price. Creativity in marketing, staging, financing and especially negotiations are keys to getting the deal done. By the way, Sylvia and I are Certified Negotiations Specialists. We can put our knowledge to work for you to get your home sold.