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July 2, 2016

What is going on July 4th 2016

…. and where will you be celebrating America’s 240th Birthday? Join in the fun~ family~festivities around the Coral Gables & Palmetto Bay/Cutler Bay areas at any of these free events.   The Biltmore Hotel: Center Terrace The Biltmore Hotel Fireworks Spectacular is one of the most popular places to be this Independence day with over 10,000 guests expected to attend. Bring a blanket or folding chairs, a picnic basket and grab a front row seat on the beautiful lush, sprawling 18 hole Golf course and enjoy the show.  Refreshments are available for purchase.  All will remember this fireworks display to celebrate “America the beautiful”. The grounds are located at 1200 Anastasia Avenue Coral Gables, Florida If you’re looking to secure […]
June 28, 2016

The Secret Art to Staging Your Home

If you do a quick Google search, you can (literally) find a million different sites with tips on how to stage your home to sell it quickly. Upon doing a little digging however, you find that each one offers contradictory advice. You’re supposed to either make your home look lived-in (like they could raise their family there) or a clean slate (so they can imagine themselves there). So what’s a home owner to do? There’s a simple answer: Curb Appeal We all know the quote, “You will never get a second chance to make a first impression.” When we’re talking about homes, that means when they pull up to the house. And trust me, I’ve been with many a would-be […]
June 14, 2016

Getting Your Kids Into Sunset Elementary

In my opinion, there are few (if any) gifts a parent can give their children better than education. And I know a lot of parents agree with me: it’s why I’ve been asked by a multiple clients about how to get their children into Sunset Elementary and had many only willing to look at homes within the school’s boundaries. For those of you that don’t know, Sunset Elementary is one of the highest ranked elementary schools in Florida. It’s an International Blue Ribbon School of Excellence that has been recognized with the National Elementary Magnet School of Excellence award with an International Studies Magnet Program, a Controlled Choice International Education Program, and a Science and Mathematics Gifted Program. Sunset’s boundaries […]
June 7, 2016

What’s Going on this June in Palmetto Bay

You can always tell the first week after school lets out because it takes twenty minutes less to get anywhere. All kidding aside, just because the weather is heating up doesn’t mean that you can’t get out and enjoy everything that living in South Florida has to offer. And the best part is you don’t have to drive across the county to enjoy some of the best Miami has to offer. There are dozens of events this month in Palmetto Bay that are worth checking out. First, you can kick off the summer with a splash at the End of School Summer Splash at Coral Reef Park on June 9th. There will be water slides, games, music, water balloons and […]
June 2, 2016

How to Prepare Your Home for a Hurricane

June 1st marked the official start to Hurricane season. And, as we haven’t had a storm make landfall in Miami since 2005, I thought it was a good idea to give you a friendly reminder on how to prepare just in case 2016 is the year. Hurricane Preparedness Checklist: Before the Storm: Check Your Insurance There are two ways your home can get damaged when a storm hits: wind and water. Set a meeting with your insurance agent to go over the details of your policy. It’s a good idea to meet them as soon as possible: Flood Insurance policies normally have a 30-day waiting period to go into effect, so if you want to secure coverage for July, you […]
April 23, 2016

“Shade Palmetto Bay”

 “Shade Palmetto Bay” Free Tree Giveaway 2016 Help make our community beautiful! It is time for the 6th annual, “Shade Palmetto Bay” Free Tree Giveaway on April 23rd. Trees are given away to residents of the Village at Ludovici Park on a first-come. first-served basis. Residents are asked to provide proof of residency (Identification card). with a limit of one tree per resident. Saturday, April 23 8:00-11:00 AM Ludovici Park- 17641 Old Cutler Road (Special thanks to palmettobay-fl.gov for information and picture) If you are interested in moving to, or within, our great city, contact me here.
March 4, 2016

The Drew Kern Team is #1

2013       2014       2015  On to 2016! For the third year in a row The Kern Team is #1 for home sales in Palmetto Bay, both in terms of the number of homes sold and dollar volume. I am honored by this recognition, and am thankful to my clients who have trusted my team to handle their home buying and selling needs. And as a resident of Palmetto Bay, you can see I truly take pride in my community. Whether you are buying or selling a home, if you are looking for the Palmetto Bay real estate expert I hope you will contact me. Total Sales in Units               Total Sales by $Volume ($,000)
February 12, 2016

Quick Tips to Prepare Your Home to Hit the Market

Getting top dollar in the least amount of time is my number one priority when I list a property for sale. In order to achieve this, however, I can’t stress enough how important it is for the homeowner to get the property in the best possible condition prior to it hitting the market. A month or so ago, I wrote about some big-ticket items that are often overlooked but that deserve a homeowner’s consideration before listing. (In case you missed it, you can still catch my blog “To Fix or Not to Fix Before Listing?” ) The reality is that homes with great curb appeal, that are clean and well-maintained, sell more quickly and for a higher amount. Here’s a […]
February 5, 2016

Feel the Love, Miami

Valentine’s Day is around the corner so for the romantics out there, now’s the time to begin planning a special Valentine’s Day dinner with your loved ones. My wife and I stopped going out for Valentine’s Day dinner a long time ago. We came to realize that a quiet dinner at home is a wonderful way to spend the evening and now we enjoy preparing a fun family dinner with our two boys. In particular, what we have really enjoyed doing is planning a family meal that focuses on fresh ingredients that are readily available locally. Here are a few of our go-to places to find delicious ingredients for an out-of-this-world meal, for Valentine’s Day or any other occasion. For […]