You wouldn't believe how many questions I receive from Canadian residents interested in purchasing properties in Florida and other parts of the United States. There are certain things to consider as a Canadian resident interested in purchasing property in the US, but they aren't anything that can't be overcome without some help from your realtor.

  • One of the questions that frequently comes up is simply "Can a Canadian resident like myself purchase a house in the US?" Yes. You pay for the house and receive a title, just like with any local purchase. Residents of Canada interested in financing a home in the United States as opposed to paying cash, should look towards Canadian banks that have branches in the United States.

  • Another concern many Canadian…

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We are in interesting economic times. You can’t turn on a national news network without hearing the talking heads go on about the economic downturn, soaring national debt and the unemployment rate. But the news is not all bad!

The housing market crash has caused real estate prices and mortgage rates to be at an all time low! Now is truly the time to look into purchasing a vacation home. There are plenty of beautiful vacation condos in the Orlando area selling for only $50 thousand. Luxury homes in gated resort communities have for sale signs in their lawns and price tags as low as $100 thousand.

The obvious reason to purchase a vacation home is to have a beautiful location to kick back and relax. But there’s actually more to the picture than this. Prices…

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Oftentimes you may see the terms pre-qualification and pre-approval thrown around seemingly interchangeably. Understanding the difference between the two, however, is very important in the mortgage process.

Pre-qualification is generally faster than the pre-approval process, but by no means is it a replacement for pre-approval. In the pre-qualification process, you give the bank or lender your financial information; this includes your income, debt, and assets. After the bank or lender reviews this information, they are able to give you an estimate of a mortgage that you should be able to qualify for. This is only an estimate, it is subject to change, and it will get you nowhere in today's market, as it holds no guarantee. Its only real use, is to give you…

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Due to the turbulence in the recent economy, there are a few different types of real estate sales that one hears about frequently. When preparing to enter the real estate market, whether as a seller or a buyer, it is important to know the terms used, and the implications of each type of sale.

Short Sale Property


You often will hear the term “short sale”. A short sale is when the homeowner owes more on their mortgage than the home can sell for in today’s real estate market. There are a few ways this can happen. One way is when a homeowner takes out an equity loan (to pay off other bills) that amounts to greater than the home can sell for including closing costs.

Another way this could happen would be if the homeowner originally bought the home with what…

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As many of you who are following the real estate market in Florida know, Florida State Farm Insurance has been hashing it out with the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation for a good part of 2009. What originally started the trouble between the two parties was a proposed 67.1 percent rate increase by State Farm, and an announcement shortly thereafter, stating that State Farm was going to stop insuring property in Florida.

That type of rate increase could make affording homeowners insurance impossible for many of Florida’s residence. But because State Farm insures such a large amount of Florida homeowners, the complete loss of State Farm could mean quite an upheaval. It’s simply not easy to find quality homeowners insurance like what State Farm…

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Orlando Florida (December 3th, 2009) – Carlos German & Team, with Orlando Classic Homes, announced today, the official launch of their new state-of-the-art real estate website for buyers and sellers in the Disney World Orlando area, www.CarlosAndTeam.com. The new website provides visitors with powerful tools to narrow down their search and find properties with improved ease of use.

“We really wanted to provide the most powerful real estate search in the Disney area and I think we’ve achieved that,” .said Carlos German, Realtor®, ABR®, e-PRO® and Team leader at Carlos German & Team

The website provides access to the entire database of MLS listings in Orlando, Kissimmee, Davenport, Clermont, Haines City, Windermere and surrounding areas. It also allows…

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Hello and welcome to the all new blog of Carlos German and Team! In this space, you will find the latest and greatest news and tips about the real estate market in central Florida, and especially the Disney World area.

Who Are We?

Carlos German & Team is a real estate team that specializes in the sale of property around the highly desirable, Central Florida and Disney World areas. We work with new, resale and foreclosure properties in vacation, residential and golf communities near Disney World in Orlando.

Why Should You Read This Blog?

You should read this blog if you want to stay up to date with the real estate news and market conditions around Disney World in Orlando. National news outlets tend to talk about market trends after research groups…

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