The Exceptional Lake Nona Sculpture Garden

The Exceptional Lake Nona Sculpture Garden

Lake Nona joins the ranks of Central Florida cities with exquisite outdoor art exhibits – think the Dali Museum in St. Petersburg or the Ringling Museum of Art in Sarasota – with the addition of the enchanting Lake Nona Sculpture Garden. Just next to the city’s modern Wave Hotel, the Sculpture Garden is a unique outdoor gallery, designed to foster curiosity and exploration.

World-renowned sculptures from The Lewis Collection, one of the largest private art collections on Earth, dot the 50,000 square-foot space amongst a variety of lush palms and tropical flora. Such masterpieces as Arturo di Modica’s Charging Bull, Henry Moore’s Mother and Child, Fernando Botero’s Leda and the Swan, and other globally important works share the space with four featured pieces by locally celebrated artist JEFRË. This stunning collection brings an elevated art experience to Central Florida.

Lake Nona’s Sculpture Garden will be a major art destination, with a rotating collection that is sure to entice visitors to return. It was designed with extensive thought and planning by a team of landscape architects, arborists, lighting designers, and art curators. Almost 300 carefully selected Florida-grown palm trees are arranged to complement the curvature of the Wave Hotel, and fragrant shrubs and climbing vines add the finishing touches to the serene atmosphere.

Discover the Sculpture Garden at your own pace. You may meander along the walking paths, moving from sculpture to sculpture, or take a break at a picturesque seating area below the palm canopy. Stay past sunset to take in the night-blooming flowers and colorful lighting. Between its magnificent design and evolving art collection, you won’t go long before paying Lake Nona Sculpture Garden another visit.

JP Capital Realty President Silvana Palinkas enjoys a winter day exploration of Lake Nona's Sculpture Garden.

A Lake Nona Campus for Disney, New Schools, and More

A Lake Nona Campus for Disney, New Schools, and More

In a recent community meeting, Tavistock Development Company and TGEY presented planning and construction updates to Lake Nona residents.

8-Story Disney Building

The new campus to function as the workplace hub for 2,000 Disney employees moving from California will be located at 13410 Veterans Way between Lake Nona Blvd and the Central Florida Greenway. This 8-story facility, being built by Turner Construction, is slated for completion in November 2022, at a projected tab of $35-40 million.

New Lake Nona Schools and Parks

For some, the big news of the meeting was the Disney campus, but others were interested in plans for new schools and parks. Next to Laureate Park, land has been designated for a community park, a middle school (2024), and an elementary school (2026).

In a different park of Lake Nona–along J. Lawson Boulevard–the Inter American University of Puerto Rico (IAUPR) will make its home on 17 acres. The school will comprise academic and administrative buildings plus housing for 192 students. It will have 2000 students and plans to be open for the 2022-2023 school year.

The Orange County Public Schools owns 55 acres next to the IAUPR site. This land will be the site of a new high school in 2029.

More Transportation Innovations

In the meeting, authorities confirmed the soon-coming Lake Nona Vertiport which will be the area’s hub for taxi-like air transportation. Five-passenger jets, eventually to be flown autonomously, will provide easy travel solutions for people commuting between Florida cities. The Vertiport is a collaborative project between Tavistock Development Company, the city of Orlando, and Lilium GmbH, a German aerospace company.

At JP Capital Realty, we’re loving being a part of such a vibrant, growing, forward-thinking area. We’re excited to help people moving to this town find housing solutions and enjoy becoming part of the community!

Get Your Offer Accepted in Today’s Seller’s Market

Get Your Offer Accepted in Today’s Seller's Market

In today’s world of home buying and selling, it’s a seller’s market. This means the real estate marketplace is overflowing with shoppers, and there isn’t sufficient home inventory to accommodate everyone.

In this kind of environment, every newly listed home receives numerous offers quickly, some of which come in higher than the asking price.

Getting your offer accepted in such an economy can be challenging. Luckily, there are ways you can make your offer stand out and improve your chances of snagging that house. Consider these strategies to improve your chances of getting your offer accepted.

Get Acquainted With Your Local Market

Spend time checking out recent home sales in your area and look at other details such as sales activity and inventory levels. At JP Capital Realty, we can help you with this. We closely follow the local market and can help you develop a realistic price range for your offer.

With a clear picture of local market values, you can prepare your budget; this empowers you to make an offer that is competitive and realistic.

Submit a Super-Clean Offer

Most sellers want to finalize the sale of their home as fast as possible. They want a reasonable offer, and they want to go through the process of selling the house with the least number of delays. To do this, the seller will prioritize offers that have no contingencies attached.

If possible, don’t make your offer contingent on selling another home. In the same vein, don’t tie your offer to the selling of other properties you have on the market, and consider waiving the appraisal contingency (but make sure you’ve got enough cash to cover the gap should the house appraise below the asking price).

Offer More Than the Asking Price

Your realtor will advise you on how much to offer above the seller’s ask. Paying a few thousand dollars more won’t significantly increase your monthly mortgage payment, but it could boost your offer’s chances of success, and it will also demonstrate that you’re serious enough about the house to pay more than the listed price.

Consider Paying Cash

A cash offer removes middlemen and streamlines the path from acceptance to close. If you can pay cash, do it. Cash offers are always more attractive to sellers than ones with lenders involved.

Don't Ask for Extras

If your offer comes in point-for-point the same as another offer, but you’ve asked for the handsome pair of backyard Adirondacks, that small ask could be enough to get the other buyer the nod. Keep it simple. Get the Adirondacks later from Overstock.

Get Pre-Approved

Sellers gravitate toward the easiest deal at the highest price point. Receiving pre-approval by a lender shows sellers that you’re serious about the purchase and have done your preparation. Getting pre-approval assures the seller that your financing process is likely to be smooth.

Look for Omissions and Errors in Your Offer

Prior to sending the offer to the seller, confirm that you haven’t left out any vital details. Make sure you’ve supplied all required and relevant information and that the offer has been signed. At all times, include an earnest cash deposit.

Rushing through the paperwork could result in an incomplete and thus rejected offer.  You will be up against other buyers submitting 100% perfect offers, and yours may not be considered by the seller if it has gaps.

Last Words: Make it Clean, Complete, and Strong

Use these tips to make your offer stand out in today’s competitive seller’s market. By demonstrating that you’re a dedicated buyer with organizational skills and verified resources, you have a great chance of your offer receiving serious consideration from the seller.

Engaging a highly qualified realtor also improves your chances of success. Reach out to JP Capital Realty, the best Lake Nona realtor today!

Disney is Making Moves in Lake Nona

Disney is Making Moves to Lake Nona

Over the next 18 months, 2000 Disney employees will be relocating from Southern California to our very own Lake Nona. Most of the employees making the move work in the Disney Parks, Experiences, and Products division, which already has a significant workforce in Orlando.

Almost 30% of Disney’s total employees (that’s worldwide) are in Florida. This move will further consolidate operations, and the company believes it will also encourage staff collaboration and creativity.

This is exciting news as we get to welcome so many newcomers to our vibrant community, yet it won’t happen without impacting homeowners – both buyers and sellers – in the Orlando area!

Recovering and Reopening After COVID-19

The last year has been a tough one for everyone. Along with countless other businesses, parks, and gathering spaces, Disney theme parks were shut down, and they have only begun reopening in the last few months. However, in the country’s economic recovery from COVID-19, Florida businesses have seen an earlier reopening than many other states. This business-friendly climate has been reported as a contributing factor to Disney’s California employee move.

Disney also has some big plans for the future. Capacity at the company’s different theme parks is increasing, and October will bring Walt Disney World’s 50th Anniversary. Earlier this month, the parks resumed their nightly fireworks shows. The relocated staff at Disney’s Lake Nona campus will surely have plenty to do!

How Does This Impact Lake Nona?

2000 disney employees move to lake nona

An impact on Lake Nona’s housing market is inevitable, with 2000 individuals and families heading to our Central Florida community. In an already hot market, this move means even more people will be looking to buy a house in Lake Nona.

However, with an average salary of $120,000, these home buyers will likely be looking for homes at higher-than-average price points. The transition from California – where housing values are very high – will also translate to more buying power here, where homes cost less than they do in Southern California.

What This Means For You

So, what does this mean for Orlando locals? An influx of additional buyers means that an already tight housing market is about to become tighter. If you are considering (or even dreaming of) buying a home, it’s time to jump on the search now. Maybe you’ve been waiting and hoping for prices to go down. However, in a situation like this, that’s not happening any time soon.

In this environment, you don’t want to waste your time with just any Lake Nona realtor. To find your dream home, in the perfect location, at a price that works for you, you need the services of professionals like those at JP Capital Realty.

And, of course, it continues to be a great time for anyone who wants to sell their home. The best Orlando realtors will help you prepare your home and list it at the right time so that you get all that you deserve from the sale.

If you’re ready to buy or sell a home, call JP at 407-962-6888. We can’t wait to work with you!

10 Benefits of a Smart Home

10 Benefits of a Smart Home

JASON PALINKAS

FOUNDER & PRINCIPAL BROKER, JP Capital Realty

What is a Smart Home?

A smart home is any house that uses automation to make living and working more comfortable, convenient, efficient, and enjoyable.

Modern smart homes have gadgets like smart locks with video doorbells and smart thermostats. Automations can be found in all parts of the home, from security cameras to voice-activated light bulbs, to appliances like refrigerators that detect when food is running low.

Automations are features that can be activated to make life easier, such as providing the ability to turn on air conditioning before you get home so the house is cool for your arrival, or having curtains set to automatically open in the morning.

Automations in New Homes

While any home can be set up with smart devices, new homes now include many built-in smart features. These may include refrigerators, doorbells, security systems, sound systems, and so on—all controlled through smartphones or tablet apps or control panels in the home.

Homes with advanced automations may include blackout shades, smart door stations, motion detectors, in-ceiling speakers, drop-down movie screens, 4K surveillance systems, web smart gigabit network switches, gigabit VPN routers, and more.

Benefits of a Smart Home

  1. For large entertainment spaces such as living rooms without cable TV, smart TVs can be an affordable alternative and handily synced with smartphones, tablets, laptops, and other devices.
  2. Devices such as the Amazon Echo and Google Home can help with tasks including setting alarms, reading the news or the weather forecast, and streaming music from Pandora or Spotify.
  3. Sonos smart speakers (and other brands) pair with smart phones for remote play and playlist control
  4. When multiple devices are connected, people can easily share information, pictures, and videos, from anywhere in the house.
  5. Ring has smart security solutions for all living situations, from senior communities to college apartment buildings. Ring doorbell cameras allow people to see who is at the door, whether they’re inside the house or across the country.
  6. Ring motion sensors allow monitoring of activity around the house from any place in the world with a smart phone connection.
  7. The benefit of Ring smart security devices, such as the doorbell camera or motion detectors, is affordability. Compared to hiring a traditional security company, Ring packages are much cheaper.
  8. Smart pet collars automatically dispense medicine, detect when a pet is sick, and warn the pet against eating something poisonous or harmful.
  9. If someone needs help getting around their house, they can use an Amazon Echo to help find things they need.
  10. Smart home benefits also include having an easy way to control lights and appliances remotely from a phone or tablet with voice commands.

Are There Any Disadvantages?

There are three main disadvantages:

  • Smart homes can be expensive to set up.
  • The cost of gadgets, devices, and connection packages can add up.
  • If the power fails or the internet goes out, many devices won’t work.

Summing It Up

Most people believe the advantages of smart features greatly outweigh the disadvantages. We are a busy, over-stressed culture, and anything that makes life easier and convenient appeals to most of us. And, in the pursuit of leveraging time to be more efficient and productive, we find automations to be our allies.

Undoubtedly, more and more automations will come to be standard issue in new homes and expected upgrades in older homes, especially those being purchased by millennials and Gen Zs.

JP Capital Realty specializes in helping people buy and sell homes in Laureate Park and greater Lake Nona, where properties with state-of-the-art automations are common. Looking to buy a new house or sell yours? Call JP at 407-962-6888.

Coming Soon to Lake Nona: The Revolutionary Lilium Vertiport

Coming Soon to Lake Nona: The Revolutionary Lilium Vertiport!

JASON PALINKAS

FOUNDER & PRINCIPAL BROKER, JP Capital Realty

Lake Nona is the first of several forward-thinking cities that are welcoming the arrival of the Lilium vertiport: a center for regional, high-speed, electric air transportation.

Lilium is a German aviation company introducing an electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft that is revolutionizing the urban and regional transport industry. Lilium Jets use 36 electric engines to power the vertical take-off and landing and to reach speeds up to 187 mph.

Air Taxis Connecting Floridians

These electric air taxis will connect cities across Florida, with at least 10 vertiports installed in strategic locations throughout the state. Each vertiport will serve a 186-mile radius, allowing Floridians to travel to and from cities quickly and at comparable prices to other transportation options (as little as $70 a flight). Jets are designed to carry five people—with a pilot at first but eventually flying autonomously.

Lilium and Tavistock Development Company, the Orlando-based mastermind behind the innovative Lake Nona Smart City, are partnering with the City of Orlando to bring this ground-breaking technology to Lake Nona.

At JP Capital Realty, we are thrilled to be a Lake Nona realtor in these exciting times, as the city becomes a hub for a state-wide network supporting accessible air transport.

An Environmentally Friendly Transport System

Lilium Jets and vertiports introduce an efficient, zero-carbon transportation system, the likes of which we have not seen before. The jets are charged between journeys and use electric motors for on-ground travel.

Vertiports are modular and compact, and their noise footprint is minimal. Compared to high-speed rail hubs, vertiports are 10 times faster and 100 times cheaper to build.

We'll Help You Find a Home in Lake Nona

Who would not want to live in a place where you can grab an on-demand, high-speed air taxi for that business meeting in Tampa or Gainesville? JP Capital Realty specializes in helping people buy and sell homes in Laureate Park and greater Lake Nona. If you want to work with the best Lake Nona realtor, send us an email through our Contact page or call JP at 407-962-6888.

Jason Palinkas

407-962-6888

jp@jpcapitalrealty.com

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12965 UPPER HARDEN

Downsize Your Home and Travel the US in an RV!

Downsize Your Home and Travel the US in an RV!

When you dream, where do you see yourself? On a curving Spanish beach? At a French sidewalk café? Under a clear Tahitian waterfall?

Unfortunately, the pandemic has forced many of us to shelve our far-flung trip dreams. But that doesn’t mean we have to deny our wanderlust altogether. No, we just need to adjust our scope, consider in-country destinations, and figure out ways to make new dreams happen.

Roam Around in an RV

Speaking of making new dreams happen, have you ever thought about roaming in an RV?

If you have, you’re in good company. The number of RVs on the road has exploded this year.  Steve Lewis of Lightnin RV Rentals in Lawrenceville, GA, says that since May 2020, he has experienced a “tsunami of business.” People who want to get out but avoid airplanes, airports, and restaurants are turning to RV travel instead.

It’s not just families on vacation. No, it’s members of the workforce, too.

People who now work from home have realized the fantastic mobility this allows. So much possibility opens up that wasn’t there before. Why work from home-home when you can work from home-on-the-road?

If all you need is a laptop and internet connection, your RV desk becomes production-central, and you can work from, let’s see, the Grand Canyon, the Outer Banks, Catalina Island, and all points in between. What’s not to love about that?

New RV’ers include retirees as well. These folks who used to fly and cruise to international tourist hotspots are purchasing RVs and touring this country instead.

It’s Good to Have a Home Base

So, if you’re spending half the year on the road in an RV, how much sense does it make to maintain a large place back home? Sure, you enjoy it while you’re there, but when you leave, it sits empty and you have to hire out all the maintenance tasks.

What if you ditched the big digs and downsized? What if you picked up a townhome (in #LakeNona you can find one for $330K) and let the HOA deal with the lawn? What if the smaller place became your base and you RV-roamed from there?

It’s not far-fetched. People are doing this! (Search “RV travel” in your browser and see for yourself.)

Let JP Capital Realty Help You Make it Happen

JP Capital Realty specializes in helping people buy and sell homes in Laureate Park and greater Lake Nona. We’ll help you sell the big place (NOW is a perfect time to put it on the market) and find a place that works as your RV-touring home base.

Send us an email using the form on the Contact page or call JP at 407-962-6888.

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Why You Should Buy a Home Now and Not Wait Until Q4

Why You Should Buy a Lake Nona Home Now and Not Wait

JASON PALINKAS

FOUNDER & PRINCIPAL BROKER, JP Capital Realty

Thinking about buying a new home this year? You may be wondering when is the best time to pull the trigger. The uncertainty of whether you should buy now or later can make you feel paralyzed.

However, considering current and forecasted home prices and mortgage interest rates, the time to buy is now!

Mortgage interest rates are the lowest they’ve been in years, but some experts say they will rise as 2021 continues. These experts also predict that home prices will increase.

David Goldberg, Certified Mortgage Advisor at United Trust Bank, says, “With mortgage rates hitting all-time lows 16 times during 2020, and most forecasts showing rates expected to rise during 2021, waiting to purchase your home will only cost you more between higher interest rates and higher home prices.”

Based on the opinions of experts like Mr. Goldberg, we say: take advantage of the market, get the best Lake Nona realtor, and don’t wait to buy!

Low Mortgage Rates Are on the Rise

Along with the turmoil and uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic, 2020 brought with it a significant drop in mortgage interest rates. The year started with 30-year fixed-interest rates of about 3.7%, and these dropped to around 3% by the middle of December.

Current mortgage rates are now near historic lows, with the average 30-year fixed-interest rate coming in under 3% for the first half of January 2021.

With the recently released December 2020 employment report and the political events of this month, the only consistent thing about mortgage interest rates is that they have remained low. However, the chance of rates dipping much lower is slim.

On the contrary, long-term mortgage rates are forecast to increase throughout 2021. As the coronavirus vaccine is rolled out to individuals across the country, the economy is expected to recover and stabilize by the second half of the year. With economic stability will come higher interest rates for home buyers.

Home Prices are Increasing (So Get a Lake Nona Realtor Now!)

Despite the public health and economic crises, the housing market has boomed: home sales grew at a higher pace in 2020 than they have in 15 years. However, as the demand for homes has increased, the supply has not. We’re in a seller’s market: by the end of last year, the majority of homes put on the market were sold in less than a month.

With low inventory and high demand, home prices have soared and will likely continue to rise. According to Realtor.com, home prices increased by about 7.6% from 2019 to 2020. The price hike doesn’t look like it will end any time soon, either. It’s expected that 2021 will see a 5.7% increase in prices compared to last year.

Use Your Purchasing Power While You Can

With market forecasts all pointing in the same direction, now is the time to buy a home. You have more buying power than a year ago, but that won’t last long. Between rising mortgage rates and increasing home prices, you could spend close to $200 more on your loan per month if you wait to buy until the end of the year.

If you’re ready to buy and you’ve have been waiting for the perfect time, this is it!

Let us help. The team at JP Capital Realty is excited to serve the people of Lake Nona, Orlando, and surrounding areas as your LakeNona Lifestyle and Experience brokers. We specialize in helping clients buy and sell properties in Laureate Park and across the other fine neighborhoods in this town.

For the best Lake Nona realtor, call or text JP at 407-962-6888.

*Thank you to David Goldburg and Jeff Ostrowski for information used in this article.

Jason Palinkas

407-962-6888

jp@jpcapitalrealty.com

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