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Written by: Coral Gables Real Estate

Local Expertise in Real Estate Yields Results

What are the zoning setbacks in Coral Gables? Can I park my boat or my truck in a Coral Gables home? How do I know if a home has a historic designation in Coral Gables? What has the highest resale value in Coral Gables real estate? What are the public schools for a particular Coral Gables neighborhood?

If your realtor can’t answer these questions off the top of their head, you are not dealing with a neighborhood expert. Your cousin in Broward who is a realtor should probably not be representing you if you are planning to buy or sell a Coral Gables home. Local expertise, you see, is invaluable, particularly in a market as nuanced as the City Beautiful.

I can’t begin to tell you how many times fellow real estate agents ask me where Hammock Oaks is or how to get to the Platinum Triangle. It is an immediate warning sign that the prospective buyer coming to view my listing is most likely being underserved by a realtor who is not an expert in Coral Gables.

I won’t belabor the obvious drawback of working with a realtor who gets lost amidst tree-lined streets such as Alhambra Circle or Granada Avenue. Instead, I’ll clarify the crucial benefits of aligning yourself with a knowledgeable resource that knows the intricacies of this coveted pocket in South Florida. Neighborhood expertise provides realtors with:

  • insights that inform professional, grounded advice on market value – not just data driven metrics but also advice predicated on years of experience;
  • exceptional negotiating framework based on hyper-local market knowledge;
  • an established database of prospective buyers interested in specific areas in a given neighborhood;
  • faster closing rates given their sphere of influence;
  • access to colleagues who exclusively work the area: lawyers, inspectors, lenders, landscapers, etc.

Unfortunately, some realtors will claim to be neighborhood specialists, but have limited experience in a given area. Here are some questions to ask to help to determine the depth of their community knowledge:

  1. How many homes have they sold in your area in the last 2 years?
  2. How many homes have they listed in your area in the last 2 years?
  3. How long have they been working in your area?
  4. How many recent reviews do they have related to sales in your area?

I pride myself on focusing on very select pockets in South Florida real estate, Coral Gables being my primary market. There are a lot of people vying for the same slice of the pie and I believe my deep expertise in this community best serves my clients and provides them with an advantage. Whether representing a Seller or Buyer, my clients receive optimal benefits. The first half of this year alone, my team and I sold most properties in Coral Gables. Local area expertise yields results, indeed.


Carole Smith has consistently been among the top five Realtors in Coral Gables for over 20 years. Assisting hundreds of families find their place in the world in Coral Gables has been among her most significant professional accomplishments.

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Tags: , , , , Last modified: July 22, 2019