Category Archives: Published Articles

#NationalSoWhatDay

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Editor’s Note: The following story by Jeffrey Rembert was posted by FORWARD Florida on its website as a Blog on September 16, 2015.

Social media applies grinding pressure to journalists accustomed to gazing out windows in search of inspiration. Now late-afternoon deadlines are mere follow-ups to the day-long deadlines imparted by posting, tweeting and pinning, and the need to treat each day as #NationalSomethingDay has made irrelevant the important days like the opening of the livestock show and publication of Sports Illustrated’s swimsuit issue.

Hashtags elevate importance. Anything following a hashtag has immediate prominence and relevance to our existence. Like getting approval from People. But more likely hashtags are coding designed to manipulate our minds. In fact, I made it halfway through the first Friday in June before thunder roared on an otherwise clear day. Lights flickered, wall decor shook, the art director’s cat actually moved. Did the deity of social media demand favor?

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Moving Woes: Packing Stuff

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Editor’s Note: The following story by Jeffrey Rembert was posted by Real Prospector on its website under Buyer on August 31, 2015.

While I’ve considered selling my home of nearly 20 years and upgrading, downsizing or simply relocating, something keeps me from calling a real estate broker, perhaps putting my own sign in the yard. Interest rates remain at generational lows, good deals are tucked away in great neighborhoods and credit is readily available. But those economic beacons fail to shed light on the one great and unavoidable obstacle. Packing.

Understand, I hate the idea of packing. Not for the packing itself but for the multiple steps involved in packing. The suddenly discovered gems are treasure-like but the realization that what once sounded like a good idea comes back to haunt you as your days in college or as a single journalist rise up to remind you “moron” has no limits.

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Act Now: Hurricanes & Tropical Storms Affect Real Estate

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Editor’s Note: The following story by Jeffrey Rembert was posted by ESTATIVIZE on its website under Agents on August 27, 2015.

With Tropical Storm Erika on a projected path toward the Southeast United States, prospective property owners– residential and commercial– should note a moratorium will exist on the binding or increasing of insurance coverage if the named storm crosses a specific geographic boundary, or enters a boundary box, somewhere off the northern coast of the Dominican Republic. Another way of putting it, without bound insurance or with inadequate coverage, closings may be delayed, interest rates may be at risk and, in the case of a post-storm claim, insurance proceeds may fall short.

Why is a moratorium important to understand?

As a named storm enters the boundary box, as established by insurance carriers, the National Hurricane Center offers a calculated projection of its path. The margin of error can account for several hundred miles. But, as we know, insurance carriers and lenders are averse to risk. If a named storm is anywhere near – defined by entering the boundary box – owners can forget about binding coverage or increasing coverage over the short term even if the named storm is hundreds of miles away and unlikely to affect their property.

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Not Your Average Top 10 List

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Editor’s Note:  The following story by Jeffrey Rembert was posted by FORWARD Florida on its website as a Blog on August 3, 2015.

Was a time when people subscribed to print news for the articles, editorials and columns, the vast information written by seasoned journalists and readily available simply by walking to the curb before morning coffee. Then Pluto fell out of favor with the astronomy club and was demoted to dwarf planet. On Earth the print media began an excruciating demise and the 24-hour news cycle was born. Coincidence? I think not.

As a result the modern day subscriber, short on time and technologically savvy, developed a never-to-be-satisfied need for content in short takes on media websites, Facebook and Twitter, to name a few. Newsprint be damned. It became about RAM and speed and updates on the Kardashian girls. Quick bits of important information, streaming live to one’s phone, desktop, laptop and wristwatch.

But even filling space with pseudo news can’t help print media keep up with Billy McGuffin’s middle school blog. He has the inside source on the latest school district scandal involving an overzealous science teacher and hydroponic hallucinogenic crops. Billy taunts the traditional media with hourly updates from the basement of his parents’ house. Only a 10 p.m. curfew abates his fury.

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Orlando City Soccer

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Editor’s Note:  The following story by Jeffrey Rembert was posted by FORWARD Florida on its website under Sports on March 12, 2015. 

Observations of an aspiring Orlando soccer fan

Some lessons take time to sink in, and so goes my understanding of soccer. Its faithful take pride in its elegance – after all it’s called the beautiful game – even though they can’t settle on the rules. Yet despite the differences, from one continent to another, people in the hundreds of millions worship the sport that transcends cultures.

Orlando falls within those ranks Orlando City Socceras 62,358 fans filled the Orlando Citrus Bowl, Sunday afternoon (3/8), to watch the Orlando City Lions open its inaugural MLS season. Another 97,328 fans watched the telecast on ESPN2. They likely understand this yellow card business.

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Financing Florida

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Editor’s Note:  The following story by Jeffrey Rembert was published by FORWARD Florida (December 2014) and posted on its website under Construction & Development on December 18, 2014. The link is provided at the bottom of this post.

It’s not the Wild West of pre-2008, but real estate development money is flowing again

Getting a handle on what drives Florida land development is much like finding the beginning of a circle. Where does it start? Is the prospect of profitable development moving money into money-florida-640x360 (2)the state or is the availability of financing driving development? Any way you look at it Florida continues to attract developers and financing. Prospects for the coming years continue to be guarded but bright.

“Florida still remains a Sun Belt growth state so the long-term prospects for real estate remain good,” says Guy Michel, senior vice president of Community Southern Bank. “As the financial industry continues to recover, so will the availability of funding for projects subject to higher underwriting standards and cooperation from the regulatory authorities.”

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