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Golden Isles. Own a little piece of paradise on the water
If you are looking for a dream home on the water, you are on the right track.
Think of a small oasis halfway between Miami and Fort Lauderdale, where most homes are situated on oversized lots, bordered by navigable canals.
A "safe neighborhood " in Broward County and the City of Hallandale Beach, Golden Isles is a calm, beautifully landscaped area, surrounded but all the amenities, shopping, and entertainment you could ask for, crisscrossed by deep water canals with ocean access.
I have been a resident of Golden Isles since 1986. 24 years later, I can say that it was a good choice. Peaceful and pleasant would be adequate words to define the quality of life here. Throughout the years, just a few changes: the guardhouse has been rebuilt, and the new entrance to our neighborhood; the famous Golden Isles arch is still in the same place. The Park has been nicely redone and improved since the time my kids enjoyed the sandy playground. The Tennis courts are still available but the pros have expanded the reach of their trainings for kids and adults.
Many
older homes have been replaced by new, well designed construction, all
for the better.
On the corner, at the end of Layne Blvd, the shopping center has seen
the Albertson supermarket move out years ago and many stores have come
and gone, but the Publix is still very alive. An upscale restaurant
& night club caters to a Russian clientele; there is an
outpatient medical center, a boat supply business and many other stores.
Across Hallandale Beach Blvd. an attractive shopping center where the
Diplomat Mall used to gather elderly patrons, was turned into a modern and pretty center of
entertainment just across the street from Golden Isles: Burlington and
Ross department stores, the Winn Dixie supermarket, a Panera bakery, many cafes and restaurants
with outdoor seating, Starbucks, Officemax, a Bank. All this
keeps adding convenience to life in Golden Isles, without taking away the
sense of an enclosed community.
Conveniently located in Hallandale Beach, Golden Isles consists of about 304 single family homes, in a 24-hour guarded community. Most are waterfront lots with deep water docks, on wide canals, and easy access to the Ocean. Amenities include a park, a tennis center, and a playground.
If you like the water, Golden Isles has some of the best choices of waterfront homes for boaters.
A family-oriented neighborhood with superbly landscaped homes, many with stunning architectural designs, Golden Isles is one of the best options, a short distance from Haulover Cut, minutes from Hollywood Beach with easy access to both Fort Lauderdale and Miami International airports.
The famous Aventura Mall is a five minutes drive, Hollywood Circle about the same distance, with many dining and entertainment choices.
The Gulfstream Racetrack and Casino,
with its lovely Village at Gul
fstream
has become a wonderful
shopping and entertainment complex. Recently inaugurated, it is quickly
turning into a major pole of attraction, and the place to go for the
young and less young crowd.
A few blocks away, the Greyhound Track and its adjoining Mardi Gras Casino add another leisure option.
And there is much more to these Golden Isles in the midst of civilization
and city life.
Of course... the beach!
Hallandale Beach is just some blocks away across the bridge, and you can't miss the famous Hollywood boardwalk on the sand, that you will reach driving past the superb Diplomat Hotel complex and a few waterfront cafes and restaurants on the Intracoastal Waterway.
Golden Isles attracts many boaters
who dream of catching the big one. However, for the less adventurous, ownership of a boat or a
yacht can still be a relaxing and mundane affair, thanks to the wonderful network of
canals, bays, and lakes connecting to the Intracoastal, that bring
excitement and enjoyment in the gorgeous Florida outdoors without the exposure to rough waters.
It is not even mandatory to wear your Captain's cap while you cruise the Hollywood Lakes or eat breakfast at the Giorgio's Bakery, get some beer at a waterfront bar, a pizza at Capone's, or dock at Le Tub, winner of the "best US hamburger" award despite its modest appearance; savor some Billy's stone crabs, or just lazily follow the canal while admiring a spectacular Florida sunset.
GOLDEN ISLES REAL ESTATE FOR SALE
Looking for another waterfront alternative in your search for a luxury home?
Harbor Islands
Another great area of Luxury Homes in South Hollywood, Florida.
Waterfront Homes close to the beach, in a great location, close to Supermarkets, Shopping Areas, Entertainment, Casino, Race-track, Mall.
A very secure, gated neighborhood, ideal for boat lovers.
GOLDEN ISLES REAL ESTATE
NEWS
Mortgage rates drop to another low, 4.58%
Mortgage rates have sunk to the lowest level in more than five decades, but consumers aren’t rushing to refinance their loans or buy homes. Mortgage company Freddie Mac said Thursday the average rate for 30-year fixed loans sank to 4.58 percent this week.
That’s down from the previous record of 4.69 percent set last week and the lowest since the mortgage company began keeping records in 1971. The last time they were cheaper was the 1950s, when most long-term home loans lasted just 20 or 25 years. Rates have fallen over the past two months. Investors wary of the European debt crisis and the stock market have shifted money into the safety of Treasury bonds, driving down yields. Mortgage rates tend to track the yields on long-term Treasurys. On Wednesday, the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note dropped to 2.95 percent. That was the first time it has fallen below 3 percent since April 2009, when the markets were beginning to recover from the financial crisis.
But tighter lending standards and declining home equity have made it difficult for many borrowers to refinance. Many who do qualify have already done so over the past 18 months. Applications for mortgages rose nearly 9 percent last week from a week earlier, the Mortgage Bankers Association said Wednesday. But they remain at only about half the level of early 2009 and a far cry from the refinancing boom of 2003 through 2005, when home prices were soaring and borrowers were able to pull equity out of their homes to pay for home renovations, boats and vacation homes.
Many Americans owe more on their mortgages than their homes are worth and can’t refinance through the usual channels. The Obama administration has launched programs to help borrowers refinance if they owe up to 25 percent more than their home’s value and have their loans guaranteed by mortgage giants Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae. About 291,000 homeowners have participated as of March - a small fraction of the estimated 15 million homeowners who are underwater” on their mortgages. “I expect to see pockets of re-fi activity versus an overall wave,” said Scott Buchta, chief mortgage strategist with Braver Stern Securities. “The problem is, for many borrowers, they don’t have the equity in their homes.” If rates drop below 4.5 percent, Buchta said, that might spark a burst of refinancing activity. But it would be limited to people who refinanced or bought homes over the past year and have rates of 5 percent or higher.
To calculate the national average, Freddie Mac collects mortgage rates on Monday through Wednesday of each week from lenders around the country. Rates often fluctuate significantly, even within a given day. Rates on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages fell to an average of 4.04 percent, the lowest on records dating to September 1991 and down from 4.13 percent a week earlier. Rates on five-year adjustable-rate mortgages averaged 3.79 percent, down from 3.84 percent a week earlier. That was also the lowest on Freddie Mac’s records, which date back only to January 2005. Average rates on one-year adjustable-rate mortgages rose to 3.8 percent from 3.77 percent. The rates do not include add-on fees known as points. One point is equal to 1 percent of the total loan amount. the nationwide fee for all types of loans in Freddie Mac’s survey averaged 0.7 a point. Refinancing is generally considered worthwhile for homeowners who can shave at least three-quarters of a percentage point off the rates they pay now and plan to stay in their homes for a long time.
Besides the fees for the mortgage broker or lender, there are fees for title insurance, a new appraisal, document processing and other charges. In “no fee” mortgages, costs are often added to the loan amount, or the interest rate is higher.
From FloridaRealtors.org – July 2, 2010