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You are here: Home / Archives for port charlotte

Easter, Where Hope Springs Eternal

April 15, 2022 by Gary Cardillo

If I had to summarize my outlook on life, I would have to say Alexander Pope’s “An Essay On Man” depicted it best when he wrote, “Hope springs eternal in the human breast.” Various interpretations characterize his words: “People will always be optimistic and think something better is coming.” That certainly describes me!

I’ve often thought, “Is it the child in me who wants to see life through rose-colored glasses, or is it my desire to see the best in people and what life offers?” I sense I’m not the only one as I find many who I meet are on the same path as me, looking for those little nuggets along our life’s journey that bring us joy. When you think about it, every month of the year has that little “treat” we refer to as a holiday we celebrate with great anticipation. However, when you look into the history of many of these holidays, their origins are vastly different than how we celebrate them today. We have molded them into a day that makes us feel good and gives us that renewed “optimism.” Think about it. January starts our new year, a clean slate, if you will. Some people look at it as a start of a better year than the previous one. New resolutions are made, and who cares if they are broken a few weeks later, we feel like we got a fresh start. February brings us Valentine’s Day, and who would think we somehow could turn a day honoring 2 Christian martyrs into a romantic day for lovers. March amazes me as St. Patrick would never have deemed people from all walks of life and races would claim their Irish heritage and celebrate it until all hours of the night. Somewhere along the way, the fact that it was to celebrate the arrival of Christianity into Ireland got lost between the corned beef, Irish soda bread, and another round of beer. May brings us spring flowers, Cinco de Mayo, and a day to honor our Mothers. While I understood the significance of Mother’s Day and spring flowers, can someone explain how a kid from New York interprets a day when Mexico celebrates its victory over the French Empire in The Battle of Puebla, known as Cinco de Mayo,” as one he should commemerate as well? June was one of my favorite months as it was not only the month of my birthday but Father’s Day and the start of another great summer. Soon to follow was the 4th of July, and all we could think of were those great summertime barbeques and firework displays and not so much as those who gave of themselves fighting for our independence. While August didn’t have any particular holiday we looked forward to, it was the last month of a summer that was in full swing. Then came Labor Day, and once again, we somehow interpreted this day that originated as an observance of the labor unions contributions to the U.S. economy, as almost a weekend of rest and one final celebration before heading back to the drudgery of another school year. If you were like me, I bet you couldn’t wait for Halloween to arrive, and whoever would have thought we could have turned a day of observance for the deceased, martyrs, and saints into a night of ghoulish activities, costumes, and shopping bags full of candy! November brought Thanksgiving, which not only was the beginning of the holiday season but seemed to make us a bit more appreciative of the things for which to be grateful. There was a desire to savor the day in the company of family and friends, and it was perhaps one of the few holidays that genuinely made us reflect on the significance of that day. Then came Christmas for those of the Christian faith, and like most kids, it was a day we looked forward to since the end of summer. While it was supposed to signify the birth of Jesus Christ and God’s plan to bring salvation to the world, somehow, our focus was more about the gifts we showered on each other, and the Christ child in a manger got hidden behind that new bicycle and the mountain of toys.

I bet you think I forgot about April, didn’t you? For many, it represents the month that “God giveth and the taxman taketh away.” Perhaps Easter is God’s way of helping us endure that pain; however, Easter represents much more to me. The beginning of spring was starting to bloom. The air seemed fresher, and everything seemed to come back to life. As a child, my early recollections were of an Easter Bunny delivering a brightly colored basket full of jelly beans, a chocolate cross and rabbit, and a stuffed baby duckling, all nestled on a bed of colored cellophane grass. But, of course, no Easter would be complete without the dying of eggs and the Easter egg hunt that soon followed. As I got older, I thought, what sense did all of this make. Easter is supposed to be a celebration of the risen Christ and the hope of many for eternal life, and somehow we have a rabbit delivering colored eggs and candy. Did someone tell the rabbit he walked onto the wrong movie set?

I was relieved to find, according to Time, this “egg-laying hare” stems from a pagan tradition known as the Festival of Eostre, which honored the goddess of fertility and spring. It is said the goddess’s animal symbol was the rabbit, which stood for high fertility and reproduction rates. If you live in my community you will see first-hand the rabbits have successfully continued this time-honored tradition! However, in the 1700’s, German Immigrants coming to Pennsylvania brought this tradition of “Osterhase” or “Oschter Haws,” an egg-laying hare that would lay colorful eggs and give them to good children. I can’t tell you my relief as I must have been one of the good ones, or of mistaken identity, as I always awakened to a big Easter basket full of every sugar-filled treat known to man!

So what does Easter mean to me? Unlike most holidays steep in tradition, I always felt it was the start of something extraordinary inside me and the world around me. Everything seemed new and fresh; it was almost as if life was just beginning. As I’ve grown older, it has taken on a different perspective as chocolate bunnies and colored eggs have given way to more of a reflective period. Easter has almost become a better time to make those resolutions in bettering ourselves and sharing our gifts with others. I’ve often wondered if we make our New Year’s resolutions at the beginning of each year as something genuinely positive to look forward to, or is it our feeble attempt to distract us from the suffering of those long, harsh winters? After all, how many of those good intentions become just that after only a few short weeks? Yes, guilty as charged! For those who share the Christian faith, Christ’s death and resurrection was that opportunity to bury the old negative thoughts and way of life in exchange for a better, more rewarding eternal life. One in which we could find total enjoyment in the simple pleasures life had to offer without trying to create distractions to get us through each day. This is, to me, the actual “Hope Eternal,” as Easter has brought me a renewed appreciation for the things I have, the friends that surround me, and the hope of a better world to come.
My hope is this Easter season brings the same joy to you.
-Gary Cardillo

Filed Under: Community Information Tagged With: buying real estate, easter, florida, flwaterfront, gary cardillo, listing agent, meaning of easter, pgrealtor, port charlotte, punta gorda, realtor, selling real estate

Is there a reason my home’s assessed value differs compared to the market value?

August 20, 2021 by Gary Cardillo

A public tax assessor gives the assessed value for a property. This assessment typically occurs yearly for taxation purposes. The fair market value is an agreed-upon price between a willing buyer and seller. There is usually a difference between the assessed value and market value. For homeowners, the assessed value is a double-edged sword. Because, if their annual assessed value increased then their yearly taxes will also be raised.
On the flip side, when selling a house it can help boost its market value. To get a market value, Individuals can purchase an appraisal on their own or hire a real estate agent to perform a comparative market analysis. You may want to do this if you’re thinking about selling and want to know how much to list the property for, or have your eye on a home for sale and are curious if it’s a fair price.
As a homeowner, there are many reasons to know your market value. For example, if you bought a home several years ago and the value increased, you have more home equity. You can leverage this to qualify for refinancing or secure a home equity loan.
When it comes to assessed value, you might wonder what happens if you live in an area where the housing market is hot and homes are selling for far more than they’re worth. After all, that’s not exactly fair to homeowners who don’t want to sell and are stuck with the rising tax bill. The good news is that many states and municipalities have laws in place to prevent property taxes from jumping along with inflated property values.
As always, I am here to help you figure out the best value for your home in this market or if you have any questions feel free to reach out. Gary Cardillo 941.676.1008
Source: Forbes

Filed Under: Buying Real Estate, Selling Real Estate Tagged With: assessed value, florida, gary cardillo, home value, market value, port charlotte, punta gorda, real estate, tax assessor, tax charlotte county

Good News for a Change

July 28, 2020 by Gary Cardillo

If you’re like me it seems every time you turn on the t.v. or pick up a newspaper there is nothing but negative news. If it isn’t the Coronavirus it is the political and racial divisiveness that is making front page news. The left is yelling at you “we want change,” the right is screaming “come to your senses.” Can’t I just be left alone? And let’s not forget about the stock market. I don’t know about you, but I don’t think any Disney World roller coaster ride has anything over the highs and lows we are seeing in the stock market.  One day it is up 800 points and the next day it is down 400. What is going on with this country we live in? Can’t we just go back to the way things used to be?Call me an eternal optimist, but for some time I decided to take a step back and take a look at things from a different perspective. Sure, I have my opinions, but what if I quieted down the entire minutia and got back to the basics of what were the most fond moments of my youth? What I found was without all the clamor the very things I held most dear I was having an opportunity to experience again.  I, too, got caught up in the rat race of everyday life and the simple things I thought of most I was now being given another opportunity to enjoy.
I was forced to slow down and savor each day and the friends we have made along the way . It was the same feeling I had after working in the “concrete jungle” of New York City and coming to Florida 21 years ago. It was like a breath of fresh air that afforded us a quality of life we didn’t have in New York because of the fast paced lifestyle. Unfortunately like most, we got so caught up with work and projects around the home we didn’t take the time to savor the life we found those twenty one years ago. However, the Coronavirus changed all that and we’ve not only had an opportunity to reflect on what really matters in life, but how fortunate we really are.
Closer to home in the smaller cities like Venice and Punta Gorda you are seeing the embrace of a community and a quiet enthusiasm that is translating into new developments and business. Once seen only as places to escape the cold weather up north, we are now seeing somewhat of an exodus from those looking to escape the high taxes and congestion for a better way of life.
I sat down to interview Mark and Leigh McCann who are Captains with Allegiant Airlines . In fact, Leigh is the most tenured Captain in Punta Gorda that has 38 Captains based here and 36 First Officers.  According to Mark and Leigh, air travel dropped in March, but came back in May and June very strong. Out of the 186 passengers the planes can hold, they were flying typically with 170 passengers and sometimes more!
Back in 2007 & 2008 when airlines were suffering from the downturn in the economy, Allegiant was the only profitable airline and up to this pandemic had 70 consecutive quarters of profitability. While the stimulus was supposed to keep the airline industry running through September, like many airlines, Allegiant had plans to furlough an estimated 30% of its pilots however, now there is not only no plans to furlough anyone, they are training new pilots.
Mark and Leigh continued by saying while other airlines are downsizing and pulling out of marginal routes, Allegiant will have an opportunity to pick up new routes and more equipment (planes). The attribute Allegiant’s success to tourist or pleasure travel, not business travel and said they have developed a loyal passenger base.
Turning our conversation to Sunseeker, Mark went on to say, we have a connection to this community, and for all the positives that Allegiant is doing for the community by bringing passengers from various points around the country to our area, the last thing they want is to be tied to a failed project.  H e said while it was important to make sure the airline remained on solid ground during this time, which led them to delaying the development of Sunseeker , the 18 month delay was seen as a conservative estimate and that they hope to resume the project prior to then . He said as a company they are cautiously optimistic, but optimistic nevertheless!
Turning back to the real estate market and it’s upturn in activity, RE/MAX Harbor had 61 showings for the month of May, however that number dramatically increased in June to 458! Yes, people are still looking to move from the large cities where this pandemic has had them reconsider their routine of day to day activities. They are finding out what we’ve known all along…. “Quality of life.”  And it comes from moving to those smaller, quaint towns with a feel of community.
In speaking with those in the RV and marine industries, sales have increased dramatically and as one representative from a local marine company said, “We just can’t find any new or used boats to meet the demand.”And most recently, Punta Gorda was named #2 in  USA Today’s Readers Choice Awards for “Best Small Town Food Scene.” 
All this and more is why we love living in Southwest Florida and why others are choosing to do so as well. As we soar through 2020, all the ups and downs, I think something we can all agree that truly matters is our faith, family, sense of community, and stopping to focus on all the good around us.
-Gary Cardillo

Filed Under: Community Information Tagged With: allegiant, charlotte county, charlotte harbor, florida, gary cardillo, good news, port charlotte, punta gorda, real estate, waterfront

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