Neighborhood updates, market color, land and ownership economics — the things I'd tell you over coffee, written down. No pressure, just honest numbers.
Land-clearing burns are legal again in Baldwin County starting November 1. Here's what the state allows, what your city or the county may require, and the order to do it in.
Read the note →The Intracoastal Waterway cuts Gulf Shores in two, and the rules change past the city limits. Here's an honest look at the beach town before you buy in it.
Read the note →Property tax bills land this fall on both sides of the state line. If your escrow was set off the seller's old bill, here is how to spot the jump before your mortgage payment does.
Read the note →First-time buyers here get surprised by the same three things: insurance, condo financing and the cash you need after closing. What to price first, and the help that's out there.
Read the note →Thinking about moving down? A month on the coast in January answers questions a summer vacation never will. What to test, where to drive, and what to price while you're here.
Read the note →Most pre-listing money on the coast goes to the wrong things. Here's the prep that tends to pay back, the prep that doesn't, and the paperwork that costs nothing.
Read the note →A parcel with no recorded access is cheap for a reason. How to check the way in, what an easement does and doesn't give you, and the questions to ask before you write an offer on land.
Read the note →Perdido Key sits just across the state line from Orange Beach. Florida rules, a protected beach mouse and condo inspection law change the math. Here's what to check first.
Read the note →Near the water, "what's the insurance?" usually has three answers: homeowners, wind and flood. What each layer covers, where the gaps hide, and the deductible math to run before you offer.
Read the note →Moving to Baldwin County or Perdido Key this fall? Check the address, evacuation route, and cost of leaving before the boxes are unpacked.
Read the note →A brand-new house comes with a city sign-off and a builder warranty. Neither one is an inspection. What each actually covers, what the state can and can't do, and when to hire your own.
Read the note →In September, 746 Baldwin County listings cut their price and 36 raised it. Here's how to price a coastal home so the market doesn't have to correct you.
Read the note →New Baldwin County listings fell about 24 percent from last September, and per-foot asking prices nearly stopped sliding. What that means if you're buying or selling before the holidays.
Read the note →Buying a lot now and building later is a different loan than buying and building at once. Here's how the two paths work in Baldwin County, with honest math.
Read the note →Spanish Fort sits where I-10 comes off the Bayway. Full construction on the new Mobile River Bridge starts Oct. 1, so here's the honest math on living at the front door.
Read the note →Your job moves with you, but your internet doesn't. How to check an exact address, plan for storm-week outages, and do the airport math before you write an offer.
Read the note →Before a winter booking, check the repairs, utility terms, and arrival instructions. A practical fall checklist for Gulf Shores rental owners.
Read the note →Fall on the Gulf Coast gives buyers real room to negotiate, just not on the things most people push. What a listing's price history tells you, and where a builder will actually bend.
Read the note →Your buyer can't close without wind and flood coverage in hand, and in September that coverage can stop being available overnight. Here's the timing a coastal seller should be watching.
Read the note →Condo dues on the coast are a stack of costs, not a price tag. How to read the budget, what Alabama law makes the seller hand over, and the one question to ask on the Florida side.
Read the note →A water line or sewer marker near Baldwin County land does not settle the utility question. Here is what to verify before you write the offer.
Read the note →Beach access, boat access, and rental rights are three separate questions in Orange Beach. Here is what to verify before you price the property.
Read the note →A sunny showing cannot tell you where water goes. Four practical checks for a Gulf Coast buyer before the inspection clock runs out.
Read the note →Florida has no state income tax and Alabama does. But Alabama taxes an owner-occupied home on a tenth of its value. Here is the worked math on both sides of the Perdido Key line.
Read the note →Alabama will pay up to $10,000 toward a FORTIFIED roof. The catch most sellers find out too late: your home can't be listed for sale while the grant is in process.
Read the note →A projection sheet says gross rent. Your deposit says something else. Here is where the money goes on a Gulf Shores rental, line by line, with the tax and license rules named.
Read the note →Baldwin County inventory is down about 9 percent from last year, but asking prices are down too, and per-foot pricing fell faster. What that means if you're buying or selling this fall.
Read the note →What BFE plus one foot of freeboard actually costs you, why fill can't fix a V-zone lot, and the five questions to ask before you write an offer on coastal Alabama dirt.
Read the note →The bluff, the pier, and the two things nobody warns you about before you buy here: whether the land under the house is leased, and whether a Fairhope address is inside the city limits.
Read the note →If you didn't list this summer, you didn't miss your window. Here's what actually changes on the Gulf Coast after Labor Day, and how to price and prep a fall listing.
Read the note →Peak season shows you the traffic, the parking, the noise and the real beach access that a quiet winter tour never will. Then the market gets calmer. Use both.
Read the note →Zero down isn't zero cost, BAH is a ceiling not a budget, and renting it out later doubles your Alabama tax assessment. Real numbers before you sign anything.
Read the note →Wind and flood renewals land in late summer here. What to check before you auto-pay, and when a jump means it's time to shop or rethink.
Read the note →Why condo assessments keep landing, what they signal about your building, and how to decide between paying, appealing, or trading up. Plain numbers, no panic.
Read the note →Ten minutes from the sand without the beach-town price tag. What Foley actually offers buyers, what it doesn't, and who it fits.
Read the note →Perc tests, power poles, clearing costs, flood zones. The questions to ask before you write an offer on dirt, from someone whose family clears and builds on it.
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