These are extraordinary times in Florida real estate.
As the COVID pandemic was taking took more American lives than World War’s I and II, Korea, and Viet Nam combined, the US work force transitioned from the office to working from home.
Northern Florida home values rose at record breaking levels as families chose to move to our area.
Nocatee, a planned master community within the Ponte Vedra ‘city limits’, has seen home values rise at record setting levels. Like the rest of Florida and the US we have seen key real estate indicators reflect a slow down in the market place. Key metrics indicate the interest rates are the main culprit in this slow down.
Homes for Hometown Heroes is a real estate practice headquartered in Nocatee (Ponte Vedra, FL), founded by Bill Grant, a licensed FL real estate sales associate that complies with the best practices of the Florida Homes Realty & Mortgage brokerage, and is a REALTOR® in good standing with Northeast Florida Association of Realtors (NEFAR), and the National Associate of Realtors (NAR).
Homes for Hometown Heroes is a real estate practice dedicated to serving those that serve with the express purpose of giving back to the heroes and their families serve our community.
Grant is also the founder and CFO of Grant Realty LLC, a family owned business with the mission of developing a real estate based legacy for our children and our children’s children. As investors that have built 6 homes in Nocatee we remain bullish about future returns on northern Florida real estate. Most financial pundits and talking heads recommended real estate and related companies in 2022.
As a blue collar kid that grew up in the suburbs of Boston our family get togethers were mostly comprised of policemen, firefighters, utility workers, government workers, teachers, coaches and their families. The availability of high quality medical services and great school systems in Massachusetts were the foundation of our pursuit of the American Dream.
Our local Northern Florida communities provide access to great schools and world class medical services which will enable our children and their children’s children to pursue their American dreams.
Homes for Hometown Heroes show our appreciation to those that serve our community by lowering their costs of their real estate transactions.
By how much?
By $1500 per $100,000 of the real estate transaction’s price. That’s our way of saying ‘thank you for your service.’
And that’s not counting the customer driven value added services and financial incentives offered by our partners.
Homes for Hometown Heroes was launched in 2022 by Bill Grant, a licensed Florida sales associate, a REALTOR® in good standing with Florida Homes Mortgage and Realty, the Northeast Florida Association of Realtors (NeFAR), and the National Association of Realtors (NAR).
Grant graduated in 1977 from the SC Johnson College of Business at Cornell University with a Bachelor of Science in Hotel Administration. The cornerstone of the Statler Building on Cornell’s campus is inscribed with ‘Life is service. The man who progresses is the one that gives his fellow man a little more, a little better service.’ Grant is one of the thousands of ‘Hotelies’ around the world that live to serve.
Service was the current that ran through Grant’ s career with Marriott hotels in financial management, later as a technology sales exec that served the hospitality and restaurant industries, and culminated with his founding of POSabilities, a Florida based technology services company that served clients in the restaurant, retail, and sports arena industries. This career involved buying, building, and selling of more than 10 homes in CA, England, Virginia, Texas, and Florida.
Grant became a licensed real estate associate soon after selling POSabilities to his former partner.
The seed for Homes for Hometown Heroes grew from a 2021 discussion group within Florida Homes that was centered on serving military personnel (active duty, reservists, and retired) and their families. As two of Grant’s 4 children and 6 out of 11 he and wife Cindy’s grandchildren serve in active duty military (Navy and Marines) families Grant was an active participant in these discussions.
In forming Hometown Heroes Grant wanted to expand the foundation of serving the military to include those that served our communities to include, policemen and women, firefighters, teachers, medical industry staff and professionals, hospitality industry staff, coaches, community volunteers, and grocery industry staff.
Grant and wife Cindy are the founders of Grant Realty Trust LLC, the corporate vehicle that owns and operates family real estate investments which will comprise the bulk of the legacy which we will pass on to our heirs.
Our service ‘proposition’ is based upon superior service and a monetary ‘thank you’ in the form of sharing commissions we earned as a real estate agent on ‘heroes’ transactions.
Grant is active in the community. As a member of the Cornell Alumni Admissions Ambassador Network (CAAAN) Grant meets with Cornell applicants from our community. Grant is passionate about providing gratis college counseling to aspiring students and student athletes and was a pre-pandemic volunteer at Blessings in a Backpack (a Crosswater Church ministry that provides weekend food to students on the Federal Subsidized School Lunch Program). Currently Grant coaches his granddaughters recreational basketball teams based at the Ponte Vedra Y. Grant coached JV basketball locally at the high school level (Providence and St Joseph Academy), as well as at the AAU and competitive levels at the YMCA Ponte Vedra.
As a coach Grant developed an individualized quadrant based development plan for student athletes that aspire. The quadrants are a personal development plan that consist of goals, measurable tasks and milestones for academic achievement, repetitions for building skills, habits for building strong bodies (conditioning, nutrition and strength), and that elusive 4th quadrant; resilience/mental toughness/character/team/respect.
It should not be surprising then that Grant works with clients that are selling their homes to develop a customized ‘Fast Break’ Plan which is designed to ‘win’ an offer within the first week of listing their property.
Life is service. We would be honored to serve you and your family.
Service
To provide world-class service to those that serve; police, fire fighters, teachers, coaches, grocery and hospitality industry associates, community volunteers, military (active, reserve, and/or retired), government staff (local, state, and federal), and medical field associates.
Financial Incentives as a Thank You
To say ‘thank you for service’ we will credit the Hometown Hero with 15% of our real estate commission earned. When we handle both the buying and the selling ‘side’ of the transaction, you will receive 15% on each ‘side’ of the commission earned.
The easiest way to calculate your thank your credit is for each $100,000 and fraction thereof, multiply by $1,500.
This credit will be documented in writing with you in our listing/representative agreement(s), pre-approved in writing in instructions to the title company prepared by our broker to be credited on your ALTA/HUD-1 closing statement. Alternatively, our Heroes can opt to receive a check at closing.
Further Incentives from our Partner
We partner with companies that share our passion for serving those that serve AND are in our experience set the standard for excellence in their segment of the real estate industry. We recommend those companies that will lower the costs associated with buying or selling real estate, hold builders accountable on new construction projects and protect your real estate assets.
We do not receive monetary value from our partner companies. But we do sleep well at night.
Respect
We will treat all prospective clients, clients, real estate professionals, partners, and all that we meet on our journey, with respect. We will adhere to the golden rule ‘So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them …’ Matthew 7:12
Honesty
We will be 100% honest in our words and deeds. We will own and rectify all of our mistakes. We will be 100% honest and accountable when dealing with capital, transactions, and taxes.
Subservience
We will be subservient to our clients, peers, and partners. We will seek first to listen, understand, and confirm our understanding prior to speaking.
We believe there is a reason we were given two ears and one tongue.
‘Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves.’
A key component of our value proposition is the providing you with a financial incentive as our way of saying thank you for your service.
Simply stated, your incentive can be calculated as 15% of the commission we would normally earn on your real estate transaction.
This incentive will be documented on your ALTA or HUD Closing Statement as a credit to you, the buyer and/or seller. Alternatively, you may opt for receiving your 15% Heroes incentive as a check payable at closing.
We’ve created some illustrations as how this might work for you.
Sale Price: 300,000
Commission: 3%
Commission $: 9,000
Your Incentive: 9,000 *.15 = $1,350
Sales Price: 300,000
Commission: 2.5%
Commission $: 7,500
Your Incentive: 7,500*.15 = $1,125
Sale Price: 500,000
Commission: 3%
Commission $: 15,000
Your Incentive: 15,000*.15 = 2,250
Sales Price: 500,000
Commission: 2.5%
Commission $: 12,500
Your incentive: 12,500*.15 = 1,875
Sales Price: 1,000,000
Commission: 3%
Commission $: 30,000
Your Incentive: 30,000*.15 = 4,500
Sales Price: 1,000,000
Commission: 2.5%
Commission $: 25,000
Your Incentive: 25,000*.15 = 3,750
Our partners provide additional financial incentives to Hometown Heroes.
Bill Grant is a member of the Cornell Alumni Admission Ambassador’s Network and conducts approximately 20 informational sessions per year with high school students across Northern Florida seeking admittance to Cornell University. These students without exception are high achievers that have put in the work.
Grant has also counseled many student athletes that aspire to D1 academic powerhouses (the Ivies and the military academies) and D3 programs with leading academic programs in the students’ desired field of studies. Grant provides college counselling services to any and all families on a gratis basis.
St John’s County boasts having the top ranked school system in Florida. While this is true, it is interesting to note that Duval County has three high schools ranked higher than St John’s County high schools.
For the comprehensive ranking of public high schools in the area please consult with the US News & World Reports rankings at https://www.usnews.com/education/best-high-schools/florida/rankings/jacksonville-fl-27260
It should be noted these USN&WR rankings heavily factor the number of Advance Placement exams taken by the senior class. It should be noted that there is no data reported on the outcomes of those exams.
We recommend doing your own research on schools and school systems. For those with high achievers with aspiration you may want to consider International Baccalaureate programs. The local school systems also feature career oriented and or academic academies https://cte.stjohns.k12.fl.us/academies/
Private High Schools
For a comprehensive ranking of private high schools in the area please consult with the Niche Best Schools ranking at https://www.niche.com/k12/search/best-private-high-schools/m/jacksonville-area/.
Junior ROTC Programs
One of the best values in high school educational opportunities that prepare young men and women of character and may eventually provide 100% college tuition scholarships is the Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps programs available at select public and private high schools. JROTC programs ‘develop citizens of character dedicated to serving their nation and communities.’
For further information please visit https://www.todaysmilitary.com/ways-to-serve/service-branches?&gclid=d3189ff1089c1fd17c44fe5f5bee7a82&gclsrc=3p.ds
Most often recognized as Jacksonville’s area code, the towns/municipalities of the 904 include 7 counties and 23 municipalities.
Duval County: Jacksonville, Atlantic Beach, Neptune Beach, Jacksonville Beach,
St Johns County: St. Augustine, St Johns, Ponte Vedra Beach, Hastings
Nassau County: Fernandina Beach, Yulee, Hilliard, Callahan
Clay County: Middleburg, Fleming Island, Orange Park, Green Cove Springs, Keystone Heights
Baker County: Macclenny, Glen Saint Mary, Sanderson
Bradford County: Starke, Lawtey
Union County: Raiford
The real estate markets in the 904 are varied and include upscale luxury beach communities, world class golf developments, 2 distinct urban centers in Jacksonville and St. Augustine, award winning master planned suburban communities, a multitude of 55+ communities, as well as country and rural lifestyles generally located towards the center of the state.
Some of our favorite things to do in the area include:
The Players Championship. Recognized as professional golf’s ‘5th Major’, the Players is held annually at the Sawgrass TPC and is one of the major social and local fundraising events of the year. The 2023 Players was held on March 7 – 12th. The field is always strong and many of the golf pro’s that live in the 904 attract large followings. For information and tickets https://www.theplayers.com/ . We recommend attending the military appreciation day festivities for a uniquely Jacksonville experience.
Jacksonville Jaguars. DUUUVALLLLL. The Jags have finally righted the trainwreck. There’s nothing like a Jags game at TIA Field. The Jag’s stadium experience is routinely rated in the top 5 experiences in the NFL. Can you imagine swimming at an NFL game? We’re definitely not in Buffalo, Dorothy! https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=%2Fphoto%2F2018%2F0104%2Fr310355_1296x729_16%2D9.jpg&w=1140&cquality=40&format=jpg
Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp. The Jumbo Shrimp have been the Minor A League affiliate of the Miami Marlins since 2018. The stadium rocks most nights and like most minor league baseball experiences are a great value, very safe and family friendly, and often gets the kids inspired to be baseball fans with activities like running the bases. Be on the look-out for $1 Beer and $1 Hot Dog Thursday night specials.
Golf. There’s a reason one of the Florida license plate options is the ‘Golf Capital of the World’ https://myfloridaspecialtyplate.com/golf-capital-of-the-world.html . Northern Florida boasts some amazing tracts. During the winter green fees can be expensive. But during the rest of the year, bargains abound. I do not complain about the heat during the summer. I pack extra bottles of water in my bag and marvel at the bargains. Try the King and Bear course at the World Golf Village, the only Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus collaboration in the world. While your there visit the World Golf Hall of Fame for a unique historical treat. For golfers new to the area we recommend checking out a fantastic introduction to the NoFL golf scene that also supports youth golf https://firstteenorthflorida.org/first-tee-tour-card/ .
St Augustine. The oldest city in North America is a treasure where history abounds. St. Augustine is a walkable city and is very much an up and coming foodie and craft beer destination. A real treat is the annual Nights of Lights festival https://www.visitstaugustine.com/article/7-ways-to-see-nights-lights. Book a private electric cart and if you’re lucky you may need to bring a blanket as the weather can get cold – and maybe even dip into the 60’s!
Amelia Island. The entire downtown section of Fernandina Beach is listed on the National Historic Register. Amelia Island is home to Fort Clinch, award winning B&B’s, world class beach resorts, incredible golf and tennis, unique biking trails, nice restaurants (our favorite is Le Clos, one block off of the main street’s historic district) and fantastic shopping. For those into triathlons, Amelia hosts various Olympic, Sprint, and Kid’s mini-tri’s.
Bike Riding. Florida’s climate is well suited for bicycling enthusiasts of all ages and skill levels. Check out the trails along former railroad tracks for some amazing rides. https://www.flacyclist.com/content/routes/fl/cross/florida.html Bicycle shops proliferate in FL and are a wealth of info on their local biking scenes.
The Beach. Choices, choices, choices! The Atlantic Ocean in northern Florida features wide dunes, some deep expanses of beach, a few car accessible beaches, some pretty awesome surfing spots (and great academies for newbies), and great beachside restaurants and bars.
Craft Beer Scene. Jacksonville and St. Augustine boast of vibrant craft beer scenes. Jacksonville’s Brew Bus is simply an AWESOME experience. I love sipping an I-10 on Intuition’s upstairs deck overlooking the baseball park and football stadium. Quite a special DUVAAAALLLL scene.
St Johns River. Jacksonville, the River City, sitting at the northern end of the St Johns River, boasts 7 bridges that span the river. The river is the longest river in Florida and the only river in the western hemisphere that flows north. The river is diverse; it is the home to both Naval bases Mayport and NAS Jax as well as Jacksonville’s waterfront, upscale suburban developments, and many Florida country lifestyles. The river is for the most part shallow and is often fed by lakes and springs. This river is worth exploring!
The Arts. Since 1564 Jacksonville has been a diverse source of culture, arts, and festivals. Plan your review of the local offerings at https://www.visitjacksonville.com/things-to-do/culture/.
After attaining a Rutgers undergraduate finance degree and later an MBA from Jacksonville University, and after researching other brokerages and their business models, James Angelo founded Florida Homes Realty and Mortgage (FHRM) in 2008.
Angelo drove, and continues to drive business value by taking exceptional care of the Realtors that join his firm.
Today, FHRM is the fifth largest real estate brokerage in the state of Florida.
Service is what drives Angelo. ‘‘We have achieved several awards and accolades over the years and continue to do so, but what we are most proud of is our commitment to serve our family of agents as they serve the community.”
Service and recognizing those that serve our communities is what drives Homes for Hometown Heroes.