Buyers

Buying in Central Florida, with someone who does the homework.

The internet will hand you every listing in the county. What it won’t tell you is which ones are a mistake.

What buyers actually want from an agent

Eighty-eight percent of buyers purchase through an agent, and when asked why, the answers are consistent: help finding the right home, help negotiating, and help with the paperwork. More than half said their agent pointed out features or flaws they hadn’t noticed themselves.

That last one is the whole job. Anyone can send you listings. The value is in the things you would not have thought to check — and in Florida there are more of those than almost anywhere else.

  • 88%Of buyers purchased through an agent
  • 46%Started their search online
  • 10 wksMedian time spent searching
  • $3,815Average Florida insurance premium per year

Which of these sounds like you?

Each one gets its own page, because the questions are genuinely different. Pick whichever fits and start there.

The five questions that decide whether a Florida house is a good idea

None of them are the asking price. Every buyer I represent gets all five answered in writing, during the inspection period, while there is still time to walk away.

  • First question

    Can this house be insured, and for how much?

    Florida premiums average around $3,815 a year, roughly 40–50% above the national average. The market has started to ease — the state-backed insurer filed for an average 8.7% decrease and 73 private carriers filed reductions — but it is still the line item most likely to change what you can afford. And some houses can’t be insured at a sensible price at all.

    You need a real quote from a licensed insurance agent while your inspection period is open. Not an estimate, and not after closing.

  • Second question

    How old is the roof, really?

    Carriers weigh roof age above almost everything. An older roof can mean a declined policy, and no policy means no mortgage — even when the inspector says the roof has years left. On the other side, a wind mitigation inspection on a newer roof with the right features can earn premium discounts in the 15–50% range.

  • Third question

    What flood zone is it in, and does that match the premium?

    Central Florida is flat and drains slowly. Houses nowhere near water sit in flood zones, and houses on a lake sometimes don’t. Zone X and Zone AE are a meaningful monthly difference, and where it matters an elevation certificate can move the number considerably.

  • Fourth question

    What was done to this house, and did anyone pull a permit?

    Enclosed lanais, added bathrooms, replaced electrical panels, re-roofs. Unpermitted work becomes your problem the moment you own it — and it can complicate both insurance and your eventual resale. It’s a public records search, and I do it.

  • Fifth question

    What does the HOA or CDD actually cost, and what does it forbid?

    Many newer Central Florida communities carry a Community Development District assessment on top of HOA dues, repaying the bonds that built the roads and utilities. Two houses at the same price can have very different real monthly costs. For condos there is a further layer: the association’s reserve position and whether a special assessment is coming.

The due diligence report

Every buyer I represent gets one, on whatever house goes under contract. Delivered during the inspection period, in writing. Included with my representation — you pay only third-party costs such as the inspection itself.

What’s in it, every time

  • A bindable insurance quote from a licensed insurance agent — a real number, not a guess
  • Roof age measured against current underwriting rules — will a carrier write this house at all
  • Flood zone and, where it matters, elevation — and what each does to the premium
  • Permit history from county records
  • HOA and CDD rules and true monthly cost, in plain English
  • An estimated first-year tax bill at current millage — not the seller’s number, which resets when you buy

And depending on what you’re buying

  • On the water: seawall condition, dock permits, depth at the dock, chain access and locks, boat traffic
  • Relocating: property tax reset maths, school attendance boundaries confirmed with the district, honest drive times
  • First home: a walkthrough of every line of the report until it makes sense to you
  • Condo: association financials, reserve funding level, milestone inspection and structural reserve study status

How working together goes, in order

Five steps. The order matters — most of the expensive mistakes I see come from doing step four before step two.

  1. We talk, and you commit to nothing

    An hour on the phone or on video. What you want, where, and what your timeline actually is. If the honest answer is “maybe next spring,” that’s a fine answer and I’ll still answer your questions.

  2. You get pre-approved, and we build your real monthly number

    Pre-approved, not pre-qualified — with a lender who has actually read your documents. Then we add taxes, insurance, HOA and any CDD, because that total is what decides what you can buy. Not the list price.

  3. We sign a buyer agreement, and I explain every line

    Required before touring since August 2024. It’s an agreement with Haven Realty covering what I do and how I’m paid, and its length and scope are negotiable. I’ll go through it with you before you sign anything.

  4. We tour, and I tell you what I see

    Including the things that cost me money to mention. Water staining, a roof at the end of its life, fresh paint over something, a lot that sits lower than its neighbours.

  5. Offer, due diligence report, closing — and I don’t vanish afterwards

    The report lands during your inspection period while you can still walk away. After closing you get a contractor list, a reminder about the March 1 homestead deadline, and someone to call the first time something breaks.

My promise to you

If a house is wrong for you, I’ll tell you — in writing, before your inspection period closes.

The roof, the insurance quote, the flood zone, the seawall, the HOA rules, the stairs you’ll regret in ten years. I’ll put my concerns in writing while you can still walk away, even when it costs me the commission. You will never hear me talk up a house I wouldn’t buy myself.

About the paperwork, before you wonder

The rules changed in 2024 and nobody explained it well. Here it is plainly.

  • You do not need to sign anything to talk to me. Ask questions, get my read on a neighborhood, send me an address you spotted. No agreement, no obligation
  • To tour homes together, we do need a written buyer agreement. Since August 2024 that has been required before touring, including live virtual tours
  • The agreement is with Haven Realty, the brokerage I’m licensed under, and I’ll walk you through every line before you sign it
  • My compensation is stated in it as a specific amount or rate — never open-ended, and it can’t be exceeded from any source
  • Its length and scope are negotiable, and you should treat them that way. One property, one month, or longer — that’s a conversation, not a form
  • Sellers often contribute to buyer-side compensation, but since 2024 those offers no longer appear on the MLS, so it is negotiated deal by deal. We plan for both cases from the start
  • Broker fees are fully negotiable and not set by law

Questions buyers ask

Do I have to register on your site to search listings?
No. Search as much as you like. You’ll be asked for an email only if you want to save a search or get alerts when something new matches it, and that’s because those things need somewhere to send. I’d rather you browse freely than be cornered into a form.
How do you get paid?
Through Haven Realty, the brokerage I’m licensed under — a sales associate in Florida can only be paid by their own broker. The amount or rate is written into your buyer agreement before you sign it, and it’s negotiable. In many transactions the seller contributes toward it, but that’s negotiated per deal rather than advertised, so we plan for both outcomes at the start rather than hoping.
I’m six months out. Is it too early to talk?
It’s the best time. Six months is enough to fix a credit issue, save a little more, understand what your real monthly number looks like with insurance and taxes in it, and learn the neighborhoods properly rather than in a rush. Plenty of my clients started as a conversation that went nowhere for a year.
Can you show me houses listed by other agents?
Yes — nearly all of them. Everything in the MLS is available to show regardless of which brokerage has the listing, along with new construction and, in most cases, for-sale-by-owner properties. You don’t need a different agent for each house you like.
What about new construction? Do I need you?
The builder’s sales agent represents the builder, not you. You can bring your own representation and it’s usually wise to, particularly around the contract terms, the deposit structure, what’s actually included, the CDD assessment, and the pre-closing walkthrough. Bring me in before you sign anything at the sales center, not after.
How fast do you respond?
I answer my own phone and my own texts — no call centre, no assistant screening you. Same day, and usually within a couple of hours during business hours. If you’re standing in a driveway wondering about a house, call rather than email.

Start wherever suits you

Browse on your own, or book an hour and we’ll work out what’s realistic. Either is a perfectly good first move.

Book a call Search homes Call (863) 271-8700

Vince Reina, Licensed Real Estate Sales Associate · FL #SL3302950
Haven Realty — Licensed Florida Real Estate Brokerage · (863) 271-8700

Equal Housing Opportunity REALTOR® · MLS

Broker fees and commissions are fully negotiable and are not set by law. Figures on this page are current as of September 2026 and come from public sources including the National Association of REALTORS® 2025 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers and published Florida insurance market reporting. They are general market information, not a prediction or a quote for any particular property. Insurance premiums, loan terms, tax assessments, flood determinations, and HOA, CDD or condominium association costs vary by property and by buyer — verify your own numbers with a licensed insurance agent, a lender, your county property appraiser and a tax professional. Nothing here is legal, tax, insurance or lending advice.