Sales & Rentals

Welcome to Grand Isles and thank you for making the great choice to call our community your home!

REALTOR  MEETING              

FEBRUARY 24, 2022   9:30 AM – 11:00 AM

We recently held a meeting for REALTORS and made the following presentation.  The intention was to inform sales agents about our community as well as assist our homeowners in selling their homes to attain the best selling price possible.  Everything you need to know to sell or buy a home in Grand Isles is contained in the following information.  Thank you!

WELCOME

Introductions:

UPDATED APRIL 2024 – Our Board consists of 5 residents. Doreen Levy is the HOA Board President, Andrew Plevin is our Vice President, Jose Ruiz, is our Treasurer, Alan Fuhrman and Maureen Walsh are Directors.  Our Board members represent a variety of talent and expertise.  We reside in three of our five neighborhoods.  We are a great representation of our community and we work very well together.

This is an all-aged community; thus, we try to have the Board of Directors represent all different ages.

Our Property Manager is Tara Flynn.  Tara has been with us since March of 2024.  She has been an employee of Davenport for several years and is serving as a Portfolio Manager, She is on the grounds on Mondays and attends all Board of Director Meetings. She can be reached Tuesday through Friday by phone at the Davenport Property Management office in Lake Worth, about five miles east of here at 561-642-5080.

WHAT IS GRAND ISLES?

In 1996, the state of Florida approved Articles of Incorporation for a nonprofit organization known as “Orange Point Master Homeowners Association”.  Shortly after that, the name of the community was changed to “Grand Bay”. It was discovered that the name was not available, so it was changed to “Grand Isles”.  Palm Beach County was very involved at that time, as the Village of Wellington was just getting started.

The developers were Lennar Homes and Centex Homes.  Grand Isles is approximately 242 acres in size, with five Wildlife/Wetlands Preserves and one Wetlands area, which is much of our eastern border. We have nine bodies of water.

We have five neighborhoods: Lennar Homes built our Carmel Community (183 homes) and our Sausalito community (180 homes). Centex built Harbor Cove (120 homes), Emerald Bay (87 homes), and Emerald Point (41 homes). The community has 16 streets with 611 homes in total. Homes were started to be built in 1998 and homeowners started moving in 1999.  The community was well built-out by 2002.

WHAT MAKES GRAND ISLES UNIQUE?

Location, location.  We have Panther Run Elementary School to our immediate east and Polo Park Middle School to our immediate southwest, sharing a street. Both school Principals reside in our community. 

To our immediate west (along 120th street) is the International Polo Club. To our immediate north is the huge Wellington Village Park and Recreation which provides multiple sporting activities. 

We have two houses of worship within walking distance.  

Grand Isles is 1.5 miles west of Highway 441 and all the shopping and dining locations and a short distance southeast of the downtown Village of Wellington for more shopping and dining opportunities.

Lastly, on this topic, we know who we are.  We are an all-age, diverse community.  We do not have million-dollar homes (at least not yet), nor do we need a multi-million dollar clubhouse.

Our homes are selling on the low end from $545,000 to, on the high end, up to about $970,000 currently.  

Our monthly Master HOA Dues of $220.00 are the lowest around when considering the amenities offered and the overall condition of the community.

WHAT DOES GRAND ISLES OFFER ITS RESIDENTS?

We have Francisca Andrews a full-time, professional Assistant to the Property Manager onsite Tuesday through Saturday, 8 to 5. Francisca is the face of our community and the go-to person for our residents. Francisca is very professional, personable, and organized.  She is responsible for the daily administration operation of Grand Isles. Tara Flynn is our Property Manager and is responsible for the vendors and overall appearance of Grand Isles.  Tara inspects the community, writes the violation letters, and treats everyone equally.

We have two entrances and exits. First, our main entrance is manned 24 hours a day 365 days a year by uniformed gate attendants. We utilize ABDI’s Gate Access system. All guests and residents without a Grand Isles vehicle barcode must provide a valid driver’s license and state the address that they are wanting to visit. Our back entrance is unmanned and is for residents only, requiring a barcode on the vehicle, for the gates to open.

We have an agreement with Palm Beach Sheriff’s Office to enter our community and monitor our traffic laws anytime. We supplement that by hiring Deputies periodically to patrol our community.  Crime in our community over the past two years has been limited; we have had 3 or 4 unlocked vehicles in driveways overnight that were entered and tossed.

We created a new website 4 years ago.  We think it could be the best HOA website in Florida.  We have over 400 residents signed up and using the site.  Virtually everything you would want to know about Grand Isles is on the site.  We will review the website with you a bit later. We also have our own Facebook page just for our residents to communicate with us.

Residents can utilize any phone, internet, or tv service they wish.  All homes have been wired for Comcast cable; also, AT&T has high-speed fiber optic installed in the community.

Our HOA offers a recently remodeled 3,900 square foot Clubhouse with a gym, the Property Manager’s office, bathrooms, a kitchen area, and plenty of space to utilize for parties or meetings.

The Clubhouse is adjacent to our large community swimming pool with bathrooms and a kiddie pool area. The pools are cleaned five days a week and are heated to 86 degrees. Also, attached to the Clubhouse is an outdoor kiddie play area for small children.

In our Carmel neighborhood, homeowners own 183rd of their swimming pool, and only Carmel residents have keys to use that pool. Carmel homeowners are charged an additional fee for this benefit.

Near the Clubhouse are two tennis courts (also pickleball) and a basketball court. Both have recently been resurfaced.

We have a lighted water feature (fountain) in the lake next to our clubhouse and another in the lake at our back entrance. 

Over the past 2 years, we have been replacing our perimeter fencing and hedges from ficus to mainly Clusia bushes.  That project is now completed and includes over 8,000 feet of fencing and new hedges.

Grand Isles has a new and very active Social Committee that coordinates social events, upon approval of the Board.  Some events planned for 2022 are Food Truck events throughout the year (the next one is celebrating Mardi Gras and includes a DJ and a Magician), several Family Movie Nights, Ladies Night Out, a monthly Ladies’ Luncheon, and Mom’s Group. More events will be added.

Our biggest event of the year is an annual Holiday party.  We also have a holiday lighting decoration contest.

Another big event is our annual Garage Sale for residents to sell their unneeded items.

We have many residents who walk dogs or just walk or bike for exercise and young moms pushing strollers and we have nice sidewalks and park benches to sit and bird watch overlooking our lakes.  

We have several dog waste drop-off stations and some trash receptacles.

We have a cleaning service five days a week that cleans our clubhouse, gym, bathrooms, and front Gatehouse.  

We have a maintenance man on-site five days a week to repair and pick up our common areas.

In the past 2 years, we had our storm drains inspected and cleaned if needed. And are scheduled to be cleaned again in March of 2023. 

Two years ago we renewed our agreement with the South Florida Water Management Association for another 20 or 25 years.  We will not be required to hook up to a new system where recycled sewage water is utilized like some communities have been required to do at a significant expense to the community.

In the past 2 years, the Board passed a Resolution, implementing rules on drones in Grand Isles. If REALTORS wish to do aerial views of the community, the company they use is required to register at the office and provide a copy of their operator’s license and insurance policy showing Grand Isles as an insured.  A copy of our Drone Resolution can be provided upon request.

We average conducting 10 HOA Board Meetings annually and encourage residents to participate. After each Board Meeting, a letter and or an email goes out to each home informing them of what was discussed at that meeting.

We have the ability to communicate with our residents by the following methods:  By Board Meetings, by our Property Manager, text messaging, by email, via our Facebook page, through our website, sandwich boards at our entrances, and by mail.

We have Architectural Control Committees that meet weekly so residents don’t have to wait too long to get approval for home improvement projects.

We encourage residents to volunteer, as we are dependent on volunteers to keep our community vibrant.

Volunteers operate our Board of Directors, our ACC, our Fining Committee, and our Social Committee. We currently have about 25 active volunteers. Three years ago, we had 9 or 10 volunteers.  We have implemented a volunteer recognition award program.  

WHAT IS THE APPROVAL PROCESS TO MOVE INTO GRAND ISLES?

Before I take you to our website to show you where to find all our forms for sales and rentals, I want to discuss the timing of the approval process for sales and rentals.

But, 1st, I want to state our community BY-LAWS does not allow door-to-door solicitation of anything, nor allow “For Sale” signs or “Open House” signs at any time.  If they are found in our community or along Lake Worth Road in front of our property, they will be immediately removed and thrown away.  Please don’t do this.  We know you know better.

Also, I kindly request that REALTOR AGENTS utilize updated photographs of our community and its amenities.  Virtually everything has been updated and upgraded in our common areas.  We want to put our best foot forward on your listings.

The REALTOR executes the legal documents necessary to proceed with a sale or rental. All the T’s are crossed and all the i’s are dotted and all the signatures are in place.  Initial monies are secured.  If a loan is needed, the mortgage company needs to be the next step.  The loan is approved.

Then, you complete the necessary application paperwork for HOA approval.  We ask for no less than 21 days to approve the application.  It is not always necessary, but we will no longer approve paperwork submitted in a short timeline where we are expected to do handstands to make the closing happen or we are made to be the bad guys.  The application is fillable on our website.

We have had people call us, in tears, wanting to know why they can’t close tomorrow since they signed the purchase agreement two weeks ago and the moving van packed them yesterday.

We all know first-hand how stressful a move is (or can be) and wonder if everything would go as hoped at the closing. Would the money get wired as agreed in time? Did everyone do their job as expected? 

The completed application first goes to Davenport Management.  Davenport manages about 100 properties.    

Your application goes to the bottom of the stack and is handled when it gets to the top of the stack.  This year, with so many sales, and COVID-19 causing labor shortages it takes time to get your application to the top of the stack. The application is dated so we know when it was submitted.

Once the application is reviewed, it is returned to you if it is not completed in its entirety or is illegible.

Then the clerk does the background checks of all adults (18 and older) on the application.   

Then, the application is forwarded to our property manager. 

First, the property manager visits the property from the street to do a visual inspection of the exterior.

Tara looks for clean roofs, driveways, and sidewalks, as well as the condition of the landscape and exterior of the home. Are there house numbers on the house and is the mailbox in good condition?  We don’t think it is appropriate for a new home buyer to receive a violation letter shortly after moving in.

If violations are cited, Tara sends out a violation letter to the current owner.  

They then can correct the situation in time for closing or create a written agreement with the new owner stating who is responsible for making the corrections and when they will be completed.  If that is satisfactory and we have the document in our possession, we then continue. 

The property manager then checks to see if the account is paid up currently and that there are no outstanding fines. 

If the property manager finds no outstanding issues on the home, she forwards the information to two Board members for final approval.  If everything is in order, the approval is then completed within 24 to 48 hours.  If the information is not complete, it goes back to Davenport; they will contact you for correction. 

We do not ask for information we are not entitled to ask.  Our law firm created the application specifically for Grand Isles.

Grand Isles currently has just under 10 percent of our homes as rental properties.  As of January 2023, anyone who purchases a home on or after Jan 1, 2023, cannot rent it for a period of 2 years. We do not allow rentals for less than 4 months and only allow one rental per year per property.  We do not allow homes to be rented illegally and treated as an Airbnb.  Residents are vigilant and inform us if such activity is suspected and we will get our law firm involved.  Due to our close proximity to equestrian facilities, we are a very attractive community for those involved with that season.  We require copies of every car rental agreement these individuals acquire during their stay.  

It doesn’t matter if you purchase or rent a home, we require all new residents to go through an orientation meeting with our property manager or assistant immediately after moving into Grand Isles.

That pretty much sums up our approval timeline and process.

Then it is closing time for you and your client.

Let’s now go to our website.

Our website is www.grandisleshoa.org and the tab where everything is for REALTORS and potential buyers and renters is: SALES & RENTALS

NOTE:

I have hard copies with me at the podium of the:

• Purchase Application (7 pages)
• Fees when purchasing a home (1 page)
• The new resident packet
• Rental Application (7 pages)
• Fees when renting a home (1 page)
• The new resident packet

WHY WOULD YOU RECOMMEND GRAND ISLES TO YOUR CLIENTS?

1. LOCATION, LOCATION
2. Two highly rated schools border our community
3. Grand Isles’ Retained Earnings is favorable by over $100,000.
4. Grand Isles’ bank Cash flow is very healthy. Our resident’s late payment balance is very low.
5. Grand Isles Capital’s cash position is healthy (some call this Reserves)
6. We have no plans or need for any special assessment (unless due to future serious hurricane damage).
7. Our only future major project planned is for 2025/2026 when we want to resurface all of our streets. We will have the money at that time to complete the project. 
8. The community is well insured with ample coverages.
9.  Grand Isles has no pending legal action.  
10. Virtually all the community’s assets have either been replaced or upgraded in the past 2+ years. Clubhouse remodeled, pools resurfaced, new roofs, new basketball and tennis court surfaces, new painting, new boundary fencing, and clusia bushes, new interior landscaping, new lighting in community, new pool furniture, new lake fountains, new gate systems, new FOB system for clubhouse and pool gates.  This year we installed new high-impact windows in our clubhouse and new back doors in the clubhouse to match the front door.
11. The Grand Isles Board of Directors is doing its best to manage the community’s finances and properly maintain its physical assets while limiting our potential liability.  We implemented a Golf Cart Rules Resolution for our community intended to limit our potential liability.
12. Grand Isles homeowners have spent at least 6 million dollars in upgrading their homes over the past 3 years.  Consider 200 homes spending an average of $30,000 each on new roofs, swimming pools, new driveways, pool decks, new kitchens, bathrooms, and interior remodeling as well as interior and exterior painting and upgrading landscaping.  
13. Because you are well-informed about Grand Isles.

WHERE CAN I GET ALL THE INFORMATION I HEARD TODAY?

Go to our website at www.grandisleshoa.org

Or contact our Assistant, at 561-333-5253 or email at: [email protected]

Thank you!!