WARNING: Your Florida Agent May Not Actually Represent You

Most people sign a Florida real estate form and assume they just hired someone who will fight for them like a fiduciary. That assumption can be expensive. Florida is different, and the default relationship in many transactions is “transaction broker,” which can mean the deal gets facilitated while neither side gets full, loyal representation unless something specific is signed.

I’m joined by attorney Lauren Cole of Gibson Cole in Sarasota County to unpack what Florida representation really means for buyers and sellers. We walk through the history that led here, from the old seller-only world to the buyer-broker movement, and then into the transaction broker model that became the industry norm. Along the way, we connect it to today’s pressure for transparency, including the wider conversations happening across real estate after the NAR lawsuits.

Lauren also shares a concrete closing story where confidentiality and fiduciary duty changed the outcome, plus the practical reason a real estate attorney at closing can be a major upgrade over a title-only closing. We talk about common legal issues that show up late, like condo reserve changes and increased dues, how spouses should take title, when an LLC or trust may matter, and why attorney-drafted addendums can put agents in a tough spot since they can’t practice law.

If you’re buying or selling in Florida, this is your reminder to ask one question early: who actually represents me here, and in what capacity? Subscribe, share this with a friend moving to Florida, and leave a review so more buyers and sellers stop finding out the hard way.

Steve Martin Smith is a Licensed Florida Real Estate Broker and the owner of Slice of Florida Realty in Sarasota County Florida. 

Transcript

Florida Real Estate Confusion

Steve 0:31

What is going on in Florida?

Lauren 0:33

They have an idea in their head of what they're signing. They might leave with an assumption that they are being represented when in fact they have only limited representation at best.

Katrina 0:50

And now your host, Steve Martin Smith.

Transaction Broker Versus Single Agent

Steve 0:57

Before we start the conversation with today's guests, I want you to know that this may be the most important episode I've ever launched. And like all of our conversations, we are recording today's episode for the benefit of buyers and sellers. Now here we go. I am here in the studio with attorney Lauren Cole from Gibson Cole in Sarasota County. We are going to get to talk about something today that I've hit on quite a bit in little segments, but never in the detail that I'm hoping you're going to be able to address as an attorney.

Lauren 1:33

I am interested in addressing it.

Steve 1:35

Yes. Yes. We've talked about this a little bit on the side, not in great detail. So I think I'm going to get the full story, or at least more of the story, than I've ever gotten before. And what we're talking about is representation in the state of Florida. And the reason this is so near and dear to my heart is because I know from working with a lot of people from other states that what we do in Florida is rather unique in regards to the way that we represent the transaction and not the customer as a client.

Lauren 2:09

And I'm so glad that you're picking up on this topic, Steve, because it's something that I think people don't understand. Buyers and sellers, whether they are local or especially from another state, they think that if they are represented by a real estate sales agent or broker in their state, that it must be the same here. But that is not the case.

Steve 2:32

Yeah, I have felt that as real estate agents, when we're putting a piece of paper in front of somebody who is now going to be trusting us to help them, whether they're a buyer or a seller, and they're signing what they believe is an agreement. They think once they sign that, that we are automatically representing them in their best interest, that we have that fiduciary responsibility, which is a word that, I mean, honestly, until I got into real estate, I never used that word. I'm not even sure that I ever thought about that word. But now that it's part of my daily life, I understand the difference when somebody's coming down here from New York and they are signing an agreement with me. If I don't explain to them that that agreement says that I am representing the transaction and not you, they think I'm representing them.

Lauren 3:25

Well, it's interesting that you said put a piece of paper in front of people, because even worse, a lot of this is DocuSign. And people don't read what they sign online. So they have an idea in their head of what they're signing. They're not reading it. They might leave with an assumption that they are being represented when in fact they have only limited representation at best.

Florida’s History Of Representation

Steve 3:48

Right. So if that has piqued your interest at all, then you you really want to stick around and hear this whole podcast. I know, I just know that unless you've had an opportunity to hear this information and really paid attention, you you have no clue what's actually going on in the state of Florida. And with you know, the all the changes going on in the industry, with the NARS lawsuits and everything else, you know, there's been a lot of talk about transparency and the lack of transparency. I believe that this too is an area that as real estate professionals we can do better at. And that's what I'm trying to accomplish here. So, with no further ado, I would say, Lauren, why don't you start off giving us a history? Because you have been in this business a long time. In fact, previously as a real estate professional, right? So give us some background.

Lauren 4:43

That's correct. So, like so many other people, when I moved to Florida in 1990, I got my real estate license six months later. And at that time, it was standard in Florida that both real estate brokers represented the seller. Okay. And that was just the way that it was. The law had previously been buyer beware. Everybody was supposed to be bringing the seller the best offer and the best terms.

Steve 5:14

Okay, I'm sorry. I I that is so strange, right? So I I kind of want to pick that apart a little bit and put like an analogy together. So somebody comes up to, if it was 1989, and I was a real estate agent in Florida, and somebody might can come up to me and say, Okay, I'm looking for a house and I would like you to help me.

Lauren 5:33

Yes, and help me meant really just exposing you to the market, taking you around in your car, and showing you properties.

Steve 5:42

Okay, because that was before Zillow. Yes, right? Absolutely. Did we even have like the MLS back then, or was it all like printed documents? Here's a book of the listings.

Lauren 5:52

Back then we would get a book that looked somewhat like the phone book delivered once a week, and everybody would be excited if it came on Tuesdays and we'd run and we would all huddle around one desk, thumb through the pages. You got one photo of the front of the house. That's all you saw with a description.

Steve 6:12

Wow. So uh that buyer comes to me. I have this book in my broker's office, and I'm now going to start showing them these houses. But if they want me to write an offer on one, I'm still not representing them at all. I'm not even representing the transaction as like a mediator. I'm actually representing the seller, even though the buyer w asked me to help them.

Lauren 6:37

That is what the law was at that time. Wow.

Steve 6:40

Okay.

Lauren 6:40

Okay. And when you think about what you do, you get to know your buyer so well, right? You're often driving around. A lot of people say, you know, that real estate salespeople are almost like psychologists. You're driving around. What do they look for? You start to learn about their family and their life, and you start to feel so close and committed to them that it was the natural progression for the buyer-broker movement to come about, which in Florida was then the early 90s.

Steve 7:10

Okay.

Lauren 7:10

Okay. And that was when you had to disclose before meaningful contact who you represented, because absent any disclosure to the contrary, both agents or you know, brokers represented the seller still. So you had an option of single representation or buyer, buyer or seller only. There was no dual representation, there was no transaction broker.

How Transaction Brokerage Took Over

Steve 7:38

Okay, so it was either both parties are representing the well, start off both parties are representing the seller, then it started to change to where you could represent the buyer. Yes. Okay, but you had to have two agents involved at that point because one was representing the seller and one was one was representing the buyer.

Lauren 7:54

That's correct.

Steve 7:55

Okay.

Lauren 7:55

Then enter, you know, the Florida Realtor's Lobby, okay, one of the most well-funded lobbies in the state of Florida. They want to make it easier for real estate brokers so that they wouldn't get sued, because so many of them didn't really understand what it meant to be a fiduciary to one party, putting the interests of a seller before a buyer and vice versa. Because again, like I said, you're driving around with people or you get to know somebody and like something. And even if you were supposed to be representing the seller, you might really be representing the buyer through your actions, subjecting a broker to a lawsuit. So the lobby protecting the realtor said, let's dumb this down a little bit, make it um easier for realtors or real estate associates and brokers to get a job done with less responsibilities and liability. So then enter transaction broker, which is where we are now.

Steve 8:58

Wow. And so that's been since the mid-90s, probably?

Lauren 9:02

That I think was more towards around 2000.

Steve 9:05

Okay.

Lauren 9:05

Yeah.

Steve 9:05

Okay. So uh we're at a quarter of a century anyway.

Lauren 9:09

Yeah.

Steve 9:10

In the transaction brokerage world.

Lauren 9:13

Uh and yet I'm so young, right? Yes, I know. I know.

Steve 9:17

You do not look or act all enough to have that history. Um I know that alone is gonna be surprising for many listeners to hear, especially people from other states.

Lauren 9:32

Yeah. So now any real estate broker is presumed to be a transaction broker unless something to the contrary is signed.

Steve 9:41

I've referenced my broker's course a lot. Okay. Okay, because the information is is fairly easy to find in there. And I didn't know this until I took my broker's course, right? Which is kind of weird. That by Florida law, it's my understanding, that you have to disclose your relationship before signing anything or beginning to actually show properties.

Lauren 10:04

Yeah, before a meaningful contact. So, you know, you could be driving around just preliminarily looking at neighborhoods, but if you're going to show the property and you are acting as a buyer's broker and you're going to call the listing agent, you're really supposed to say, I'm representing the buyer, so that that seller's agent doesn't spill the beans about maybe the seller's motivation. Because as a transaction broker, that seller could say, Oh, I'm so glad you're showing. There's a divorce, there's a lot of motivation here. Bring me an offer, I'll get you something. But if you had called that listing agent and said, I'm a buyer's broker, that listing agent, if they were acting appropriately, wouldn't spill any of those beans and might even bluff and say, Oh, I'm glad you're here because there's two showings tomorrow.

Steve 11:00

Yeah.

Lauren 11:00

So the bluffing game, the there's the cur the skill level of acting as a single agent takes a lot more experience and finesse than a transaction broker, in my opinion. Yeah.

Steve 11:12

Well, and I have seen very few single agency uh situations.

Lauren 11:17

Right. And I'm so glad that you're doing it because it helps the consumer.

Steve 11:21

Well, and I have not been able to get too deep into this conversation in podcasts because I've only worked for brokerages that did not want us to do that. Now they've allowed me to do it for buyers, not for sellers.

Lauren 11:37

Right.

Steve 11:38

Okay, they didn't want to take a listing. And, you know, I understand that from the standpoint of if you're a single agency and and you're representing the seller, well, nobody else in the brokerage can actually bring the buyer at that point without having to change the transaction or have them be no brokerage. And it gets it gets messy.

Lauren 11:59

Yeah, that's correct. And that's why the larger brokerage firms, the ones that have a hundred agents, 200 agents, they're gonna always insist that all of their associates work as transaction brokers so that it keeps them out of trouble, helps them show each other's listings, and keep them out of court for not representing parties appropriately.

Steve 12:21

Yeah. So I and I understand, you know, as I've started Slice of Florida Realty, and that it is my intent to offer this full level of representation to any customer that wants to uh use our brokerage as their real estate agency, that I'm going to have to watch this carefully.

Lauren 12:38

Correct.

Steve 12:39

Okay, this is not something that I can just let any agent come on and just do without making sure that they're doing it right. Because in like with the listings that I have already in this brokerage, um, everyone wanted to sign single agency. Once I explained it, and that's that transparency thing. It's like with everybody I've worked for as a listing agent for the last 10 years, uh, I have not gone in and said, these are your options. You could have trans, you could have me represent you as a transaction or a single agency. And I haven't done that because my broker wouldn't allow me to.

Lauren 13:13

Right. And we know why.

Steve 13:15

Right. Okay. So now that I can make these decisions, uh I I am laying out the options, and everybody is choosing single agency. Now I do explain to them, you know, the uh if it comes down to it and somebody comes to me without an agent and wants me to write the offer for them, this is what we'll have to do to make sure that that is done legally and correctly. But there is a there's a path provided for in the law that to me doesn't seem all that complicated if you're willing to just take the time and learn it.

Lauren 13:48

Right, right. And and people need to understand, consumers need to understand that they have options so that they're making informed choices.

Steve 13:57

Right. And this this is informing them. Yes. So thank you. Thank you. Okay, so that's some history on how we ended up with transaction agency.

Lauren 14:05

Yes, and and like you said, it's not that way in other states. So, New York, for example, when I get a new client from New York, they say, What do you mean that that person I've been driving around with for a month doesn't represent me? And that's when I have to say to them, please don't share confidential information with them, because that is one of the duties that you only have to your buyer or seller if you're a single agent, is confidentiality. And isn't that the most important one?

Steve 14:36

Wow. So I hadn't really considered the situations that you find yourself in until just now when you said that. Because when you are the closing agency, you're their attorney. Correct. You represent them.

Lauren 14:52

Yes, their interests only, their interests only.

Steve 14:55

And so if that even at times looks like you're throwing their agent under the bus per se, I might have to. You might have to.

Lauren 15:04

Yeah.

Steve 15:05

Because you have to rep, you have to, it's their best interest. It's not yours, it's not the agents, it's theirs.

Quick Reminder To Subscribe

Speaker 1 15:10

And I can give you an example of that if you'd like one.

Steve 15:13

Please do.

Katrina 15:13

This is the time that I'm gonna remind you to subscribe and leave a review for the Real Estate Agent Man podcast. More than ever before, there is so much more to know about buying and selling your home. That is why we provide professional coaching to Florida's sellers and buyers on every episode. We want our customers to have the knowledge needed to make the best decisions possible for themselves and their families. Our real estate team personally covers Sarasota, Charlotte, and Manatee counties. That's a wide area. However, Steve also interviews agents from around the state and the entire country to find great agents for customers that are out of the area. Visit SliceofFlorida.com for more information. And now back to the podcast.

Condo Deal Example Of Confidentiality

Lauren 15:59

And I can give you an example of that if you'd like one. Please do. Okay, so I had a client who was selling a condominium, waterfront condominium on the east coast of Florida shortly after that condominium collapsed that caused the law change for condominiums. So at that time, my client's condominium was pending for $650,000. Well, as a result of the new law, that deal fell through because the condominium didn't have enough reserves. So it took about a whole nother year for her to get another offer. I knew she was desperate to sell. She'd now been waiting. The value dropped from $650 to $550, okay, and she had since got another real estate uh agent who, again, was a transaction broker. So that particular transaction broker didn't look into the fact that the dues had increased. So by the time we got around to the closing and I presented a settlement statement to the buyer who I didn't represent, I represented the seller, they said, What do you mean the dues are now $500 more a quarter? This wasn't disclosed to me. Now I knew that the buyer said, I want compensation. Okay, I want $2,500 because over the next couple of years, I'll pay $2,500 more. I knew that my seller would gladly pay that $2,500 because she was desperate to sell. But as her fiduciary, I couldn't let anybody know that. So I had to go back actually to both of the real estate brokers and say, you made a mistake for not double checking it. You made a mistake for not following up on it. Somebody else is going to have to solve this problem. And unfortunately, I have to be the bad guy, you know, from time to time, but I'm bad to everybody else, but a shining star to my client because we did get somebody else to pay that $2,500. Right. But if if there had been a transaction broker involved who knew she would have paid it, they would have said, how about we split it 50-50? Failing which they would have said, She'll pay it. She really needs to sell. That was information that was confidential. My loyalty was to her, and a single agent, buyer's broker or seller's broker, also has those same fiduciary confidentiality, loyalty responsibilities.

Steve 18:29

Right. So like the the perfect world to me, I would think for any customer, is that they have a single agency representation with their real estate professional and they go to a closing attorney so that they have that double sort of seamless representation start to finish. Yes. Yeah. That that's what I was trying to say. Thanks. Okay. So that's that's good stuff. Most of the closings that I see done are done through a variety of title agencies.

Lauren 19:05

Yes.

Attorney Closings Versus Title Companies

Steve 19:06

Okay, it seems like more people close with a title agency than close with an attorney. And that's just like more people are represented in a transaction representation than a single agency. So the majority of the state seems to be doing real estate where there's no actual representation in any part of the process. Is that what you see?

Lauren 19:29

That is exactly right. And there's a couple reasons for that. So in Florida, if you know you were to ask, Do I need a real estate attorney for my closing, the answer is no. There are some states where you can only close with an attorney. In Florida, you may close with an attorney who's a title agent or a title insurance company, and the cost is just about the same because the cost of the title insurance is regulated by the state of Florida. So when you choose an attorney, you may only pay a couple hundred dollars more, but they will represent you in your interests only throughout the transaction. One of the reasons why title insurance companies are so popular is because the large brokerage offices create their own in-house title companies for air quotes convenience. But who's the convenience really for? The convenience is for the broker and their associates. As far as convenience for the consumer, not really, because they are losing that opportunity to be represented at a very minimal cost difference. So this is really the news that I like to spread and get out there.

Steve 20:43

Right. Yeah. And you know, the representation isn't that important until it is.

When Addendums Cross Legal Lines

Lauren 20:50

Well, that's true. Because how many times do we have issues? Probably only 7% of all closings do we actually have an issue. But when I do get a new client for a closing and I see that on the contract, let's just say the buyer is John Doe, and then we start to gather information and we find out that John Doe is married. Okay, well, I'm going to ask the question, John, why don't you want to take title with your spouse? And he's going to say, Well, geez, my real estate professional didn't ask me that question. What are the advantages? And then I am equipped to tell them the legal advantages. Or is this going to be a rental property? Should they set up an LLC? Do they have a revocable trust? Maybe they should purchase it in their trust. What we find is title companies, and because they're really not allowed to practice law, they look at a contract, they assume it was written in their best in the best interest of the parties, and they just plow forward. I tear it apart and say, hmm, was there something overlooked here? And can I get a better outcome for my client within the four corners of the contract?

Steve 22:04

And I just thought of another scenario, too, where I have had listings where the buyer's agent had an attorney.

Lauren 22:15

Yes.

Steve 22:16

And the attorney drafted addendums.

Lauren 22:21

Yes.

Steve 22:21

So they're no longer on our I guess I should back up for the listener. In the state of Florida, we have standard contracts, writers, addendums, forms that we're all transformed. In and authorized to fill in the blanks on. So that's how we get around the we're not allowed to practice law, but yet we can fill out these contracts. Okay. So that and that works very well the majority of the time. But when somebody is coming to one of my listings and uh their attorney drafts their own document, I now have to tell my seller that I am actually not licensed to to explain this to you.

Lauren 23:02

Yes. Now even if you understand it.

Steve 23:04

Even if I understand it, I'm not licensed. That would be considered me practicing law. Correct. I could be disciplined up to losing my license. Right? And so that becomes a bit messy if my seller has already decided that they're going to choose well say you, because I you can't speak for all attorneys, right? But since, you know, I highly recommend you, uh, oftentimes people choose your company for the closings. If you are already known to be the person who's going to do the closing because the seller's going to pay for it, if that happens then do you what's that process? Like, can I give you that addendum and you will then interpret it for the seller?

Lauren 23:54

100%. Okay. You know, and and some contracts call for a short post-closing occupancy by the seller, you know, or an escrow holdback because a repair isn't done. And if my firm's doing the closing, we just want to draft those documents at no extra charge because we want to know that they were drafted correctly and in our client's interest. So, you know, we really like to be involved start to finish. I I don't charge any extra to review the contract for you know my client before they sign it. And I think you know, Steve, how quick I am if I get a heads up, like, do you have time to do this today? Because I might make one minor tweak, okay? Just even as simple as, um, can we choose a different closing date because I'm out of town that day, right? And if you're hiring me to do your closing, wouldn't you like me to be in town? You know, so just a few things. Sometimes I I think the earnest money is too low for the seller that I represent, or the inspection period is longer than it needs to be. So there's a lot of little fine-tuning points, notwithstanding the fact that there is a fill-in-the-blank form that all um, you know, real estate brokers in the state of Florida can fill out and know how to fill out correctly.

Steve 25:11

Right. And then there's the additional terms, which, you know, anytime I'm writing something in additional terms, I'm on the verge of playing attorney.

Lauren 25:19

Yeah, and you probably start to shake, right?

Steve 25:22

Right, right. But you know, but but I mean, some of it is so simple, it's like, you know, that it's not an issue, but sometimes it's not.

Speaker 5 25:28

Right.

Steve 25:28

Sometimes it's not. And so to have, you know, already have an attorney in place that that you know is going to take care of this, that's where you said earlier something about, you know, about $200 difference. Right. I I think you told me once uh that you could grab like a hundred different closing agencies, title companies, attorneys, whatever, and the the fees for like the same closing might vary a couple of hundred dollars.

Lauren 25:52

Right. Because it's very competitive, right? Everybody wants to do the closing because that's how we make our living. And so we don't want to lose the client for one, two, three hundred dollars. So everybody bids pretty competitively in our area. That might not be the same in Miami, the Keys, Orlando, some of the and even Tampa, sometimes there's a little bit more of a spread there.

Steve 26:17

And there's some, you know, there's some uh title agencies in town that I just love. They've done a great job for my customers in the past, and I'm sure that I'll be using, you know, many of them again. A lot of times the the buyer chooses title and whatnot, and you just you go wherever they choose. But from the standpoint of what my conscience tells me to at least be transparent about is if something comes up and you're with the title company, and now you need to hire an attorney, you're not gonna get one to respond real quickly. Right, they're not gonna respond real quickly, and you're gonna now be paying that hourly rate or whatever to have them do things that otherwise they would have just included in the process. Exactly.

Lauren 27:01

When we're in, we're in. We have to be, because we're committed to the outcome that we get for you.

Steve 27:07

Right, as opposed to just somebody who you're gonna hire to read a document and explain it.

Lauren 27:11

Right.

Steve 27:11

Yeah. So it it's that customer-client relationship that I I know that you value.

Lauren 27:17

Right, and it can be a lifelong uh relationship, right? You know, people move here at different ages, but you know, sometimes we're representing someone and it's the first transaction, but then they need some advice on wills, trusts, leases, or they want to do a private mortgage to help their kids buy a house. They call me two years later, uh, bad news, so-and-so's getting a divorce. Can you send me to a good divorce attorney? So I have, you know, decades-long relationships with my clients. They know they can call for anything, even if it's a referral because they were in a car accident.

Steve 27:55

Yeah, and sometimes you end up with things. I have one customer uh a year or two ago that made a purchase and there was not uh things properly disclosed by the sellers.

Lauren 28:05

Yeah.

Steve 28:05

And it turned out to be really bad and very expensive. They had closed with a title agency, but then they needed an attorney. So then they ended up at Gibson Cole.

Lauren 28:16

Yeah.

Steve 28:17

You guys got them through all that, and and now I don't think that they'll ever do another transaction without you.

Lauren 28:24

Right. Once they're educated into that there's no major cost difference to be represented at closing, the real question becomes why would you use a title insurance company unless you have some kind of close relationship with somebody who works there? And and it's not that the employees at title agents aren't very talented because I have some employees that have opened their own title companies, you know, using all the knowledge that they gained from working with me. And they know title insurance and they could answer those legal questions because they've heard me answer them time and time again. They're just not allowed to under the law.

Steve 29:00

Well, and you know, I've done uh more closings with title companies uh throughout the years than I probably would have had I owned my own brokerage. Right. So now that I'm the broker and I'm offering single agency to everybody, it's even you know, it's in my head even more that if my customer, once I explain to them the representation things for for sellers, once they understand that, if they choose that they want single agency, then that means they're telling me they want to be fully represented.

Lauren 29:32

Absolutely. So start to finish. Start to finish.

Steve 29:38

With all that said, I should certainly throw out a plug for Gibson Cole. You can find them online at SarasotaClosings.com. Yes, it's that simple, SarasotaClosings.com. And Lauren, where are your offices located at?

Lauren 29:53

I have two offices. One in Osprey serves South Sarasota County, and then I have one in downtown Sarasota as well, which also serves Manatee County.

Steve 30:02

Okay. And so you do closings out of both of those?

Lauren 30:05

I do. And of course, we can do remote closings too. Uh people often ask us, do I have to appear at the closing in person? You don't. There's other ways to do it. Although, because our clientele seems to be older and more concerned about fraud, kind of more subject to fraud, I am surprised by how many people say, I want to come into your office. I want to see that you're a real person, and I want my private information protected. So you're always welcome to come in, even though you don't have to. And if you are in France for the closing, we can do something called a remote online notary as long as the uh signer is savvy with a computer and has the appropriate ID, because the ID has to be uploaded into the system to prevent fraud.

Steve 30:54

Okay. So it does not matter where you are at, you can close with Lauren Cole.

Lauren 30:59

We can close, yep.

Steve 31:00

You're gonna be buying or selling real estate anywhere in the state of Florida and close with you, correct?

Lauren 31:05

That is correct. And I will do a closing in any county except Miami Dade because they have a few oddities there that you have to be a specialist for. Other than that, um, it's pretty standard, and because people move, you know, so I might have done a closing for somebody in Sarasota, but then they move to the villages and they asked me the for the representation there. The other day I had a client moving to the panhandle, so we did that closing as well. So all Florida state law is the same, so I can do it.

Steve 31:36

Right, yeah. Well, that's the same for real estate. I'm you know, I I could actually help somebody in any county in the state.

Final Plug And Closing Music

Lauren 31:43

Well, I'm so glad that you you're taking the lead, okay? It was a gap to be filled in our area.

Jingle 31:50

You want to own a place like the ones you've seen, maybe near the beach or golf course green. You're searching on the weaponhouse and magazine. It's time you call us so I to reach your dream. Making it easy, making it fun. Search for your home in the land of the sun, doing it right with slice of Florida Realty, dreams ignite. Slice of Florida Realty, slice of Florida.com.