I was scanning the Sarasota MLS today and ran across this new SKY Sotheby's listing west of the trail. Take a look and let me know what you think.

This home has 3 bedrooms, den, 2.5 baths and a 2 car garage. It offers 2,682 square feet with an open plan, 9' and 10' ceilings, granite and wood cabinets in kitchen, tile and wood floors, working fireplace and pretty pool and spa.  Parents will love that it is only 2 blocks from popular Southside School.  There is a charming fireplace in living/dining area with wood floors, spacious eat-in-area and family room.

Listed for $765,000. Give me a call at 812-6272 if you are looking to buy a home and want to see this west of trail home.

The associated press reported an interesting article about how newspapers earnings across the country are down. Much of that is due in part to Realtors shifting their advertising expenditures from the newspaper to the internet. The downturn in the real estate market is partly to blame for the decrease in newspaper earnings.

Several real estate executives say they are making a conscious decision to spend less with newspapers and more on the internet and the web grows in importance as a tool for home searching.

Newspapers are worried that real estate advertising will never come back and that it will become the next category of classified advertising to make a permanent shift to the internet. Craigs list is a good example of how the internet has taken…

Unless you live in cave it is hard not to hear something about the downtown in real estate markets across the nation. Newspapers, internet and the nightly news report about the troubled market on a daily basis. There is so much chatter that it reminds me of 2005 when everyone was a real estate expert. You could go into about any restaurant and overhear people talking about the pre-construction condo they bought or the home they just bought to fix up and flip. It was a case of tulip mania.

It has been over two years since that time and the real estate market in many areas of the country has dropped in value significantly. Sarasota real estate has dropped up to 30% in some segments of the market. The water front and other luxury markets have not been hit…

I recently listed this wonderful Bird Key home for $1,325,000. Located at 321 Bird Key drive, this totally renewed home has all the finishes you come to expect. As you step inside the foyer you are immediately drawn to the outdoors. The living room with oversized picture windows and large doors provides vistas of the sun dappled pool and private garden setting. Additional features include: bedrooms with baths ensuite, crown molding, gourmet kitchen, gated butler's pantry, fireplace with enhanced mantle, and lush tropical landscaping. The home has 2,420 square feet with 3 bedrooms, a den and 3.5 bathrooms. To view the home call me at 941-812-6272.

This gorgeous home sold last week for $908,981. It has 4 bedrooms, 4.5 baths, den, 3 car garage and 5,010 square feet of living space. Bent Tree Woodland II is a gated community east of I-75 off Proctor road. The neighborhood has an abundance of beautiful lakes and preserve areas. The homesites are typically large with some of them over an acre. This homesite was 27,031 square feet. If you are enjoy large lots, mature trees and landscaping in a gated community Bent Tree Woodlands might be perfect for you. To see all of the homes for sale in this community use our Sarasota MLS subdivision search.

Here is a chart of all homes and condos for sale in Sarasota county. I had to shrink the chart so it would fit on the page so it is a little difficult to read. The chart goes from April of 2006 to June 2007. The green bars represent the total number of properties for sale. The red line are the properties under contract and the smaller darker bars are the closed properties.

As you can see the number of Sarasota homes and condos peaked in the season and have come down from the peak of 8,430 to 7,970 at the end of June. We will probably see further inventory declines in July. I will post them when available in a chart format.

Sarasota real estate

The June 2007 home sales were 5% higher than sales of June 2006. The rest of Florida's sales numbers were not so good. Sarasota-Bradenton was one of only two Florida markets with June sales increases.

Sarasota-Bradenton's median sales price has shown signs of support. Take a look at the prices by month - $292,700 in June, $294,700 in May, $294,800 in April, $291,500 in March and $294,500 in February.

Another interesting statistic is comparing the Sarasota/Bradenton real estate market with Miami. 797 homes sold in this market compared to Miami's 469 home sales.

Another positive sign for the Sarasota real estate market is that pending sales remain above the 500 mark. This indicates future market strength in the coming months.

Inventory levels in…

This home in the Bay Isles subdivision on Longboat Key recently sold for $2,250,000. This stunning waterfront residence is an architectural masterpiece located in the prestigious Bay Isles Harbor Section on Longboat Key. Surrounded by floor-to-ceiling windows, views of the water and tropical foliage become one with the living area. The home has 4,191 square feet, had 3 bedrooms, 4.5 baths and a 3 car garage. It is located on a protected boat basin which can accomodate a 50 foot boat.