Inventory Low and Sales Are Up



The number of available properties in the Sarasota real estate market dropped to a six-year low in February 2011, and sales were up 24.2 percent from the previous month. Median sales prices for both single and condominiums dropped as bargain hunters continued to grab foreclosures and short sales, which represented almost 47 percent of all sales.

Compared to this time last year, sales were up 27 percent to 673 total sales, from February 2010’s total of 528 sale. There were 472 closings on single family homes and 201 closings on condos last month by members of the Sarasota MLS.

 

In addition to the positive sales figures, pending sales also registered above the 1,000 level in February, with 1,023 total properties going under contract last month. In January 2011, 1,013 properties went under contract. This statistic is a strong indicator for the next two or three months of sales, as pending sales reflect current buyer activity.

Last February, pending sales reached 967. But that figure was pushed upward by the approaching April 2010 deadline for the homebuyer tax credits. This year’s upward trend is being fueled by buyers of all sorts – investors, second-home buyers, and those who realize that today’s lower home prices coupled with low interest rates present buyers an opportunity not seen in years. 

 

Lower median sales prices, which dropped slightly for single family homes (to $137,500 from $138,700) and condos (also to $137,500 from $142,500), were the only cloud. The decreases were likely associated with the continued price pressure of distressed property sales. Normal arm’s length sales still average nearly three times the price of distressed properties in the Sarasota market.

On the positive side, the drop to the lowest inventory level in six years (5,864) could mean upward pressure on sales prices moving forward, according to SAR President Michael Bruno.

 “Traditionally and historically, fewer properties on the real estate market usually causes price appreciation,” explained Bruno. “It’s simply a matter of supply and demand.  If there are more buyers competing for a smaller number of properties, selling prices are usually driven up. Hopefully, we’ll soon see a return to the traditional local appreciation levels of between 5 and 7 percent annually. That would represent a very healthy market.”

The higher sales totals combined with the lower inventory caused a sharp drop in the months of inventory to 8.0 months from 10.2 months in January 2011 for single family homes, and to 10.4 months from 14.1 months for condos. Only two years ago, in January 2009, there were 25.3 months of inventory for single family homes and 38.4 months of condo inventory. The market is considered to be in equilibrium between a buyers and sellers market once the figure reaches the 6 month level.

 

The median price for the last 12 months stands at $160,000 for both single family homes and for condominiums. The single family figure was exactly the same as a year ago, while the condo figure dropped from last year’s figure of $185,000.

Source:  Sarasota Association of Realtors

South Gate Subdivision Market Update

Here is the market update for the South Gate Subdivision for the past 30 days. There are some great deals in this neighborhood and I am busy trying to preview them all for you!  Please give me a call if you’d like to see any of them or interested in selling your South Gate home!

Active and Pending

Address	Bedrooms	Baths	Sq. Ft.	List Date	List Price	Status
2815 Rosewood Pl.	3	2	1,342	09/21/10	$119,000	Active
2511 Botany Ave.	3	2	1,623	09/10/10	$129,000	Active
3011 Bougainvillea St.	3	2	1,353	09/20/10	$129,500	Active
2404 Hibiscus St.	2	2	1,271	09/28/10	$139,500	Active
2490 Hibiscus St.	3	2	1,466	09/14/10	$149,900	Active
2903 Homassassa Rd.	3	2	1,553	09/22/10	$224,900	Active
2465 Foster Ln.	3	3	1,973	08/30/10	$275,000	Active
2812 Woodcrest Dr.	3	2	1,946	09/07/10	$  82,000	Pending
2504 Fruit Tree Dr.	3	2	1,200	01/19/10	$  84,900	Pending
3035 Bougainvillea St.	2	2	1,089	09/18/10	$  89,900	Pending
3246 Elmore Pl.	2	2	1,144	09/23/10	$99,900	Pending
2706 Grove St.	2	2	1,287	05/18/10	$149,900	Pending
2735 Hibiscus St.	3	2	1,586	09/03/10	$179,900	Pending

 

Sold

Address	Bedrooms	Baths	Sq. Ft.	Sale Date	Sales Price
2415 Foster Ln.	3	2	1,546	09/23/10	$110,000
2124 Alpine Ave.	3	3	1,593	08/27/10	$123,500
2848 Pinecrest St.	2	1.5	1,168	08/27/10	$125,000
2711 Sunnyside St.	3	3	2,067	09/23/10	$141,300
2240 Valencia Dr.	3	2	1,372	09/17/10	$160,000
2623 Bougainvillea St.	3	2.5	1,937	09/07/10	$165,000
3310 Mineola Dr.	3	2	1,818	08/27/10	$276,000

Information obtained from MLS • This is not intended to solicit properties already listed.

Reneé Marquiss, REALTOR®
Xena Vallone Realty, Inc.
941.807.5950
www.BuyandSellSarasota.com
Renee@XenaValloneRealty.com

Search for a home like a Realtor®

With LISTINGBOOK!

 

What is LISTINGBOOK?

 

With a free (but by invitation only) LISTINGBOOK ACCOUNT you will have access to the same MLS information that a Realtor® has for finding your dream home in Sarasota, Manatee or Charlotte Counties, or, if you are a seller, staying on top of the competition. LISTINGBOOK gives you the most detail you will find anywhere.

LISTINGBOOK not only gives you current, up to the minute results, but it gives them to you on your own time, at your convenience.  You can identify your favorite properties, leave a note for me (your agent I hope!) and schedule a showing – all with a few clicks of your mouse. 

If you change your mind and want to change your search parameters, it’s easy to do…you can adjust your criteria at any time, without waiting for me to do it for you. You can be notified immediately of prices increases, sold properties or pending contracts…in other words, you will be searching much like an agent searches.

So, tired of checking multiple websites only to find one of your favorites is really already sold and the website hasn’t updated the information (LISTINGBOOK is updated every 30 minutes)

So, want to get your own, absolutely free, absolutely no pesky salesperson will call LISTINGBOOK  account and start searching for your new home? Send me an email (see my signature line) and I will get you set up ASAP.

Reneé Marquiss, SFR
Realtor®
Xena Vallone Realty, Inc.
941.807.5950
Renee@XenaValloneRealty.com
Licensed Real Estate Associate

 

Fall in Sarasota, Florida

So I have seen posts on facebook about how my friends and family “up north” are looking forward to the cooler weather, pumpkins, apple cider, hay rides, etc. – all this while I’m sitting on my lanai under a fan with temps in the low 90’s.  How Floridians know that fall is in the air is our humidity goes waaaaaaay down – which we have experienced for a few days now.  The past couple of mornings I haven’t even needed the fan on the lanai!  How cool is that 🙂

As a Realtor® I get a lot of emails from many different sources and lately those emails have been filled with “preparing your home for fall” and I was curious to see what the difference was in preparing for fall in Florida – so here goes:

1.  Prepare the lawn for falling temperatures:
Seed and Fertilize – check
Mulch – check
Plant spring bulbs – check
Bring container plants in – not so much

2.  Patio furniture:
Clean – always a good thing year round
Cover and store – not so much (well unless there is a hurricane near by!) Floridians can now sit outside at night and not get heatstroke!

3.  In the garage:
Store beach and camping gear in the back of the garage to make room for leaf blowers and snow blowers – store beach gear???  That’s sacreligious!

4.  In the entryway:
Carve out a space near the entryway for those coats – coat? what’s that 🙂 Floridians dig out their hoodies because if the temp goes below 70 degrees we’re cold!

So, how do YOU prepare for fall? 

Siesta Beach

Happy Labor Day!

Labor Day, the first Monday in September, is a creation of the labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country.
(source: http://www.dol.gov/opa/aboutdol/laborday.htm)

Here’s too all the American workers and the contributions that they make to our daily lives!

Thank you!
Reneé Marquiss, Realtor®
Xena Vallone Realty, Inc.
941.807.5950

Celebrities and Sarasota, Florida

One of the areas I would like to “break into” is becoming the Realtor® to the stars 🙂 so I thought I’d check out who already lives here (DISCLAIMER:  source is WikiAnswers and NOT personal knowledge):

Stephen King (on Casey Key)
Chyna, the pro wrestler
Martina Navratilova
Monica Seles
Brian Johnson (singer w/AC-DC)
Jerry Springer

So…anyone know of any others?  Any stars reading my blog??  There are MANY private and beautiful homes to choose from in Sarasota and I would LOVE to be your Realtor®.

Home Inventory

I just discovered a program to help you keep track of your home possessions (thanks to my most recent edition of the Realtor® magazine) – a good thing to have in case of a theft or natural disaster.  It’s called “What you Own Home Inventory.”  This free software keeps track of everything that fills your house – from artwork and furnishings to jewelry – and see how much it would cost to replace.  Once you download the free software onto your computer, you can create a  room-by-room inventory that serves as a record that’s helpful for determining how much insurance to purchase and when settling insurance claims. You can even add images and receipts.  I’ve just downloaded it and will be completing it over the days to come.  Hope this helps you too!

Real Estate Incentives Going Out of Style

WASHINGTON – Aug. 23, 2010 – With home sellers trying to limit losses and the government restricting seller contributions, buyers have access to fewer cash incentives and other perks – such as cars, televisions, and appliances – for going through with a transaction. These days, experts say more sellers are attracting buyers’ attention by pricing competitively or lowering the price.

Other residential property professionals point out that buyers are taking into consideration that a family member could become unemployed, and they are making buying decisions based on one income.

“Gimmicks don’t work well when buyers have so many avenues to be educated about what’s for sale and what has sold and for what price,” says Aaron Dickinson of Edina Realty in Minneapolis.

Source: News OK (08/21/10) Buchta, Jim

South Gate Subdivision

This subdivision has held fascination to me for sometime. I don’t know whether it’s the affordability of the homes, the terrazzo floors (which I LOVE), or just the close proximity to everything – whether it’s shopping, downtown or the beaches.  I recently sold a home in this community and thought it was a great time to blog about it and pass on more information to my readers.

The following history is straight from South Gate’s own website at www.southgator.com:

From Citrus Grove to Subdivision

(The following account is summarized from the South Gate Community Association’s 35th Anniversary publication of 1991.)

In the mid-1950s, Sarasota developers Rolland King and Frank Smith purchased 1,240 acres of citrus groves that had orginally been planted by Bertha Honore Potter, the Chicago socialite who purchased 80,000 acres of land in Sarasota County beginning with her arrival in 1910. When King and Rolland began developing South Gate, the groves were being worked by Minute Maid. Some of the original citrus trees are still growing in the back yards of some South Gate homes.

King and Smith’s original purchase was bounded approximately by Bee Ridge Road, Tamiami Trail, Beneva Road and Hyde Park Street. Besides South Gate, some of the land became Forest Lakes Country Club Estates and some became Village Green. South Gate Manor was a separate subdivision that is now considered part of South Gate.

Groundbreaking occured in 1955 for the first South Gate homes near Siesta Drive and School Avenue. The first three model homes opened in March 1955. The first home sold was at 2207 Siesta Drive.

The South Gate Post Office opened March 30, 1957. The South Gate Shopping Center, now Westfield Shoppingtown Southgate, opened that year, as did some of the shops in the South Gate Village Shops along Siesta Drive east of the Post Office.

The developers called a meeting to establish a community association on Jan. 1, 1956. On Feb. 13, 1956, 140 homeowners adopted the charter and bylaws of the South Gate Community Association. Soon thereafter, the developers began construction of the association hall and swimming pool on a five-acre site on Phillippi Creek at South Gate Circle. The South Gate Community Center was dedicated on Sept. 2, 1956, and the Association assumed management of the hall and pool, which continues to this day.

The hall was designed by Sarasota school architect Victor Lundy. The building and pool have been designated as historic by Sarasota County.

Want to see what is available in South Gate?  Click on the picture above to see the MLS printouts.  Want a personal tour of any of these homes – give me a call at 941.807.5950.

Fundraising for a great cause!

Yesterday was one of those “this is the best day” days.  A benefit was held for a trop rock musician friend Troy Allan who is on a “Cancer Free 100 House Concert Tour.”  Troy was diagnosed with a rare stomach cancer called Linitis Plastica and he’s out spreading the word about this little known disease and sharing his music, laughter and stories!     

Troy Allan

 

 So, instead of a house party, a group of people came together to throw a benefit in Troy’s honor that included trop  

Kathy Stickland and Shelly Speckman

 

rock artists from all over the country and even one from Cabo San Lucas!  It took many hours of work with many volunteers headed by Shelly Speckman and Kathy Strickland – event organizers extraordinaire!  

In addition to Troy performing, we were entertained by other trop rock artists:  Garry and Kerri, Jack Mosley, Tequila Tom, Tall Paul and Crawdaddy, E.C. Davis, Cindy Walsh, Tiki Thom and John Friday.  ALL donated their time and talents to the benefit so be sure to visit their links and check them out – you won’t be sorry.    

There were about 40 baskets that were chinese raffled off with contents ranging from CD’s, to liquor, to t-shirts, gift certificates all donated for the cause from artists, parrothead clubs and local and not-so local businesses. There was a 50/50 raffle that raised over $500.00 and the winner, instead of keeping the 1/2 for herself, donated it back to Troy – how cool is that!   

The weather was hot but with the tropical breezes coming off Charlotte Harbour it wasn’t miserable – although my back is a bit tender!  Lashley Park in Punta Gorda was a beautiful setting for a wonderful afternoon! 

I was fortunate enough to be the winner of the auction held at the end of the night although I thought I might lose to some FABULOUS people from New Jersey :-).  This “trop rock starter” kit included a tricked out Tommy Bahama beach chair and umbrella, a pole caddy to attached to said umbrella, a stack of CD’s about 10 inches high, a couple of bottles of rum, enough coozies for everyone who attends my next party!, gift certificates to local restaurants, membership in the Margarita Mafia, 2 tickets to the 3rd Annual Spring Fling in New Jersey, t-shirts and other para-fan-alia from lots of artists and best yet – Troy performing for the welcome home party I’m having for my son on Saturday and the party being catered by Shelly Speckman and Danielle Torney.  

To Shelly and Kathy, to the artists who donated their time, to the volunteers who helped make the day a success and to all who attended and contributed – thank you for a GREAT day! 

Here’s and article written about the event in the Charlotte Sun this morning. 

Love and Peace, 

Reneé 

P.S.  If you are interested in hosting a house party for Troy, please be sure to visit his website for all the details and contact information!