The View from Here
A Message From Michael Saunders

My good friends:
It’s been amazing, extremely gratifying—and long overdue! The good news that has been absent this real estate market for so long is suddenly arriving in torrents.

Why? For starters, May marked the fifth straight month that unit sales of existing single-family homes have increased in Sarasota-Manatee. At the same time, the median price for an existing single-family home has stabilized in a zone between $240,000 and $270,000, almost exactly where it would have been on this date had the customary annual rate of appreciation—of between six and seven percent—not been supplanted by the unsustainable real estate boom of 2003-2006.

Even the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, once the daily chronicle of doom and gloom for our real estate market, is now nothing if not upbeat as evidence continues to mount that the worst days are behind us; and that Sarasota-Manatee has outpaced the rest of Florida in the speed and success of its correction. Buyers are coming off the fence, basically because there are no more fences left to inhabit. Prices are where they should be, inventories are slowly diminishing and unit sales are increasing with each passing month. Interest rates are not likely to go down any further, with the Federal Reserve worried less about the rebounding housing market and focused more about adding strength to the dollar to (hopefully) lower oil prices and keep inflation in check. The bottom line: There is no reasonable rationale for waiting any longer if you truly wish to take advantage of the best buyer’s market and lowest interest rates we’ve encountered in many years. If, indeed, you are ready to take the plunge, be sure to visit the Bank Owned and Best Opportunities page on MichaelSaunders.com, where you are absolutely assured of finding the most competitively priced properties on the Web site.

In this issue of Saunders@Home we will, as usual, update you on where the market stands today; then take you for a refreshing glimpse of where many Sarasotans go when our summertime air begins to feel more like the inside of a clothes dryer.

I’d also like to take a moment to thank everyone who has emailed their comments and suggestions about Saunders @Home. We’ve read every one and taken them to heart. We encourage your continued input, so that we can continually produce a better, more responsive communication. In the meantime, we hope you find this—our fourth edition—informative and enjoyable.

We would love to hear your comments and suggestions as to what you would like to read in the weeks and months ahead. Please email them to me, care of editor@michaelsaunders.com. Meanwhile enjoy our fourth issue.

Cordially,

MARKET UPDATE: A Solid May Portends
A reporter from a local television station called the other day to ask if we could set her up to film a home that sold recently. She had heard that sales of existing single-family homes were on the upswing in Sarasota... View entire article.

CAROLINA DREAMIN’:
When The Heat’s On In Sarasota Carolina Is The Cool Place To Be Local businesses in Western North Carolina are so accustomed to welcoming summertime guests from Sarasota that they scarcely raise an eyebrow when.. View entire article

Sarasota Summer Happenings
Courtesy of ThisWeekInSarasota.com
Summers sizzle in Sarasota and ThisWeekInSarasota.com is here to make sure you stay cool by keeping you “in the know” of the latest and greatest events happening in and around the city. From “Sunset Bridge... View entire article.

Contact
Michael Saunders & Company®
100 South Washington Blvd.
Sarasota, FL 34236
EMAIL

888.552.5228