When a Siesta Key property sold for $10.25 million in late May, it not only established a new benchmark for the much sought-after barrier island but also spoke volumes about the reinvigorated state of the region’s luxury real estate market. After several years in which property sales above $1 million limped along listlessly, they are [...]

In April, combined home sales for Sarasota, Manatee and Charlotte Counties hit its second highest mark in history.  In fact, closed transactions fell just shy of besting the region’s all-time record of 2,702 closed sales in a single month—set exactly ten years ago in April 2004. Pending sales were similarly robust, turning in the [...]

“We’re well into this year’s home buying season and too many potential buyers and sellers are sitting on the sidelines because they’re afraid they can’t qualify for a home loan—before they’ve looked into it,” says [...]

In yet another slap in the face from the winter season that just wouldn't quit, a spring snow storm tore across the U.S. on April 15th, just as taxpayers were racing to settle-up with Uncle Sam as the final moments of tax season ticked down.  Presumably, neither season will be recalled with unmitigated joy by those who experienced the [...]

Everywhere you look, spring has sprung throughout Southwest Florida.  From the vibrantly-colored Royal Poinciana and Jacaranda Trees—to the intoxicating fragrance of orange blossoms on the breeze—Mother Nature always seems to save her best handiwork for the Sunshine State. As everyone who lives in Florida full time knows, there are [...]

Like many potential buyers and sellers, if you find yourself puzzled by where home prices are going, you are not alone.  In addition to overall U.S. economic conditions, so many uniquely local variables influence home prices that even the most seasoned housing experts seldom agree on how much—or how little—prices are expected to rise [...]

For devotees of virtually every major competitive sport—that doesn’t require snow for its playing surface—it’s a safe bet you will find plenty of activities throughout [...]

One of the most eagerly-awaited trends in the region’s real estate market appears to finally be taking hold.  For the past six months, the overall inventory of properties for sale throughout Sarasota and Manatee Counties has risen steadily; providing a good measure of relief from the acute shortage that has stymied buyers for nearly two years. [...]

No matter how you slice it, 2013 was an exceptional year for Southwest Florida’s housing market.  In fact, the Sarasota Association of Realtors has officially reported its second most productive year ever in terms of the total number of properties sold.  Indeed, were it not for the shortfall in available properties that these many months [...]

The newest and most overused phrase in the popular lexicon has got to be “polar vortex.”  Loosely defined, a polar vortex is an unusually frigid weather event usually reserved for the much heartier denizens of Canada.   Or so we’ve heard.  But when one of these weather patterns rudely stumbled across the border into the lower [...]