With great sadness, this last blog is to inform:
On June 22, 2009, Patricia Taylor passed away at Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, Florida. A memorial service will be held on July 19, 2009 at 1:00 p.m.
Patricia was known for her strong work ethic and her love for family and animals. When she was not selling real estate, she travelled extensively to many countries. All together, she loved life and lived it well.
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
The Twenty-Eight Percent Solution
By Michael Saunders & Company On June 17, 2009
The region’s beleaguered real estate market exhibits renewed strength with each passing month. Practically no one, not even the most skeptical observers, will dispute that the market has perked-up considerably. For most of this year, closed sales have steadily crept upwards, pending sales have taken a remarkable bounce; and the inventory of available homes has fallen-off sharply.
Buyers, once content to occupy the sidelines while prices remained in free-fall, have finally been jolted into action by prices that have not only leveled out but have actually begun to inch-up again in the under-$350,000 price range—along with (surprise, surprise) suddenly-rising interest rates. They are also anxious to close on their desired property before the First-Time Homebuyers Tax Credit [1] expires on December 1. Something of a misnomer, the First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit is available to anyone who hasn’t owned a primary residence in the past three years.
Alas, a similar trend toward recovery has yet to firmly take root in the $ 1 million-plus price range; because many sellers have yet to align their expectations with the new realities of the market. Yet as the most recent MLS statistics show, properties are indeed selling where prices have been adjusted downward by an average of 28 percent off their original list prices. Some prices require greater adjustments, some less. We thank each of our sellers who have taken this important message to heart, allowed our agents’ expertise to update their thinking based on the latest data on sold properties; and made the necessary adjustments to their selling prices.
Just as homes from $350,000 and below began to sell briskly once their prices were reduced substantially—due to the impact of foreclosures and short sales—homes in the $ 1 million-plus price range need to be priced in line with what comparable properties are selling for. In this respect we are no different from other high-end luxury markets like the Hamptons, Aspen, Vail, Palm Beach, Boca Raton and Miami. Conferencing with the top brokers in many of these markets strikes the same familiar chord: The difference between average list price and the price that finally brings a buyer to the closing table are often apart by as much as 40 percent.
There is a substantial divide between today’s average list price and what $1 million-plus homes in Southwest Florida are actually selling for, as of May 2009. In the last six months, the difference has averaged 28%, meaning that the average seller may have to lower their price by at least that much to prompt a sale. Fortunately, the trend in recent sales has shown that if the price is right, the buyers are there.
Sellers of luxury homes who list with Michael Saunders & Company have several unique advantages. Because we list and sell more $1 million-plus properties—by far—than any other real estate company in Southwest Florida, we are better positioned to help you price your home correctly from the moment you list it. Or, if it has already sat mute on the market for some time, we are able to advise you by how much you must reduce its listing price to make it sing. At the present time, there are over 1,418 homes in Manatee, Sarasota and Charlotte Counties listed for more than $1 million. Buyers barely have the time to visit the homes in their desired price range that are priced correctly, much less those that aren’t.
Further, as the latest TRENDGRAPHIX shows, Michael Saunders & Company continues to bring more buyers to the closing table on properties listed above $1 million than virtually the next three competitors combined.
It’s a fact. You can’t change the market we’re in, but you can heighten your ability to sell your home in a reasonable time frame. Price it in line with the market from day one and it will become an immediate standout to buyers actively searching in its price range.
In just the past two weeks, agents of Michael Saunders & Company have successfully positioned their clients ahead of the market to the tune of more than $30 million in price reductions. Our goal by mid-summer is to at least double that amount so that every priced-right property finds its new owner faster. With statistics proving that the average list price needs to be reduced substantially in order to move it into the sold column, now is the time to act decisively and stop chasing the market down.
The region’s beleaguered real estate market exhibits renewed strength with each passing month. Practically no one, not even the most skeptical observers, will dispute that the market has perked-up considerably. For most of this year, closed sales have steadily crept upwards, pending sales have taken a remarkable bounce; and the inventory of available homes has fallen-off sharply.
Buyers, once content to occupy the sidelines while prices remained in free-fall, have finally been jolted into action by prices that have not only leveled out but have actually begun to inch-up again in the under-$350,000 price range—along with (surprise, surprise) suddenly-rising interest rates. They are also anxious to close on their desired property before the First-Time Homebuyers Tax Credit [1] expires on December 1. Something of a misnomer, the First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit is available to anyone who hasn’t owned a primary residence in the past three years.
Alas, a similar trend toward recovery has yet to firmly take root in the $ 1 million-plus price range; because many sellers have yet to align their expectations with the new realities of the market. Yet as the most recent MLS statistics show, properties are indeed selling where prices have been adjusted downward by an average of 28 percent off their original list prices. Some prices require greater adjustments, some less. We thank each of our sellers who have taken this important message to heart, allowed our agents’ expertise to update their thinking based on the latest data on sold properties; and made the necessary adjustments to their selling prices.
Just as homes from $350,000 and below began to sell briskly once their prices were reduced substantially—due to the impact of foreclosures and short sales—homes in the $ 1 million-plus price range need to be priced in line with what comparable properties are selling for. In this respect we are no different from other high-end luxury markets like the Hamptons, Aspen, Vail, Palm Beach, Boca Raton and Miami. Conferencing with the top brokers in many of these markets strikes the same familiar chord: The difference between average list price and the price that finally brings a buyer to the closing table are often apart by as much as 40 percent.
There is a substantial divide between today’s average list price and what $1 million-plus homes in Southwest Florida are actually selling for, as of May 2009. In the last six months, the difference has averaged 28%, meaning that the average seller may have to lower their price by at least that much to prompt a sale. Fortunately, the trend in recent sales has shown that if the price is right, the buyers are there.
Sellers of luxury homes who list with Michael Saunders & Company have several unique advantages. Because we list and sell more $1 million-plus properties—by far—than any other real estate company in Southwest Florida, we are better positioned to help you price your home correctly from the moment you list it. Or, if it has already sat mute on the market for some time, we are able to advise you by how much you must reduce its listing price to make it sing. At the present time, there are over 1,418 homes in Manatee, Sarasota and Charlotte Counties listed for more than $1 million. Buyers barely have the time to visit the homes in their desired price range that are priced correctly, much less those that aren’t.
Further, as the latest TRENDGRAPHIX shows, Michael Saunders & Company continues to bring more buyers to the closing table on properties listed above $1 million than virtually the next three competitors combined.
It’s a fact. You can’t change the market we’re in, but you can heighten your ability to sell your home in a reasonable time frame. Price it in line with the market from day one and it will become an immediate standout to buyers actively searching in its price range.
In just the past two weeks, agents of Michael Saunders & Company have successfully positioned their clients ahead of the market to the tune of more than $30 million in price reductions. Our goal by mid-summer is to at least double that amount so that every priced-right property finds its new owner faster. With statistics proving that the average list price needs to be reduced substantially in order to move it into the sold column, now is the time to act decisively and stop chasing the market down.
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Summer's Here in Sarasota
SUMMER'S HERE!
As appeared
MichaelSaunders & Company
Our annual summer rainy season kicked in about six weeks earlier than usual this year; but thankfully not a moment too soon. Not the kind of soggy weather that tosses a wet blanket on anyone’s vacation plans, mind you, but the kind of daily rain event that comes and goes quickly leaving our drought-depleted rivers, lakes and reservoirs a little bit fuller than the day before.
Happily, just as our three-year rainfall drought is easing, so is the more than three-year-old drought choking the region’s real estate market. I’m pleased to report that the news from the market has vastly improved of late. Consumer confidence is up, sales are up, pending sales are up; and the number of available homes is gradually being reduced. This morning—in a front-page, above-the-fold headline—the Sarasota Herald-Tribune trumpeted the good news that area home prices bucked the national trend by rebounding 9.5% from March to April. Further, the median sale price has risen again; and is now up about $20,000 from earlier this year.
All this good news may come as a bit of a surprise to people who assume that as the nation goes, so goes Florida; but as everyone active in the business knows all real estate is local. The national picture is gloomier than ours; weighed down by larger markets—such as Houston—that are just beginning to experience the correction in prices that we’ve been contending with for more than three years. The fact of the matter is this: Sarasota-Bradenton-Venice was among the first markets in the U.S. to experience the trending-down in prices, and is now among the first to begin stabilizing. Yet we still have a great deal of our work cut out for us. For even as the under-$300,000 price bracket is positively percolating with activity, we are working every bit as hard to ignite the same level of buyer activity in the higher price tiers.
As several recent sales have amply demonstrated, buyers are present in the market and widely available at every level of pricing—so long as the perception of value is very, VERY real. To capture these buyers—especially in the $1million-plus price range—significant downward adjustments are still urgently needed to bring prices in line with what statistics show they are now willing to pay. This month’s issue of Saunders@Home speaks to these and other issues related to the state of today’s market and the mindset of the consumer.
Needless-to-say, we’re ready for what lies ahead and fully expect a busy and productive summer.
Meanwhile, enjoy your summer vacation! And by the way, if you’re looking for the best beach in the continental U.S. to play on this summer, look no further. In his 2009 ranking, Stephen Leatherman—aka “Dr. Beach”—has named Siesta Beach the best beach in the contiguous 48 states. Only Hanalei Bay in far-off Hawaii received a better rating; and we’ll match our slice of “paradise” against theirs any day of the week.
As appeared
MichaelSaunders & Company
Our annual summer rainy season kicked in about six weeks earlier than usual this year; but thankfully not a moment too soon. Not the kind of soggy weather that tosses a wet blanket on anyone’s vacation plans, mind you, but the kind of daily rain event that comes and goes quickly leaving our drought-depleted rivers, lakes and reservoirs a little bit fuller than the day before.
Happily, just as our three-year rainfall drought is easing, so is the more than three-year-old drought choking the region’s real estate market. I’m pleased to report that the news from the market has vastly improved of late. Consumer confidence is up, sales are up, pending sales are up; and the number of available homes is gradually being reduced. This morning—in a front-page, above-the-fold headline—the Sarasota Herald-Tribune trumpeted the good news that area home prices bucked the national trend by rebounding 9.5% from March to April. Further, the median sale price has risen again; and is now up about $20,000 from earlier this year.
All this good news may come as a bit of a surprise to people who assume that as the nation goes, so goes Florida; but as everyone active in the business knows all real estate is local. The national picture is gloomier than ours; weighed down by larger markets—such as Houston—that are just beginning to experience the correction in prices that we’ve been contending with for more than three years. The fact of the matter is this: Sarasota-Bradenton-Venice was among the first markets in the U.S. to experience the trending-down in prices, and is now among the first to begin stabilizing. Yet we still have a great deal of our work cut out for us. For even as the under-$300,000 price bracket is positively percolating with activity, we are working every bit as hard to ignite the same level of buyer activity in the higher price tiers.
As several recent sales have amply demonstrated, buyers are present in the market and widely available at every level of pricing—so long as the perception of value is very, VERY real. To capture these buyers—especially in the $1million-plus price range—significant downward adjustments are still urgently needed to bring prices in line with what statistics show they are now willing to pay. This month’s issue of Saunders@Home speaks to these and other issues related to the state of today’s market and the mindset of the consumer.
Needless-to-say, we’re ready for what lies ahead and fully expect a busy and productive summer.
Meanwhile, enjoy your summer vacation! And by the way, if you’re looking for the best beach in the continental U.S. to play on this summer, look no further. In his 2009 ranking, Stephen Leatherman—aka “Dr. Beach”—has named Siesta Beach the best beach in the contiguous 48 states. Only Hanalei Bay in far-off Hawaii received a better rating; and we’ll match our slice of “paradise” against theirs any day of the week.
Friday, June 5, 2009
Drought Busting Sarasota
As appeared
Michael Saunder@ Home
May 28th, 2009 Category: The Real Estate Market
Nothing pleases us more than to see two droughts ease up just as summer hits its stride.
Until very recently, Southwest Florida was gasping for water; choked by a three-year dearth of rainfall, with no let-up in sight—especially as our scorched landscape limped into Spring. Local meteorologists shook their heads and predicted that the situation was likely to get a lot worse before it got better. The month of May, they reminded us with their best professional hats on, is customarily among the driest of the year.
Then, just as looked like May might live up to its inglorious billing, came the rain. Buckets of it. Torrent after torrent; day after day of glorious rain—a full six weeks ahead of schedule. You couldn’t have imagined a more unlikely end to such a tenacious drought. Yet even though the drought is by no means completely over, all indicators that the end is near are looking very good. New rains come every day with the kind of regularity we haven’t seen in a long time. Ground levels are rising steadily and the major rivers east of town—mostly dried-up riverbeds a few weeks ago—are filling up and flowing freely. Things sure can change quickly around here.
Which brings us to the second drought; whose end we’re also witnessing. We’re talking about the more than three-year-old drought that has plagued the region’s real estate market. Here too, there’s a definite light at the end of the tunnel.
When the rains finally kick in, drought-stricken rivers and parched reservoirs are replenished from the bottom up. Likewise when buyers flood back into a correcting real estate market, the rush typically begins at the bottom of the market and systematically wends its way into the upper price tiers. This phenomenon is solidly apparent from the latest TRENDGRAPHIX statistics for the month of April.
While total unit sales for April were up by more than 10 percent versus last April, 88% of these closed sales involved properties priced below $350,000. Likewise, while pending sales were up an impressive 45 percent over last April, 83% of them involved properties priced below $350,000. With short-sales and foreclosures exerting significant pressure on sellers to lower their prices in order to remain competitive, the inventory of homes in this price range has now been reduced to an almost-healthy 7.8 month supply. (Six to seven months is considered balanced and healthy) Indeed, the rush to buy at such irresistible prices is causing a bottom to form under this particular segment of the market.
Not so the case for homes priced above $350,000, where the “drought” is still very much in effect, with no equivalent rush to buy yet in progress. Closed sales of properties priced between $350,000 and $1 million are 57% below last April. As well, pending sales are down 22% for the same period. This paucity in sales is due to the fact that the list prices on many of the homes in this price range have yet to reflect what comparable homes are actually selling for.
The median price of homes that have sold between $350,000 and $1 million—according to the most recent TRENDGRAPHIX—is $475,000. Half of the homes sold for more; half for less. Meanwhile the average list price is $588,000. That means to compete successfully in this price range you must be willing to lower your price by an average of almost 20 percentage points; or seriously consider not listing your home at all until the market supports your desired price.
The spread between average list price and actual median sale price is even more dramatic in the over $1 million price range. In April, the average list price of $2.32 million was offset by an actual median sale price of $1.3 million. Half of the homes sold for more; half for less. That means to successfully compete in today’s million-dollar-plus market you must often be willing to reduce your asking price by as much as 40%; or not list until the market improves.
Let there be no doubt about it. The drought in home sales is definitely easing. Inventories of available properties are down to their lowest levels in 40 months; and the number of properties with sales pending—1,207—are at their highest level since March 2004, besting the previous month by 18%. Closed sales climbed to 734 for the first time since March 2007—and the April median sale price for both single family homes and condominiums rose above the March 2009 figure. This extends the upward price appreciation into its third consecutive month; perhaps indicative of a market shrugging off the doldrums.
Further, there is no longer anything approaching a wholesale drought with respect to consumer confidence, an important gauge of consumers’ willingness to make such a significant purchase. Just last Tuesday, The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index, which had already improved considerably in April, posted another large gain in May. The Index now stands at 54.9, up from 40.8 in April.
It’s interesting how the two droughts differ from one another. When a drought in rainfall is nearing its end, we enjoy more of the precious wet stuff with each passing shower. When a real estate drought subsides, the choice of incredible buying opportunities dries up a little bit more with each passing sale.
Michael Saunder@ Home
May 28th, 2009 Category: The Real Estate Market
Nothing pleases us more than to see two droughts ease up just as summer hits its stride.
Until very recently, Southwest Florida was gasping for water; choked by a three-year dearth of rainfall, with no let-up in sight—especially as our scorched landscape limped into Spring. Local meteorologists shook their heads and predicted that the situation was likely to get a lot worse before it got better. The month of May, they reminded us with their best professional hats on, is customarily among the driest of the year.
Then, just as looked like May might live up to its inglorious billing, came the rain. Buckets of it. Torrent after torrent; day after day of glorious rain—a full six weeks ahead of schedule. You couldn’t have imagined a more unlikely end to such a tenacious drought. Yet even though the drought is by no means completely over, all indicators that the end is near are looking very good. New rains come every day with the kind of regularity we haven’t seen in a long time. Ground levels are rising steadily and the major rivers east of town—mostly dried-up riverbeds a few weeks ago—are filling up and flowing freely. Things sure can change quickly around here.
Which brings us to the second drought; whose end we’re also witnessing. We’re talking about the more than three-year-old drought that has plagued the region’s real estate market. Here too, there’s a definite light at the end of the tunnel.
When the rains finally kick in, drought-stricken rivers and parched reservoirs are replenished from the bottom up. Likewise when buyers flood back into a correcting real estate market, the rush typically begins at the bottom of the market and systematically wends its way into the upper price tiers. This phenomenon is solidly apparent from the latest TRENDGRAPHIX statistics for the month of April.
While total unit sales for April were up by more than 10 percent versus last April, 88% of these closed sales involved properties priced below $350,000. Likewise, while pending sales were up an impressive 45 percent over last April, 83% of them involved properties priced below $350,000. With short-sales and foreclosures exerting significant pressure on sellers to lower their prices in order to remain competitive, the inventory of homes in this price range has now been reduced to an almost-healthy 7.8 month supply. (Six to seven months is considered balanced and healthy) Indeed, the rush to buy at such irresistible prices is causing a bottom to form under this particular segment of the market.
Not so the case for homes priced above $350,000, where the “drought” is still very much in effect, with no equivalent rush to buy yet in progress. Closed sales of properties priced between $350,000 and $1 million are 57% below last April. As well, pending sales are down 22% for the same period. This paucity in sales is due to the fact that the list prices on many of the homes in this price range have yet to reflect what comparable homes are actually selling for.
The median price of homes that have sold between $350,000 and $1 million—according to the most recent TRENDGRAPHIX—is $475,000. Half of the homes sold for more; half for less. Meanwhile the average list price is $588,000. That means to compete successfully in this price range you must be willing to lower your price by an average of almost 20 percentage points; or seriously consider not listing your home at all until the market supports your desired price.
The spread between average list price and actual median sale price is even more dramatic in the over $1 million price range. In April, the average list price of $2.32 million was offset by an actual median sale price of $1.3 million. Half of the homes sold for more; half for less. That means to successfully compete in today’s million-dollar-plus market you must often be willing to reduce your asking price by as much as 40%; or not list until the market improves.
Let there be no doubt about it. The drought in home sales is definitely easing. Inventories of available properties are down to their lowest levels in 40 months; and the number of properties with sales pending—1,207—are at their highest level since March 2004, besting the previous month by 18%. Closed sales climbed to 734 for the first time since March 2007—and the April median sale price for both single family homes and condominiums rose above the March 2009 figure. This extends the upward price appreciation into its third consecutive month; perhaps indicative of a market shrugging off the doldrums.
Further, there is no longer anything approaching a wholesale drought with respect to consumer confidence, an important gauge of consumers’ willingness to make such a significant purchase. Just last Tuesday, The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index, which had already improved considerably in April, posted another large gain in May. The Index now stands at 54.9, up from 40.8 in April.
It’s interesting how the two droughts differ from one another. When a drought in rainfall is nearing its end, we enjoy more of the precious wet stuff with each passing shower. When a real estate drought subsides, the choice of incredible buying opportunities dries up a little bit more with each passing sale.
Friday, May 29, 2009
Sarasota-Bradenton Price Drops are Good News for Homebuyers and Sellers
May 12th, 2009 The Real Estate Market
Headlines of an article posted online from the Sarasota Herald Tribune website…
“Sarasota-Bradenton Posts Nation’s 7th Biggest Home Price Drop”
…and what good news it could be for the homebuyer!
Let’s take a closer look at some other “dropping” statistics, but positive ones. In April of 2008, Trendgraphix reported that Sarasota County had a 14.6 month supply of inventory based on current listings and pending properties. April of 2009 showed a drop of that number to a 7 month inventory or a 52% “drop.” What does this mean? It means that buyer confidence in the local real estate market is returning. It means that buyers are moving off that fence. They are taking advantage of pricing that is correcting itself from the runaway inflation of years like 2005 where the annual appreciation of homes exceeded 30% due to a lack of inventory and frenzied investor buying. This is the statistic that we need to be creating the buzz about. This change in inventory is a positive trend that every prospective buyer should know and heed. It is a true sign of a market that is in the process of a healthy correction.
Admittedly, we are cautiously optimistic that this trend continues. However, this should carry a word of caution to the contemplating buyer that he can’t wait too long to take his foot off the fence. The inventory of homes to choose from is dwindling! Consider these statistics:
§ The number of Sarasota homes that went under contract in January was 763 while the number of homes contracted in April was 1207…that’s a 58% increase in four months.
§ The number of Sarasota homes closed in January was 489 compared to 734 in April…that’s a 50% increase in four months.
And what’s happening to the pricing of those sales? Let’s go beyond comparing year to year and look at what’s happened year to date. Today’s Buyer should be aware that the sold prices are going up as evidenced in the first four months of this year in Sarasota County.
§ The average sold price has risen each month from January till April, from $197,000 to $221,000.
§ The average listing price has also risen each month from January till April from $515,000 to $545,000.
§ The median sold price has risen in January through April from $123,000 to $134,000.
§ The average square foot pricing has risen in January through April from $121.90 to $134.10.
It has been said that the only true way we will know if we have hit the bottom of the market is when prices and units of sale start to go up! Well, if you look at these stats…I’d say the bottom very well could be behind us and the Buyer needs to take his foot off the fence and hit the ground running to your nearest Realtor!
Headlines of an article posted online from the Sarasota Herald Tribune website…
“Sarasota-Bradenton Posts Nation’s 7th Biggest Home Price Drop”
…and what good news it could be for the homebuyer!
Let’s take a closer look at some other “dropping” statistics, but positive ones. In April of 2008, Trendgraphix reported that Sarasota County had a 14.6 month supply of inventory based on current listings and pending properties. April of 2009 showed a drop of that number to a 7 month inventory or a 52% “drop.” What does this mean? It means that buyer confidence in the local real estate market is returning. It means that buyers are moving off that fence. They are taking advantage of pricing that is correcting itself from the runaway inflation of years like 2005 where the annual appreciation of homes exceeded 30% due to a lack of inventory and frenzied investor buying. This is the statistic that we need to be creating the buzz about. This change in inventory is a positive trend that every prospective buyer should know and heed. It is a true sign of a market that is in the process of a healthy correction.
Admittedly, we are cautiously optimistic that this trend continues. However, this should carry a word of caution to the contemplating buyer that he can’t wait too long to take his foot off the fence. The inventory of homes to choose from is dwindling! Consider these statistics:
§ The number of Sarasota homes that went under contract in January was 763 while the number of homes contracted in April was 1207…that’s a 58% increase in four months.
§ The number of Sarasota homes closed in January was 489 compared to 734 in April…that’s a 50% increase in four months.
And what’s happening to the pricing of those sales? Let’s go beyond comparing year to year and look at what’s happened year to date. Today’s Buyer should be aware that the sold prices are going up as evidenced in the first four months of this year in Sarasota County.
§ The average sold price has risen each month from January till April, from $197,000 to $221,000.
§ The average listing price has also risen each month from January till April from $515,000 to $545,000.
§ The median sold price has risen in January through April from $123,000 to $134,000.
§ The average square foot pricing has risen in January through April from $121.90 to $134.10.
It has been said that the only true way we will know if we have hit the bottom of the market is when prices and units of sale start to go up! Well, if you look at these stats…I’d say the bottom very well could be behind us and the Buyer needs to take his foot off the fence and hit the ground running to your nearest Realtor!
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Blue Skies in the Forecast
As appeared
Michael Saunders@Home
May, 2009
The news out of our market has been more encouraging since the last issue of Saunders@Home. After months and months of stormy skies, we are noticing large patches of blue over Southwest Florida. Closed and pending sales have been steadily ticking upwards for months; and March was clearly no exception. Sales of single-family homes in Sarasota-Bradenton were up eight percent over last March and up 35 percent over last month. Even more heartening was the official news that for the first time in a long time, the median price for a single-family home in Sarasota-Bradenton rose by four percent between February and March.
Now that season is winding down I am delighted to report that the flurry of activity in our real estate market isn’t. Snowbirds and spring breakers may be headed north, but call volume to MS&C’s Appointment Center hit a record high last week; and our agents are busier than ever showing properties and writing contracts. In just one day, we set 318 appointments for property showings. The next day we logged 307; unheard of even in the headiest days of the boom.
Our total March call volume of 6,093 was the highest ever recorded in the nine-year history of the Appointment Center; and was nearly 18 percent higher than in March of 2004 when the boom was in full swing. Moreover, recent buyers are wasting no time informing friends and families about the unprecedented buying opportunities that have led to such a dramatic resumption in sales. We fully expect the summer to be unusually busy and productive.
Michael Saunders@Home
May, 2009
The news out of our market has been more encouraging since the last issue of Saunders@Home. After months and months of stormy skies, we are noticing large patches of blue over Southwest Florida. Closed and pending sales have been steadily ticking upwards for months; and March was clearly no exception. Sales of single-family homes in Sarasota-Bradenton were up eight percent over last March and up 35 percent over last month. Even more heartening was the official news that for the first time in a long time, the median price for a single-family home in Sarasota-Bradenton rose by four percent between February and March.
Now that season is winding down I am delighted to report that the flurry of activity in our real estate market isn’t. Snowbirds and spring breakers may be headed north, but call volume to MS&C’s Appointment Center hit a record high last week; and our agents are busier than ever showing properties and writing contracts. In just one day, we set 318 appointments for property showings. The next day we logged 307; unheard of even in the headiest days of the boom.
Our total March call volume of 6,093 was the highest ever recorded in the nine-year history of the Appointment Center; and was nearly 18 percent higher than in March of 2004 when the boom was in full swing. Moreover, recent buyers are wasting no time informing friends and families about the unprecedented buying opportunities that have led to such a dramatic resumption in sales. We fully expect the summer to be unusually busy and productive.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
INVENTORIES SOUTHWEST DROP
INVENTORIES OF PROPERTIES IN SOUTHWEST FLORIDA DROP TO LOWEST
LEVELS IN 39 MONTHS
Exerpt
As appeared
April 13th, 2009
Michael Saunders & Company
ALL INDICATORS POINT TO A MARKET ON THE MEND
“It’s an absolute perfect storm from a buyer’s point-of-view,” said Michael Saunders, founder and CEO of Michael Saunders & Company, in explaining the market dynamics behind the substantial uptick in sales and pending sales that continued unabated through March; to say nothing of the corresponding decline in available inventories, as measured by TRENDGRAPHIX for its latest report on monthly sales within the region’s MLS.
“Several key fronts have merged to cause buyers to shrug off fear, cast indecision aside; and respond to the notion that right now is the best time to buy properties since the turn of the century.” Saunders explains. “In addition to the lowest prices in recent memory, interest rates are presently hovering around 4.78 percent, lenders are back in their comfort zone lending again; and buyers who haven’t owned a home in three years are apt to qualify for a first-time homebuyer tax credit—of up to $8,000—as long as they purchase by December 1. In other words, the bottom that everyone has been looking for is beginning to form; and the smart money is back to considering prime location even as it searches for unprecedented values. The best-priced opportunities in the choicest locations are selling first and fast.”
TRENDGRAPHIX’s latest report for March—just released—shows that months of inventory based on closed sale transactions have dropped to their lowest levels in over 39 months according to the latest MLS data for March, 2009. In the Tri-County region of Sarasota, Manatee and Charlotte counties, inventories are at their lowest since December 2005.
COUNTY HIGHS AND LOWS
Sarasota County sales increased 26.2 percent from February to March 2009. Inventory decreased 2.4 percent during this same time period. Pending sales increased by 25.7 percent. 82.4 percent of the homes sold for under $300,000; 9.9 percent of the homes sold for between $300,000 and $500,000; and 7.6 percent of the homes sold for over $500,000.
Manatee County sales increased 32.2 percent from February to March 2009. Inventory decreased 1.7 percent during this same time period. Pending sales increased by 19.2 percent. 84.2 percent of the homes sold for under $300,000; 10.5 percent of the homes sold for between $300,000 and $500,000; and 5.1 percent of the homes sold for over $500,000.
Charlotte County sales increased 28.1 percent from February to March 2009. Inventory decreased 3.1 percent during this same time period. Pending sales increased by 42.9 percent. 93.3 percent of the homes sold for under $300,000; 4.8 percent of the homes sold for between $300,000 and $500,000; and 1.8 percent of the homes sold for over $500,000.
LEVELS IN 39 MONTHS
Exerpt
As appeared
April 13th, 2009
Michael Saunders & Company
ALL INDICATORS POINT TO A MARKET ON THE MEND
“It’s an absolute perfect storm from a buyer’s point-of-view,” said Michael Saunders, founder and CEO of Michael Saunders & Company, in explaining the market dynamics behind the substantial uptick in sales and pending sales that continued unabated through March; to say nothing of the corresponding decline in available inventories, as measured by TRENDGRAPHIX for its latest report on monthly sales within the region’s MLS.
“Several key fronts have merged to cause buyers to shrug off fear, cast indecision aside; and respond to the notion that right now is the best time to buy properties since the turn of the century.” Saunders explains. “In addition to the lowest prices in recent memory, interest rates are presently hovering around 4.78 percent, lenders are back in their comfort zone lending again; and buyers who haven’t owned a home in three years are apt to qualify for a first-time homebuyer tax credit—of up to $8,000—as long as they purchase by December 1. In other words, the bottom that everyone has been looking for is beginning to form; and the smart money is back to considering prime location even as it searches for unprecedented values. The best-priced opportunities in the choicest locations are selling first and fast.”
TRENDGRAPHIX’s latest report for March—just released—shows that months of inventory based on closed sale transactions have dropped to their lowest levels in over 39 months according to the latest MLS data for March, 2009. In the Tri-County region of Sarasota, Manatee and Charlotte counties, inventories are at their lowest since December 2005.
COUNTY HIGHS AND LOWS
Sarasota County sales increased 26.2 percent from February to March 2009. Inventory decreased 2.4 percent during this same time period. Pending sales increased by 25.7 percent. 82.4 percent of the homes sold for under $300,000; 9.9 percent of the homes sold for between $300,000 and $500,000; and 7.6 percent of the homes sold for over $500,000.
Manatee County sales increased 32.2 percent from February to March 2009. Inventory decreased 1.7 percent during this same time period. Pending sales increased by 19.2 percent. 84.2 percent of the homes sold for under $300,000; 10.5 percent of the homes sold for between $300,000 and $500,000; and 5.1 percent of the homes sold for over $500,000.
Charlotte County sales increased 28.1 percent from February to March 2009. Inventory decreased 3.1 percent during this same time period. Pending sales increased by 42.9 percent. 93.3 percent of the homes sold for under $300,000; 4.8 percent of the homes sold for between $300,000 and $500,000; and 1.8 percent of the homes sold for over $500,000.
Monday, April 20, 2009
Venice: A Town With A Plan
As appeared
Michael Saunders & Company
April 17th, 2009
If you can’t quite put your finger on what gives Venice its innate sense of beauty, order, community and connectedness; you might be surprised to learn it was all planned that way from day one—back in the 1920’s. Even now the most forward-thinking urban planners—hoping to leave their mark on the field the way John Nolen did—visit Venice to study one of his greatest successes. What Nolen—America’s pre-eminent city planner of his day—accomplished in his 1925 plan for the City of Venice is still considered a paragon of modern planning. Curiously enough, while today’s New Urbanism movement offers post-modern solutions to the problems created by suburban sprawl after World War II, Nolen’s visionary plan for Venice seemed to anticipate the problem long before it could even be imagined.
After working on a variety of city, town and neighborhood plans throughout Florida—including plans for Clearwater, Sarasota, and West Palm Beach—Nolen found in Venice “an opportunity better…than any other in Florida to apply the most advanced and practical ideas of regional planning.” His success was such that people from around the country jumped at the chance to live in Florida’s magnificent new “City on the Gulf”—so called because Venice is one of the few municipalities on the Gulf Coast that occupies a coastal area with no barrier island separating the city from its nearby beaches.
As recently as the mid 1920’s, Venice was little more than a deserted stretch of pristine coastline bumping up to dense woods and farm land. Yet another of Florida’s ubiquitous land booms quickly put an end to that as thousands of buyers swarmed the area hoping to secure their place in the Florida sun. Although booms typically undercut any notion of thoughtful city planning, Nolen was nevertheless commissioned to do just that. Originally known as “Horse and Chaise” its newest incarnation would be called Venice, after the famed northern Italian city built on a system of canals and waterways in much the same way as this new Venice would be. It would have a central business area, outlying farms, open green spaces and a wide variety of housing choices. More significantly, it would be a social laboratory where people from all walks of life would live together in neighborhoods where carefully planned grids of streets, wide tree-lined boulevards, broad hemicycles (wide semi-circular streets) and diagonal avenues would embrace every lifestyle and manner of housing.
The town’s Apartment District is a fine example. Bounded by Granada Avenue, Harbor Drive, Armada Road and Park Boulevard, the district provided plenty of multi-family housing and illustrated both Nolen’s and his corporate patron’s commitment to diversity. Nolen planned Venice for the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers (BLE), a labor union looking to capitalize on the land boom. The BLE, however, was also in for the long term and envisioned Venice as a regional hub for agriculture and light industry; a place “where the ordinary man could have a chance to get all that the rich have ever been able to get out of Florida.”
Like its Italian namesake, downtown Venice was built in the Renaissance style; its various neighborhoods threaded together not only by a common architectural style that features tile roofs, stucco exteriors, covered porches and loggias, but also by a vast system of parks and greenways. “Nature led the way,” Nolen wrote; and his plan merely followed her directions.
Nolen didn’t simply design what we know today as historic downtown Venice and leave the rest to chance. His influence touches the furthest reaches of East Venice Avenue, which was then something of a remote hinterland. He obviously anticipated significant growth and laid out more grids and hemicycles to make sure future development would harmonize with the downtown.
Although it has grown as Nolen knew it would, downtown Venice has retained its small-town appeal while still offering an incredible blend of housing, cultural and recreational opportunities. Its neighborhoods are connected by a system of some 27 parks; and the newer Venetian Waterway Park enables pedestrians to encircle the entire island on foot. With its two- and three-story buildings—most housing retail stores, restaurants and boutiques—Venice Avenue is built on an intimate scale with wide pedestrian-friendly sidewalks and shaded arcades, all of which open to the obligatory village green. Centennial Park, as it is known, is the site of a farmers market every Saturday and its gazebo hosts free weekly concerts. Just off the green is the highly acclaimed Venice Little Theater, one of the largest and most acclaimed community theatres in the United States.
Away from downtown Venice, newer master-planned communities have filled in much of the grid that Nolen set aside for future growth. Just off Center Road, four excellent golfing communities come together in a concentrated area that offers the dedicated duffer a quadruple dose of nirvana—or agony, depending on your game. These include Plantation Golf & Country Club,Venice Golf & Country Club, Jacaranda West Golf & Country Club and Pelican Pointe Golf & Country Club.
The beaches of Venice are as pristine as Nolen found them, with Venice Beach within walking distance of downtown and Caspersen Beach—a bike ride away—claiming the sobriquet of “Sharks’ Tooth Capital of the World.” Just north of Caspersen is Brohard Paw Park, one of the precious few beaches in Florida where Fido is not only welcomed, but rules.
Now that another boom has come and gone, Venice remains as desirable as it ever was; with the best values on the widest variety of housing opportunities sweetening its timeless appeal.
Michael Saunders & Company
April 17th, 2009
If you can’t quite put your finger on what gives Venice its innate sense of beauty, order, community and connectedness; you might be surprised to learn it was all planned that way from day one—back in the 1920’s. Even now the most forward-thinking urban planners—hoping to leave their mark on the field the way John Nolen did—visit Venice to study one of his greatest successes. What Nolen—America’s pre-eminent city planner of his day—accomplished in his 1925 plan for the City of Venice is still considered a paragon of modern planning. Curiously enough, while today’s New Urbanism movement offers post-modern solutions to the problems created by suburban sprawl after World War II, Nolen’s visionary plan for Venice seemed to anticipate the problem long before it could even be imagined.
After working on a variety of city, town and neighborhood plans throughout Florida—including plans for Clearwater, Sarasota, and West Palm Beach—Nolen found in Venice “an opportunity better…than any other in Florida to apply the most advanced and practical ideas of regional planning.” His success was such that people from around the country jumped at the chance to live in Florida’s magnificent new “City on the Gulf”—so called because Venice is one of the few municipalities on the Gulf Coast that occupies a coastal area with no barrier island separating the city from its nearby beaches.
As recently as the mid 1920’s, Venice was little more than a deserted stretch of pristine coastline bumping up to dense woods and farm land. Yet another of Florida’s ubiquitous land booms quickly put an end to that as thousands of buyers swarmed the area hoping to secure their place in the Florida sun. Although booms typically undercut any notion of thoughtful city planning, Nolen was nevertheless commissioned to do just that. Originally known as “Horse and Chaise” its newest incarnation would be called Venice, after the famed northern Italian city built on a system of canals and waterways in much the same way as this new Venice would be. It would have a central business area, outlying farms, open green spaces and a wide variety of housing choices. More significantly, it would be a social laboratory where people from all walks of life would live together in neighborhoods where carefully planned grids of streets, wide tree-lined boulevards, broad hemicycles (wide semi-circular streets) and diagonal avenues would embrace every lifestyle and manner of housing.
The town’s Apartment District is a fine example. Bounded by Granada Avenue, Harbor Drive, Armada Road and Park Boulevard, the district provided plenty of multi-family housing and illustrated both Nolen’s and his corporate patron’s commitment to diversity. Nolen planned Venice for the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers (BLE), a labor union looking to capitalize on the land boom. The BLE, however, was also in for the long term and envisioned Venice as a regional hub for agriculture and light industry; a place “where the ordinary man could have a chance to get all that the rich have ever been able to get out of Florida.”
Like its Italian namesake, downtown Venice was built in the Renaissance style; its various neighborhoods threaded together not only by a common architectural style that features tile roofs, stucco exteriors, covered porches and loggias, but also by a vast system of parks and greenways. “Nature led the way,” Nolen wrote; and his plan merely followed her directions.
Nolen didn’t simply design what we know today as historic downtown Venice and leave the rest to chance. His influence touches the furthest reaches of East Venice Avenue, which was then something of a remote hinterland. He obviously anticipated significant growth and laid out more grids and hemicycles to make sure future development would harmonize with the downtown.
Although it has grown as Nolen knew it would, downtown Venice has retained its small-town appeal while still offering an incredible blend of housing, cultural and recreational opportunities. Its neighborhoods are connected by a system of some 27 parks; and the newer Venetian Waterway Park enables pedestrians to encircle the entire island on foot. With its two- and three-story buildings—most housing retail stores, restaurants and boutiques—Venice Avenue is built on an intimate scale with wide pedestrian-friendly sidewalks and shaded arcades, all of which open to the obligatory village green. Centennial Park, as it is known, is the site of a farmers market every Saturday and its gazebo hosts free weekly concerts. Just off the green is the highly acclaimed Venice Little Theater, one of the largest and most acclaimed community theatres in the United States.
Away from downtown Venice, newer master-planned communities have filled in much of the grid that Nolen set aside for future growth. Just off Center Road, four excellent golfing communities come together in a concentrated area that offers the dedicated duffer a quadruple dose of nirvana—or agony, depending on your game. These include Plantation Golf & Country Club,Venice Golf & Country Club, Jacaranda West Golf & Country Club and Pelican Pointe Golf & Country Club.
The beaches of Venice are as pristine as Nolen found them, with Venice Beach within walking distance of downtown and Caspersen Beach—a bike ride away—claiming the sobriquet of “Sharks’ Tooth Capital of the World.” Just north of Caspersen is Brohard Paw Park, one of the precious few beaches in Florida where Fido is not only welcomed, but rules.
Now that another boom has come and gone, Venice remains as desirable as it ever was; with the best values on the widest variety of housing opportunities sweetening its timeless appeal.
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Sarasota Island Living
Siesta Key: Where It's All About The Beach
Michael Saunders & Company, Licensed Real Estate Broker
Visit New York and you’re likely to return home humming a Broadway tune. Visit Sarasota and you may depart singing the praises of Siesta Key, who’s renowned Crescent Beach is perennially ranked among America’s ten best by Dr. Stephen Leatherman—better known to coastline connoisseurs as “Dr. Beach.” With what must surely be the world’s finest sun-bleached sand, Crescent Beach could scarcely offer a more spectacular calling card for the eight-mile long barrier island. From its northern end, the powdery-white beach stretches two miles south to the outcropping of flat, smooth limestone and coral rock formations known as “Point of Rocks,” a popular gathering spot for snorkelers and fishermen.
These days you’re just as apt to leave Siesta Key singing the praises of something else; something of rare but fleeting beauty—the incredibly-priced buying opportunities that (for now) exist in virtually every segment of Sarasota’s most multi-faceted resort setting. We say “for now” because, as everyone is well aware, prices have fallen dramatically and increased activity at every price point has confident buyers scooping up the island’s best buys like so many fish in a net.
For while Crescent Beach ranks third in Leatherman’s most recent ranking—which the Tampa Tribune says is to beaches what an Oscar is to an actor—his top-rated pick, Caladesi Island State Park (also in Florida), is only accessible by private boat or passenger ferry for short visits. There are no overnight accommodations, and no opportunities to actually live there. To visit his second pick, you’d have to wing your way to the Hawaii, then island-hop to Hanalei Beach on Kauai.By process of elimination, therefore, Siesta Key is the most beautiful beach in the continental U.S. that you can actually live on—and get to with relative ease.
With so many vacationers beating a year-round path to Siesta Key, revenue-producing condominiums in all sizes, shapes and locales—with proven rental histories—are among Siesta Key’s most coveted commodities; especially selling as they are at today’s vastly reduced prices. They join a spectacular array of seaside homes in lush secluded neighborhoods; newly-completed luxury condominiums in the middle of everything, and gated enclaves of home sites—in need of nothing more than your choice of custom builders.
There are two central hubs of activity on the island, which you can elect to live as close to—or as far from—as you wish; remembering that you can bask in total seclusion on Siesta Key and still be surprisingly close to everything. Siesta Village—toward the north end of Crescent Beach—and the South Village, near Point of Rocks (at mid key), are filled with restaurants, nightclubs, specialty shops and boutiques; and enjoy the colorful street life you expect in a bustling resort town. In between is every sort of residential opportunity you could hope for; with the choices decidedly favoring those who want the turn-key convenience of a condominium with the added premium of earning rental income when they can’t be there. To experience the finest in barefoot luxury first hand, be sure to visit the elegant new Summer Cove on Siesta and tour this beautifully situated, fully-amenitized bayside community of just 45 condominium residences. The majority have been sold, but a good selection is still available.
A quieter hub can be found at Turtle Beach, another spectacular strand at the island’s southern tip. Siesta Key insiders often prefer this beautifully re-nourished beach for its more laid-back atmosphere and lesser-used recreational amenities. Here again, the residential opportunities favor those in search of turn-key convenience in a waterfront condominium; but there are plenty of single-family homes as you approach the neighborhood.
No description of Siesta Key would be complete without waxing poetic on the many one-of-a-kind waterside neighborhoods—tucked inside dense jungles of tropical flora and winding mangrove tunnels—that truly give the key its island flavor. Venture down almost any side street and you’re apt to find yourself driving beneath leafy canopies through such aptly named enclaves as Sandy Hook, Hidden Harbor and Mangrove Point. Especially significant among Siesta Key’s most noteworthy neighborhoods is The Sanderling Club, a private Gulf-side community on Midnight Pass Road between the South Village and Turtle Beach. The community traces its roots to the early 1940’s; and began its storied existence as a winter resort with small carriage homes and a row of appealing beach cabanas. The gated neighborhood is beautifully planned with spacious home sites, congenial residents and an unparalleled—but casual—beach lifestyle. The cabanas were designed by acclaimed Sarasota School architect, Paul Rudolph, who later became dean of the Yale School of Architecture. The Sanderling Beach Club, also the brainchild of Rudolph, circa 1952, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and provides residents with cool respite from the beach and the community’s three tennis courts. In the same vicinity of Midnight Pass Road, Spice Bay offers buyers intent on a new home a West Indies-inspired version of contemporary island living. Its 14 home sites, situated on eight scenic bay-front acres, have infrastructure in place and are builder-ready. Similarly, within a short stroll of Siesta Key Village is Coronas Park, another builder-ready enclave of 13 home sites; with homes planned in the British Colonial style.
Take your time. Explore Siesta Key. Some say the Siesta Key experience evokes the legendary lifestyle of Key West. We think its better. Key West doesn’t have Sarasota on the other side of a short bridge.
Michael Saunders & Company, Licensed Real Estate Broker
Visit New York and you’re likely to return home humming a Broadway tune. Visit Sarasota and you may depart singing the praises of Siesta Key, who’s renowned Crescent Beach is perennially ranked among America’s ten best by Dr. Stephen Leatherman—better known to coastline connoisseurs as “Dr. Beach.” With what must surely be the world’s finest sun-bleached sand, Crescent Beach could scarcely offer a more spectacular calling card for the eight-mile long barrier island. From its northern end, the powdery-white beach stretches two miles south to the outcropping of flat, smooth limestone and coral rock formations known as “Point of Rocks,” a popular gathering spot for snorkelers and fishermen.
These days you’re just as apt to leave Siesta Key singing the praises of something else; something of rare but fleeting beauty—the incredibly-priced buying opportunities that (for now) exist in virtually every segment of Sarasota’s most multi-faceted resort setting. We say “for now” because, as everyone is well aware, prices have fallen dramatically and increased activity at every price point has confident buyers scooping up the island’s best buys like so many fish in a net.
For while Crescent Beach ranks third in Leatherman’s most recent ranking—which the Tampa Tribune says is to beaches what an Oscar is to an actor—his top-rated pick, Caladesi Island State Park (also in Florida), is only accessible by private boat or passenger ferry for short visits. There are no overnight accommodations, and no opportunities to actually live there. To visit his second pick, you’d have to wing your way to the Hawaii, then island-hop to Hanalei Beach on Kauai.By process of elimination, therefore, Siesta Key is the most beautiful beach in the continental U.S. that you can actually live on—and get to with relative ease.
With so many vacationers beating a year-round path to Siesta Key, revenue-producing condominiums in all sizes, shapes and locales—with proven rental histories—are among Siesta Key’s most coveted commodities; especially selling as they are at today’s vastly reduced prices. They join a spectacular array of seaside homes in lush secluded neighborhoods; newly-completed luxury condominiums in the middle of everything, and gated enclaves of home sites—in need of nothing more than your choice of custom builders.
There are two central hubs of activity on the island, which you can elect to live as close to—or as far from—as you wish; remembering that you can bask in total seclusion on Siesta Key and still be surprisingly close to everything. Siesta Village—toward the north end of Crescent Beach—and the South Village, near Point of Rocks (at mid key), are filled with restaurants, nightclubs, specialty shops and boutiques; and enjoy the colorful street life you expect in a bustling resort town. In between is every sort of residential opportunity you could hope for; with the choices decidedly favoring those who want the turn-key convenience of a condominium with the added premium of earning rental income when they can’t be there. To experience the finest in barefoot luxury first hand, be sure to visit the elegant new Summer Cove on Siesta and tour this beautifully situated, fully-amenitized bayside community of just 45 condominium residences. The majority have been sold, but a good selection is still available.
A quieter hub can be found at Turtle Beach, another spectacular strand at the island’s southern tip. Siesta Key insiders often prefer this beautifully re-nourished beach for its more laid-back atmosphere and lesser-used recreational amenities. Here again, the residential opportunities favor those in search of turn-key convenience in a waterfront condominium; but there are plenty of single-family homes as you approach the neighborhood.
No description of Siesta Key would be complete without waxing poetic on the many one-of-a-kind waterside neighborhoods—tucked inside dense jungles of tropical flora and winding mangrove tunnels—that truly give the key its island flavor. Venture down almost any side street and you’re apt to find yourself driving beneath leafy canopies through such aptly named enclaves as Sandy Hook, Hidden Harbor and Mangrove Point. Especially significant among Siesta Key’s most noteworthy neighborhoods is The Sanderling Club, a private Gulf-side community on Midnight Pass Road between the South Village and Turtle Beach. The community traces its roots to the early 1940’s; and began its storied existence as a winter resort with small carriage homes and a row of appealing beach cabanas. The gated neighborhood is beautifully planned with spacious home sites, congenial residents and an unparalleled—but casual—beach lifestyle. The cabanas were designed by acclaimed Sarasota School architect, Paul Rudolph, who later became dean of the Yale School of Architecture. The Sanderling Beach Club, also the brainchild of Rudolph, circa 1952, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and provides residents with cool respite from the beach and the community’s three tennis courts. In the same vicinity of Midnight Pass Road, Spice Bay offers buyers intent on a new home a West Indies-inspired version of contemporary island living. Its 14 home sites, situated on eight scenic bay-front acres, have infrastructure in place and are builder-ready. Similarly, within a short stroll of Siesta Key Village is Coronas Park, another builder-ready enclave of 13 home sites; with homes planned in the British Colonial style.
Take your time. Explore Siesta Key. Some say the Siesta Key experience evokes the legendary lifestyle of Key West. We think its better. Key West doesn’t have Sarasota on the other side of a short bridge.
Saturday, April 4, 2009
Longboat Key - World Class Destination
Longboat Key: Off The Beaten Track
As appeared: Michael Saunders @ Home
Michael Saunder & Company
Licensed Real Estate Broker
If you’ve only seen Longboat Key from Gulf of Mexico Drive, you’ve missed most of it. The true Longboat experience is found off the beaten track; along its canopied side streets, fishing its bays and bayous, and kayaking through the maze of mangrove tunnels that pass through such vintage north key neighborhoods as Longboat Village and Bayou Hammock. The lifestyle choices—as quickly become apparent with a bit more investigation—are plentiful and pleasantly overlapping.
Gulf of Mexico Drive was once called Ringling Boulevard after the legendary business tycoon who figured so prominently in the early development of Longboat Key and the creation of its signature thoroughfare. In the 1920’s, John Ringling became so enamored of the island, so acutely aware of its potential as a world class destination, that he purchased most of its south end. There he envisioned a grand hotel that would, in the words of the Sarasota Herald, establish “a center of brilliance and gaiety surpassing anything of its kind in the South.” Thanks to the financial challenges of the late 1920s, the hotel—a Ritz-Carlton—was never quite completed and became little more than a dangerous and ghostly eyesore. It was demolished in 1962.
Ringling’s extensive real estate holdings were eventually purchased by the Arvida Corporation in the late 1950s. Its owner, visionary developer Arthur Vining Davis, considered finishing the hotel; but 33 years of neglect had taken its toll. Instead, he focused on developing a master plan for Longboat Key and spent a million and a half dollars advertising it to the world. The island was evolving into a world-class community; but pockets of its rustic character—as evidenced by the quirky charm of Longboat Village—have been doted-on and lovingly preserved. Here, the Longboat Key Center for the Arts—now affiliated with the Ringling College of Art & Design—offers an array of educational programs, exhibitions, and events to inspire creativity and invite active participation.
Davis adopted Ringling’s dream of erecting a grand hotel in a grand location on the south end of Longboat Key. On an even more spectacular site, he built Inn on the Beach, which debuted in October 1982. It was the crowning touch to Longboat Key Club & Resort, a world-class resort and country club where many a pampered guest—he calculated correctly—would fall in love with the island and queue-up to purchase homes and condominiums. The resort boasts the only golfing opportunity on any of Sarasota’s barrier islands—with members and guests able to choose between two championship waterside courses—and the largest deep-water marina on Florida’s West Coast. Just up the road, the Colony Beach and Tennis Club has long been an award-winning favorite of serious tennis players and their families.
A drive up Gulf of Mexico Drive on any given day makes you wonder if the people here ever sit still long enough to enjoy the island’s lush natural beauty. They’re out in droves, jogging, biking, walking, rollerblading, playing tennis on numerous public courts and otherwise taking full advantage of the public parks, nature preserves and recreational facilities that generously dot the key. The Longboat Key Education Center—located mid-key at the Centre Shops—offers more than 150 non-credit programs, a lecture series, a performing arts series, one-day workshops and guided trips to points of interest throughout Southwest Florida.
At the end of the day—after the sun makes its famously blazing exit over the Gulf of Mexico—recreation yields to relaxation and Longboat Key becomes a culinary smash hit. Diners from all over the area beat a path to such noteworthy eateries as Moore’s Stone Crab and Mar Vista, on the north end; Euphemia Haye, Harry’s Continental Kitchen, Pattigeorge’s and Café on the Bay located closer to mid-key, and the Dry Dock and Chart House, toward the south end. Longboat Key Club & Resort offers its members and guests five unique restaurants, including its latest sensation, Portofino, overlooking the club’s new marina. The casual comfort of the Monkey Bar and renowned Colony Dining Room—both inside The Colony Beach & Tennis Resort—are open to the public. Starving for great cuisine on Longboat Key is simply not an option.
Today you needn’t be a tycoon or visionary to take advantage of the tremendous lifestyle opportunities that await home buyers on Longboat Key. That loud noise you heard the other day might well have been the sound of jaws dropping at the news that a fully-updated, one-bedroom waterfront condominium—with a huge terrace and million-dollar view of the Gulf of Mexico—had just closed for $250,000. Indeed, prices across the board have been substantially reduced on residential properties of every type in every neighborhood. The best-priced opportunities in the best locations are selling-out fast with this year’s activity already outpacing last year’s. Investment-minded buyers will no doubt wish to entertain the possibility of owning a guest suite at Inn on the Beach or The Colony, where the income potential is considerable.
For those who wish to possess the finest in new beachfront condominiums there’s the classically-inspired Positano and the soon-to-be, ultra-luxurious Bleu Claire. In a completely different vein, at nearby White Sands of Longboat and Veranda Beach Club (further south, just across from the Avenue of the Flowers Shopping Center) you can purchase a fully furnished vacation apartment for as many weeks out of each year as you wish.
As appeared: Michael Saunders @ Home
Michael Saunder & Company
Licensed Real Estate Broker
If you’ve only seen Longboat Key from Gulf of Mexico Drive, you’ve missed most of it. The true Longboat experience is found off the beaten track; along its canopied side streets, fishing its bays and bayous, and kayaking through the maze of mangrove tunnels that pass through such vintage north key neighborhoods as Longboat Village and Bayou Hammock. The lifestyle choices—as quickly become apparent with a bit more investigation—are plentiful and pleasantly overlapping.
Gulf of Mexico Drive was once called Ringling Boulevard after the legendary business tycoon who figured so prominently in the early development of Longboat Key and the creation of its signature thoroughfare. In the 1920’s, John Ringling became so enamored of the island, so acutely aware of its potential as a world class destination, that he purchased most of its south end. There he envisioned a grand hotel that would, in the words of the Sarasota Herald, establish “a center of brilliance and gaiety surpassing anything of its kind in the South.” Thanks to the financial challenges of the late 1920s, the hotel—a Ritz-Carlton—was never quite completed and became little more than a dangerous and ghostly eyesore. It was demolished in 1962.
Ringling’s extensive real estate holdings were eventually purchased by the Arvida Corporation in the late 1950s. Its owner, visionary developer Arthur Vining Davis, considered finishing the hotel; but 33 years of neglect had taken its toll. Instead, he focused on developing a master plan for Longboat Key and spent a million and a half dollars advertising it to the world. The island was evolving into a world-class community; but pockets of its rustic character—as evidenced by the quirky charm of Longboat Village—have been doted-on and lovingly preserved. Here, the Longboat Key Center for the Arts—now affiliated with the Ringling College of Art & Design—offers an array of educational programs, exhibitions, and events to inspire creativity and invite active participation.
Davis adopted Ringling’s dream of erecting a grand hotel in a grand location on the south end of Longboat Key. On an even more spectacular site, he built Inn on the Beach, which debuted in October 1982. It was the crowning touch to Longboat Key Club & Resort, a world-class resort and country club where many a pampered guest—he calculated correctly—would fall in love with the island and queue-up to purchase homes and condominiums. The resort boasts the only golfing opportunity on any of Sarasota’s barrier islands—with members and guests able to choose between two championship waterside courses—and the largest deep-water marina on Florida’s West Coast. Just up the road, the Colony Beach and Tennis Club has long been an award-winning favorite of serious tennis players and their families.
A drive up Gulf of Mexico Drive on any given day makes you wonder if the people here ever sit still long enough to enjoy the island’s lush natural beauty. They’re out in droves, jogging, biking, walking, rollerblading, playing tennis on numerous public courts and otherwise taking full advantage of the public parks, nature preserves and recreational facilities that generously dot the key. The Longboat Key Education Center—located mid-key at the Centre Shops—offers more than 150 non-credit programs, a lecture series, a performing arts series, one-day workshops and guided trips to points of interest throughout Southwest Florida.
At the end of the day—after the sun makes its famously blazing exit over the Gulf of Mexico—recreation yields to relaxation and Longboat Key becomes a culinary smash hit. Diners from all over the area beat a path to such noteworthy eateries as Moore’s Stone Crab and Mar Vista, on the north end; Euphemia Haye, Harry’s Continental Kitchen, Pattigeorge’s and Café on the Bay located closer to mid-key, and the Dry Dock and Chart House, toward the south end. Longboat Key Club & Resort offers its members and guests five unique restaurants, including its latest sensation, Portofino, overlooking the club’s new marina. The casual comfort of the Monkey Bar and renowned Colony Dining Room—both inside The Colony Beach & Tennis Resort—are open to the public. Starving for great cuisine on Longboat Key is simply not an option.
Today you needn’t be a tycoon or visionary to take advantage of the tremendous lifestyle opportunities that await home buyers on Longboat Key. That loud noise you heard the other day might well have been the sound of jaws dropping at the news that a fully-updated, one-bedroom waterfront condominium—with a huge terrace and million-dollar view of the Gulf of Mexico—had just closed for $250,000. Indeed, prices across the board have been substantially reduced on residential properties of every type in every neighborhood. The best-priced opportunities in the best locations are selling-out fast with this year’s activity already outpacing last year’s. Investment-minded buyers will no doubt wish to entertain the possibility of owning a guest suite at Inn on the Beach or The Colony, where the income potential is considerable.
For those who wish to possess the finest in new beachfront condominiums there’s the classically-inspired Positano and the soon-to-be, ultra-luxurious Bleu Claire. In a completely different vein, at nearby White Sands of Longboat and Veranda Beach Club (further south, just across from the Avenue of the Flowers Shopping Center) you can purchase a fully furnished vacation apartment for as many weeks out of each year as you wish.
Friday, March 27, 2009
Sarasota-Bradenton Mortgage Acitivity Heats Up
Mortgage activity heats up
Herald-Tribune
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Mortgage applications soared last week by 32 percent after the Federal Reserve said it would buy billions of dollars in Treasury bonds and mortgage-backed securities, but Southwest Florida brokers and others said borrowers -- like home buyers -- continue to chase a bottom.
Following the rates has become challenging in an environment where they swing wildly. Everyone is trying to lock in the best deal, but the volatility amidst the financial crisis is like nothing most brokers have seen. This region has seen a strong increase in activity, but it would likely be bigger with more stable rates.
"We're really in uncharted territory," said Marci Walker, with Bradenton-based Blue Skye Lending, on Wednesday. "Anything can trigger the markets one way or the other right now."
But the Sarasota-Bradenton market is seeing a large increase in the refinancing business, and new loans for purchases have been growing among first-time buyers and for lower-priced homes, brokers said. Tom Flood at Sarasota's Covenant Mortgage said his home loan activity is up several hundred percent from just a few months ago.
"It's starting to feel more like a normal market," Flood said. "Homebuyers' activity has picked up dramatically and my phone is ringing off the hook." Flood credits the government's intervention; especially the tax breaks and Fed induced low interest rates.
"I'm hearing it from everyone across the board," he said. "It's a general uptick all around and it may be because everybody is starting to believe we might be at the bottom" in pricing."
That bodes well for a region that has been struggling with a huge inventory of unsold properties both in the existing and new home markets.
The Mortgage Bankers Association reported Wednesday that its weekly application index climbed 32.2 percent for the week that ended Friday. The index came in at 1159.4, up from 876.9 a week earlier. The lion's share came from borrowers looking to refinance home loans at lower rates. The index remains well below 1,856.7, the peak reached in May 2003 at the height of the housing boom.
The stronger mortgage demand came as the Commerce Department reported new home sales rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 337,000 in February from January's 322,000.
Some analysts remained skeptical that the report demonstrated a new housing bottom. The results, while better than the drop to 300,000 units many expected, were the second-worst on record.
Mortgage gyrations
When the Federal Reserve announced its buying plan last week, mortgage rates in the Sarasota-Bradenton market dropped to the mid-4 percent range for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage with no points. But the next day, they began creeping back up, and now hover around 5 percent.
Nationally, the average rate dipped last week to 4.63 percent from 4.89 percent a week earlier, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association report.
"Rates are changing so quickly, you feel like you have to jump on it that afternoon or it's going to be gone," said Walker, who recommends her clients, especially the ones looking to refinance, prepare all of the paperwork ahead of time so that they can move quickly. "We tell them, 'Get us everything we need, so we're ready to lock you in when you have that rate you want.'"
Customers either ask to be called when rates hit a certain level, to see if they want to move forward, or they can even specify a certain target rate that authorizes the broker to pull the trigger, she said.
In the past, brokers could generally predict changes in mortgage rates by looking at the long-term bond market. But as the financial crisis has unfolded, that no longer seems to apply, said Steve Schneider, with Miami-based Abacus Lending.
The fluctuations have been dizzying: "On Thursday, I saw two rate increases, another increase on Monday, and it moved up from there," he said. That has some borrowers reluctant to commit because they do not want to miss out. "Some people are sitting on the fence, They want to get in at the lowest rate. The problem is no one knows what the lowest will be," Schneider said. Volatility in home values also means banks are having a difficult time knowing whether the loans they make are properly priced.
Herald-Tribune
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Mortgage applications soared last week by 32 percent after the Federal Reserve said it would buy billions of dollars in Treasury bonds and mortgage-backed securities, but Southwest Florida brokers and others said borrowers -- like home buyers -- continue to chase a bottom.
Following the rates has become challenging in an environment where they swing wildly. Everyone is trying to lock in the best deal, but the volatility amidst the financial crisis is like nothing most brokers have seen. This region has seen a strong increase in activity, but it would likely be bigger with more stable rates.
"We're really in uncharted territory," said Marci Walker, with Bradenton-based Blue Skye Lending, on Wednesday. "Anything can trigger the markets one way or the other right now."
But the Sarasota-Bradenton market is seeing a large increase in the refinancing business, and new loans for purchases have been growing among first-time buyers and for lower-priced homes, brokers said. Tom Flood at Sarasota's Covenant Mortgage said his home loan activity is up several hundred percent from just a few months ago.
"It's starting to feel more like a normal market," Flood said. "Homebuyers' activity has picked up dramatically and my phone is ringing off the hook." Flood credits the government's intervention; especially the tax breaks and Fed induced low interest rates.
"I'm hearing it from everyone across the board," he said. "It's a general uptick all around and it may be because everybody is starting to believe we might be at the bottom" in pricing."
That bodes well for a region that has been struggling with a huge inventory of unsold properties both in the existing and new home markets.
The Mortgage Bankers Association reported Wednesday that its weekly application index climbed 32.2 percent for the week that ended Friday. The index came in at 1159.4, up from 876.9 a week earlier. The lion's share came from borrowers looking to refinance home loans at lower rates. The index remains well below 1,856.7, the peak reached in May 2003 at the height of the housing boom.
The stronger mortgage demand came as the Commerce Department reported new home sales rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 337,000 in February from January's 322,000.
Some analysts remained skeptical that the report demonstrated a new housing bottom. The results, while better than the drop to 300,000 units many expected, were the second-worst on record.
Mortgage gyrations
When the Federal Reserve announced its buying plan last week, mortgage rates in the Sarasota-Bradenton market dropped to the mid-4 percent range for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage with no points. But the next day, they began creeping back up, and now hover around 5 percent.
Nationally, the average rate dipped last week to 4.63 percent from 4.89 percent a week earlier, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association report.
"Rates are changing so quickly, you feel like you have to jump on it that afternoon or it's going to be gone," said Walker, who recommends her clients, especially the ones looking to refinance, prepare all of the paperwork ahead of time so that they can move quickly. "We tell them, 'Get us everything we need, so we're ready to lock you in when you have that rate you want.'"
Customers either ask to be called when rates hit a certain level, to see if they want to move forward, or they can even specify a certain target rate that authorizes the broker to pull the trigger, she said.
In the past, brokers could generally predict changes in mortgage rates by looking at the long-term bond market. But as the financial crisis has unfolded, that no longer seems to apply, said Steve Schneider, with Miami-based Abacus Lending.
The fluctuations have been dizzying: "On Thursday, I saw two rate increases, another increase on Monday, and it moved up from there," he said. That has some borrowers reluctant to commit because they do not want to miss out. "Some people are sitting on the fence, They want to get in at the lowest rate. The problem is no one knows what the lowest will be," Schneider said. Volatility in home values also means banks are having a difficult time knowing whether the loans they make are properly priced.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Near Record Low Interest Spurs Home Loan Demand
As appeared March 11, 2009
CNNMoney.com
Mortgage applications jump 11%
Near record low interest rates spur demand for home loans.
March 11, 2009: 7:06 AM ET
NEW YORK (Reuters) -- U.S. mortgage applications rose for the first time in three weeks as near record-low interest rates spurred demand for home refinancing and purchase loans, data from an industry group showed on Wednesday.
The jump in demand came several weeks after the unveiling of the strongest government action yet to aid homeowners since the housing market's meltdown began and may help gauge what is in store this spring, the peak home-buying season.
The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted index of mortgage applications, which includes both purchase and refinance loans, for the week ended March 6 increased 11.3% to 723.4.
U.S. President Obama last month announced the Homeowner Affordability and Stability Plan, which is designed to provide much-needed support to the housing market. Read the entire Article
CNNMoney.com
Mortgage applications jump 11%
Near record low interest rates spur demand for home loans.
March 11, 2009: 7:06 AM ET
NEW YORK (Reuters) -- U.S. mortgage applications rose for the first time in three weeks as near record-low interest rates spurred demand for home refinancing and purchase loans, data from an industry group showed on Wednesday.
The jump in demand came several weeks after the unveiling of the strongest government action yet to aid homeowners since the housing market's meltdown began and may help gauge what is in store this spring, the peak home-buying season.
The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted index of mortgage applications, which includes both purchase and refinance loans, for the week ended March 6 increased 11.3% to 723.4.
U.S. President Obama last month announced the Homeowner Affordability and Stability Plan, which is designed to provide much-needed support to the housing market. Read the entire Article
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Best Sarasota Property Opportunities
As appeared Sunday, January 11.2009
Michael Saunders & Company
If we start to sound like a broken record, it’s because one simple truism bears constant repetition in today’s real estate market “Price, price, price” is so fundamental to the success of every new property transaction that we can never say it too often or with too much conviction. If you’re troubled by the lack of potential buyers previewing your home, don’t be tempted to cushion your disappointment by attributing the inactivity to added fallout from today’s economic environment. With multiple sales occurring every day across the entire spectrum of price, an overpriced home is more likely to blame.
Here’s a happier truism that also bears constant repeating: There’s a committed buyer waiting to pounce on every aggressively priced home. Including yours. This is evidenced by the huge inventory of available homes—in every neighborhood and every price range— being steadily consumed from the bottom up by the most value obsessed buyers in recent memory. If you must sell your home in today’s market, you must commit to pricing it better than the vast majority of its competition. Where an unbeatable location once ruled the day, an unbeatable price is now the only game in town.
Although the sheer number of potential buyers has leveled off considerably from the headiest days of the boom, quality has replaced quantity. Serious, well-funded, end-use buyers—many of whom pay cash and actually intend to occupy the home—are being motivated by prices not seen in more than a half-dozen years. Truth be told, they are combing the market in far greater numbers than most media-hardened consumers have been conditioned to believe. To eventually sit across a closing table from the future owners of your home, you must be willing to price it with a similar degree of motivation. When mutual degrees of buyer and seller motivation collide, contracts and checkbooks magically appear.
How do we know there are plenty of value-conscious buyers letting their fingers do the walking across a computer keyboard in advance of making a well-informed offer?
Since launching the special “Best Opportunities” section of michaelsaunders.com—just over eight months ago—the number of online showings for eligible properties has been nine times higher than properties not eligible for the section. Clearly the greatest number of committed buyers is focusing its efforts where the greatest values are guaranteed.
With over 145,540 unique visits to the Best Opportunity section of michaelsaunders.com, 96.1% of these visitors experienced two or more Best Opportunity showings per visit. 63.7% of these showings are by repeat visitors to the section; which means that every third visit captures a new buyer!
More importantly, of the 335 properties that have been showcased on Best Opportunities thus far, 20.6 percent have sold in an expedited time frame—a rate 31% higher than properties sold throughout the entire regional MLS. Another 22 properties are presently under contract. Many of these homes are bank-owned properties for those who wish to investigate such opportunities.
How can your property qualify for inclusion in Best Opportunities?
Real estate companies do not establish or control market prices. Economic forces—mainly the law of supply and demand—do. To guarantee that the homes featured in Best Opportunities are among the most competitively priced at any given time, we regularly convene an in-house panel of the region’s most seasoned real estate experts to painstakingly scrutinize each property vying for inclusion. Together they make sure that each is priced within certain market-driven parameters which, when met, qualify it as one of the best values in its competitive set.
To be featured in Best Opportunities each home must adhere to
at least one of the following criteria. It must be:
1.) Priced below a recent certified appraisal, or…
2.) Priced below a CMA (Competitive Market Analysis), or…
3.) Priced below other homes in its competitive set.
If for any reason a home listed in Best Opportunities ceases to meet at least one of these aforementioned qualifiers, an appropriate price adjustment is recommended to the seller in order to re-qualify for inclusion in the section. This way, when a buyer purchases one of the price-vetted properties in Best Opportunities, they are assured of owning one of the best values in today’s market. It’s that simple.
So forgive us if we constantly repeat the market’s most important new imperative—again and again. Price, price, price. If your home can be among the best-priced opportunities in its competitive set, why not showcase it where the largest mass of potential buyers shows up—again and again—to scour for the most dependable values in Southwest Florida? We’ve done the homework. The next step is yours.
Michael Saunders & Company
If we start to sound like a broken record, it’s because one simple truism bears constant repetition in today’s real estate market “Price, price, price” is so fundamental to the success of every new property transaction that we can never say it too often or with too much conviction. If you’re troubled by the lack of potential buyers previewing your home, don’t be tempted to cushion your disappointment by attributing the inactivity to added fallout from today’s economic environment. With multiple sales occurring every day across the entire spectrum of price, an overpriced home is more likely to blame.
Here’s a happier truism that also bears constant repeating: There’s a committed buyer waiting to pounce on every aggressively priced home. Including yours. This is evidenced by the huge inventory of available homes—in every neighborhood and every price range— being steadily consumed from the bottom up by the most value obsessed buyers in recent memory. If you must sell your home in today’s market, you must commit to pricing it better than the vast majority of its competition. Where an unbeatable location once ruled the day, an unbeatable price is now the only game in town.
Although the sheer number of potential buyers has leveled off considerably from the headiest days of the boom, quality has replaced quantity. Serious, well-funded, end-use buyers—many of whom pay cash and actually intend to occupy the home—are being motivated by prices not seen in more than a half-dozen years. Truth be told, they are combing the market in far greater numbers than most media-hardened consumers have been conditioned to believe. To eventually sit across a closing table from the future owners of your home, you must be willing to price it with a similar degree of motivation. When mutual degrees of buyer and seller motivation collide, contracts and checkbooks magically appear.
How do we know there are plenty of value-conscious buyers letting their fingers do the walking across a computer keyboard in advance of making a well-informed offer?
Since launching the special “Best Opportunities” section of michaelsaunders.com—just over eight months ago—the number of online showings for eligible properties has been nine times higher than properties not eligible for the section. Clearly the greatest number of committed buyers is focusing its efforts where the greatest values are guaranteed.
With over 145,540 unique visits to the Best Opportunity section of michaelsaunders.com, 96.1% of these visitors experienced two or more Best Opportunity showings per visit. 63.7% of these showings are by repeat visitors to the section; which means that every third visit captures a new buyer!
More importantly, of the 335 properties that have been showcased on Best Opportunities thus far, 20.6 percent have sold in an expedited time frame—a rate 31% higher than properties sold throughout the entire regional MLS. Another 22 properties are presently under contract. Many of these homes are bank-owned properties for those who wish to investigate such opportunities.
How can your property qualify for inclusion in Best Opportunities?
Real estate companies do not establish or control market prices. Economic forces—mainly the law of supply and demand—do. To guarantee that the homes featured in Best Opportunities are among the most competitively priced at any given time, we regularly convene an in-house panel of the region’s most seasoned real estate experts to painstakingly scrutinize each property vying for inclusion. Together they make sure that each is priced within certain market-driven parameters which, when met, qualify it as one of the best values in its competitive set.
To be featured in Best Opportunities each home must adhere to
at least one of the following criteria. It must be:
1.) Priced below a recent certified appraisal, or…
2.) Priced below a CMA (Competitive Market Analysis), or…
3.) Priced below other homes in its competitive set.
If for any reason a home listed in Best Opportunities ceases to meet at least one of these aforementioned qualifiers, an appropriate price adjustment is recommended to the seller in order to re-qualify for inclusion in the section. This way, when a buyer purchases one of the price-vetted properties in Best Opportunities, they are assured of owning one of the best values in today’s market. It’s that simple.
So forgive us if we constantly repeat the market’s most important new imperative—again and again. Price, price, price. If your home can be among the best-priced opportunities in its competitive set, why not showcase it where the largest mass of potential buyers shows up—again and again—to scour for the most dependable values in Southwest Florida? We’ve done the homework. The next step is yours.
Monday, February 9, 2009
Making A World of Difference
As appeared Sunday, August 24, 2008
Michael Saunders & Company
Whether they motor in from across the Canadian border or crisscross the entire globe to get here, Southwest Florida has a long history of luring international buyers drawn to our irresistible blend of sun, sea and cultural sophistication. Today, with prices right, selections great, and foreign currencies showing unprecedented strength against the dollar, what used to be a regular trickle has grown into a steady stream of international buyers ready, willing and able to purchase properties before this extraordinary set of circumstances slips away.
For this reason, we are proud to reacquaint our clients, customers and friends with MSC International, the division of Michael Saunders & Company that has long helped buyers from every country grasp the nuances of American property transactions and guide them successfully through every step it takes to complete one.
It’s not enough to simply tack the word “International” to the end of your corporate name and expect to wing-it once an international buyer shows up at your doorstep. At MSC International, we are set-up to offer every level of international support; from providing multi-lingual associates, attorneys and lending specialists to offering guidance on mortgage opportunities and title issues from experts who can explain the difference between cultures when it comes to purchasing property and completing a transaction.
Although it may not seem readily apparent, if you’re a local seller, MSC International offers you some very important and unique benefits as well. Through our carefully-crafted network of international affiliations—including the European Real Estate Network, Mayfair International Realty, Leading Real Estate Companies of the World, Luxury Portfolio and Christie’s Great Estates—MSC International continues to harness foreign buyers in quantities that help fill the void in overall buyers, whose numbers aren’t sufficient to rapidly absorb the huge number of unsold properties that were dumped on the market by over-leveraged and under-capitalized speculators. More buyers, of course, mean more opportunities to sell your home.
No other real estate company in Southwest Florida offers such an extensive grid of international connections, nor enjoys the benefit of having a hands-on founder who travels the world to position Sarasota front and center on every broker’s radar screen. Last year Michael Saunders & Company was inducted into the ranks of the prestigious European Real Estate Network (EREN), one of only two American brokerages to enjoy such a privilege and distinction. EREN is comprised of an exclusive group of European luxury real estate companies, widely considered the most prestigious real estate firms in their respective countries. With the addition of Michael Saunders & Company and New York’s Halstead Properties—EREN is now comprised of 22 leading property firms, operating 53 offices in 10 countries. It is the only pan-European network of independent, top-quality brokerage companies who provide their clients with considerable real estate expertise, international contacts, and trans-Atlantic exposure for all their properties
At the same time, Michael Saunders drew on her international reputation to forge a second new Pan-European alliance intended to showcase the company’s listings to buyers throughout continental Europe and the United Kingdom. Mayfair International Realty, a London-based organization that represents 125 real estate brokerages with 350 offices, is MSC International’s newest link in its chain of worldwide connections.
These new alliances are by no means intended to eclipse our longstanding affiliations with Leading Real Estate Companies of the World, Luxury Portfolio and Christie’s Great Estates, they simply add another important layer of connectivity linking our sellers with qualified buyers the world over. In the first half of 2008, Christie’s Great Estates—the international offshoot of the world’s oldest and most prestigious fine-art auction house—achieved nearly five times the volume in sales of important properties, has 365 more offices and 25,500 more sales associates than its closest competitor Sotheby’s.
Last, but certainly not least, sellers who list with Michael Saunders & Company enjoy the unrivaled benefit of having their properties exposed to a world of buyers thanks to www.michaelsaunders.com. Last month alone, michaelsaunders.com experienced 70,956 visits
from 122 countries and territories around the world.
Michael Saunders & Company
Whether they motor in from across the Canadian border or crisscross the entire globe to get here, Southwest Florida has a long history of luring international buyers drawn to our irresistible blend of sun, sea and cultural sophistication. Today, with prices right, selections great, and foreign currencies showing unprecedented strength against the dollar, what used to be a regular trickle has grown into a steady stream of international buyers ready, willing and able to purchase properties before this extraordinary set of circumstances slips away.
For this reason, we are proud to reacquaint our clients, customers and friends with MSC International, the division of Michael Saunders & Company that has long helped buyers from every country grasp the nuances of American property transactions and guide them successfully through every step it takes to complete one.
It’s not enough to simply tack the word “International” to the end of your corporate name and expect to wing-it once an international buyer shows up at your doorstep. At MSC International, we are set-up to offer every level of international support; from providing multi-lingual associates, attorneys and lending specialists to offering guidance on mortgage opportunities and title issues from experts who can explain the difference between cultures when it comes to purchasing property and completing a transaction.
Although it may not seem readily apparent, if you’re a local seller, MSC International offers you some very important and unique benefits as well. Through our carefully-crafted network of international affiliations—including the European Real Estate Network, Mayfair International Realty, Leading Real Estate Companies of the World, Luxury Portfolio and Christie’s Great Estates—MSC International continues to harness foreign buyers in quantities that help fill the void in overall buyers, whose numbers aren’t sufficient to rapidly absorb the huge number of unsold properties that were dumped on the market by over-leveraged and under-capitalized speculators. More buyers, of course, mean more opportunities to sell your home.
No other real estate company in Southwest Florida offers such an extensive grid of international connections, nor enjoys the benefit of having a hands-on founder who travels the world to position Sarasota front and center on every broker’s radar screen. Last year Michael Saunders & Company was inducted into the ranks of the prestigious European Real Estate Network (EREN), one of only two American brokerages to enjoy such a privilege and distinction. EREN is comprised of an exclusive group of European luxury real estate companies, widely considered the most prestigious real estate firms in their respective countries. With the addition of Michael Saunders & Company and New York’s Halstead Properties—EREN is now comprised of 22 leading property firms, operating 53 offices in 10 countries. It is the only pan-European network of independent, top-quality brokerage companies who provide their clients with considerable real estate expertise, international contacts, and trans-Atlantic exposure for all their properties
At the same time, Michael Saunders drew on her international reputation to forge a second new Pan-European alliance intended to showcase the company’s listings to buyers throughout continental Europe and the United Kingdom. Mayfair International Realty, a London-based organization that represents 125 real estate brokerages with 350 offices, is MSC International’s newest link in its chain of worldwide connections.
These new alliances are by no means intended to eclipse our longstanding affiliations with Leading Real Estate Companies of the World, Luxury Portfolio and Christie’s Great Estates, they simply add another important layer of connectivity linking our sellers with qualified buyers the world over. In the first half of 2008, Christie’s Great Estates—the international offshoot of the world’s oldest and most prestigious fine-art auction house—achieved nearly five times the volume in sales of important properties, has 365 more offices and 25,500 more sales associates than its closest competitor Sotheby’s.
Last, but certainly not least, sellers who list with Michael Saunders & Company enjoy the unrivaled benefit of having their properties exposed to a world of buyers thanks to www.michaelsaunders.com. Last month alone, michaelsaunders.com experienced 70,956 visits
from 122 countries and territories around the world.
Sunday, February 1, 2009
The Power of Worldwide Exposure
As Appeared
Michael Saunders & Company
With a vast majority of today’s homebuyers beginning their property search online, elevated Web visibility leads to more successful real estate results than ever.
Worldwide interest in properties on Florida’s Gulf Coast continues to drive visitors to michaelsaunders.com every day.
From July through September of 2008, michaelsaunders.com saw:
^ Approximately 92,095 unique visitors from 150 countries and every state in the United States chose michaelsaunders.com for real estate information
^ Of these unique visitors, 38% were new to our Web site
^ These visitors searched over 30,000 keywords to find us for their real estate needs
^ Our visitors were sent to michaelsaunders.com by over 1,500 different real estate-related sites, search engines, portals and links affiliated with our company and Website
^ Once on our Website, visitors amassed over 3.2 million page views, with each visitor spending an average of 7 minutes browsing our content
^ Of those page views, visitors overwhelmingly took advantage of many of our user-friendly, informative features. The top 5 most frequented areas of our site were:
• Residential property searches, spanning all price ranges, property types and lifestyle options
• Best Opportunities, showcasing the area’s best values aggressively priced below comparative properties
• Rental property searches
• Neighborhood information for an in-depth look at the communities in our area
• Associate information pages to find the expert real estate agent who matches their specific needs
Michael Saunders & Company
With a vast majority of today’s homebuyers beginning their property search online, elevated Web visibility leads to more successful real estate results than ever.
Worldwide interest in properties on Florida’s Gulf Coast continues to drive visitors to michaelsaunders.com every day.
From July through September of 2008, michaelsaunders.com saw:
^ Approximately 92,095 unique visitors from 150 countries and every state in the United States chose michaelsaunders.com for real estate information
^ Of these unique visitors, 38% were new to our Web site
^ These visitors searched over 30,000 keywords to find us for their real estate needs
^ Our visitors were sent to michaelsaunders.com by over 1,500 different real estate-related sites, search engines, portals and links affiliated with our company and Website
^ Once on our Website, visitors amassed over 3.2 million page views, with each visitor spending an average of 7 minutes browsing our content
^ Of those page views, visitors overwhelmingly took advantage of many of our user-friendly, informative features. The top 5 most frequented areas of our site were:
• Residential property searches, spanning all price ranges, property types and lifestyle options
• Best Opportunities, showcasing the area’s best values aggressively priced below comparative properties
• Rental property searches
• Neighborhood information for an in-depth look at the communities in our area
• Associate information pages to find the expert real estate agent who matches their specific needs
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Price It Right and They Will Come
As Appeared Sunday August 17, 2008
Michael Saunders & Company
There’s an old sales and marketing adage that goes something like this: If you can demonstrate real value in a product or service, people will have no objections to its price.
Old adage? Maybe. But it’s one that is certainly apropos of the times when referencing what properties are—and are not—selling in a real estate market that challenges determined
sellers to be competitive to the utmost degree.
When Florida’s latest real estate boom was running full tilt, speculators—as opposed to genuine end-users—were ratcheting- up prices to such an extreme that it suddenly became all
too apparent that real buyers were no longer willing to stand in line and pony-up for properties that far exceeded their true market value. Sales suddenly plummeted spectacularly and, in
a panic, many of these over-leveraged and under-capitalized speculators fled the market—but not before dumping thousands of overpriced properties into it in a last-ditch attempt to turn
a profit, or at least recoup their original investment. The boom went belly-up when it no longer made any sense to pay exorbitant prices in a market flooded with scores of competitive
properties. The pendulum has swung widely in favor of buyers, who are now in firm control of the market.
Naturally, this takes some getting used to for newer sellers who fully expect to enjoy profits on the same scale that many of their friends or neighbors enjoyed only a few short years ago.
For many of these sellers, they know the market is hobbled, but their perception of the worth of their home in yesteryear’s hyper-inflated market hasn’t caught up with the reality of
what its corrected value is today. But it’s a reality that must be reckoned with if you truly want to sell your home.
For this reason it has never been more imperative to work in close accord with your listing associate, who is your vital link to understanding exactly how your home must be priced
in order to sell in a reasonable timeframe. Mindful that real estate associates function not unlike other professionals you retain to provide expert counsel (doctors and lawyers come
immediately to mind), what he or she tells you may not always be what you want to hear. Still, just like any other experienced practitioner worth their salt, they are acting in your best interest
when they deliver news that may be painful or disappointing. They don’t use a crystal ball or some other sort of mystical insight to come up with a price for your home. They perform
exhaustive studies of recently sold properties, in and around your own, to find out exactly how much buyers are willing to pay for a home like yours. Unfortunately, yours could be the
perfect home; but we are dealing with an imperfect market, the prescription for which is pricing aggressively in order to meet the market head-on.
Many sellers mistakenly believe that international buyers, with their dollar-busting currencies, are the perfect panacea for our troubled market; that they aren’t savvy enough to know—or
aren’t all that concerned—if a listing is overpriced. After all, their rationale goes, they’re getting a great deal regardless of the price in dollars. Not true. In fact, international buyers seek
expert counsel too, and are just as demanding as domestic buyers—if not more so—when it comes to squeezing every ounce of value out of a real estate transaction, especially now
that the dollar is gaining ground again.
As month after month of steady increases in unit sales of existing homes demonstrate, homes that are the most aggressively priced are selling within a reasonable timeframe. Overpriced homes, on the other hand, are apt to languish indefinitely on the market—often taking on the unwanted stigma of a problem property. Price it right and they will come. Price it wrong and your home will be as lonely as the Maytag repairman.
Michael Saunders & Company
There’s an old sales and marketing adage that goes something like this: If you can demonstrate real value in a product or service, people will have no objections to its price.
Old adage? Maybe. But it’s one that is certainly apropos of the times when referencing what properties are—and are not—selling in a real estate market that challenges determined
sellers to be competitive to the utmost degree.
When Florida’s latest real estate boom was running full tilt, speculators—as opposed to genuine end-users—were ratcheting- up prices to such an extreme that it suddenly became all
too apparent that real buyers were no longer willing to stand in line and pony-up for properties that far exceeded their true market value. Sales suddenly plummeted spectacularly and, in
a panic, many of these over-leveraged and under-capitalized speculators fled the market—but not before dumping thousands of overpriced properties into it in a last-ditch attempt to turn
a profit, or at least recoup their original investment. The boom went belly-up when it no longer made any sense to pay exorbitant prices in a market flooded with scores of competitive
properties. The pendulum has swung widely in favor of buyers, who are now in firm control of the market.
Naturally, this takes some getting used to for newer sellers who fully expect to enjoy profits on the same scale that many of their friends or neighbors enjoyed only a few short years ago.
For many of these sellers, they know the market is hobbled, but their perception of the worth of their home in yesteryear’s hyper-inflated market hasn’t caught up with the reality of
what its corrected value is today. But it’s a reality that must be reckoned with if you truly want to sell your home.
For this reason it has never been more imperative to work in close accord with your listing associate, who is your vital link to understanding exactly how your home must be priced
in order to sell in a reasonable timeframe. Mindful that real estate associates function not unlike other professionals you retain to provide expert counsel (doctors and lawyers come
immediately to mind), what he or she tells you may not always be what you want to hear. Still, just like any other experienced practitioner worth their salt, they are acting in your best interest
when they deliver news that may be painful or disappointing. They don’t use a crystal ball or some other sort of mystical insight to come up with a price for your home. They perform
exhaustive studies of recently sold properties, in and around your own, to find out exactly how much buyers are willing to pay for a home like yours. Unfortunately, yours could be the
perfect home; but we are dealing with an imperfect market, the prescription for which is pricing aggressively in order to meet the market head-on.
Many sellers mistakenly believe that international buyers, with their dollar-busting currencies, are the perfect panacea for our troubled market; that they aren’t savvy enough to know—or
aren’t all that concerned—if a listing is overpriced. After all, their rationale goes, they’re getting a great deal regardless of the price in dollars. Not true. In fact, international buyers seek
expert counsel too, and are just as demanding as domestic buyers—if not more so—when it comes to squeezing every ounce of value out of a real estate transaction, especially now
that the dollar is gaining ground again.
As month after month of steady increases in unit sales of existing homes demonstrate, homes that are the most aggressively priced are selling within a reasonable timeframe. Overpriced homes, on the other hand, are apt to languish indefinitely on the market—often taking on the unwanted stigma of a problem property. Price it right and they will come. Price it wrong and your home will be as lonely as the Maytag repairman.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Fishing Where The Fish Are
As appeared November 30, 2008
Michael Saunders & Company
You can own the best boat, buy the best equipment and attach the best bait to your hook; but if you don’t fish where the fish are, it all adds up to a colossal waste of time and money. Your prospects of netting
“the big one” are slim.
The same logic applies to selling a luxury home in Southwest Florida. You can own the best home in the best neighborhood and offer it at the best possible price; but if these features go largely unnoticed within the worldwide pool of qualified buyers you’re not likely to net the big one in any kind of reasonable timeframe.
It’s a proven fact: Michael Saunders & Company knows where to “fish” for the most capable buyers of important residential properties. After all, we’ve spent more than three decades fine-tuning our skills in order to cast the widest possible net. In fact, our luxury division is dedicated solely to the nuances of selling significant high-end properties. Indeed, statistics show the more valuable the home, the more likely we are to sell it. This according to the unbiased monthly market reports issued by California-based Trendgraphix, which employs actual
Sarasota MLS sales data to interpret market trends and track competitive sales activity.
Among other things, Trendgraphix measures local market share based on actual units and dollar volume sold. It clearly shows—month after month, year after year—that Michael Saunders & Company is by far Southwest Florida’s leader in luxury sales.
Year-to-date, in the $1 million and up price range, Michael Saunders & Company commands the Sarasota market with a 32.4 percent share of homes sold—more than doubling the share of the second leading competitor; and greater than that of its next four competitors combined.
In the $2 million and up price range, the gap widens. Michael Saunders & Company commands a 36 percent share of homes sold—more than three times its second leading competitor and one-and-a-half times higher than the next four competitors combined.
In the $3 million and up price range, the difference becomes even more pronounced. Michael Saunders & Company holds a 36.5 percent share—an amount equal to three times the combined share of its next three competitors. The pattern remains consistent into the $5 million and up price range, where Michael Saunders & Company leads with a 33.3 percent share of homes sold—more than twice the next three competitors combined.
That we hold such a commanding lead in luxury sales is no accident. From the moment you list your luxury home with Michael Saunders & Company you instantly tap into several exclusive networks—and cross networks— of the world’s finest luxury brokerages. These represent the combined result of more than 32 years of seeking-out and cementing such important and trusted cross-border relationships.
Chief among these worldwide networks are our exclusive affiliations with Christie’s Great Estates, Luxury Portfolio, EREN (The European Real Estate Network) and Mayfair nternational Realty.
Christie’s Great Estates is an international network of high-end independent real estate brokers, linked with the historic Christie’s Auction House—itself a powerful magnet for discriminating high net-worth individuals. The Christie’s name has long been synonymous with quality and integrity and membership is by invitation only to companies with proven records of success in high-volume luxury home sales. Properties listed are at least $2 million; and combined sales throughout the Christie’s global network for 2007 were an astonishing
$ 125 billion.
Luxury Portfolio—the luxury arm of Leading Real Estate Companies of the World—is comprised of 200 high-end brokerages that dominate the luxury market and include the most respected names in marketing properties to the affluent customer. Luxury Portfolio boasts more $1 million-plus listings than any other luxury network. It’s Web site, LuxuryPortfolio.com, provides the showcase for more than 15,000 property listings, totaling $35 billion in inventory; and with an average property price of $2.25 million. Average monthly visits to the site total 100,000 from 200 different countries.
EREN—The European Real Estate Network—is a pan-European organization representing 20 of the leading property firms across the continent. Recently it invited Michael Saunders & Company and Halstead Properties of New York City—to be the only U.S. brokerages firms to join its exclusive ranks.
Mayfair International Realty was founded in 1995 as a real estate service for London clients seeking luxury country homes; and for real estate brokerages seeking representation in London. Its name has since
become synonymous with quality, integrity, and customer satisfaction. Over the past 10 years, the company has developed into a United Kingdom-wide organization representing 125 real estate brokerages with 350 offices.—an important concern considering the U.K. represents one of the two top countries of origin for international buyers who purchase properties in Southwest Florida.
Each of these powerful affiliations is exclusive only to Michael Saunders & Company and joins other noteworthy affiliations—including LuxuryRealEstate.com and Luxury Board of Regents—in empowering our sellers to truly fish where the fish are. Come to think of it, locating qualified luxury buyers through Michael Saunders & Company is more akin to shooting fish in a barrel.
Michael Saunders & Company
You can own the best boat, buy the best equipment and attach the best bait to your hook; but if you don’t fish where the fish are, it all adds up to a colossal waste of time and money. Your prospects of netting
“the big one” are slim.
The same logic applies to selling a luxury home in Southwest Florida. You can own the best home in the best neighborhood and offer it at the best possible price; but if these features go largely unnoticed within the worldwide pool of qualified buyers you’re not likely to net the big one in any kind of reasonable timeframe.
It’s a proven fact: Michael Saunders & Company knows where to “fish” for the most capable buyers of important residential properties. After all, we’ve spent more than three decades fine-tuning our skills in order to cast the widest possible net. In fact, our luxury division is dedicated solely to the nuances of selling significant high-end properties. Indeed, statistics show the more valuable the home, the more likely we are to sell it. This according to the unbiased monthly market reports issued by California-based Trendgraphix, which employs actual
Sarasota MLS sales data to interpret market trends and track competitive sales activity.
Among other things, Trendgraphix measures local market share based on actual units and dollar volume sold. It clearly shows—month after month, year after year—that Michael Saunders & Company is by far Southwest Florida’s leader in luxury sales.
Year-to-date, in the $1 million and up price range, Michael Saunders & Company commands the Sarasota market with a 32.4 percent share of homes sold—more than doubling the share of the second leading competitor; and greater than that of its next four competitors combined.
In the $2 million and up price range, the gap widens. Michael Saunders & Company commands a 36 percent share of homes sold—more than three times its second leading competitor and one-and-a-half times higher than the next four competitors combined.
In the $3 million and up price range, the difference becomes even more pronounced. Michael Saunders & Company holds a 36.5 percent share—an amount equal to three times the combined share of its next three competitors. The pattern remains consistent into the $5 million and up price range, where Michael Saunders & Company leads with a 33.3 percent share of homes sold—more than twice the next three competitors combined.
That we hold such a commanding lead in luxury sales is no accident. From the moment you list your luxury home with Michael Saunders & Company you instantly tap into several exclusive networks—and cross networks— of the world’s finest luxury brokerages. These represent the combined result of more than 32 years of seeking-out and cementing such important and trusted cross-border relationships.
Chief among these worldwide networks are our exclusive affiliations with Christie’s Great Estates, Luxury Portfolio, EREN (The European Real Estate Network) and Mayfair nternational Realty.
Christie’s Great Estates is an international network of high-end independent real estate brokers, linked with the historic Christie’s Auction House—itself a powerful magnet for discriminating high net-worth individuals. The Christie’s name has long been synonymous with quality and integrity and membership is by invitation only to companies with proven records of success in high-volume luxury home sales. Properties listed are at least $2 million; and combined sales throughout the Christie’s global network for 2007 were an astonishing
$ 125 billion.
Luxury Portfolio—the luxury arm of Leading Real Estate Companies of the World—is comprised of 200 high-end brokerages that dominate the luxury market and include the most respected names in marketing properties to the affluent customer. Luxury Portfolio boasts more $1 million-plus listings than any other luxury network. It’s Web site, LuxuryPortfolio.com, provides the showcase for more than 15,000 property listings, totaling $35 billion in inventory; and with an average property price of $2.25 million. Average monthly visits to the site total 100,000 from 200 different countries.
EREN—The European Real Estate Network—is a pan-European organization representing 20 of the leading property firms across the continent. Recently it invited Michael Saunders & Company and Halstead Properties of New York City—to be the only U.S. brokerages firms to join its exclusive ranks.
Mayfair International Realty was founded in 1995 as a real estate service for London clients seeking luxury country homes; and for real estate brokerages seeking representation in London. Its name has since
become synonymous with quality, integrity, and customer satisfaction. Over the past 10 years, the company has developed into a United Kingdom-wide organization representing 125 real estate brokerages with 350 offices.—an important concern considering the U.K. represents one of the two top countries of origin for international buyers who purchase properties in Southwest Florida.
Each of these powerful affiliations is exclusive only to Michael Saunders & Company and joins other noteworthy affiliations—including LuxuryRealEstate.com and Luxury Board of Regents—in empowering our sellers to truly fish where the fish are. Come to think of it, locating qualified luxury buyers through Michael Saunders & Company is more akin to shooting fish in a barrel.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Part of The Solution
as Appeared September 2008
Michael Saunders & Company
Foreclosures. They’re a painful and sobering blot on the psyche of an already beleaguered real estate market. Unless we as a real estate community unite in dealing resolutely with this year’s unprecedented wave of new foreclosures—many of them tied in one way or another to investors who long ago fled their fiscal responsibilities—the phenomenon will continue to throw a heavy wet blanket on the ability of the region’s real estate market to recover and begin a new era of normalized appreciation. Information for Home Buyers
For this reason Michael Saunders & Company, through its MSC Assets Management Group, is proud to partner with banks and other lending institutions throughout the region; to assist them in the efficient management, maintenance, marketing and ultimately the sale of foreclosed properties—from Palmetto to Punta Gorda.
The last thing a bank wants to do is initiate foreclosure proceedings on a home or commercial property. They’re not in business to repossess properties and re-sell them on the open market. So when all attempts to keep owner and property together fall short and foreclosure becomes the solution of last resort, it just makes sense for banks and other lenders to partner with a company whose only business for the past three-and-a-half decades has been managing and selling homes and commercial properties throughout Southwest Florida.
Early this summer, Dean Little—Vice President of First Community Bank of America, headquartered in Pinellas County—did just that. He selected MSC Assets Management Group to direct the sale of some 15 foreclosed properties his bank now owned throughout the region. In his own words, Dean chose the group for one simple reason: “When buyers want to find out about properties in and around Southwest Florida, it’s Michael Saunders & Company who commandsthe marketplace and is its most active and visible seller.”
All but two of Dean’s properties have since been sold. More are about to be listed.
The process of managing and selling foreclosed properties is far more complicated than typical real estate transactions. As a full-service division of Michael Saunders & Company, MSC Asset Management Group steps in to manage every detail and administer the entire process—with success hinging on the individual steps taken to obtain an accurate property valuation, maintain the property, establish a competitive market price; and provide maximum marketing and Web exposure. An entire section of michaelsaunders.com—entitled Bank Owned & Best pportunities—now showcases the most outstanding values in competitively-priced properties currently listed with Michael Saunders & Company. In a very short time it has become the most visited and re-visited section of the Web site; with proof of its success measured by the large number of properties that have sold or gone pending only days after debuting on the site.
The overarching objective of MSC Asset Management Group is to sell each property as efficiently and cost effectively as possible in order to achieve the highest possible recovery in the least amount of time. The process is designed to save time, money and resources for the lender by allowing the professionals at MSC Asset Management Group do what each has been formally trained to do The team begins by evaluating the property and arranges to have it secured, monitored and thoroughly cleaned, with follow-up recommendations for repairs, upgrades and on-going maintenance. The utilities are turned back on, if need be, and placed in the group’s responsibility. If an overgrown yard needs remedial care or a sickeningly slime-green swimming pool needs to be made crystal clear, MSC Assets Management Group arranges to get the job done.
“The team from MSC took all of my bank-owned properties and made them their total responsibility,” Dean Little recalls. “Basically they do all our work for us. They are completely responsive to our needs, communicate very effectively and are fully accessible at all times. I wholeheartedly recommend MSC Assets Management Group to anyone who desires fast resolution on foreclosed properties.”
As a market, we are by no means alone in facing the foreclosure dilemma. The crisis now confronts this and other nations; albeit with the most populous regions of California and Florida especially hard-hit. The sooner the issue is resolved, the better it will be for a country whose economic well-being is in large part a reflection of growth and stability in the housing sector. With the problem now identified, Michael Saunders & Company is extremely proud to be part of the solution.
Michael Saunders & Company
Foreclosures. They’re a painful and sobering blot on the psyche of an already beleaguered real estate market. Unless we as a real estate community unite in dealing resolutely with this year’s unprecedented wave of new foreclosures—many of them tied in one way or another to investors who long ago fled their fiscal responsibilities—the phenomenon will continue to throw a heavy wet blanket on the ability of the region’s real estate market to recover and begin a new era of normalized appreciation. Information for Home Buyers
For this reason Michael Saunders & Company, through its MSC Assets Management Group, is proud to partner with banks and other lending institutions throughout the region; to assist them in the efficient management, maintenance, marketing and ultimately the sale of foreclosed properties—from Palmetto to Punta Gorda.
The last thing a bank wants to do is initiate foreclosure proceedings on a home or commercial property. They’re not in business to repossess properties and re-sell them on the open market. So when all attempts to keep owner and property together fall short and foreclosure becomes the solution of last resort, it just makes sense for banks and other lenders to partner with a company whose only business for the past three-and-a-half decades has been managing and selling homes and commercial properties throughout Southwest Florida.
Early this summer, Dean Little—Vice President of First Community Bank of America, headquartered in Pinellas County—did just that. He selected MSC Assets Management Group to direct the sale of some 15 foreclosed properties his bank now owned throughout the region. In his own words, Dean chose the group for one simple reason: “When buyers want to find out about properties in and around Southwest Florida, it’s Michael Saunders & Company who commandsthe marketplace and is its most active and visible seller.”
All but two of Dean’s properties have since been sold. More are about to be listed.
The process of managing and selling foreclosed properties is far more complicated than typical real estate transactions. As a full-service division of Michael Saunders & Company, MSC Asset Management Group steps in to manage every detail and administer the entire process—with success hinging on the individual steps taken to obtain an accurate property valuation, maintain the property, establish a competitive market price; and provide maximum marketing and Web exposure. An entire section of michaelsaunders.com—entitled Bank Owned & Best pportunities—now showcases the most outstanding values in competitively-priced properties currently listed with Michael Saunders & Company. In a very short time it has become the most visited and re-visited section of the Web site; with proof of its success measured by the large number of properties that have sold or gone pending only days after debuting on the site.
The overarching objective of MSC Asset Management Group is to sell each property as efficiently and cost effectively as possible in order to achieve the highest possible recovery in the least amount of time. The process is designed to save time, money and resources for the lender by allowing the professionals at MSC Asset Management Group do what each has been formally trained to do The team begins by evaluating the property and arranges to have it secured, monitored and thoroughly cleaned, with follow-up recommendations for repairs, upgrades and on-going maintenance. The utilities are turned back on, if need be, and placed in the group’s responsibility. If an overgrown yard needs remedial care or a sickeningly slime-green swimming pool needs to be made crystal clear, MSC Assets Management Group arranges to get the job done.
“The team from MSC took all of my bank-owned properties and made them their total responsibility,” Dean Little recalls. “Basically they do all our work for us. They are completely responsive to our needs, communicate very effectively and are fully accessible at all times. I wholeheartedly recommend MSC Assets Management Group to anyone who desires fast resolution on foreclosed properties.”
As a market, we are by no means alone in facing the foreclosure dilemma. The crisis now confronts this and other nations; albeit with the most populous regions of California and Florida especially hard-hit. The sooner the issue is resolved, the better it will be for a country whose economic well-being is in large part a reflection of growth and stability in the housing sector. With the problem now identified, Michael Saunders & Company is extremely proud to be part of the solution.
Thursday, January 1, 2009
Missing The Rainbow
as Appeared November 9, 2008
Michael Saunder & Company
Not even the sharpest financial minds can predict with any sort of precision when the nation’s real estate markets will recapture the momentum needed to shore-up eroding home prices. One can, however, be reasonably certain that the housing market’s comeback will be a major priority, if not the top priority, of the next administration in Washington. For while no two politicians or financial pundits seem to agree on the best plan for solving the global financial crisis, most believe it needs to start by addressing the root cause of the meltdown—rising home foreclosures.
To that end, plans are now being formulated at several of the nation’s largest banks to rescue hundreds of thousands of homeowners from loans they can no longer afford by modifying their mortgages with lower interest rates, smaller principal amounts and other more affordable terms. At the government level, the White House is weighing a plan from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation that would help upwards of three million troubled borrowers find relief. Moreover, the rate of foreclosures should slow dramatically as many of these institutions plan to place a 90-day moratorium on new filings while the various rescue plans are formulated and set in motion.
This is extremely encouraging news and represents a decisive first step toward stabilizing home prices. Which begs the question: How will you, the average homebuyer, know exactly when prices finally do stabilize? Unfortunately you won’t; except, of course, in hindsight—after prices have already begun to inch upwards again.
You can never time the real estate market perfectly. At best, you’ll be lucky enough to mistime the bottom within a few degrees of accuracy one way or the other. As he penned in a recent op-ed article in the New York Times, no less a master of opportune investing than Warren Buffet admitted that attempting to time the markets is a fruitless endeavor: “If you wait for the robins,’ he said. “Spring will be over.”
Prices for homes in Southwest Florida are at their lowest since 2003. They may go lower still. They may not. What we know for sure is that people routinely gasp with wide-eyed astonishment when they hear properties across the board being offered at what were once unthinkably low prices. While it’s impossible to say whether they are witnessing the absolute bottom of the market, their audible gasps betray knowing an exceptionally good deal when they see one. And that’s the point. Since you can never time the market to the day, you can at least latch on to the best opportunity when it comes your way.
To seize that opportunity when it presents itself, begin your homework now. Keep up to date on what’s for sale in every neighborhood and price range by visiting michaelsaunders.com regularly. Be sure to check out the Best Opportunities page with every new visit. Unique to Michael Saunders & Company, Best Opportunities removes the guesswork for today’s value-conscious buyer by featuring only those listings that have been judged by a panel of real estate experts to be the best priced buying opportunities on michaelsaunders.com. For a more up-close sampling of what’s for sale visit the site weekly for a list of weekend open houses.
If you plan to use financing, get pre-qualified for a mortgage right away. The rumor that banks no longer have money to lend is just that, a rumor; but the days of obtaining a “creative” loan without so much as proving your financial qualifications are history. These days, it’s back to traditional lending practices that require you to put money down, have an acceptable credit score and be able to verify your income and employment status. Michael Saunders & Company, in conjunction with its affiliated lending division, MS&C Mortgage, has loan originators in every one of its 13 sales offices to guide you through the pre-qualifying process. It’s partnership with Wells-Fargo Home Mortgage provides customers of Michael Saunders & Company with access to one of the most stable, secure and dependable lenders in U.S. banking. Further, with our one-stop approach to comprehensive real estate services, you can close on the property free and clear of title defects with the expert assistance of the team from MS&C Title. This is even more critical in this unfortunate era of short sales and foreclosures.
What is perhaps the best buyer’s market in memory doesn’t automatically make buying a breeze. On the contrary. With more properties to consider, more to compare and much more room to negotiate, the buying process has never been quite as challenging. An even bigger challenge is to move confidently on a desired, well-priced property when the temptation is to hold out for the possibility of further price relief and gamble that the property doesn’t sell in the meantime. That’s a little like ignoring a rainbow to search for the pot of gold. By the time you realize the gold is a myth, the rainbow is gone.
Michael Saunder & Company
Not even the sharpest financial minds can predict with any sort of precision when the nation’s real estate markets will recapture the momentum needed to shore-up eroding home prices. One can, however, be reasonably certain that the housing market’s comeback will be a major priority, if not the top priority, of the next administration in Washington. For while no two politicians or financial pundits seem to agree on the best plan for solving the global financial crisis, most believe it needs to start by addressing the root cause of the meltdown—rising home foreclosures.
To that end, plans are now being formulated at several of the nation’s largest banks to rescue hundreds of thousands of homeowners from loans they can no longer afford by modifying their mortgages with lower interest rates, smaller principal amounts and other more affordable terms. At the government level, the White House is weighing a plan from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation that would help upwards of three million troubled borrowers find relief. Moreover, the rate of foreclosures should slow dramatically as many of these institutions plan to place a 90-day moratorium on new filings while the various rescue plans are formulated and set in motion.
This is extremely encouraging news and represents a decisive first step toward stabilizing home prices. Which begs the question: How will you, the average homebuyer, know exactly when prices finally do stabilize? Unfortunately you won’t; except, of course, in hindsight—after prices have already begun to inch upwards again.
You can never time the real estate market perfectly. At best, you’ll be lucky enough to mistime the bottom within a few degrees of accuracy one way or the other. As he penned in a recent op-ed article in the New York Times, no less a master of opportune investing than Warren Buffet admitted that attempting to time the markets is a fruitless endeavor: “If you wait for the robins,’ he said. “Spring will be over.”
Prices for homes in Southwest Florida are at their lowest since 2003. They may go lower still. They may not. What we know for sure is that people routinely gasp with wide-eyed astonishment when they hear properties across the board being offered at what were once unthinkably low prices. While it’s impossible to say whether they are witnessing the absolute bottom of the market, their audible gasps betray knowing an exceptionally good deal when they see one. And that’s the point. Since you can never time the market to the day, you can at least latch on to the best opportunity when it comes your way.
To seize that opportunity when it presents itself, begin your homework now. Keep up to date on what’s for sale in every neighborhood and price range by visiting michaelsaunders.com regularly. Be sure to check out the Best Opportunities page with every new visit. Unique to Michael Saunders & Company, Best Opportunities removes the guesswork for today’s value-conscious buyer by featuring only those listings that have been judged by a panel of real estate experts to be the best priced buying opportunities on michaelsaunders.com. For a more up-close sampling of what’s for sale visit the site weekly for a list of weekend open houses.
If you plan to use financing, get pre-qualified for a mortgage right away. The rumor that banks no longer have money to lend is just that, a rumor; but the days of obtaining a “creative” loan without so much as proving your financial qualifications are history. These days, it’s back to traditional lending practices that require you to put money down, have an acceptable credit score and be able to verify your income and employment status. Michael Saunders & Company, in conjunction with its affiliated lending division, MS&C Mortgage, has loan originators in every one of its 13 sales offices to guide you through the pre-qualifying process. It’s partnership with Wells-Fargo Home Mortgage provides customers of Michael Saunders & Company with access to one of the most stable, secure and dependable lenders in U.S. banking. Further, with our one-stop approach to comprehensive real estate services, you can close on the property free and clear of title defects with the expert assistance of the team from MS&C Title. This is even more critical in this unfortunate era of short sales and foreclosures.
What is perhaps the best buyer’s market in memory doesn’t automatically make buying a breeze. On the contrary. With more properties to consider, more to compare and much more room to negotiate, the buying process has never been quite as challenging. An even bigger challenge is to move confidently on a desired, well-priced property when the temptation is to hold out for the possibility of further price relief and gamble that the property doesn’t sell in the meantime. That’s a little like ignoring a rainbow to search for the pot of gold. By the time you realize the gold is a myth, the rainbow is gone.
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