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        <title>Sarasota Real Estate Blog</title>
        <link>http://www.buysarasota.com/blog/tags/sarasota-real-estate/</link>
        <description>Read the Sarasota real estate blog and news presented by John Allen. View the latest information at our real estate blog for Siesta Key, Longboat Key, Lido Key and Casey Key Florida.</description>
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            <guid>http://www.buysarasota.com/blog/sarasota-real-estate-sale-up-82-percent-2011.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.buysarasota.com/blog/sarasota-real-estate-sale-up-82-percent-2011.html</link>
            <author>john@buysarasota.com (John Allen)</author>
            <title>Sarasota Real Estate Sale up 8.2 percent in 2011</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
The Sarasota Association of Realtors released data yesterday showing Sarasota real estate sales jumped by 8.2 percent to 8,224 in 2011. This is the highest level since 2005. &ldquo;The surge in sales was accompanied by stabilization in the median sale prices, which now stand at $155,925 for single family homes and $156,800 for condos over the full year, and have not fluctuated much for the past 12 months.&rdquo;

Real estate is local and the Sarasota, Florida area is the considered the &ldquo;place to be&rdquo; by many homebuyers. &ldquo;For the overall year of 2011, the resurgence in sales was dramatic, and represents a 44 percent increase over the low point of the downturn in 2008, when only 5,820 properties changed hands.&rdquo;

New SAR President Laura Benson said &quot;This is really incredible news, and demonstrates how far this market has improved in only three short years.&quot; &quot;Now, we also offer very affordable pricing. Combined with the high quality of homes and condos on the market, I think we clearly have the best values in Florida, without question.&quot;

Property transactions in the Sarasota real estate market jumped 7.3 percent in December 2011, compared to the November totals. Combined sales stood at 648, up from last month's figure of 602 and the October 2011 sales of 577. This sales resurgence has paralleled the drop in the available inventory, and put the remaining months of inventory in the range of a seller's market.

Inventory of properties for sale in Sarasota was at 4,567 in December. November 2011 inventory of available properties was 4,672. Inventory of available properties in Sarasota slid to a 10-year low totaling 4,408 in August 2011. As the inventory diminished, &ldquo;the months of inventory has dropped and now stands at 6.3 months for single family homes and 9.2 months for condos. A figure of 6 months is considered equilibrium between a buyer's and a seller's market.&rdquo;

For the complete press release and statistical charts, contact the John Allen Team at BuySarasota.com.
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            <pubDate>Thu, 12 Jan 2012 18:20:20 -0500</pubDate>
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            <guid>http://www.buysarasota.com/blog/2011-market-update-sarasota-real-estate.html</guid>
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            <author>john@buysarasota.com (John Allen)</author>
            <title>2011 Market Update - Sarasota Real Estate</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
Real estate in Sarasota, Florida has continued to sell at a brisk pace in 2011. The Sarasota Association of Realtors recently issued its August a press release reporting 599 properties sold in July 2011, a 14.3 percent increase from the previous year. In the&nbsp;July 2010 Sarasota real estate market, there were 525 property sales.

Single family home closings totaled 445 and 154 condos sold in July of this year. Four months in 2011, sales have hit the 700 level or above. July marked the fourth month in the previous 12 with sales exceeding 700 units. June sales reached 728 and May sales were the highest at 796 during Sarasotas busiest selling season. Sales in July, of course, cooled as summer arrived. The Federal homebuyer tax credit which was a selling factor also expired during this time.

Good News for Sarasota Real Estate Sellers in July 2011 

Excerpt from the SAR Press Release:

The total inventory of available properties dropped again to the lowest level in more than a decade. There were 2,829 single family homes and 1,656 condos on the market, for a total of 4,485 available properties. This is more than a 7 percent drop from the June 2011 total of 4,830, and a 25 percent drop from the July 2010 figure of 6,054. The decreased inventory could spur stronger competition for homes and condos, and subsequent price appreciation.

The median price of a single family home in July was $169,900, just slightly lower than the June figure of $175,000. The July 2010 figure stood at $155,000, so the median price was up almost 10 percent from last year at this time. The condo median price slipped to $145,000 from $185,000 in June, but was 14 percent higher than last July's median of $127,000.

The months of inventory rose to 6.4 months for single family homes, from last month's figure of 5.9 months. For condos, the months of inventory also rose to 10.7 months from June's figure of 8.2 months. Both figures remain far below the highs of 25.3 months for single family (in early 2009) and 41.7 months for condos (in late 2008). This statistic represents the time it would take to sell the existing inventory at the current month's rate of sales. The 6 month level is traditionally a point which represents equilibrium in the market between buyers and sellers.

Pending sales in July 2011 increased from 754 in June to 799. Pending sales in July 2010 were headed downward in the summer which indicated lower total sales in the fall period.

SAR President Michael Bruno point out that &ldquo;while we did see the market seasonally moderate in July from the hot selling pace weve experienced in the first half of 2011, these numbers still reflect strength in the market. There hasnt been an alarming drop in sales, and the higher number of pending sales signals a healthy fall market. The inventory of available properties remains at a low for the past decade, and this historically means we should experience upward pressure on prices. The percentage of distressed property sales has remained stable, which is another positive factor.&rdquo;

Short sales and foreclosure sales remained at &ldquo;38 percent of the July 2011 sales figures. In February 2011 distressed sales totaled 47 percent of total sales and in November 2010, distressed sales totaled 51 percent of total sales.

SAR President Bruno also stated that &ldquo;the impact of recent events in the financial market may cause some uncertainly in terms of national home sales, but we all know that real estate is local, and Sarasota is traditionally a market that emerges from tough times with strength and leads the new wave of prosperity.&rdquo;

Sarasota Real Estate Market Recap for July 2011


Total Properties Sold: 599

Single Family Homes Sold: 445

Condos Sold: 154

Median Price Single Family Homes: $169,900

Median Price Condos: $145,000


The Sarasota real estate market continues to tempt international buyers who have marked Sarasota as a &ldquo;hot&rdquo; destination for decades. Price adjustments have afforded many real estate buyers the opportunity of a lifetime to purchase a home or condo in one of the worlds most beautiful cities where culture and the arts intertwine with Sarasota's crown jewels, the barrier islands of Siesta Key, Casey Key, Bird Key, Lido Key and Longboat Key.
 ]]> </description>
            <pubDate>Mon, 29 Aug 2011 09:41:51 -0400</pubDate>
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            <author>john@buysarasota.com (John Allen)</author>
            <title>Sarasota Real Estate Market Sales Update</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
August 2010 Sarasota Real Estate Sales Rebound

Sales data just released from the Sarasota Board of Realtors show more positive signs than last months numbers. After a disappointing July, the Sarasota real estate market rebounded in August 2010. Sales were up nicely  8% over July 2010 In addition, sales were&nbsp;up 14.3% compared to&nbsp;August 2009. 

Total property sales this August totaled 567. &ldquo;This compared to 525 sales in July 2010 and 496 sales in August 2009.&rdquo; In August, 408 single family home sold. The median price reported was $154,500. Last month the median price was $155,000. In August 2009, the price was also $155,000. 

Condos sales totaled 159 in August. The median price rose by 22 percent to $155,000 from Julys figure of $127,000. &ldquo;For the last 12 months combined, the median sale price for condos was $169,900. Distressed condo sales have dragged the overall median price down substantially, with normal arm's length sales garnering three-times as much as bank-owned properties, and twice as much as short sales on average.&rdquo;

Pending sales rose in August to too. There were 816 pending sales, a 25 percent increase over July. Fall is looking good for an increase in sales too.

Eric Shumway, pointed out that &quot;it was very encouraging to see that the market recovered nicely after a drop in sales from June to July. After experiencing a five-year high in sales for the second quarter, everyone knew the loss of the homebuyer tax credit would have a negative impact. But we saw a big jump in sales for August, and prices held steady, so this market still has legs and the recovery appears to be a healthy one.&quot;

Contact the John Allen Team if you are interested in exploring current Sarasota real estate listings. Our agents specialize in luxury homes and condos on Sarasotas barrier islands of Siesta Key, Casey Key, Longboat Key, Bird Key and Lido Key.

Click HERE for the complete PDF version of the press release, along with two pages of statistical charts.
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            <pubDate>Wed, 15 Sep 2010 10:18:41 -0400</pubDate>
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            <author>john@buysarasota.com (John Allen)</author>
            <title>Sarasota Real Estate Sales up 49%</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
The Sarasota Association of Realtors just released the February 2010 Sarasota real estate stats and property sales were up 49% over February 2009. In addition, pending sales (properties under contract) spiked up to 967, the second highest in the past four years. The pending sales figure at 967 is a strong indicator for the next few months that real estate in Sarasota continues to improve.

Total property sales hit 528 in the Sarasota real estate market in February 2010 continuing to show a recovery in our area. Median sales prices rose for condos according to the report and single family homes were stable.

Distressed property sales are still a significant part of the increase in Sarasota real estate sales. In January and February 2010, distressed property sales represented 48 and 47 percent of the overall sales. There are a high percentage of short sales and bank-owned foreclosure sales in Sarasotas market according to the MLS report which &ldquo;continues to be the single biggest factor holding back the overall median sales prices.&rdquo;

SAR President Erick Shumway state for the report that &ldquo;despite the national economic doldrums, lingering high unemployment, and other negative factors, our local real estate market remains strong compared to recent down years.&rdquo; President Shumway also indicated that &ldquo;the near future looks very promising&rdquo; for Sarasota real estate sales with pending sales rising to nearly 1,000. Property inventory fell to near the lowest level since late summer of 2005.

If you are searching for Sarasota real estate and need some helping finding a neighborhood or subdivision, visit our main website to learn how we can help you with your search. Our blogs and social media profiles are informative about Sarasota offering outstanding photography of Sarasota real estate, the beaches, the mainland, the barrier islands as well as downtown Sarasota. 
 ]]> </description>
            <pubDate>Tue, 16 Mar 2010 08:28:58 -0400</pubDate>
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            <guid>http://www.buysarasota.com/blog/sarasota-real-estate-forecast-2010.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.buysarasota.com/blog/sarasota-real-estate-forecast-2010.html</link>
            <author>john@buysarasota.com (John Allen)</author>
            <title>Sarasota Real Estate Forecast - 2010</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
Now that we've closed the book on 2009, a year many people would like to forget, many real estate experts are making their predictions for 2010. Will 2010 be a good year for the Sarasota real estate market? Nationally, many economists seem to think things will improve.

Laurence Yun, the chief economist for the National Association of Realtors, recently released his predictions for the year ahead.


Yun sees a 20 percent increase in sales for the first half of 2010 over 2009 for the same period.

Yun expects inventory levels to continue to decline and that we will start seeing increases in home values by mid-year.&nbsp;Mr&nbsp;Yun points out that his predictions are based on mortgage rates staying in the 5 - 5.5% range 


The Sarasota real estate market sales data has been very encouraging. Last month, sales were up 86% over the same period in 2008. Pending sales in the Sarasota market are also up significantly, a strong indicator for the next few months of sales. In addition, Sarasota home and condo inventory levels are at their lowest levels since late summer of 2005. Higher sales and pending transactions, stabilizing prices and reduced inventories point to a return to a healthy real estate market in 2010.

Price remains the biggest determining factor in a property's ability to sell. The homes and condos that will sell have realistic sellers who understand that this is no longer the hyper-market we saw in 2004 to 2006. Sellers who pay close attention to current (not past) values have a good chance of selling their properties.

Sarasota remains a very attractive place to live, visit and own real estate.
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            <pubDate>Tue, 05 Jan 2010 08:53:28 -0500</pubDate>
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