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POPULATION OF SOUTHWEST FLORIDA EXPECTED TO RISE!
Wednesday, March 10th, 2010 at 10:59am. 92 Views, 0 Comments.
According to an article in the Sarasota Herald Tribune, after a startling one-year decline, Southwest Florida's population is expected to rise only slightly this year, to about 873,700 people, before returning to more normal growth within about five years. A new University of Florida study estimates that the combined population of Charlotte, Manatee and Sarasota counties will be up by about 500 from 2009.
In comparison, the combined three-county population declined nearly 4,000 from 2008 to 2009. The Southwest Florida decline mirrored a rare statewide drop of about 57,000 residents, the first since a post-World War II exodus in the 1940s. Population experts at UF's Bureau of Economic and Business Research say that decline appears to be a one-year blip…
$21 MILLION IN STIMULUS-FUNDED CONSTRUCTION TO BEGIN IN SARASOTA COUNTY!
Wednesday, March 10th, 2010 at 10:57am. 104 Views, 0 Comments.
According to an article in the Sarasota Herald Tribune, work on road construction projects totaling about $21 million will begin in early April, 2010, with most of the cost paid by federal economic stimulus money.
Among the biggest projects is a $7 million resurfacing of University Parkway from U.S. 41 to Interstate 75. Work on the Sarasota County portion, from U.S. 41 to U.S. 301, is expected to begin in early April, said Jim Harriott, the county's public works director. Manatee County is seeking bids and expects work to begin in July on the segment between U.S. 301 and I-75.
Most of the project funding comes from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, designed to stimulate the economy and boost employment. Local governments added local…
CONDO SALES AND PRICES UP IN SARASOTA IN JANUARY 2010!
Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010 at 1:51pm. 90 Views, 0 Comments.
According to an article in the Sarasota Herald Tribune, condominium sales soared in Southwest Florida during January, though prices dropped, and dropped precipitously in some areas compared with last year.
In the Sarasota real estate market, the median dropped 12 percent to $137,900 from $156,700 a year ago. But the January price was up 7.2 percent when compared with $148,600 in December. The generally cheaper prices apparently helped drive up sales.
Sales rose 109 percent last month in the Sarasota real estate market when compared with the same month one year ago, with 243 condos changing hands compared with 116 in January 2009.
The January median in Sarasota-Bradenton was up 8 percent to $156,700 from $144,800 a year ago, but the most recent price…
HOME PRICE INDEX IS UP SLIGHTLY FOR DECEMBER 2009
Wednesday, February 24th, 2010 at 1:53pm. 97 Views, 0 Comments.
According to an article in the Sarasota Herald Tribune, home prices edged up in December, the seventh straight monthly gain and another sign the housing market is continuing its bumpy recovery.
The trend is important to the nation's economic recovery. For most Americans, their home is their largest asset, so as values climb, homeowners feel wealthier and more comfortable spending. For homeowners who owe more on their mortgages than their properties are worth, rising prices will rebuild equity.
Home sales data for January, out later this week, are also expected to show gains over year-end levels as buyers took advantage of low interest rates and temporary tax credits.
Data from the Florida Association of Realtors showed that prices in the Sarasota real…
SARASOTA REAL ESTATE! JANUARY, 2010 SALES 58% HIGHER THAN JANUARY, 2009!
Wednesday, February 17th, 2010 at 1:10pm. 105 Views, 0 Comments.
According to the Sarasota Board of Realtors, the Sarasota real estate market sales were 58% higher in January 2010 than in January 2009, and pending sales were also strong, topping the 800 mark for the first time since October 2009.
In sharp contrast to the first month of last year, January 2010 saw 506 overall sales, compared to only 319 sales in January 2009. In addition, pending sales surged by over 10% from December 2009 to a total of 815. The statistic is a strong indicator for the next two or three months of sales, as pending sales are an indicator of current buyer activity.
Last January, pending sales stood at only 683. Median sale prices in the Sarasota real estate market dipped in January 2010 for both single family homes and condos. The…
New Website Focuses on Sarasota Foreclosures and Short Sales
Tuesday, February 16th, 2010 at 10:30am. 107 Views, 0 Comments.
Just released... if you are a current member of www.waterfrontlifestyle.com, you do not have to register again at www.buysarasotaforeclosures.com. You can access all the information of Sarasota Foreclosures and Short Sales at the new site. www.buysarasotaforeclosures.com focuses on making it easy to find a foreclosure or shortsale to buy in Sarasota, Manatee, and Charlotte counties in Florida. There is also tips on selling your hom as a short sale and buying a foreclosure or bank owned home. Check it out now at www.buysarasotaforeclosures.com
TIPS FOR BUYING A HOME WITHOUT MUCH CASH!
Wednesday, February 10th, 2010 at 11:15am. 106 Views, 0 Comments.
According to an article in the Sarasota Herald Tribune, here are some experts' ideas for homebuyers who cannot afford to pay cash:
- - Get a prequalification letter from a lender for 20 percent more than what you are offering on the property.
- - Come up with a down payment in the 20 percent range.
- - Look at HUD properties. Only non-investors can make offers on these properties for the first 5 days on the market.
- - Ask a real estate agent for a list of recently repossessed properties being prepared for sale. It can take weeks before these homes hit the market, but agents can ask for details and get ready to pounce.
- - Write a letter to the seller or bank handling a foreclosure sale and make a case for why they should sell you the property.
Our agents at…
SHORT SALES! NEW RULES COULD HELP SARASOTA REAL ESTATE!
Wednesday, February 10th, 2010 at 11:13am. 98 Views, 0 Comments.
According to an article in the Sarasota Herald Tribune, the growing number of short sales have severely hampered the housing recovery during the past two years -- deals where a bank agrees to accept less than is owed on a home to avoid a full-blown foreclosure. Nearly every Realtor in the Sarasota real estate market has a briefcase full of horror stories of banks pulling out after a year of negotiations and exasperated all-cash buyers walking away after lenders refusal to make a decision or even communicate with those involved.
But come April 5, the U.S. Treasury will champion a new set of rules that, if followed, could dramatically speed up the short sales process and pay the lenders thousands of dollars to do so.
Homeowners wanting to take part in the…
SARASOTA REAL ESTATE REPORT: CONDO SALES END 2009 UP STRONGLY!
Wednesday, January 27th, 2010 at 1:58pm. 103 Views, 0 Comments.
According to an article in the Sarasota Herald Tribune, condo sales in Southwest Florida ended 2009 strongly - like their counterparts in homes -- ended 2009 with a strong sales finish that bucked declines around the nation.
In the Sarasota-Bradenton real estate market, December sales rose 144 percent compared with a year ago, with 310 condos sold compared with 127 in December 2008. For all of 2009, 2,618 units changed hands, up 14 percent from 2,291 in 2008.
Sales of homes in the Sarasota-Bradenton real estate market rose 43 percent during December.
The jump in condo sales for the year came at the expense of prices in a region that continues to be dominated by distressed sales -- foreclosures and short sales.
For the year, the median sales price in…
SARASOTA REAL ESTATE - HOUSING SALES LEAP!
Wednesday, January 27th, 2010 at 1:56pm. 102 Views, 0 Comments.
According to an article in the Sarasota Herald Tribune, sales of previously occupied homes across the nation took the largest monthly drop in more than 40 years last month, but Southwest Florida bucked the trend -- in a big way.
The Florida Association of Realtors reported Monday that home sales in the Sarasota-Bradenton real estate market rose 43 percent. Sales also were up month-to-month while the nation as a whole saw a nearly 17 percent drop.
"The buyers are turning out and buying houses in large numbers because they have become so cheap," Brad Hunter, the West Palm Beach-based national chief economist for the housing market information provider Metrostudy, told the Herald-Tribune. "Prices have fallen the most sharply in Southwest Florida." …
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