Sarasota Real Estate Blog - Andree Huffine

February Sarasota area home sales up 27% over last year

February 2011 real estate sales in the Sarasota area were up 24.2% from January and up 27% to 673 from February, 2010’s total of 528 sales.  There were 472 single family home and 201 condo closings reported by the Sarasota Association of Realtors reported for February.

In addition to the positive home and condominium sales figures, pending sales (those under contract, but not yet closed) also registered above the 1,000 level in February, with 1,023 total properties going under contract following the 1,013 under contract in January. Both of these numbers are well above the 967 homes under contract in February, 2010 when sales volumes were being driven by the Federal home buyer tax credit program.

This year’s upward trend in sales and pending sales is…

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Sarasota for Florida Golf and so much more

Sarasota is definitely a "Florida golf town." If you’re looking for a Florida golf course community, Sarasota is the right place to look. You’ll find dozens of golf course communities and more than 80 public and private golf courses in the Sarasota, Bradenton and Venice area.

Whether you enjoy golf as a competitive sport or you're just looking for a "home course" for your game, Sarasota and Manatee County area golf courses will surely meet your needs and desires.  There are Island golf course communities like those on Longboat Key and Anna Maria where you can play golf practically in your front yard while your yacht rests on its mooring in your backyard.  There are golf courses for every level of play and golf course communities with amenities from the…

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Strategies for Buying your Sarasota Area Luxury Property

While the media devotes a lot of space and time to highlighting the negative aspects of today's real estate market, there are actually many unique opportunities that exist for savvy buyers in the Sarasota market. This may be your once-in-a-lifetime chance to purchase a first or second luxury home at prices we haven't seen in many years. 

Buying a high-end property requires a different approach, though. As a Certified Luxury Home Marketing Specialist, I am well versed on the important nuances of luxury home buying and I have the knowledge and resources to help you explore the Sarasota luxury market.

Here are five important tactics to keep in mind when navigating the Sarasota area luxury market:

1. Typical search avenues don't always work. Many…

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New Look to YourSarasotaRealEstate.com

If you are a returning visitor to YourSarasotaRealEstate.com you’ll notice it has a whole new look. I just revamped the site and added some great new features. I've listed a few of the new features below, and I'll be adding more as we get rolling. I hope you'll explore the new Sarasota site, and of course I'd love your feedback. 

• You'll find a whole new look to the "Search MLS" function. And once you've run your search for Sarasota homes, you'll see larger photos, more detailed information, and a whole page of information about the community and the property. As before, you can save your search and save your favorite homes to a folder.
• There's also a new "Search by Map" feature. You can zoom and draw the search area you want to see on the map and…

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Sarasota Home and Condo Sales Surged in December

Nationally, the year for home sales finally ended December on a much more positive note as buyers snapped up homes at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.28 million units, an increase of 12.8% from November and the strongest sales pace since last May.

Home sales were up in all parts of the country with the strongest regional gain at 16.7% in the West. Sales rose 13% in the Northeast, 10.1% in the South and 11% in the Midwest.

Here in the Sarasota local real estate market, home sales saw a huge surge in December from 534 in November to 681 in December, an almost 28% increase.

For December, the inventory of unsold homes nationally stood at an 8.1 months supply, down from 9.5 months supply in November. The inventory of unsold homes represents the…

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