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Latest Market Report
 Click image to view the up to date market conditions in the Sarasota/Longboat Key area.
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Coldwell Banker
Previews Magazine
Wired Wonder: Inside the Luxury Automated Home
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Previews Portfolio
This issue offers an enticing showcase of luxury properties in our area.  Click the cover to view these exceptional homes.
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Click icon to view videos of my Sarasota real estate offerings.

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Google gives Sarasota "kudos"
  Google named Sarasota a 2014 eCity for Florida, part of an awards program the search engine firm says it uses to recognize thestrongest online business communities in states nationwide.  
   Google, according to a release, says business in its eCity communities embrace the web to find new customers, connect with existing clients and fuel local economies.

  It's not just about our beautiful beaches and glorious weather. Sarasota is a fantastic place to raise a family and kickstart a career.



Canadians encouraged to buy

a Florida home

  As Canadian snowbirds prepare to head south, the Annual Snowbird outlook from BMO Bank of Montreal is telling Canadians that "U.S. housing affordability remains healthy, and prices are expected to increase in Florida."  
 "Florida properties are a bargain compared to real estate in Canada. The median priced home in Florida is nearly half that in Canada," says Jack Ablin, chief investment officer, BMO Harris Private Bank  BMO expects "capital gains appreciation for Canadians who purchase U.S. property."

 

  

 

Sarasota Bay Water Festival
November 1st

  Don't miss the Sarasota Bay Water Festival will celebrate the importance of Sarasota Bay with all kinds of fun as well as live music from local bands starting at 11 a.m. There will also be food vendors and more than 60 local exhibitors, beer and wine garden, art zone, dragon boats races and more. New this year will be a Pet-Zone with pet friendly exhibitors and giveaways. Fest runs from 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. Free admission. Ken Thompson Park on Ken Thompson Parkway, Sarasota. 
 


Americans' attitudes on housing are positive again
 
 According to Fannie Mae's September 2014 National Housing Survey, the average 12-month home price change expectation rose to 2.2 percent.  
   Respondents who say home prices will go up in the next 12 months rose to 45 percent; those that say home prices will go down decreased to 8 percent.  
  Respondents who say mortgage rates will go up in the next 12 months fell by five percentage points to 45 percent.  
  Those who say it's a good time to buy a house rose to 68 percent. Those who say it is a good time to sell also increased - to 39 percent.




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COLDWELL BANKER
RESIDENTIAL REAL ESTATE
201 Gulf of Mexico Drive, Suite 1
Longboat Key, FL 34228

















 
October, 2014

  Season is around the corner here and we can tell because the traffic is already starting to build.  Wondering just how many northern visitors we attract in Florida?  According to Visit Florida, the state attracted 94.7 million visitors - including 3.7 million Canadians - last year.

   And they come looking for what most Florida dreamers seem to want, somewhere safe, warm, active, provocative, adventuresome, comforting, blue skies smiling at us. Even if you're not a boater, an angler, a swimmer or boarder or beacher, not a four-wheel gunner or 5K runner, not a rummer or margarita-er, not a golfer or tennis player or shuffle-boarder, Florida's siren song still sounds strong, especially in frostnipped ears.

    Our snowbirds often start as vacationers, but most evolve in flocks, following friends and family into migratory communities. We welcome them all and I'm here to help them find their own little piece of sunshine.

    My business depends on your referrals and with inventory so low, please contact me if you or someone you know is considering buying or selling.  I have been a licensed broker in Sarasota for 30 years and treat every referral with the highest level of service.  Thank you so much for helping me grow my business!

           Carolyn Donnelly

     



Sarasota Real Estate Maintains Steady Pace

  The Sarasota County real estate market remained on pace for near record sales numbers in September 2014, ending the month with 934 closed transactions - 14 percent higher than last September.

  The big news - the current inventory of available properties stands at 3,666, down about 2 percent from the August figure of 3,745 and down about 8 percent from last September. The inventory has dropped very close to the low point of recent years - the July 2012 figure of 3,644. The month's supply of inventory stood at 4.0 for single family, down from August's figure of 4.1 and lower than last September's figure of 4.4. For condos, the September figure was 3.8, the same as August 2014 and lower than last September's figure of 4.0.

   With season approaching in Sarasota and Longboat Key, many of my clients are scheduling appointments to see properties for sale. Now is an excellent time to consider offering your home for sale.  Please call me to discuss your current home value.

   If you would like more information about the local real estate market, please contact me.


 

Sarasota expects influx of buyers  

    With 8,000 baby boomers expected to retire daily for the next several years in the U.S., Southwest Florida stands to benefit from a massive influx of home buyers, the chief economist of the NationalAssociation of Realtors believes.

   During the Global Business Council conference sponsored by the Sarasota Association of Realtors�, Lawrence Yun said the baby boom influx will not be just from the U.S. states, because the phenomenon was not limited to America.

  "After the war, servicemen came home and started having babies," Yun told an audience of 200 Wednesday at the annual Sarasota International Real Estate Conference.  "The same thing happened all over the world."

   Already, half of all foreigners who buy real estate in Florida are retired.  In all, foreign buyers make up about 10 percent of the state's buyers, Yun noted, though locally that figure may be higher.

   While German buyers tend to acquire property in Naples - partly because there's a direct flight from Frankfurt to Southwest Florida International Airport outside Fort Myers - Sarasota attracts a more diverse international buyer, led by Canadians and residents from Great Britain, Yun said.

 Chinese buyers may become a greater presence here, too, because that country's economy continues to "turn out millionaires right and left," Yun said. Economic growth there is roughly 8 to 9 percent annually, on par with America's growth in the 1950s.

   "We have seen a surge of Chinese buyers coming into the U.S., primarily on the West Coast," Yun said. "But they will begin to see that other parts of the country are attractive."


 

  

  

International Diamond Society Award

Carolyn is a 2013 member of the Coldwell Banker International Diamond Society, ranking in the top 3 percent of Realtors� worldwide. 

  

 

My Featured Properties

 

537 Reclinata Drive | Longboat Key, FL 34228

Pristine new contemporary British West Indian design, 4BR/4.5BA home with 171 feet of private lagoon waterfront, situated in a private enclave of only seven homes with deeded beach access. Click the image for more details on this exceptional home, and click here if you would like additional information. 

Offered at $2,299,000



 

176 Emerson Drive | Sarasota (Lido Key), FL 34236    
Tucked away in a fabulous St. Armand's location at the end of a desirable, quiet, dead-end street and two houses from Lido Beach. Three bedroom, 2 bath beachhouse with separate guest quarters or studio, tropical landscaping, across from North Lido Park. Click the image for more details on this property, and contact me if you would like more information.

Offered at $895,000

 

 

Just Reduced!

3923 Roberts Point Road | Sarasota, FL 34242               

Cozy north Siesta Key waterfront 3BR/2BA cottage is set in a natural tropical basin with two docks on approximately 130 ft. of waterfront. Minutes by boat to open bay and no bridges.  Additional canal front land and second dock. Click the image for more information about  this offering, and contact me if you would like additional information. 

Offered at $790,000

 

 

3613 Fair Oaks Place  |  Longboat Key, FL 34228

Charming 2BR+Den/2BA home in Queens Harbour with wonderful lake views. Enjoy an open pool deck and floor to ceiling walls of glass sliders for the ultimate in Florida indoor & outdoor living. Includes 2-car garage and deeded access to the private Bay Isles Beach Club. Click the image for more information about  this offering, and contact me if you would like additional information. 

Offered at $879,000

 

 

Just Listed!

30607 Singletary Road  |  Myakka City, FL

Private and well maintained 10-acre ranch close to Sarasota. Custom 3BR+Den/2.5BA home built in 2006 by Jonas Yoder. Click the image for more information about this offering, and contact me if you would like additional information. 

Offered at $679,000


 

Just Listed!

Longboat Harbour #206H  |  Longboat Key, FL

Spectacular, renovated waterfront 2BR/2BA end residence condo with southern exposure. Recently enjoyed extensive renovations. Click the image for more information about this offering, and contact me if you would like additional information. 

Offered at $339,500

 

 

Under Contract in 5 Days!

1649 Quail Drive | Sarasota, FL

This West of Trail3BR/2.5BA home lies at the end of a quent dead-end street in the exclusive Oyster Bay area. Great floorplan, ready for a remodel or build new on this large tropical lakefront lot with million dollar homes on both sides.