Archive for the ‘Sarasota Herald Tribune Op-Ed’ Category
Posted by Michael Saunders on May 10, 2012
Favorable forces have finally conspired to make selling a home in Southwest Florida as easy as buying one has been. Deflated prices, low interest rates and a recovering economy are just some of the factors that have helped ignite another boom in buying, which in turn has led to a serious shortfall in inventory.
As a result, every new listing of a previously-owned home captures the immediate attention of buyers who often bid-up the final sale price with multiple offers—provided the property is well-priced to begin with. The vast majority of buyers are purchasing homes to live in and enjoy. The rest are largely paying all cash for properties to lease out in a gainful response to today’s simultaneous shortage of rental properties.
But what about the so-called “shadow inventory” of distressed properties we’ve been told could come cascading down at any time? Aren’t there plenty of these to satisfy demand? (more…)
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Posted by Michael Saunders on April 26, 2012
Nine out of ten home buyers begin their property searches on the internet. That’s an established fact. That’s why it was fantastic to learn last week that Sarasota-Bradenton ranks 37th on a new survey of the 146 “most-searched” markets on Realtor.com, itself one of the most-searched real estate sites in the U.S.
That ours is one of the most vigorously searched markets will likely come as no surprise to the team of professionals inside the Michael Saunders Call Center. More appointments to show properties were set there in March than in any other comparable period in the center’s 14-year history. With buyers as active in our market as they’ve ever been, our call center specialists booked 7,377 appointments in March—or nearly 240 property showings each day—pushing their first quarter total to a record 21,051. To put this number into its proper perspective, the Michael Saunders Call Center scheduled 34,329 appointments during all of 2005, at the peak of the region’s housing boom. At its present rate, it will easily surpass that number in just six months.
The call center is vital for several reasons. With our market once again in sizzling demand, buyers are scrambling to preview their chosen properties before they’re sold; their desire to see several in rapid succession often accomplished through the patience and finesse of our call center representatives. With agents as busy as they’ve ever been, the center makes certain that each call is answered quickly and courteously; and that the showing real estate agent on the other end is accommodated in a timely and professional manner. (more…)
Posted by Michael Saunders on April 19, 2012
Once upon a time, Easter was believed to usher-in the tail-end of our busiest home selling season. These days, however, its passage is more akin to halftime in a football game. For home sellers, this means there’s plenty more buyer activity to come; as Southwest Florida has become one of the most actively selling markets in the U.S.
What a stellar first half it was for the Sarasota-Manatee real estate market, as buyers showed-up in droves. Many have long since departed, but not before purchasing—or placing under contract—a record number of properties.
For the quarter ended March 31st, 4,052 properties were sold in Sarasota and Manatee Counties. (Source: Trendgraphix) To appreciate the magnitude of this achievement, you’d have to revisit the same quarter of 2005 (a.k.a., the peak of the housing boom) to witness a comparable level of sales. Only this time, buyers are shopping for true and lasting value, rather than the quick flip; and a sizeable majority pay cash.
In addition, the 6,240 “pending” sales logged in the two counties through March was the highest number ever recorded; besting the previous high (also achieved during the boom) by 12%. (more…)
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Posted by Michael Saunders on April 5, 2012
In a classic case of being careful what you wish for, the number of properties for sale in Southwest Florida has tumbled considerably over the past several months—just as everyone hoped they would. Buyers in record numbers are responding to today’s exceedingly rare combination of low prices, low interest rates, an improving economy; and repeated recommendations in the worldwide media that our area of the Gulf Coast is home to some of the best values in U.S. real estate.
As a consequence of this extraordinary resumption in buying, the number of properties now listed for sale in Southwest Florida is trending at its lowest level since 2005, at the peak of the housing boom.
This is wonderful news for our region; as such a profound increase in sales is both a signal that a broader economic recovery is underway; and a bellwether that it will continue to gather momentum. Even our luxury market is on the comeback trail thanks to the recovering finances of high-net-worth buyers. (more…)
Posted by Michael Saunders on March 29, 2012
The latest news cycle has yielded several articles that help explain the strong surge in Sarasota real estate sales that has defined our market over the past several months. Here is just a sampling of the most recent:
From Inman News, an influential news source for the U.S. real estate industry:
–The Sarasota-Bradenton-North Port metro area has earned the fourth spot on the list of the Top Ten Hot Spots for Global Home Buyers, according to data collected from DataQuick—a San Diego-based real estate data analysis firm.
–In placing fourth, our market bested such traditional bastions of foreign buying as New York City and Miami.
–Nearly 7% of all properties sold last year in the Sarasota-Bradenton-North Port market area were to foreign buyers—who are just as keen on taking advantage of our market’s deeply reduced prices as domestic buyers. At Michael Saunders & Company, approximately 13% of our 2011 transactions involved international buyers. (more…)
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Posted by Michael Saunders on March 22, 2012
Timing, it’s said, is everything. So with Southwest Florida’s revived real estate market grabbing headlines in the worldwide media, there could be no better time for the leadership of Leading Real Estate Companies of the World—and its luxury platform Luxury Portfolio International—to converge on Florida for their annual global conference.
Joining them in Orlando this weekend is a sizable contingent from Michael Saunders & Company, led by Michael and Drayton Saunders. When all is said and done, close to a thousand attendees will take home the message that our region of Florida is not only open for business, but also leading the U.S. real estate recovery with some of the best buying opportunities dollar-for-dollar of any market in the country.
Leading Real Estate Companies of the World, of which Michael Saunders is a current board member and former two-term chair, is a global network comprised of 550 of the most prestigious independent real estate firms in the world. As such, those in attendance at the Orlando conference control the activities of 140,000 agents throughout the U.S. and 30 countries abroad—who routinely refer buyers to our sector of the Gulf Coast. (more…)
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Posted by Michael Saunders on March 15, 2012
Siesta Key Beach
Our region of Florida is always earning kudos for its exceptional lifestyle opportunities. At one time or another in recent years, we’ve been voted one of America’s best places to live, start a business, get an education, retire; and more. Last spring, Siesta Key Beach was named America’s best seashore; and later in the fall, Sarasota was named one of the “Coolest towns in America” by Men’s Journal Magazine. In its rationale, the magazine essentially praised all of our major lifestyle advantages in the context of a single remark.
“Sarasota has mastered the art of living well,” the article glowed, citing our region’s extensive grid of open lands and waterways, its growing network of bike trails; and our extensive menu of cultural offerings. (more…)
Posted by Michael Saunders on March 8, 2012
The origin of investing’s golden rule, “Buy low and sell high,” is unknown; although it is frequently mentioned in the same breath as one of its most successful practitioners, Warren Buffett. For sure, Buffett coined the other oft-quoted mantra of levelheaded investing, “Be fearful when others are greedy and greedy when others are fearful,” which is an apt description of the upbeat mood now guiding investor sentiment in the aftermath of one of the most fearful periods in American financial history.
With his vast fortune largely the by-product of a lifetime of well-timed investments, when Buffett issues a “buy” recommendation, people sit up and take notice. A few days ago, he did essentially that when quizzed by an interviewer as to which is the better option for today’s youthful investor, stocks or a new home.
The question—posed during a live interview on CNBC’s financial news program Squawk Box—went like this: If you are a young, individual investor and have a choice between buying your first home or investing in stocks, which is the better bet?”
Without hesitation, the man whose longstanding ability to identify great investments before anyone else gets wind of them has earned him the nickname The Oracle of Omaha, replied: “If I knew where I was going to want to live for the next five or ten years, I would buy a home and finance it with a 30-year mortgage. It’s a terrific deal.” (more…)
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Posted by Michael Saunders on March 1, 2012
It’s happened at last. Reacting to prices that have fallen by as much as 50% from their unsustainable highs, a continuous influx of buyers has finally siphoned-off the bloated supply of properties that have weighed on our market for the past several years.
Visual proof is in the graphs below. Each depicts eight years of combined inventory for Sarasota, Manatee and Charlotte Counties—in six-month increments between Jan. 2004 and Jan 2012. Shown are the supply curves in three price ranges—under $500,000, $500,000 to $1 million; and $1 million-plus. In each, inventories have been reduced to levels more closely resembling the shortage of properties that preceded the robust sellers’ market of 2004-2006.
What else do these graphs communicate? Simply this: If you’re a buyer, a well-priced property that strikes your fancy must be acted upon swiftly; lest you become disappointed to find it already under contract—or subject to multiple offers—by the time your bid is proffered. If you’re a seller, now is the best moment in years to sell your home with the expectation that if priced right and reasonably well-maintained, buyers are likely to materialize in very short order.
Posted by Michael Saunders on February 9, 2012
If you follow real estate trends in Sarasota County you know that our market is finally enjoying a comeback after more than five years of lackluster sales. It took several quarters of falling home prices and declining interest rates—combined with recent improvements in the economy, labor market, our northern “feeder” markets and consumer confidence—to establish the sustained momentum we’re now experiencing.
Nothing illustrates the expanding breadth of our comeback quite as dramatically as the increase in luxury home sales during 2011. While unit sales throughout all price ranges was up by a respectable 7% over 2010, it was up by nearly 17 % for properties priced above $1 million. (Source: Trendgraphix®). Improvement is attributed to prices that have been generally reduced to 2001/2002 levels; or, put another way, that make it seem as though the “boom” never happened.
As in years past, the agents from Michael Saunders & Company continued to maintain a vastly oversized influence on the region’s luxury market in 2011. Accounting for 38.4% of sold dollar volume of homes above $1 million, they amassed nearly twice as much market share as their next closest competitor. (Source: Trendgraphix®)
If 2012 is your year to sell, the info-graphic above depicts another critical reason to choose an agent from Michael Saunders & Company. Long steeped in the complex intricacies of selling the luxury space, they found buyers for more closed transactions over $1 million in Sarasota County than all four of their closest major competitors combined; thus empowering the sellers to move on with their lives and pursue similar low-priced buying opportunities.
