Steve Eckhardt, Luxury Home Broker

Sales of million dollar homes increased significantly for the Greater Tampa Bay area and the Greater Sarasota/Bradenton areas.  In the 5 county area the number of homes over $1 million that sold in July increased to 61 compared to the 42 homes that were sold in June.  While newspapers and the media continue to report luxury homes are "languishing" on the market, demand through 2009 has remained relatively stable (January 33 sold, February 29 sold, March 48 sold, April 59 sold, May 54 sold, June 42 sold, July 61 sold).  That being said, we still have over a 42 month supply of million dollar homes.

The following statistics are taken from the Mid Florida Regional MLS and cover single family homes over $950,000 listed in the Mid Florida MLS.  The Greater Tampa Bay area covers Hillsborough, Pinellas, and Pasco counties.  The Greater Sarasota/Bradenton area covers Sarasota and Manatee counties.

Greater Tampa Bay Area Listings

1256 homes over $950,000 are currently for sale in the Greater Tampa area.  The average list price is $1,845,691, with an average size of 4412 square feet.  The average "million dollar home" in Greater Tampa, St. Petersburg, & Clearwater has been on the market for 332 days.  The most expensive home in Greater Tampa is priced at $25 million and is located in the exclusive community of Avila.

Greater Sarasota Bradenton

1321 homes over $950,000 are currently for sale in the Greater Sarasota area.  The average list price is $2,110,031, with an average size of 3734 square feet.  The average "million dollar home" in Greater Sarasota, Bradenton, Siesta Key, Casey Key & Longboat Key has been on the market for 353 days.  The most expensive home in the Greater Sarasota are is priced at $17 million and is located on Casey Key.

Click Here To View The Most Exclusive Homes In Greater Tampa & Sarasota

 

Request your personalized listings sent directly to your e-mail at www.SearchForTampaHomes.com or contact Steve Eckhardt at (813) 765-1182.

Both the Tampa & Sarasota MSA's reported a 30% increase in sales for July 2009 compared to July 2008 numbers. The median sales price in Tampa was down 19% from a year ago to $143,100 and the median sales price in Sarasota was down 22% from a year ago to $179,500. Full statewide statistics are available from The Florida Association of Realtors.

Are you looking at homes for sale in Tampa Bay and feeling overwhelmed by the choices? Back in the Dark Ages before the Internet (1986 or so), if you wanted to look at a house, you had to call a real estate agent, find out the address and then physically drive to the house. Thanks to the Internet, however, you can start narrowing down your choices before you ever talk to your agent.

 What do you need to know?

Looking online can give you the information you want to know about the homes for sale in Tampa Bay. However, if you just go surfing on the Web, that information can be as overwhelming as the number of choices. Before you start shopping online, make a list of the things that are important to you about the city or neighborhood in which you want to live, such as: 

• What are the average property taxes in the neighborhood?
• What is the average utility cost for the home?
• What is the neighborhood like?
• How high is the crime rate in the neighborhood?
• What is the average climate of the city?
• What is the unemployment rate of the city?
• How good are the schools?

 Once you have your list of questions, go online with an eye to answering them. Here is a list of links that might help you on your quest for information:

 My Government Website - Sunshine Review: Here you can find a list of cities with official websites. Choose the city you're looking for and be magically transported by way of the Internet to that city's official website. You'll find all the great stuff that calls people to move to a particular city, including attractions, businesses, restaurants and beautiful housing developments.

 City Data: City Data is just that - a website with nothing but data on U.S. cities. You'll find the nice and not so nice information about any city. Crime rates, shortest commute, weather patterns and more, all at your fingertips. The only drawback is that the information is two years old.

 Interest: Interest.com will show you the current mortgage interest rates for the area you're interested in.

By gathering all this information, you have a much better chance of choosing one of the homes for sale in Tampa that fits your needs. Once you have it all, you can search online or take the information to your real estate agent and get help with your house hunting.  An experienced agent is worth their weight in gold! 

 Are you looking for the perfect house?  Let me help. Call me today at 813-765-1182 or email me at steve@TheFloridaAuthority.com  for more information.  You can also visit www.SearchForTampaHomes.com and we'll e-mail listings matching your criteria as soon as they hit the market!

Driving down the streets of Tampa, Sarasota, Clearwater, or St. Petersburg, you'll see a good number of homes for sale. What you'll also see, however, are homes for rent. What's the difference? Why did these people decide to rent their home? Why did that homeowner become a landlord?

There are a lot of good reasons for renting out your home, instead of adding it to the list of homes for sale:

1. The competitive factor - The current housing market is great for homebuyers, but not so great for home sellers. With so many homes to choose from, your property has to stand out from the rest to get sold. Sometimes, it could take months, or even years, to sell your house. During that time, renting can be a good way to make the house profitable.

2. Belief that the area will grow - Many people need to move out of their first house because it doesn't have enough room for their growing family. However, they think the area has a lot of potential and will be growing. It then becomes a real estate investment. They may want to sell later, but not during the real estate slump.

3. Not sure if they want to sell the home - Another set of landlords have moved to a new city and job, but aren't sure whether they'll like it or not. Renting is a way to cover the cost of the house. This is a "just in case" prospect, and works well for many.

4. More money - Especially with the housing slump, some landlords have been able to make more money renting than selling their house. Because housing prices are currently very low, many owners have found renting their home more profitable than selling it for a lower value.

If you're trying to determine if you should sell or rent your home, I can help. Cornerstone Properties has an in-house rental management division and the top listing syndication technology in the Tampa Bay area. Call me today at (813) 765-1182 or email me at steve@thefloridaauthority.com for more information.

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1655 BAY HARBOR LN, SARASOTA - $3,499,999 - Beauty and craftsmanship go hand in hand in this splendid Mediterranean masterpiece. This is the developer's personal home.  In addition to the incredible full bay views, this exclusive residence features five spacious bedroom suites, study, loft, six and one half bathrooms, library, family room, formal living and dining rooms. The master suite has its own laundry room and wet bar. An oversized four car garage, brick paver motor court, authentic clay tile roof, and decorative hand carved stone fountain are striking enhancements to the exterior. The gourmet kitchen is a chef's delight with granite countertops, custom cabinetry with under cabinet and above cabinet lighting, two dishwashers, sub zero refrigerator, double ovens, six burner gas cooktop, and food drawer warmer. Custom Kohler plumbing fixtures enhance the kitchen and bathrooms. The private boat dock is equipped with a 12,000 pound lift, electric and water, and the outdoor entertaining area is complete with gas heated custom pool and spa, and summer kitchen with refrigerator, grill and sink. Architectural details include the crown molding and custom columns to the marble and wood flooring throughout. This home is superior in its efficiency with a "Gold Certification" rating from FPL including a high efficiency HVAC system complete with whole house air filtration and anti-microbial contaminant systems, and high performance Anderson windows and doors . Custom Estate by Westwater Construction. See more of our luxury listings on our website.  TAKE A TOUR OF THIS HOME. Call Steve Eckhardt at (813) 765-1182 For A Private Showing.

Contract activity for pending home sales has risen for six straight months, a pattern not seen since the index began in 2001, according to the National Association of Realtors®.  The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contracts signed in July, increased 3.2% to 97.6 from a reading of 94.6 in June, and is 12.0% higher than July 2008 when it was 87.1.  The index is at the highest level since June 2007 when it was 100.7.  In the South, pending home sales activity rose 3.1% to an index of 103.8 in July and is 12.0% above July 2008.

Read more: http://rismedia.com/2009-09-01/pending-home-sales-on-a-roll-up-for-sixth-straight-month/#ixzz0PxPfzOBQ

Visit www.SearchForTampaHomes.com to find a home in the Tampa Bay or Sarasota area.

Arbor Greene, New Tampa  -  The single story at 10204 Estuary Drive has been sold.

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