Sarasota real estate update

I just did a quick search on the Sarasota MLS for some statistics.

June 2008

• 415 single family homes sold in the month of June
• of the 415 single family homes sold 61 of them sold for more than $500,000
• 151 condominiums sold in the month of June
• of the 151 condominiums sold 43 of them sold for more than $500,000

July 13, 2008

• 834 single family homes are under contract
• There are 6,833 single family homes for sale
• 269 condominiums are under contract
• There are 3,806 condominiums for sale

That is pretty strong.

Sarasota, Florida made MSN’s list of “66 cities where buying makes sense”

I was pleased to see that Sarasota, Florida made MSN’s list of 66 cities where buying makes sense. You can read the full article here. The article talks about how falling home prices have made homeownership increasingly realistic in some areas. It also drives home the fact that “It’s a home, not a get-rich-quick scheme.“ In 2004 and 2005 so many people were looking at their home as a way to strike it rich.

This market really has come back to reality. It is interesting how the talk about “affordable housing” has died. 2 or 3 years ago it was a hot topic in Sarasota. Just a quick look at the Sarasota MLS shows that there are 1,685 single family homes for sale under $200,000. Looking for a gulf front front condo under $500,000? There are 78 of them for sale. 3 years ago you were hard pressed to find more than 10 options. I feel safe in saying that we are entering into a bottom.

Hyde Park Steakhouse

I had the pleasure of eating at the Hyde Park Steakhouse in downtown Sarasota last Sunday. My wife and I really enjoyed the atmosphere and food. This was our first time at the classy steakhouse. We were a little worried entering the restaurant at 6:00 to find two people at the bar and no one eating in the dining room. That is usually not a good sign. We brushed it aside figuring it was summer time and early on a Sunday evening. Eventually, at the end of our meal the restaurant became very busy.

The dining room’s atmosphere was very warm and cozy. The bar area wasn’t busy but I could see it as a fun place to drink if enough people were there.

My wife and I did not order appetizers because you usually get so much food at these restaurants that you can never finish your meal. They brought us a nice assortment of bread. They had a pretzel bread which was a new one for me. It was good. For an entree I had the lemon caper chicken and my wife had a steak. We also shared some au graten potatoes and broccoli side dishes. My chicken was outstanding and my wife’s steak was pretty good too. The sides were good. I kind of wish we ordered the mushrooms side dish but my wife wanted a green vegetable.

The dessert was interesting. We decided on the carrot cake that fed 2-4 people. They brought out this enormous piece of cake that looks like they cut a whole cake in half. I have to say that it was tasty.

The meal came to about $120 that included tip.

Overall, I would give this restaurant a thumbs up. If you have not been there give it a try.

New Sarasota Blog

Welcome to Sarasota newest blog - www.sarasotatalk.com. We plan to create a vibrant and fun website with information about the Sarasota area. Do you wish to blog about something? Let us know. We will set you up with your very own blog.

Right now, we are just fine tuning the website and making it functional. This is the very first post.

Things To Do Test

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