David Barr's Sarasota and Venice Real Estate Blog

On today's June 20th edition of Fox and Friends, Michael Corbett again appeared for his regular Friday "report" on affordable homes from Trulia. The problem, as I have documented in the past, is that few if any of the homes Corbett profiles on Fox and Friends are actually available for sale.  Fox News may finally be getting it; the segment seemed noticeably shorter today. Here are the homes Corbett profiled on Fox and Friends: 1) Charlotte, NC: $199,000, 4 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, 2000 sq ft colonial style brick front.  Realtor.com shows zero homes for sale in Charlotte with these exact parameters. 2) Huntsville, AL: $200,000, 4 bedrooms, 2 baths, 2000 sq ft brick front ranch.  Once again, zero homes found for sale in Huntsville on Realtor.com 3) Tyler, TX: $187,500, 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, 1600 sq ft, cottage style home.  Zero homes in Tyler are for sale fitting this description on Realtor.com As I have previously outlined on this blog, a study by Inman fou...

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) issued a warning on "coming soon" marketing, since the issue was raised by Zillow's new "coming soon" feature.  NAR says brokers who do not act in the best interest of their clients by informing them of the limited nature of coming soon marketing could face liability. "Coming soon" marketing is another form of pocket listings, where a Realtor has either a verbal agreement with a homeowner to sell their property, or has a written agreement.  The MLS I belong to, MFRMLS, is the 2nd largest in the country.  MFRMLS rules require a listing to be input in the MLS within 48 hours of completing a written listing agreement.  A "coming soon" listing could only be in effect with a true written  agreement for 48 hours, using Zillow's "coming soon" feature. In my previous blog post, I outlined how "coming soon" listings have the potential for abuse.  A Realtor could technically have a...

Zillow is starting a new "feature" that allows agents to post what we in the industry call pocket listings:  Properties that are supposedly for sale before they are listed in the MLS. Pocket listings are prevalent in some markets, and no doubt a lot of buyers see agents negotiating pocket listings on popular real estate TV shows on Bravo or HGTV. Unfortunately for consumers, pocket listings are full of potential legal and accuracy issues that will add more headaches than necessary to the home buying process. The MLS I belong to, Mid Florida MLS, the 2nd largest in the country, requires that a property must be listed in the MLS within 48 hours of receipt of a signed listing agreement by the seller.  Zillow's "Coming Soon" will not be much of a benefit. Zillow's "Coming Soon" feature opens up a lot of opportunity for agents to abuse it.  In the absence of a signed listing agreement, agents could post a property for sale without a signed list...

Homes offering owner financing are becoming a more popular niche.  I have been concentrating in  specializing in owner financing negotiation. You don't have to have bad credit to benefit from owner financing.  Many home buyers and sellers are refusing to deal with the hurdles involved in getting a bank mortgage.  But, a conversation I had today with another agent brings up the issue of Fair Housing law. No one offering mortgage financing can legally ask about the status or demographics of a buyer.  There are protected classes of buyers which include familial status, race, gender and sexual preference.  As Realtors, we should be counseling our sellers and buyers about the law and basing sales and purchase decisions based on buyer qualification for the mortgage only. Visit my website for owner financing homes for sale:  http://www.davidbarrhomes.com/#!owner-financing-sarasota/chfb

I've been following this "Trulia real estate expert" on Fox and Friends for a few weeks.  Today he showed up again today with his best deals segment. I noticed a couple of changes in his segment since I have started monitoring him on this program.  Today, the prices of the properties he profiled were displayed on screen for milliseconds, presumably to make the listings harder to trace back on Realtor.com.   Despite my previous challenge to him and to Trulia, they display no MLS numbers for potential buyers to find the homes Corbett profiles online. I also noticed he threw in a home in Sarasota (my primary market area) with no price displayed except for the anchor saying it verbally.  Below is what he profiled: 1) Atlanta   $300,000  3/3 red   2 story   2700 sq ft colonial  corner lot pre-wired for electronics: According to Realtor.com, this home is currently for sale. 2) Sarasota FL  3/2  1900 sq ft  stone...

Today I got an email from a customer using Zillow's mobile app. As readers of this blog know well, I'm a avid crusader against the business practices of Zillow that negatively impact the public and the real estate industry. This home that was listed for sale on Zillow is actually under contract in our MLS: MLS M5845701, available on Zillow's mobile app but under contract in the MLS If you install the Zillow mobile app on your device and use it to search for homes, you'll be looking at out of date information.  Remember, #AccuracyMatters. Fortunately for my clients, I have my own mobile app that provides up to date information from the MLS.  Download it here: http://t.ikenex.com/?k=LGz Follow me on Twitter @sarasota_homes and #AccuracyMatters.

A recent Bradenton Herald article says that Manatee County development review fees are scheduled to increase 22% effective June 1. The county cites the need for increased oversight of land management plans due to the expansion of new home communities and planned future communities. Pat Neal, President of builder Neal Communities, says that government costs account for 12% of a typical $160,000 new home. New home in Lakewood Ranch Here's a link to the article:   http://www.bradenton.com/2014/05/22/5164840/manatee-county-commission-raises.html?sp=/99/179/186/ With increased prices for homes that are continually built further east, away from our area's biggest ttraction, our beaches, is this going to bite the hand that fuels much of Manatee County's recent growth? This is a perfect example of why you need a good buyer's agent, especially when buying a nturew home.  Economic factors such as government regulation can make the difference in good or bad fut...

My Englewood FL real estate website is up and running. Like my main site, davidbarrhomes.com , www.englewood-fl-real-estate.com features real-time MLS listings, user- friendly navigation, and help and advice for buyers looking for Englewood FL real estate. englewood-fl-real-estate.com includes properties on Manasota Key, Placida, Rotonda, and Palm Island.

I couldn't update Corbett's track record of his Friday Fox and Friends appearance but here's the gist. He profiled three homes.  When I searched for active listings on Realtor.com based on city, exact price, and bedrooms and baths, two of the three he profiled were not available.  One city, I believe it was Columbia, SC, had "zero" homes for sale matching the Corbett's criteria. This makes 5 out of 6 homes not available for sale that were profiled on Fox and Friends.  Misleading? Fact:  Zillow and Trulia do not have full access to MLS data.   On average they have 78% of the number of listings on Realtor.com.  Even worse, up to 17% of Zillow and Trulia listings are scraped from tax records to boost their listing count, or are old or expired listings they don't take off their site. Study from Inman News: http://www.inman.com/2013/03/06/accuracy-zillow-trulia-listing-data-under-fire-again/#.U2AqIvldWlI Trulia and Zillow will do anything to get vi...

An informative article Florida Realtors economist Brad O'Connor about new housing permits shows what parts of Florida are experiencing a construction boom. The orange shaded areas show Hillsborough County in Tampa, and Orange County in the Orlando, with the state's highest number of building permits. What I found interesting is that Manatee and Sarasota Counties combined had basically the same number of new building permits as Miami-Dade and Broward Counties on the east coast of FL. You can read the entire article here, and use the interactive map:   http://www.floridarealtors.org/ResearchAndStatistics/John-Tuccillo-Market-Report_Summit-Blog.cfm Buying a new home is not something to do on your own without the assistance of an experienced buyer's agent.   Competing new home construction can negatively impact the resale of your 2 or 3 year old property down the road.  Quality of life issues such as traffic congestion can also have a negative influence on the fut...

Sarasota's real estate market is facing low inventory and high demand.  There very well may be multiple buyers interested in the same property.  How your Realtor handles offers and negotiates on your behalf is key to your success. I advise my clients that I negotiate on their behalf from a position of confidentiality.  Information is power, and information in the hands of the other party can be used against you.  Things like the reason for selling, personal financial issues, deadline dates such as the sale of another property, and family issues such as divorce, can hurt you in a price negotiation. I also negotiate from a position of leverage.  Leverage is gained by being prepared and learning the motivations of the other party.  While I advise my customers not to divulge information to the other party, I have no trouble asking a lot of questions to get the other party or their agent to talk too much.  Buyers often have an emotional reaction t...

I just updated my website with Sarasota are best real estate deals:   http://www.davidbarrhomes.com/#!best-deals-sarasota/c142p Sarasota best deal on Hillview St. for sale The updated best deals list includes waterfront homes in Bradenton and Englewood, a large newer 2 story home in Venice under $200K, and a couple of affordable homes in Sarasota just east of the Trail, a hot area for both investors and full time residents. Please contact me if you're interested in touring any of these homes.

This week I was contacted by home buyers to show a property they had found online. It turned out the buyers had put an put in an offer on the house they wanted me to show them, with another agent. The buyers did not have a representation agreement with the other agent, and an offer is only an offer if it is not accepted by both the seller and buyer.  They felt their first agent did not represent their interests, and they were correct. Key West style home for sale in Englewood $254,900 The buyers and the seller came within $900 of making a deal.  Then, according to the buyers, nothing happened, which is why they contacted me. I went over the comparable sales and told the buyers that the price the seller counter-offered was actually a pretty good deal.  $900 represents a difference of about $5 per month in mortgage payment.  The buyers agreed it would not be worth losing the home over $5 per month. Unfortunately, their previous agent did not provide c...

This is a follow up to my previous blog about buyer's agents:  http://blog.davidbarrhomes.com/2014/03/case-study-why-experienced-buyers-agent.html The real estate world is always changing, but sometimes the changes can be confusing for prospective home buyers. There are three competing business models nationally which are shaping how consumers buy and sell real estate: 1) Zillow and Trulia:  Non-licensed: what we in the industry call "portals".  They exist to generate visits to their websites and sell advertising. Participating agents pay to be featured in certain geographical areas; 2) Traditional brokerages, such as Re/Max and Keller Williams with their national real estate sites, where buyers can search for homes and get funneled to one of the company's featured agents; 3) Redfin and Movoto:  Licensed brokers, but without physical brick and mortar presence in local markets.  These companies partner with established local agents when a home buyer or s...

From today's Tampa Bay Times:  Another Apartment Complex Headed to West Shore Read the article here:  http://www.tampabay.com/news/business/realestate/another-new-apartment-complex-headed-to-westshore/2173589 Why is this a reason to invest in Sarasota real estate, as opposed to the Tampa area? 1) Building apartments indicates a weak demand from home buyers.  In the Sarasota area, builders are focusing entirely on single family homes and villas; 2) Apartment complex rentals are usually at a lower rental rate than single family home rentals; 3) Individual investors trying to rent existing condos or single family homes have to compete against resort-style amenities in new apartment complexes; 4) Bringing new apartments into existing rental inventory increases rental property supply and drives down demand and rental rates; 5) New apartments are usually lower-quality stick built above the first floor, while new condo construction is usually concrete block with incre...

I have a visible Sarasota FL real estate website and I get a lot of calls from Canadian media asking me to advertise to Canadian investors. Sarasota is arguably one of the best places, if not the best place, to invest in Florida real estate.  Best doesn't mean the least expensive. Downtown Sarasota and Sarasota Bay Unfortunately, a lot of Canadian real estate investors focus on the less expensive properties and gravitate toward less expensive markets like Orlando, Tampa, or Ft. Myers.  In my opinion, that's not the best approach to investing in Florida real estate. Sarasota County is one of the top three affluent counties in Florida, with the top school district in the state.  Sarasota benefits from a world class reputation for arts, amenities such as fine dining, and lifestyle, including the consistently #1 rated Siesta Key Beach.  The affluent visitors to Sarasota could go to Ft Myers or Tampa, but they don't.  They come to Sarasota year after year...

Real estate journalism is really a sorry state of affairs.   As the title of this post says, an article in the Bradenton Herald says Bradenton ranks 6th nationally in Open Houses.  So what? Do homes sold that used open houses sell faster?  For more money?  Get multiple offers?  Sorry, no such relevant conclusion about Bradenton Open Houses, or any Open Houses, for that matter, in this article. Hey honey, there's some balloons! Let's go in that Open House! Agent Open Houses are for the agents.  They hope to get new prospective buyers or impress the neighbors who might be thinking of selling their home.  They rarely if ever sell the actual home, the owners of which were forced to vacate on a weekend afternoon so strangers could dirty their floor and peer in their medicine cabinet. Read the Bradenton Herald article here:   http://www.bradenton.com/2014/04/03/5082512/bradenton-ranked-sixth-in-nation.html

There's a lot of new home communities under construction in the Sarasota area.  It seems many home buyers haven't considered looking in Venice, compared to the better known areas such as Lakewood Ranch in Manatee County, or Palmer Ranch in Sarasota. New home for sale in Grand Palm in Venice FL Why buy a new home in Venice?  Consider these facts: New home communities such as Grand Palm, Island Walk, and Gran Paradiso, are approximately 7 miles to the nearest hospital, Venice Regional Bayfront.  New home communities in Palmer Ranch, such as Arbor Lakes and Sandhill Preserve, are approximately 10 miles to Sarasota Memorial. Distance to the nearest beach from Venice new home communities equals the distance to Siesta Key beaches from Palmer Ranch, and is about half the distance compared to Lakewood Ranch. Downtown Venice activities and amenities are closer to new home communities than Sarasota downtown is to Palmer Ranch new home communities. Comparable Venice...

Today's experience working with out of town buyers makes an excellent case study in why you need an experienced buyer's agent. I have been working with a couple since late 2013 who want to move from Clearwater to either Sarasota or Venice.  The buyers had a smart initial strategy to visit Sarasota and tour homes one day, and visit the Venice area and tour homes a couple of days later. Luckily, this couple was very clear in terms of what they were looking for.  They did not like high-rise condo living, wanted something near beaches and amenities, and wanted to gain some privacy in the process.  After touring homes with them two times previously and asking for feedback every time we visited a property, I had a good idea of what they were looking for.  Key terms here: ask and listen to the client. Fast forward to this week.  I sent the buyers a list of properties to choose from for our property tour today, but they didn't make any selections.  This is a...

Have you been searching Zillow or Trulia for Sarasota real estate? I've been saying for a long time that these services have a lot of inaccurate information and outdated properties for sale on their sites.  Many of the homes and condos they list for sale were never available for sale in the first place. You can check the true status of a property you've found on either of these sites with a MLS # search:   http://www.davidbarrhomes.com/#!sarasota-mls-number-search/cvrw