David Barr's Sarasota and Venice Real Estate Blog

Innovation and technology in real estate is always welcome.  I'm a bit of a tech geek and like to keep ahead of trends and incorporate new ideas whenever I can. A burgeoning technology I've been reading about is agent matching.  Much like personal matching sites, a new group of websites is just beginning to roll out agent matching sites based on buyer and seller input about their needs and personal traits.  The idea is to match Realtors with potential clients based on more than just experience. I think there's a lot of room for error with this new form of finding an agent.  Some of these sites match potential buyers with agents based only on their current listings.  An agent that handles foreclosures probably has a lot of listings, but may not work with buyers.  Many agents seek a lot of listings precisely so they don't have to work with buyers at all.  Besides, the information buyers and sellers put in their matching profile may not always be com...

What home buyers want and what is ends up being best for a home buyer are often not the same things. As an experienced real estate broker, I carefully listen to what potential buyers say they are looking for in a property, and how they plan on using it.  Here are two good case studies. I recently helped a couple from Nova Scotia close on a single family home in Englewood.  This couple wanted to be as close to the beach as possible, with the option of renting the property when they weren't using it.  Because they were long distance owners, the idea of owning a condo at first seemed appealing. As I showed them properties, we discussed how condo fees and association regulations would affect their income potential.  We also discussed the needs of their growing family and the long term benefits of owning a condo versus a single family home. They ended up purchasing an updated single family home, with bedrooms for all the kids (instead of sleeper sofas in ...

As a follow up to my blog post yesterday, I received this article from Inman News in my inbox this morning. The indicators continue to show that demand will put price pressure on home prices nationally.  This is already the case here in the Sarasota area and the state of Florida as well. If you're serious about getting in the Sarasota real estate market, you can still take advantages of relatively low prices compared to the height of our market back in 2005 and 2006. This leads me to think about what Zillow and Trulia are telling buyers about prices in local markets.  Read my update on my debunking Zillow page on my website.