David Barr's Sarasota and Venice Real Estate Blog

First time home buyer in the Venice area?  Yes, it might be a scary prospect.  You just need the right buyer's agent. I have added a page to my website that describes what Venice FL first time home buyers can expect, as well as an outline of the buying process. Please click here to visit the page on my site.  If you are ready to jump into the Venice, FL real estate market (I also cover Sarasota, Nokomis, and Englewood), please contact me .  I'd be happy to be your buyer's agent.

It has struck yet another buyer new to the Venice and Sarasota real estate market:  analysis paralysis! Our market is moving too quickly to fall prey to the understandable urge to ask lots of questions surrounding the purchase of a home or condo in our area.  Besides, if a property has been on the market for 8 months, it won't sell right away, will it? The answer is most likely yes, it will. I see it time and again.  Buyers just don't have the luxury of being able to wait to make up their minds about moving forward with an offer.  We have a shortage of housing inventory and an overabundance of shivering snowbirds just chomping at the bit to snap up their slice of paradise.

Our MLS has a great tool that most agents don't seem to be aware of.  It's called RatePlug. RatePlug takes the current list price of the property and factors in mortgage payments, HOA/condo fees, taxes, PMI, and property tax and insurance, to give buyers a complete picture of the property's monthly ownership expenses. This tool is particularly helpful for investors to calculate potential cash flow. I have enabled the RatePlug feature for all my customers.  When you see this logo in the property reports: you can access the information. Click here for a live demonstration of how RatePlug works:   http://mfr.mlsmatrix.com/Matrix/Public/DisplayITQPopup.aspx?iid=1&did=191&params=52%20MTYwMzMyNTA4&exk=d15e416ecc590ea5b6bef34f1007fd2e

If you're an investor looking for Venice FL real estate, here are three currently available properties for sale you may want to consider. 1) 2/2 villa in popular neighborhood near beaches and shopping.  List price $75,000.  Renovated comps in same community are selling starting at $125,000. 2) 2/2 single family home, bank owned, in South Venice.  Terrazzo floors throughout, needs cosmetic work but tons of curb appeal and open plan with 1300 sq ft under air.  List price mid $80's.  Fix and flip with a potential list price in the $140's, or polish it up for cash flow. 3) The best currently available single family home on Venice Island is a 2/1 with volume ceilings and open plan, just blocks from deeded Golden Beach access.  One look and you'll see this could be a great potential seasonal rental, sold turn-key furnished.  Listed just under $300K. Contact me for more details and to schedule a showing .

Happy New Year!  2015 is off to a good start and I thought it was a good time to highlight a service I provide to buyers in Venice, Nokomis, and Englewood will help you compete and win in a very active market. The past 2 days have started me thinking about technology. I have taken video previews of 2 separate homes for sale for long distance buyers (one of those days being today, New Year's Day).  Many times, buyers don't have time to make an offer during their in-person visit to our area, or by the time they familiarize with a preferred neighborhood, the homes they viewed are already under contract.  This is where my video walk through tour comes in handy for long distance buyers. If you are thinking of hiring a buyer's agent, or are working with one that isn't quite a good fit for you, it's time to consider the growing disparity in an agent's time spent in the real estate field, and their ability to use technology to make the real estate experience effici...

In the past 90 days, just over half the single home sales in Venice were to cash buyers.  Banks that are selling foreclosures prefer cash buyers, as do home owners selling on the open market.  Here's some tips to make sure your purchase offer with a mortgage is as attractive as possible to a seller. 1) Be prepared :  You have to be ready to show the seller you are a serious buyer by having a pre-approval letter from your lender.  Go do it.  Now. 2) Put as much escrow deposit down as possible: The more skin you have in the deal, the better it looks to a seller.  $1000 escrow deposits might work in certain price segments of the market.  But, if you really don't have more than $1000 to put down, are you qualified to buy a home in the first place? 3) Do your inspections quickly: FL contracts allow a 15 day period for home inspections.  You should offer 10 days.  You look like a more eager buyer who doesn't want to use the inspection conti...

If you need to get a mortgage to buy a Venice FL home or condo, you'll be competing with a lot of cash buyers. According to our MLS, in the past 90 days, there have been 229 single family homes sold with all cash terms and 217 single family homes sold with conventional, FHA, or VA mortgage loans. CASH PURCHASES Median sold price: $218,000 Median days to contract: 26 Median sales price % of list price:  97% FINANCE PURCHASES  (Conventional/FHA/VA) Median sold price: $226,000 Median days to contract: 26 Median sales price % of list price: 97% Bottom line:  Whether you are paying cash or financing your Venice FL real estate purchase, properties are selling fast and at very close to list price.   Please contact me to assist you with your real estate needs.

If you've been looking for Venice FL real estate, or just starting out, you may or may not know that we have more buyers than homes for sale.  Homes are selling quickly, and that is creating frustration for some and a "wait and see" attitude for others. For those waiting for just the right house to come along, the old saying "time is money" is never more true than in real estate, at least in Venice. Let's take a look at what waiting to buy could potentially cost: Now: Home sales price $150,000 for a 2 bedroom 2 bath in Venice Interest rate 4.125% Mortgage monthly payment with 20% down: $581.58 Spring 2015: Estimated future home sales price $165,000 for a similar 2/2 in Venice Interest rate 4.35% Mortgage monthly payment with 20% down: $657.11 Housing inventory is expected to stay low, rates could go higher, and prices are projected to increase between 7%-10% .  Waiting to buy could cost you $76 per month, or approximately $912 per year.  Wha...

I recently analyzed a report from Google Trends about what home buyers are searching for online, and how it applies to our local Venice FL real estate market. One of the things buyers are looking for is vintage, and nothing is more vintage in our area than terrazzo floors.  I am a huge fan of rehabilitating old terrazzo floors in real estate investment property and property renovations. Terrazzo is a mixture of concrete, marble, glass, and granite or quartz, and is poured over the home's concrete slab foundation.  The surface is polished to a fine gloss, and is common today in commercial applications such as retail stores and airports. In the 50's and 60's, many Venice and Sarasota home builders used terrazzo floors.  Unfortunately, wall to wall carpeting came into wide use just after this period, and many of the homes with original terrazzo floors now look like the "before pictures" below when it's time for a renovation. Typical terrazzo in an inve...

Warm year-round temperatures and spectacular natural beauty makes Venice, Florida one of the most desirable real estate markets in the country. You can modernize your home and make it more useful for your needs — and improve its market value — by making a few popular updates. 1. Repurposed Sunroom The sunroom is a standard feature of many Venice homes. However, these screened porches often need an update to allow them to be used more effectively. Glass enclosure is one method, to add more usable space under air for daily living. Generally, extending the heating and air conditioning system for this remodeling task is not difficult. Another idea uses a series of French doors as the exterior of the sunroom area. This method allows easy access to outdoor areas and creates a classic look for the interior. Making the sunroom more comfortable can allow you to use it as a lovely dining area with a view of the outdoors. You can also use comfortable outdoor furniture to make it a pictur...

Today I took a tour of a home builder's design center and found some interesting contrasts in design elements they are presenting for kitchens in their Venice FL new homes for sale. One of the trends is for a contrasting cabinet color for the kitchen island space.  The white color of this island makes it seem like it is floating in space against the light floor, retaining the feeling of openness in it's use in an open floor plan. The builder also provided more traditional cabinet colors and stone counter top colors.  The counter top material on the island in this picture is actually a laminate, with an embossed natural stone pattern. There are 4 different counter top choices in this kitchen below.  Notice how the dark cabinets draw the eye in, as opposed to a light or a white cabinet that would blend and make the space appear bigger. Remember, design is a personal choice.  But, if you're preparing a home for resale, or buying a starter home and nee...

If you're thinking of selling your Venice FL home or condo, you've probably heard that 90% of buyers start their search online. Great statistic, but as with all things web-related, there's a treasure trove of information just below the surface. Google recently published 6 Key Trends for Homebuyers , showing what home buyers are looking for once they are online.  Some of them apply to the Venice, FL real estate market, and some do not.  Here's the breakdown: 1) Google searches for housing peak in July, with the number of searches at their highest point since 2008 .  It's pretty well known that real estate activity in Florida and Venice in particular is highest during our "season", but the national statistics cited by Google help to partly explain why I believe we are becoming increasingly more busy in the summer months as well as "season". 2) Millennials are finally getting ready to buy.  While most people joke about the average age of th...

If you are considering a move to the Gulf coast of Florida or purchasing a vacation home, Venice is a great place to end your search. Venice has a rich history dating back to the early 1920's, reflected in it's architecturally interesting downtown.  Venice Island has the best of all things Florida: culture, dining, shopping, and tree-lined avenues, all just a short walk or bike ride to Venice Beach. See the latest Venice FL real estate for sale on my website:   http://www.davidbarrhomes.com/#!venice/cuv4 Venice Art Festival in downtown Venice Newer maintenance-free home in Amora on Venice Island $349,000 Two blocks to Venice beach, heated pool $419,000