Just bought in Sarasota. Helpful hints. (Tampa, Clearwater: sales, home builders, buying)

[smiledoc1]

Originally Posted by Ladywithafan

Congratulations!

Hi Ladyfan,
Thank you for your good wishes. The inspection was done today and the close should be in a few days. We are looking forward to this next phase of our lives.

smiledoc1

[smiledoc1]

Originally Posted by dishing the 9411

Hello Smiling Doc,

Jay 2007 appears to be really depressed. Do not let his sadness and misery bother you. Sarasota is a great place to live; there is really no other place like it. What Jay 2007 doesnt care to understand is people will pay a premium to live here. It is called the free market and you cannot put a price tag on quality of life.

I would like to welcome you to Sarasota. If you are in town, you should check out the the huge outdoor block party tonight on Lemon Ave. There will be music, entertainment, dancing, food and fun. The Sarasota Film Fest is sponsoring the event and it should be a blast!

Hi Dishing,
Thank you for the welcome. We will miss the film festival but my wife might make it down next weekend. This has been one wild week!!

Best,
smiledoc1

[smiledoc1]

Originally Posted by SoFLGal

Nice post Dishing--Congrats Doc on the new home purchase! I totally agree with you, a great Realtor can make all the difference. Welcome to the neighborhood

Hi SoFlGal,
Thank you for the welcome. Having lurked on this forum for months, I recognise that there are those who would find something to complain about if they were in Heaven.
There is no way this could have been done without a realtor. Maybe some people can go it alone, but we certainly couldn't. Our agent earned every penny. And then some.

Best,

smiledoc1

[sunshine girl]

Congratulations on finding and loving Sarasota. We will be there next week to visit our son and I am trying find a way to afford to move back sooner rather than later. Miss it terribly. Just hope one of the bench swings is available for sunset watching by Marina Jack's when we get there.

[Ladywithafan]

After our film fest mania is over (yes, I'm staff), we've got White on State coming up, Cinco de Mayo, our Lemon ave. summer block parties, first friday's on Palm 3rd friday's on Towles, 3rd Thursdays at the Ringling on the Bay....then the undescribable off shore boat racing over the 4th of July along with the fireworks....Summer rocks!

[jay2007]

I am not depressed. I am a floridian AND northerner for 3 generations. I just support rent control and price control. I CARE about human welfare and well being. Laziasse fare biz is IMO not humane. So call me a socialist of the scandinavian model, and you can be a 'premium' capitalist. And we will agree to disagree. I support low rent and affordable housing for all.
What you support in non verifiable premium is called inflation IMO.

[Carbondated]

Originally Posted by Ladywithafan

After our film fest mania is over (yes, I'm staff), we've got White on State coming up, Cinco de Mayo, our Lemon ave. summer block parties, first friday's on Palm 3rd friday's on Towles, 3rd Thursdays at the Ringling on the Bay....then the undescribable off shore boat racing over the 4th of July along with the fireworks....Summer rocks!

Sorry, I wish they would get rid of that offshore race.
I can't believe how many turtles and other creatures get killed by those boats. It is a disgrace.
And the money they raise for "charity" is less then the amount bikers donate on their regional one day charity runs.
Makes me sad every time they have it.

[gypsychic]

Originally Posted by Carbondated

Sorry, I wish they would get rid of that offshore race.
I can't believe how many turtles and other creatures get killed by those boats. It is a disgrace.
And the money they raise for "charity" is less then the amount bikers donate on their regional one day charity runs.
Makes me sad every time they have it.

Couldn't agree with you more - it is SO sad about the sea creatures who are killed and maimed - I loathe that race. Frankly I hate motorboats, period. I know I am in the minority.

[Ladywithafan]

Originally Posted by gypsychic

Couldn't agree with you more - it is SO sad about the sea creatures who are killed and maimed - I loathe that race. Frankly I hate motorboats, period. I know I am in the minority.

I agree...Also, those racers are C*R*A*Z*Y...however, it does bring in people to the area....I went to the bash off of 41 in the warehouse district last summer and was SHOCKED....I forget if it was Cheap Trick that played for free along with free beer (usually tomorrow) and food...I wouldn't attend again...

[bakes123]

Originally Posted by smiledoc1

My wife and I went to Florida ( we are from Massachusetts) last week to look at both the east and west coasts. We really did not intend to buy; this was more of a fact-finding mission. We are not snowbirds, as the plan is for us to work 6 weeks and then go to FL for one week. As we get older, we will increase our time in Florida. We spent TONS of time on the internet and speaking to people, we were told that there is a big difference between the coasts. Our visit proved that true. The east coast is far flashier than the west coast. Much more traffic. Not for us.
The Sarasota area looked appealing to us, more so than Ft. Myers or Tampa. Venice is not the place to be for anyone under 70. We looked at Bradenton also, but the area just didn't appeal to us. We stayed in Ellenton and that wasn't the place either. We went to dinner on a SUNDAY night in downtown Sarasota and the place was packed. We were the oldest people there and we are 54 and 53. The place was jumping. Now I'm not going to say that Sarasota is a city of teenyboppers, but it isn't old by any means.
My wife and I like the arts, and Sarasota has a very vibrant arts community. The place just seemed to have a nice feel to it. The downtown was active and had a nice mix of retail, office and restaurants. The beaches nearby were superlative. We went on our own for a few days and then met with our agent.
Previous to going down, we hooked up with a buyer's agent from the internet. Now this is absolutely critical to do. Even though the buyer's agent is paid by the seller, a good agent will work tirelessly to get the lowest price. I know this sounds contradictory, and it would seem that the agent would make more money if the price is higher, but if you get the right person you have some leverage against the seller's agent. We ended up finding just what we wanted. We spent hours talking to people in this development. This is a declining market and though the unit we bought might be less in a year, I can assure you that my agent squeezed out every last dime from the seller. The market is soft so whatever the listing price is, IMMEDIATELY knock off 15%. The rules of this forum prohibit the listing of names, but if anyone is interested in his name, you can send me a private message and I will pass along his name. He is as honest as can be.
We purchased a house in the Palmer Ranch area. It is close to the beach and close to downtown. The neighborhood is very nice.
One other advantage to Sarasota is the airport. It is literally steps from the baggage claim area to the rental cars and only 15 minutes to Palmer Ranch from there.
I don't expect Sarasota to be heaven. I do think I made the right choice for me. We wanted to be near the beach, near the downtown, in a newer development, easy access, a tamer environment than the east cost,and not pay a fortune. We connected with the PERFECT realtor.
For those contemplating the Sarasota area, I hope I have provided some food for thought.
Thank you to all the people who posted messages about the Sarasota area, both positive and negative, over the last 6 months or so. You have all been most helpful.
I will be happy to respond to both public and private messages.

My wife and I are on the same fact finding trip in 2 weeks in the same area. Can you supply me with the agents name and number and any other advice. Thank you. Glenn