What Is Happening in Sarasota's Market?

Recently I sat down with Michael Barbino, the leader of our Sarasota office, to talk about what’s going on in our local market right now.

The Sarasota market is still a seller’s market, however, the inventory problem isn’t quite as low as it is in Tampa. Although Sarasota has less than six months of inventory, it does have more than double the inventory in Tampa.

But, demand varies between price points. Michael told me about a listing he had under $200,000 that gained multiple offers within just a day. Even with slightly higher inventory, we’re still seeing bidding wars.

Snowbirds have left, which has contributed to the raised inventory, but families right now are still looking for homes before their kids go back to school.

However, despite some of the changes associated with the summer market, we are continuing to see prices rise. Manatee, for example, is at $299,000 compared to the $270,000 it was at 18 months ago.

Sarasota is still definitely a seller’s market.

Within that same time frame, Sarasota’s prices have gone from $200,000 to $260,000. In Sarasota especially, new construction has been driving a lot of home sales. In fact, Lakewood Ranch is the third busiest in the nation.

Additionally, if you want to see these stats yourself, you can find them here.

Overall, we’re seeing a very healthy market. One great thing in particular is that we’re seeing more and more financed transactions than we have in past years. With Fannie Mae having changed the DTI especially, the market is definitely solid.

If you have any other questions or would like more information, feel free to give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

How Can You Reignite Your Home Sale?

What can you as a seller do if your home isn’t selling or getting any activity?

We’re in a really hot market right now with a lot of showings, offers, and bidding war situations in multiple price points. What’s happened over the last few years is the number of showings that happen to a house before an offer had reduced dramatically.

Why is this? The Internet. People would rather use their smartphones, tablets, and other similar technology to learn all the information they possibly can about a home rather than see it in person.

So, sometimes when your home isn’t getting any showings, that’s not necessarily a bad thing. This is when you must ask your agent, “What does the traffic look like online?” Nowadays, if your online photos and videos are done right, they basically act as showings. The actual showings are simply second showings where buyers validate information they’ve already learned online.

When you ask your agent what the traffic looks like online, they should be able to tell you the number of page views on some of the major portals like Zillow and Realtor.com. Our company pays for the advanced version of those websites so we can give you more data and information. In many instances, we automate that data and information and sent it to you via email so you can track it from week to week. Remember, don’t just track showings—track activity. If you don’t know what that activity is, the top real estate agents—just like the ones at The Duncan Duo—know how to interpret that data and give you the right advice.

Don’t just track showings—track activity.

That advice can vary from situation to situation. You might need a price adjustment, more marketing, or an adjustment of your marketing strategy. The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result. If you’re not getting activity, you need to change your strategy. You might even have to hire a different agent if your contract allows you to.

Most of the time, though, price is the determining factor. I’m a firm believer that if you lower the price of your home, you’ll get more activity. You’ll generate more online activity, and it might be enough to nudge that buyer who’s been thinking about buying your house over the fence.

Your other options include staging. If you’re selling a vacant home, you might have to stage it to help buyers see the home’s potential. You should also consider changing your photos. If they were taken during dreary weather, they might need to be edited and brightened. Or you can just take new photos on a sunny day.

Last but not least, you need to make sure the agent you’re working with is utilizing every possible marketing avenue. You also need to trust that agent. It’s very likely they know more about real estate than you do. If they tell you something, trust their advice and know that experience is on their side.

If you have any questions on how to get more activity for your listing, please feel free to reach out to us. We’d be happy to help you.