Today I am standing in front of one of my newest listings, a canal-front home with 129 feet of waterfront on Bird Key. This barrier island is five minutes to downtown Sarasota’s cultural district and five minutes to the beaches of Lido Key.
Today I want to talk about the stability of Sarasota’s luxury real estate market. A considerable amount of global money has purchased Sarasota real estate here in the past few years and as I wrote about before, has helped to internationalize Sarasota. Please watch the video below to learn who’s buying what in Sarasota, how they’re choosing to finance, and what that means for the community and real estate market.
In my opinion the most stable segment to invest in is the luxury market. This sector has performed more steadily than others over the last few years of turbulence. For global buyers in particular, this is extremely attractive.
Money Talks And Cash is the Loudest!
An interesting indicator I have noted is that cash buyers are far more prevalent now in the luxury sector of the market. This is a positive indicator that there is great confidence in the value of Sarasota property as it stands now. Back in the boom years of 2004-5 only a third or so of buyers paid cash, the rest borrowed cheap money on over-priced assets.
Now during the first four months of 2013 the number of cash Buyers has increased by almost a hundred percent from 2004. In the luxury market, this is clearly demonstrated with over 70 percent of waterfront property and luxury condominiums being purchased for cash.
Meet Us For Coffee
What do YOU need to know about Sarasota real estate?
Have a FREE cup of local coffee on us.
In 20 minutes you’ll be 20x smarter.
Call us: 941.587.0740
Future Looks Rosy for Sarasota Real Estate – We’re on Solid Ground
I take this as a sign that cash buyers are savvy enough to recognize the investment potential and long term desirability of our community. This is a solid validation for Sarasota and with two-thirds of all purchases in cash, you can be sure this is good for the Sarasota economy, as well as helping to protect the market from another bubble situation.
The old adage “bags of cash” seems to have come back to Sarasota. And these purchases are real in every sense: bought and paid for at a very realistic market value. To use our British buyers’ terminology I could go so far as to describe them as “sound as a pound.”
