Premier Sotheby's Real Estate - Sarasota Waterfront Homes - The Clark Group

Foreclosures and Resulting Deficiencies in Sarasota County

clark — Sun, 20 May 2012 23:11:04 +0000

After a relatively quiet year of foreclosure filings, the pace seems to have increased again with respect to how many are being filed each week. Prior to this year of limited activity, there had been quite a flurry of activity but then the “robo-signing” situation brought things to a very drastic slowdown. At this point homeowners associations have become much more aggressive and what used to be a very, very slow process is now proving to be a bit quicker than those owners who thought they had all the time in the world might have thought.

Click here to read the Sarasota Herald Tribune Article

Oaks Market Update 2012

clark — Sun, 20 May 2012 18:34:03 +0000

2012 Sales through May 20th

The following is a list of the sales in The Oaks so far during 2012.

Address	List Price	Sold Price	Sq FT	Yr Built
445 Walls Way	1,875,000	1,625,000	6,533	1990
415 Walls Way	1,175,000	1,050,000	4,987	1995
542 Dove Pointe	899,000	875,000	5,196	2001
484 Oriskany Court	825,000	730,000	3,853	2001
445 E MacEwen Drive	810,000	787,500	4,275	1996
908 MacEwen Drive	799,900	724,268	4,116	1993
801 Lytham Circle	795,900	700,000	4,369	1999
165 Sugar Mill Drive	775,000	775,000	3,912	1989
680 N MacEwen Drive	725,000	585,000	5,506	2002
657 Trenton Way	645,000	520,000	3,727	1991
664 N MacEwen Drive	599,000	560,000	3,607	2002
899 MacEwen Drive	595,000	525,000	3,032	1990
252 Osprey Point Drive	575,000	500,000	3,780	2000
400 E MacEwen Drive	549,000	525,000	3,037	1999
692 Oaks Creek Court	1,900,000	Pending	8,763	2002
432 E MacEwen Drive	939,000	Pending	4,181	2000
568 N MacEwen Drive	824,400	Pending	4,637	2000
607 N MacEwen Drive	785,000	Pending	3,574	2002
452 Blue Garden Lane	354,900	Pending	3,910	1992
668 Trenton Way	334,900	Pending	2,547	1989

Please feel free to call me (941.350.4500) or email me with any questions or comments as I am here for you. If you are considering selling your home I hope that you will speak with me. My promise to you is that no one will work harder on your behalf than I will.

New Oaks Bayside Website

clark — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 02:34:54 +0000

We are excited to present the launch of the Oaks Bayside website, www.OaksBayside.com. Please take a few minutes to visit the site which includes 9 videos packed with great information about this hidden gem! It is actually not so hidden as it is, perhaps, just somewhat undiscovered as the full story of it hasn’t been told so fully before this. A great amount of local history is wrapped up in this terrific community. Enjoy learning more from listening to interviews with owners, interviews from County Commissioner, Jon Thaxton and Linda Mansperger Executive Director at neighboring Spanish Point.

http://www.TheOaksBayside.com

A Home Where Fairytales Come True

clark — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 21:41:25 +0000

We have the handsome Prince and the beautiful Princess and a story that would make a wonderful Hallmark movie!

Add in on top of that a gorgeous mansion filled with laughing and playing children and now you have Villa Devita. And, I, the fortunate Realtor have the pleasure of marketing it for the owners who are now ready to sell it.

We are so pleased to have been featured in the Sarasota Herald Tribune today on both the front page of the entire paper and also on the front page of the Real Estate Section. A home run!! Thank you to Harold Bubil for such a great story and for so tastefully telling the story of Richard and Colleen AND for so nicely honoring the memory of Jackie Devita, the real vision behind the home. We are all grateful to him for a job well done.

Enjoy reading about the home and the property.

Read the full front page article in the Sarasota Herald Tribune here

Read the full real estate section article in the Sarasota Herald Tribune here

Photo gallery Villa Devita

Photo gallery DeVitas

How will you spend your winter?

clark — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 12:36:11 +0000

Come join us here in Sarasota Florida. Will you spend the winter in the sunshine, with the average daily temperature in the 70s? Or, up North where the sun often does not shine for weeks and the temperature may not rise much above freezing. And then, of course, there's also the snow. And while the snow is fun to experience for a few days particularly when you're in the mountains of Colorado skiing, I choose to spend it here in sunny Sarasota Florida starting my day most mornings walking the Siesta Key beach. The number one rated beach in all the world. How will you choose to spend your winter?

Shadow Inventory is Down

clark — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 18:13:28 +0000

The term “shadow inventory” refers to the homes that are “in the wings” or “on deck” to come on the market. This group has been one of great interest to folks tracking and following the real estate market as it is a big indicator of things to come.

There is a company in California named CoreLogic that has spent a great deal of time and energy following this group. According to their most recent numbers, the number is decreasing. According to CoreLogic, the number of homes for the month of July that could be considered shadow inventory was about 1.6 million.

A year ago for that same time period the number was about 1.9 million so, this reflects a 16 percent decrease in that timeframe. That is a good thing. If one wants to look at a little more a recent number, then consider the April shadow inventory number of 1.7 million units.

Read the full article in the Sarasota Herald Tribune here

Appraisals can make or break a deal

clark — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 18:48:42 +0000

Would-be sellers are often disappointed to find that, although they have managed to get an acceptable contract price for their home, the appraisal comes in at a number that is less than that amount and, all of a sudden, the deal is off. What a let down! Certainly the buyer is also disappointed as they want to buy the home but are not usually willing to pay over the appraised value and so they are now back to the drawing board unless a compromise can be worked out with the seller.

Depending on which side of the transaction you are on, try to get everyone to agree on finding another appraiser. We have seen the same house appraise a few weeks apart for 50% more. Appraising is not a precise science.

One fairly important thought to keep in mind is that what is of value and worth to a homeowner in terms of improvements, is not necessarily viewed the same way by the appraiser. For instance, a seller might have recently put a lot of money into a new kitchen or bath and have had the thought that this money spent was going to come back in the form of increased value for the property. Not necessarily so. An appraiser does not necessarily see it that same way.

So the word of caution to those considering making significant improvements is to do those only if they will personally enjoy the changes. In terms of getting a home ready to sell, new carpet and fresh paint are usually items well worth their cost and effort. These are rather small in terms of the big picture but their impact is most noticeable. It is like putting a layer of icing on the cake!

Read the full article in the Sarasota Herald Tribune here

Appraisals can make or break a deal

Foreclosures Jump in Southwest Florida in September

clark — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 18:41:06 +0000

Bank of America was responsible at least, in part, for the 27 percent jump in the number of foreclosures for the month. It would appear that this mega-bank now is able to determine which of their loans have the appropriate paperwork to proceed to foreclosure.

For a long time this lack of information seemed to have stalled them in their tracks. For Manatee, Sarasota and Charlotte counties it could perhaps mean that while the prices have been fairly stable for a lot of 2011, that might change and move downward if there is this new group of distressed properties hitting the market.

However, it is believed that the banks will introduce properties at a reasonable pace so as to keep a frenzy from happening. They realize there is no benefit from a saturated market.

Read the full article in the Sarasota Herald Tribune here

Well-known Economist Jack McCabe’s Ideas on American Home Ownership Recovery

clark — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 18:34:59 +0000

It is no secret that the economy in the US is not healthy. It is also no secret that millions of Americans have lost their homes and millions more stand to have that happen as they are falling further and further behind in their payments. There is a large shadow market of foreclosed properties and beyond that a large group that will find themselves in that same pool one of these days soon based on the track they are on.

Jack McCabe is a well-known economist who has recently gone on the record with his own ideas about what will help to ease this situation. He has made 3 major suggestions that are worthy of some pretty serious consideration. The first is that mortgage companies need to consider making some fairly substantial loan modifications.

The second step that goes along with this, and is certainly related, is then allowing for reductions in the mortgage principal. He stresses that both of these must be done in tandem or they are not fully effective. They work together. The third suggestion he made is that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac should purchase new residential mortgage backed securities. In other words, new mortgages are going to follow some new, tighter rules that require a more conservative payment, credit and income verification criteria. When all of these things are put into place then it is possible America can once again be realizing that dream of home ownership.

Read the full article in the Sarasota Herald Tribune here

The Clock Ticks When Tax Forgiveness Due To a Short Sale Is Concerned

clark — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 18:06:29 +0000

An important aspect of the short sale process is not going to be out there forever. Time is ticking on what is known as The Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007, which Congress passed to provide some relief to those folks who have lost their homes in the short sale process. The law does state that only debt forgiven in the years of 2007 through 2012 is eligible for this most valuable tax relief. What many people perhaps don’t realize is that the amount of one’s mortgage that is “forgiven” by the mortgage holder becomes a taxable amount. It is treated as if this amount is income.

However, under this Relief Act, provided certain parameters are met, the amount is not taxed. To qualify for the relief, the debt must have been used to buy, build or significantly improve one’s primary residence and it must have been secured by that residence. If the money was, instead, for instance, used to buy a second home or a rental property or if the money was taken to pay off credit card bills or simply for living expenses, then these situations do not qualify for the relief. If you happen to think that you are headed in the direction of a short sale (which is typically anything but short) then you might want to consider speeding up your plans to make that happen so that you are able to take advantage of this tax relief.

Read the full article in the Sarasota Herald Tribune here