SMART BUYS IN UNIVERSITY PARK

A true country club lifestyle with sparkling swimming pools, acres of fairways and winding bicycle paths attracts homeowners to the gated community of University Park. Tucked into Sarasota's northeast corner and technically part of Manatee County, University Park offers a quiet alternative to the bustle of downtown and the traffic of the keys, yet is just minutes away from restaurants, schools, shopping and cinemas. Residents have easy access to the interstate, if they ever wish to leave their neighborhood of broad boulevards and shady cul-de-sacs.

Number of University Park properties: 1,100

Number of sales 9/2004-9/2005: 94

Range of sales prices 9/2004-9/2005: $272,000 to $1.93 million

Square footage: 1,344 to 5,076 square feet

SAMPLE SALE A Spanish Mediterranean residence at 7211 Marlow Place sold last summer for $1.14 million; the list price was $1.25 million. Outdoor living areas make the most of private preserve views, with swimming pool, spa, pavered deck and summer kitchen. Sarasota Reciprocal sold the home; the listing agents were Mary Mastro and Jana T. Martin of Keller Williams Platinum Realty. Previous sale: $960,000 in March 2004.

SAMPLE LISTING A lakefront home at 8309 Abingdon Court, offered for $939,900, boasts a poolside entertainment center and beautiful palms and blooming plants. The kitchen has granite counters, breakfast bar and a butler's pantry. Furnishings may be purchased separately. Listing agent is Ed Haggerty of Prudential Palms Realty.

MLS statistics courtesy of Ed Haggerty of Prudential Palms Realty. MLS records transactions and listings by members of the Sarasota Board of Realtors Multiple Listing Service.

Top of the Market

A 6,300-square-foot beach home on over an acre of Gulf-front recently captured the top of the market, selling for $7.5 million after being listed at $7,975,000. The comfortably elegant home at 6121 Gulf Of Mexico Drive in Longboat Key's Sleepy Lagoon has six bedrooms, four-and-a-half baths and a garage that can accommodate eight automobiles. Reid Murphy of TNGR-Developers Realty Inc. was the selling agent.

Sales information provided by Kim Ogilvie of Michael Saunders & Company.

SADDLE UP Buyers hungry for a bit of breathing room may want to saddle up and ride east. The gated equestrian community of Steeplechase Estates in Manatee County has opened Phases I and II, with 60 five-acre parcels offered at $55,000 to $75,000 per acre.

Broker Mary Smedley of La Vista Homes Realty Group is enthusiastic about the new development, which features bridle paths, lighted trails and a beautiful polo club. "The community will be a blend of elegant ranches, spacious country homes and handsome traditional architecture, with each custom home designed and constructed by five of the area's top-notch builders," says Smedley.

Formerly a sod farm, the development will ultimately encompass some 184 lots for single-family homes. Builders are Trend, Avalon, Mark Cahill Homes, Eslinger Homes and La Vista Homes. Current pricing for five-acre home sites and homes starts at approximately $700,000.

WORLD VIEW Realtor Mark Riley, of the Mark P. Riley Luxury Real Estate Group, has a degree in international economics, so it makes sense that he travels the world selling Sarasota. Riley talks to would-be buyers on every continent about the investment strategy of purchasing a slice of the Sarasota pie. To date, over a third of his real estate sales are to international clients. "Our little niche is the upper-end buyer who is keenly interested in luxury real estate as a business investment," explains Riley.

Riley recently returned from Buenos Aires, where he met with interested investors and described some of Sarasota's innumerable charms. "Some people sell real estate from the office, but I get on a plane and fly to other countries with my laptop," says Riley. "We have found our corner of the market."

A typical Riley listing is a Boca Siesta Bayside home offered for $3.295 million. The Mediterranean beauty is surrounded by security fences with an electric gate and overlooks sparkling water and a 45-foot deep-water boat dock. Completely furnished and accessorized in the Tommy Bahama theme, the interior has travertine marble, cherry hardwoods, an elevator and state-of-the-art electronics. The gourmet kitchen is loaded with granite and stainless steel appliances.

LET'S CHAT Convenience is clicking on the computer to survey available properties. But what happens when prospective buyers have questions? David Barr, broker/owner of Abode Realty, built his business on technology's cutting edge and, as usual, is again one step ahead.

"We now offer a live chat feature enabling anyone visiting our Web site to 'talk' with a real, live human being," says Barr. "When someone has questions, this person will have answers. The response time will be instantaneous. And it can all happen without us paying staff personnel to sit inside an empty office and wait for someone to walk through the door."