A 2.25-acre vacant residential parcel on Longboat Key was sold for $6 million earlier this week, the highest price for vacant, Gulf-front land in Southwest Florida since 2004, when a 12.7-acre parcel on Manasota Key sold for $7.25 million. The property, located at 6271 and 6281 Gulf of Mexico Drive, was listed by Michael Moulton of the Longboat Key South office of Michael Saunders & Company and was sold by Deborah Beacham and Beverly Alter, also with Michael Saunders.

Prior to this sale, only two vacant residential parcels in Sarasota and Manatee counties sold for more than $3 million in 2013—one on Casey Key for $4.6 million in May, and the other in Sarasota’s Oyster Bay neighborhood for $3 million in July. Both of those properties were also listed and sold by agents with Michael Saunders.

“Parcels of this size that inhabit premier Gulf-front locations are an increasingly rare commodity throughout Southwest Florida,” says Michael Saunders in a company press release. “Thus they attract the scrutiny of high net-worth buyers…This is yet another signal that buyers of significant means are not only finding our market and discovering its lifestyle potential, but are also taking definite steps to acquire luxury homes and properties throughout the region.”

 

---

 

Florida Realtors has released its statewide housing data report for the third quarter of 2013, reporting increases in closed sales, median prices and pending sales over the same quarter in 2012. Closed sales of existing single-family homes totaled 60,661 in the quarter, up 17.3 percent from 2012. Pending sales for single-family homes rose 17.9 percent over the year before. Third quarter condominium sales totaled 27,200, up 11.3 percent from 2012. The median sales price was $175,000 for single-family homes, up 18.6 percent, and $130,000 for condominiums, up 23.8 percent. Third quarter inventory stood at 5.3 months for both single-family homes and condominiums.

The full report is available here, along with a breakdown of sales activity by metropolitan area, available here.

 

---

 

Dr. Michael House has closed on the purchase of 1,102 square feet of medical office space located at 2650 Bahia Vista St., #309, Sarasota. Victoria Ranck with Carefree Realty represented the buyer, and Linda Emery and Brad Lindberg with the Sarasota office of Sperry Van Ness Commercial Advisory Group represented the seller.

 

---

 

Gemcraft Enterprises, Inc. has leased 1,035 square feet of office space in the MiraMar Plaza, located at 79 S. Palm Ave., #222, Sarasota. Linda Emery with the downtown Sarasota office of Sperry Van Ness Commercial Advisory Group handled the transaction. The group is the exclusive leasing agent for the 50,000-square-foot office and retail building.