Last year, Sarasota County recorded the most expensive residential home sale in its history: $30.3 million. Which means that when a Gulf-front estate on Siesta Key pops up with a $26 million asking price, it enters the conversation not as fantasy but as well-placed ambition.

On Point of Rocks Road, where Siesta Key’s shoreline begins to feel less like a beach and more like a private idea of one, a pale, Mediterranean-flavored house stretches toward the Gulf with the confidence of a structure that knows exactly how pretty it looks at sunset.

The home, at 7366 Point of Rocks Road, three stories tall, symmetrically composed and unapologetically formal. There are arches—many of them. There are terraces layered like a wedding cake. There are loggias that frame water the way museums frame paintings. And there is, at nearly every turn, a view of the water.

Inside, it spans roughly 10,600 square feet and occupies just under an acre of land, a generous parcel by barrier-island standards. The home is owned by the Arjen de Boer Revocable Trust and the Jennifer Ponce de León Revocable Trust, according to Sarasota County property records. It was completed in 2020, long after the owners—who purchased the property in June 2012 for $2.1 million from Darrel J. Reece, trustee—first secured their stretch of shoreline. At the time of purchase, they were based in Eden Prairie, Minnesota.

What they bought, in effect, was land. “They tore it down,” says Joel Schemmel, the Douglas Elliman agent representing the sellers. 

What stands now is a coastal palazzo, designed by CMSA Architects. Layered rooflines, arched windows, staircases and recessed outdoor rooms give the building a sense of permanence.

Schemmel, who has worked in real estate for more than two decades, places the home in a narrow category.

“I’ve been selling for 22 years. I have a good perspective on the over-$10 million market,” he says. “This one is another level from an overall finish perspective. The owners created it over four or five years. So it’s perfect from the end-user perspective. This was going to be their forever home.”

That approach sets the tone. A sweeping motor court leads to a central entry framed by twin staircases and tall palms wrapped in lights. This is not a house that believes in sneaking up on anyone.

Inside, the drama softens. White walls, pale stone and French oak floors create a restrained backdrop for spaces that are generous but not shouty. Light moves from room to room, thanks to tall windows and long sight lines.

“The house itself has so many design features which were meticulously planned to make it both beautiful and functional, while remaining comfortable for everyday living,” Jennifer Ponce de León says. “The resort-style amenities and feel of the home with the main level pool and spa and ground floor entertaining loggia are among our favorites. But the most amazing feature is the view. It's difficult to not be hypnotized by the water in any room as you walk from room to room."

The word hypnotized doesn't feel like an exaggeration. The great room, lined with floor-to-ceiling arched windows, faces west toward an elevated infinity-edge pool, making it hard to tell where the pool ends and the Gulf begins.

The main living level flows openly between living, dining and kitchen spaces, unified by ceiling beams and symmetry. The kitchen is large without feeling industrial, anchored by an island and supported by a secondary prep kitchen tucked behind the scenes. Nearby, a bar and glass-enclosed wine room introduce a darker, moodier note, as if the house briefly changes into evening clothes.

Outdoors, the architecture becomes theatrical. Arched loggias stack across three levels, offering shade, shelter and a progression of vantage points. On the ground level, covered entertaining areas open to a broad lawn that meets a rock-reinforced shoreline. Steps descend directly into the shallow waters of Point of Rocks, a limestone formation long prized by swimmers and snorkelers.

Point of Rocks, Schemmel says, occupies its own category on Siesta Key.

“It’s got a different ambiance,” he says. “You’re right on the Gulf. It’s tucked away from the activity, but you can walk a couple of blocks to the beach. And the rock revetment keeps the shoreline protected.”

“We love the privacy this home provides while being close to the action and Siesta Key has to offer,” Ponce de León says. "We make the most of the backyard access to the Gulf waters and protected coral reef cove, regularly fishing, snorkeling, kayaking and paddle boarding." Wildlife is part of the daily rhythm too: “It's a daily occurrence for us to see dolphins, manatees, fish jumping and ospreys, bald eagles or pelicans hunting their next meal," she says.

At $26 million, the home sits firmly in Sarasota’s top tier of residential real estate. For context, recent Realtor.com data shows that nationally, the entry point to luxury housing—the top 10 percent of listings—hovers around $1.2 million, while in many Florida metros, luxury begins somewhere between the high $800,000s and the low seven figures. In the North Port–Bradenton–Sarasota metro, the threshold falls well below eight figures, placing a $26 million Gulf-front estate in a small corner of the local market.

Schemmel believes the pricing reflects today’s build-to-reality as much as the home itself.

“I think what we’re seeing is that these truly perfected homes—either built in the last few years or executed at this level—command the price,” he says. “Building new would cost $20 million off the bat today. You’re lucky if you could get it done in two years. It’s a year of architectural work alone.”

Buyer interest, Schemmel says, is coming from both Florida and beyond.

“We’re seeing more from the Northeast—New Jersey and Connecticut. Traditional reasons: tax purposes, sunshine," he says. 

As for why the owners are letting go of what was intended to be a forever home, the answer is more lifestyle than market-driven.

“Kids are gone. They’ve developed a new love for Park City, so they’re spending time there,” Schemmel says. “They’ll always have a place here, but a smaller, downsized version.”

It is, in the end, a very large house built around a very Old Florida desire: to live as close to the edge of the water as possible, and never have to look away from it.

Interested? Call Joel Schemmel of Douglas Elliman Real Estate at (941) 587-4894.