Just Add Water
Shorefront homes retain their value.
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Headlines, real estate surveys, personal anecdotes…the evidence seems to indicate that the heady boom times in real estate are over. A recent study by the National Association of Realtors, for ex-ample, found falling prices and slowing home sales in more than half of the nation’s largest metropolitan areas in the last quarter of 2006. However, when it comes to specific segments of specific markets, the picture is a lot more complex."The years 2004 and 2005 were catch-up and windfall years,"
says Michael Saunders of Michael Saunders & Company, which is based in
Sarasota, one of the areas targeted by the Realtors’ group study. "Then 2006 was
the beginning of a normal market, and you needed to price
accordingly. It was a challenging year in Florida in general. But waterfront
homes remained strong."; function voidFunc() { } voidFunc();)
Despite recent dips in real estate
prices, waterfront homes and residential communities, such as the new
Ritz-Carlton Kapalua development, have held their value. (Click image to enlarge)
From Florida to South Carolina, from California’s Central Coast
to Seattle and beyond to Hawaii, Realtors who handle luxury waterfront
properties—both single-family homes and condominiums—present a nuanced view
of the state of real estate. The finest properties, especially in waterfront
communities, they say, have held their own. And not surprisingly, they
articulate the same classic principles: Long-term luxury real estate investors
who want to live in their homes will be rewarded; speculators in a market with
oversupply will not fare so well.; function voidFunc() { } voidFunc();)
When finished in December 2007, Kapalua will
offer villas, condo-hotel units and fractional residences on Maui’s north
shore. (Click image to enlarge)
Florida
"I have a golden three-year rule," Saunders says. "If someone
bought three years ago, I challenge anyone to show me how they lost money." She
estimates that prices on waterfront properties have adjusted downward 10 to 12
percent over the previous year, but notes that the top five sales in the
Sarasota area were for waterfront and ranged from $9 million to $13
million.
And there is tremendous variety in Sarasota’s upper-end market. "Between Tampa and Sarasota, you have a string of barrier islands," she says, "each offering both gulfshore, with sandy beaches, and bayfront, with protected, deep water. For a single-family home, the top of the market is around $18 million, but you could look in the $8 million range and find something special. You also have rivers, with broad, tranquil water with direct access to the gulf. For something more urban, there are condos in downtown Sarasota, and also on Longboat Key."
Upscale condos—typically a 4,000-square-foot unit with direct
waterfront—would be in the $3 million to $4 million range, she notes. Saunders
is handling a three-bedroom penthouse condominium on Longboat Key, for example,
with 10-foot ceilings, terrace, gourmet kitchen and sunset water views, listed
at $3.6 million.; function voidFunc() { } voidFunc();)
Just north of Miami, Bal Harbour has attracted
upscale developments like the St. Regis Resort & Residences. (Click image to enlarge)
Chad Roffers, of Sky Sotheby’s International Realty (also in
Sarasota), says that since early 2007 sales have been strong and prices have
stabilized at about the levels of the end of 2004. Products not previously in
vogue are coming back, he adds. "In the bull market there were new
developments—golf courses, downtown properties and gated communities. Now the
tried-and-true beach- and bayfront are moving." Roffers points to both Longboat
and Siesta Key as great opportunities. "Buyers have never had this much choice."
For instance, he has listed a four-bedroom, 7,500-square-foot, two-story
bayfront home in the Country Club Shores area of Longboat Key at $4.29
million.
Resources
Michael Saunders & Company, An Exclusive Affiliate of Christie’s Great Estates
888.552.5228,
www.michaelsaunders.com
Sky Sotheby’s International Realty
941.366.9777, www.skysothebysrealty.com
Premier Properties of Southwest Florida, Inc.
Realtors, An Exclusive Affiliate
of Christie’s Great Estates
800.523.3346, www.premier-properties.com
Sol Sotheby’s International Realty
305.573.4700, www.solsothebys.com
St. Regis Resort & Residences, Bal Harbour
888.278.0056,
www.stregisresidences.com/balharbour
One Thousand Ocean Beach Villas & Residences at the Boca Raton
Resort
561.869.5000,
www.onethousandocean.com
Celia Dunn, Sotheby’s
International Realty
888.810.0143, www.celiadunnsir.com
Ewing & Clark
206.322.2840, www.ewingandclark.com
Monterey Peninsula Sotheby’s International Realty
831.624.1566, www.mpsir.com
Kitty Hughes, Madison House
206.726.5277, www.madisonhouseltd.com
Cathy George & Associates
808.373.9844, www.cgahawaii.com
Mary Worrall Associates, Sotheby’s International
Realty
808.735.4211,
www.worrall.com
Elena Roud, Prudential Locations
808.224.7274, www.prudentiallocations.com
The Residences at Kapalua Bay
800.281.9440, www.kapaluabay.com
The Residential Suites at the Ritz-Carlton Kapalua
877.559.3999, www.livingkapalua.com
Honua Kai
866.678.1310,
www.honuakai.com
