All Forum Posts by: Ward Dement

Frankly, I'm surprised by all the positive reviews.  I think you're doing quite well given the location.  That neighborhood is ROUGH!

Good luck!

Just a word of caution - after the recent pervasive flooding due to Hurricane / Tropical Storm Debby, a lot of houses have hit the market which were flooded and not properly remediated.  Additionally, the county is reviewing its flood maps which will likely expand flood zones after the years long over-development of the area.  This is likely to drive up insurance costs for all of us in addition to the massive increases in hazard insurance we've experienced lately.  Good luck

I've been in Sarasota over 30 years.  It's easy to have a bad contractor experience, but there are very good ones too.  Unfortunately, with the growth in our area over the last several years, they are completely booked.  You might find your timeline too short to get the renovations finished and the house sold.

Sounds like you may have purchased right. But $575M to $600M ARV, no pool(?) sounds aggressive to me, even in our market. The plus is the 1,700 SF size. If it's a "true" 1,700, no garage conversion or patio enclosure, you might get close. Otherwise, you're moving internal concrete block walls and your renovation cost is way under to get a standard floor plan.

Happy to offer an additional "two cents" if desired.

Check out Loopnet and Crexi and plug in the type of commercial property you're looking to rent out for the zip code.  It should give you a good starting point range for rent comps and lease types.

If you're looking for STRs on the beach, you'll have difficulty finding something that cash flows unless you can get optimal occupancy. This is rough given the established competition. Most purchases today are from folks looking to defray the cost of their second home. Longboat / Lido is heavily dominated by condos and their respective associations. There is little single-family inventory and anything typically considered a BRRR is usually torn down and redeveloped to maximize "highest and best use". Generally, the islands and the City of Sarasota remain open to STRs, but there is growing pushback. Greater Sarasota County allows 30+ rentals, but nothing shorter.

Lakewood Ranch was "up and coming" in 2004 and is a great master planned community but probably is not ideal for STR as there is no natural draw. It's 90 minutes to the beach most days and is probably better served toward longer term stays like digital nomads.

After over 30 years here, I've seen it transition from cash flow to appreciation.  I wouldn't expect much pullback in price unless there's a 2008-style crisis.  The demographic trends are proving extremely strong.  If you want to be here, you should pull the trigger now.

Hope this helps.

Hi Dawn, I would echo @Ryan Halford's comment regarding finding aluminum contractors outside the immediate area.  Many of my neighbors here in Sarasota have had success with that tactic.  

I know folks from outside the area mean well, but @Patricia Andriolo-Bull is correct regarding insurance not replacing screen lanais and cages.  They're not covered under the standard hazard insurance policy.

Regarding values, this market has not really moved much.  There's a bit more inventory and it's sitting a little longer.  But there has not been any noticeable price deterioration.  However, I'd also caution that if you're waiting for a more "seller friendly" market, you'll also have to contend with that when you redeploy your capital on the purchase side.

Thanks for the referral.  I'll be sure to keep him in mind and pass along his number to anyone in need.

Hi Mickael, 

Sarasota is a great location, but not for affordable housing.  A 3/2 home with 1500+ SF in a C neighborhood is about $400-450K.  Further south in North Porth you'll find slightly better affordability but fewer amenities.  If you want "relatively close" to the beach, you'll need to define that.  There are folks from New Jersey moving here who think anything within an hour and a half is close.

I would echo what others have said above regarding Palm Bay-Melbourne.  Just read an article about a former Marine moving his family there from GA.

https://www.businessinsider.co...

Additionally, this property will require flood insurance as well.  

And Sarasota County will require a 30-day minimum stay for STRs not in the city or on the keys.

Hey Daniel, I think you're right to be concerned about maximizing your ROE.  You've suddenly got a lot of equity.  Now you need to evaluate if it's serving you well.  Would your return improve by cashing out and re-deploying?

I am not concerned about our market.  At the risk of contradicting you, I've lived and worked in Sarasota for more than 30 years and never met anyone here dependent upon a Tampa employer.  Sarasota / Bradenton / North Port is a distinct Metro from Tampa.  The economy is definitely still service-based, but there are plenty of professionals/small business owners and wealthy retirees able to keep buying houses.  DOMs are simply returning to a normal pace.  Sarasota is well positioned to benefit from the continuing demographic shift in addition to remote work.  And as long as big cities make the decision to move easy, this area will be fine.