New condos drive Longboat Key luxury real estate market

Condominium buyers at the new Aria and Infinity on Longboat Key spent a combined $88 million for 23 units at the luxury complexes during the first six months of 2016. 

Those sales have increased the median prices of island purchases that are in the million-dollar range to roughly $2 million so far this year, and have pushed average prices to more than $2.4 million. Even excluding the two new condo buildings, sale prices in the $1 million-and-up range have jumped about 11% over 2015.

And because many of the island’s homes were built decades ago, those looking to move onto the Key will continue to have an appetite for new development and major renovations, according to several agents.

“The desire for properties that are updated and move-in ready is where is the market is on Longboat Key,” said Coldwell Banker’s Barbara Ackerman.

The classic Mediterranean style that’s common throughout the Key is becoming passé, said Lynne Koy, also of Coldwell Banker, who said buyers want more open floor plans and modern architecture.

“Deja vu, it feels like 2005 all over again,” wrote Coldwell Banker’s Judy Kepecz-Hays, in an email to the Longboat Observer. “Older homes are either being remodeled or raised, and new homes are sprouting up.”

“Buyers will definitely pay a premium for new or renovated properties,” said Coldwell Banker’s Roger Pettingell. “They’ll drag their feet to not have to do that work.”

One challenge agents face this year are the major capital projects the town has proposed or is undertaking. This summer, hundreds of trucks have been transporting sand six days a week to the island’s shores as part of the $10 million mid-Key renourishment project, and it is also planning $50 million worth of underground utilities projects.

“Any time that you introduce an uncertainty to the market, Realtors just have to be able to speak to it logically for buyers,” said Cheryl Loeffler, with Premier Sotheby’s International Real Estate. “They get the impression it may be painful in the beginning, but it will be a great benefit in the future.”

Pettingell said the typical buyer profile — baby boomers in their late 40s to early 60s — hasn’t changed much this year, but Ackerman said she’s noticed some younger buyers hoping to move to the island.

“The buyers are currently people who are still working and do not have the time to update,” Ackerman said. “And they will pay more for that convenience.”

Koy said prices have been leveling out over the usually slow summer months. In fact, she’s had to persuade sellers in some cases to lower their asking price.

“I think it’s not just me, I think there are a lot of people who have been here a while who have a backlog of clients who want to make a move,” Koy said.