Bayfront home on Longboat sells for $7 million

A bayfront home on Longboat Key sold on Wednesday for $7 million, the highest price for such a property in the last 10 years.

Acqua Vita, literally Water of Life in Italian, is located at 5050 Gulf of Mexico Drive, overlooking Sarasota Bay from the Manatee County side of the island. Lynne Koy of Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate represented the sellers in the transaction.  The buyer was represented by Alan and April Atchley of Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Atchley Properties.

“When I first sold this lot to the developers, I had no idea that a home this beautiful would materialize,’’ Koy said in a release. “The architects and builders took incredible care in designing this prized property and the level of detail shows all throughout the home.”

The owners of the property bought the land originally with a small cottage, eventually demolishing the structure and building Acqua Vita in 2016.

Situated on .93 of an acre, according to county records, the home’s living space totals 7,250 square feet with five bedrooms, five full baths and two half-baths. There is 115 feet of waterfront across the back yard. Outdoor entertainment amenities include upper and lower terraces, a pool, spa, fire pit and gazebo. Landscaping was designed by Stephen Hazeltine,

An elevator provides access to the master suite, which features an exercise room, morning bar and private balcony.

A wine cellar has a 500-bottle capacity.

This sale is the latest in a series of multi-million dollar luxury home and condominium transactions since the first of the year.

• A Lido Shores home sold for $7 million last week
• A condo penthouse in Longboat Key’s Aria building sold in April  for $5.4 million, the highest condo sale of the year in the Sarasota area.
• A condo in the Ritz-Carlton building on Lido Beach sold for $5 million in April.
• A Bird Key home and connected lot sold for $8.6 million in April, the highest sale of 2018.