Watch The Today Show Rate Sarasota as the Best Place to Buy a House

Here's what we saw this morning on NBC's Today Show — Real Estate Expert Barbara Corcoran ranking Sarasota as the best place in the United States to purchase a house.

Check out this video:

Corcoran extols Sarasota as a sophisticated town with gorgeous beaches. Sarasota sustained a 34-percent loss in the housing debacle, Corcoran says. She goes on to say that property prices are "shooting back up" and that prospective buyers must act quickly to take advantage of the bottom.

"Now is the time to buy in these markets," Corcoran says.

NBC's real estate expert then ranks the Top 10 places where you can expect the get the best home buy:

1. Sarasota, Florida
2. San Francisco, California
3. Lansing, Michigan
4. Marietta, Georgia
5. Grand Rapida, Michigan
6. St. Petersburg, Florida
7. Naperville, Illinois
8. Trenton, New Jersey
9. St. Louis, Missouri
10. Saginaw, Michigan

We who live and sell in Sarasota also rank our town as the best place to live after you buy.

For more information, please call:

Louis Wery, CIPS, CRS, ABR, TRC, CLHMS
Coldwell Banker Real Estate, LLC
201 Gulf of Mexico Drive, Suite 1
Longboat Key, Florida 34228
Direct: (941) 232-3001
www.LouisWery.com

Game On! Discover Free Things To Do on Florida's Cultural Coast

Summers tend toward the quiet side so I amused myself by looking for free things to do in Sarasota & Her Islands and, in the process, I discovered a lot about our generous community.

You might try the exercise, which entertains without breaking into your wallet or maxing out your credit cards!

To help you get started, please visit Sarasota For Free and let me know what you think. This resource is interactive and allows you to add ideas and change rankings. You even can take a quiz about Sarasota.

Even in the most prosperous times, it's fun to discover ways to enjoy Sarasota & Her Islands without spending money. This wealthy community shares its bounty with residents and visitors. Open your eyes to the gifts that Florida's Cultural Coast offers.

With edgy economic times, the freebie game becomes even more satisfying.

Many visitors to our area rank St. Armands Circle as the best place to go for free entertainment. They walk around The Circle, watch and listen to the international chatter of other tourists and stroll down to Lido Beach for the spectacular sunset. Some happen upon The Ring of Fame that was started in 1988 and includes five Ringling brothers, Dolly Jacobs and Karl Wallenda, patriarch of the famous Flying Wallendas high-wire act.

No matter what pastimes you prefer, you will find myriad choices to occupy your time in Sarasota. Add to your fun by trying some of the freebies shown on Sarasota For Free.

After all, it's all about having fun in Sarasota!



For more information, please call:

Louis Wery, CIPS, CRS, ABR, TRC, CLHMS
Coldwell Banker Real Estate, LLC
201 Gulf of Mexico Drive, Suite 1
Longboat Key, Florida 34228
Direct: (941) 232-3001
www.LouisWery.com

Cougar Town Ruins Sarasota's Reputation

"Forget the reputation as a home for retirees and senior citizens; the Sarasota area is about to be known as “Cougar Town,” writes Jay Handelman in the Sarasota Herald-Tribune.

If you watched the first episode of the new ABC comedy starring Courtney Cox as Jules Cobb, then you saw that the opening credits set the location in the Sarasota area, called the town Gulf Haven and nicknamed the place Cougar Town after the high school football team.

After the set up clips of Sarasota, the shooting locations shifted to California where similar Mediterranean-styled houses abound.

A 40ish real estate agent, Jules (Courtney Cox) parodies the profession with a revealing photo on her For Sale signs and a mouth that begs for prospects to overhear her snarky comments (which I won't repeat in a G-rated blog).

Here is a relatively clean videoclip:



After a passing reference to incest, Jules (Courtney Cox) flashes one of her son's classmates in an effort to show off her assets.

As it turns out, the only character with smarts is Jules's teenage son, Travis, played by Dan Byrd. The adults could use time in rehab.

The show ends up more on the sad side than hilarious.

As for reality? Yes, like Any Town USA, Sarasota has its share of "cougars," women between the ages of 30 and 40 who date much younger men. We also have our December-May romances.

Best of all, we love the many wealthy dowagers who bless our community with impeccable style and culture as well as incredible generosity. These ladies support Sarasota's claim to the sobriquet "Florida's Cultural Coast."

For more information, please call:
Louis Wery, CIPS, CRS, ABR, CLHMS
Coldwell Banker Real Estate, LLC
201 Gulf of Mexico Drive, Suite 1
Longboat Key, Florida 34228
Direct: (941) 232-3001
www.LouisWery.com