Bayfront Sarasota mansion built for entertaining on the market (PHOTOS)

A bayfront Sarasota mansion built for entertaining is on the market for $4.75 million.

Roger Pettingell, an associate with Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate, announced the listing for the 6,233-square-foot property at 1378 Harbor Drive on Friday. The home, which sits on the Sarasota Bay in the city’s Harbor Acres neighborhood, has five bedrooms, three and a half bathrooms, a deep water dock and four boat lifts.

The formal living and dining rooms feature an open layout, plus a stone-encased… …read more

New restaurant taking over former Boizao Steakhouse in Westshore

A long-shuttered steakhouse in Westshore will reopen by the end of the year as the combined home of two Palm Harbor restaurants.

Jason Mitow, who owns The Lucky Dill and LBC in Palm Harbor, said Friday that he has signed a lease for the 15,000-square-foot former Boizao Steakhouse at 4606 W. Boy Scout Blvd. The space will house both concepts and be known as The Lucky Dill & LBC, Westshore. The location will also offer catering.

It will include an adult playground featuring corn hole, miniature golf… …read more

Here’s what Blake Casper would rather see built on Grand Central site

For Blake Casper, his opposition to the apartments proposed across from Oxford Exchange is more than a personal crusade. It’s a conversation he thinks Tampa needs to have.

“We’re not against development. We’re pro-development — it’s about how we develop as a city,” said Casper, who owns the Oxford Exchange with his sister, Allison Adams. “This is a good dialogue to have. Regardless of what happens on this site, we need to think, as a city, about how things are getting built.”

Casper on Thursday… …read more

CBRE loses listing for Fifth Third Center in downtown Tampa after 15 years

The Atlanta-based owner of the Fifth Third Center in downtown Tampa has axed the brokerage firm that’s leased the tower for 15 years.

CBRE Group Inc. (NYSE: CBG) confirmed in a statement Wednesday that Colliers International Tampa Bay would begin leasing the building in mid-September.

A spokesman for Colliers declined comment.

Fairlead Commercial Real Estate bought the tower in July 2014 for $47.25 million and retained CBRE as its listing agent. Fairlead CEO Jeff Shaw did not respond to a request… …read more

How real estate agents can use LinkedIn to grow their business

Imagine if your ideal customer only spent money with you once or twice every few decades.

That’s the reality many real estate agents face every day, making ongoing, reliable lead generation a necessity.

And while traditional (and I’d argue, outdated and overpriced) methods like bus stop signs, billboards and printed ads provide diminishing returns, I’m seeing more and more real estate agents turning to social networks like LinkedIn in search of fresh leads.

In fact, it seems like I’m getting… …read more

Widow of Sarasota media mogul sells home for $5 million

A home near downtown Sarasota has been sold for $5 million — the third to sell for at least that much this year in Sarasota.

The home at 1240 Hillview Drive represents the largest sale in more than two years in the city’s Harbor Acres neighborhood, according to Michael Saunders & Co., a Sarasota brokerage. It had been listed for $5.45 million.

The price breaks down to about $1,000 per square foot. The home has about 4,900 square feet of interior space. It has four bedrooms, a two-story library… …read more

Tampa Bay residents’ life insurance policies could be lacking, NerdWallet finds

Thanks to inflation, a loss of household income and a rise in homeownership costs, Tampa Bay area residents who purchased life insurance policies 15 years ago may find those funds insufficient today, according to a NerdWallet Study.

Palm River-Clair Mel, an unincorporated area of Hillsborough County, had the seventh-highest decrease in household income from 1999 to 2013, while Valrico had the highest increase in Florida.

In terms of homeownership costs, Tampa had one of the highest increases in… …read more

Sabadell’s new Tampa leader targets 4 areas for growth

Kyle Keith, Sabadell United Bank’s new market executive for Tampa Bay, sees several opportunities for growth in the Tampa Bay area.

Keith, who’s served in key roles at other leading area banks, said he sees Sabadell as “a perfect fit. … I can put my handprint on it and grow in the market the way we want to grow a bank.”

Sabadell, based in Miami, is the eighth-largest bank in Florida, with $4.8 billion in assets. Its local presence is small, with one office in downtown Tampa and one office… …read more

Downtown Tampa’s historic Kress to be marketed nationally as redevelopment opportunity

Brokers in Tampa and Miami will join forces to market downtown’s historic Kress building.

Jeannette Jason, who owns the building with her father, Miami-based Doran Jason, said she and her father signed a co-listing agreement for the Kress on Monday.

Jeannette Jason, who joined Cushman & Wakefield of Florida Inc.’s Tampa office in June, will market the property with John Crotty and Michael Fay, principals in Avison Young’s Miami office.

Doran Jason “has some comfort level” with the Avison Young… …read more

More details for apartments planned near Oxford Exchange unveiled (Rendering)

If all goes according to plan, the first residents will move into an apartment building across the street from Oxford Exchange in about two years.

Altman Development Corp., based in Boca Raton, said Tuesday that it is planning to break ground on Altis Grand Central in spring 2016 and deliver the first units in summer 2017.

At 504 Grand Central Ave., across the street from Oxford Exchange, Altis Grand Central has evolved significantly since the company first filed plans with the city in April. After… …read more