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Downtown Discoveries
It’s a great time to shop for a downtown Sarasota condo.
By Robert Plunket
Click here to watch our Real Estate Junkie discuss these downtown discoveries on ABC7.
Downtown Sarasota is considered one of the best places to live in the state of Florida, with scores of restaurants, stores, and cultural activities (not to mention the park-like bay front) all in a ten-block walkable area. It’s also considered rather pricey – there are lavish apartments that can go up to over $5 million.
But if you look around you can find some great places that give you the downtown lifestyle at a fraction the price. Today let’s take a look at three condos priced around $200,000.
435 S. Gulfstream Ave, #207
First, here’s a one-bedroom, one-bath unit in the Regency House that’s only $189,000 – a bare-bottom price for a premium building right on Gulfstream Avenue. The reason? It’s the smallest unit in the building, it’s on a low floor (the second) and it faces the back of the building. Having said that, it’s still terrific. You look out over the tree tops on Palm Avenue, it’s quiet and peaceful – kind of like being in an upscale townhouse.
Regency House was built as the last word in 1970s luxury and has held up remarkably well. (It was one of the buildings featured in the HGTV segment about downtown Sarasota.) It’s solid as a rock, with inside hallways (instead of those outside, motel-like corridors) and it has enormous rooms and closets. This apartment is only one bedroom yet it measures over 1,000 square feet. My favorite touch is the enclosed lanai, which could be used as a den. And the location is perfect – inbetween Sarabande and Tessera, the most prestigious of the bayfront high-rises. Call Lenore Treiman at 941-356-9642.
33 S. Gulfstream Ave, #506
Our next pick is a 1,055-square-foot unit in Gulfstream Towers, just down the street. It’s priced at $205,000. Although it is smaller than the Regency House unit, it has two bedrooms, two baths, and a bay view. It’s located on the fifth floor and there are some tree tops between you and the water, but still . . . it’s nice.
Gulfstream Towers dates back to 1964; and while the location, at the foot of Main Street, is unbeatable, its luxury quotient is a little less that some of its neighbors – hence the lower prices. This unit has the bonus of a beautifully updated kitchen, and I’m glad to report that the building has changed its bylaws so that pets are now allowed, and you can lease your unit. These two changes – which other older buildings should make, hint, hint – add immeasurably to the resale value of the units. Call Jane Kelly at 941- 544-5855.
1740 Alderman St #3
And finally, here’s the last thing you’d expect to find downtown – a building tucked away at the end of a dead-end street, surrounded by trees and water. It’s 1740 Alderman, right on the northern edge of Hudson Bayou. It was built 1984 and has a modernistic look. Unit number 3 is currently on the market: it has 2 bedrooms, two and half baths, and overlooks the pool and bayou. The feeling is like an urban tree house. At 1,264 sq feet it’s roomy, and needs no updating. And yes, they take pets. There’s also a dock and what I believe is called slippage.
You can check it out yourself at the open house this Sunday (the 24th) from 1 to 4. The asking price is $215,000. Call Andrea Smith at 941-320-7020.
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