Cynthia & Preston's Blog

A while back, a partner and I purchased a small lot in the area of St Petersburg known as the Grand Central District (http://www.grandcentraldistrict.org/), with an eye towards redeveloping it. For those who don't know the area, St Petersburg is just about 45 minutes north of Sarasota in Pinellas...

You say you have the perfect place for that new home or addition? But there is a big tree right in the way -- will the powers that be let you remove it? It is generally no problem -- with the exception of so-called "Grand Trees." What are those? Any oak that has a 24-inch Diameter at Breast Heigh...

We just listed a wonderful old cottage a short bike ride from downtown Sarasota, on the water. Built in 1936, and now being sold by the owner since 1945, this is a slice out of time. One of Sarasota's oldest, most stable neighborhoods -- homes seldom change hands in this area. The inside looks li...

I really don't grok (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grok) the stock market! Real estate as an investment just seems more accessible to me -- I can touch it, feel it, understand it ... I can even apply labor and capital and improve its value. If I'm clever about how I apply those (and a little lucky...

I recently received this e-mail and I thought it was interesting enough to pass the information along. I have never tried this myself, but I have to admit, it makes a lot of sense. The last time I got a speeding ticket about 1o years ago, I was given the option of taking a defensive driving class...

Back in November in our office, it was my turn to organize a property tour for a small group of us. I decided I had seen enough wannabe-mansions and it was time we looked at what you could get in the more affordable end of our market. Off we went, and that  was that. Fast-forward to February ... ...

So you (or, for you Realtors out there, your clients) want to buy a waterfront home -- one that was built prior to the latest hurricane codes. It needs updating and an addition to the building would be nice too ... Not so fast. Please, before making an offer, know what you can and cannot do with ...

Friday I had a great conversation with Steve Murray of Murray Homes Inc (www.murrayhomesinc.com), who is a prominent and knowledgable builder of high-end coastal homes. We have a client who is smitten with Longboat Key ("LBK"), and he'd like a single-family home on the beachfront with one particu...

I went to a monthly networking/marketing event on Friday sponsored by the company (Schroeder Manatee Ranch, or just SMR) that owns Lakewood Ranch and is building out that part of the two counties of Manatee and Sarasota. Over the years we have helped buy and sell both new construction and resale ...

As a result of blogging a day or two ago about Lou, the miracle AC man, we had a request for his number. Interestingly enough, it was not from an Active Rain member but from a reader of the blog. I am tickled that there ARE readers of the blog :-)! Cynthia had a listing appointment scheduled for ...