Premier Properties of Southwest Florida Inc. Realtors announced that Alison Kalb and Jutta Lopez have joined the company. Kalb will work from the company’s Vanderbilt Office located at 325 Vanderbilt Beach Road, and Lopez is at the Premier Gallery of Real Estate located in the Northern Trust Building on US 41.
Kalb began her career as a real estate coordinator for new development sales at Regatta on Vanderbilt Beach. After earning her license in 2000, she moved into general real estate sales and closed over $2,000, 000 in the first six months. Kalb is an Accredited Buyer Representative (ABR); a member of the Naples Area Board of REALTORS (NABOR), and attended Endicott College in Massachusetts studying fashion merchandising. She is formerly from Wisconsin.
Born in Austria, Lopez moved to the United States as a young child with her family. Raised in Connecticut, she graduated from the Fashion Institute of Technology, State University of New York and went on to work for Fortune 500 companies. She later took a position of Vice President Marketing Communications for a major financial institution and headed the marketing communications for Citicorp NYC Retail Branch Network.
After moving to Naples in 1996, she founded the Natural Resources Group in Collier’s Reserve, co-chaired the start-up of its Women’s Club, and was on the board’s membership committee.
Lopez became a licensed agent in 2008. Her involvement in numerous cultural and charitable initiatives includes the Von Liebig Art Center, the S.W. Florida’s Nature Conservancy’s major fund raisers, North Naples Hospital, Naples Hospital Garden of Hope project, The Boys and Girls Club of Naples, and the children of immigrant families in Immokalee.
Jennifer L. Wenke of Lutgert Insurance has qualified to receive the National Association of Health Underwriters Presidential Council Award given by the Leading Producers Round Table (LRPT). The award is bestowed upon individuals who demonstrate professional excellence in the sale of health and disability income insurance, and sales management.
Wenke has qualified for the award for the past three consecutive years, and is the former chapter president of the local Southwest Florida Association of Health Underwriters for Lee and Collier Counties.
Founded in 1930, The National Association of Health Underwriters (NAHU) is the leading association of health insurance professionals who provide insurance for millions of Americans. NAHU is headquartered in Arlington, Virginia.
Posted by briank | Mercato, Real Estate | Posted on October 28th, 2008
The Strada at Mercato in Naples (www.MercatoNaples.com) has received two 2008 PRISM (Professional Recognition in Sales & Marketing) Gold Awards, presented by the Gold Coast Builders Association. The awards recognized excellence in marketing and advertising in the categories of magazine or newspaper insert and color magazine advertisement. The ads were designed by Green Advertising. The mixed-use project is being developed by The Lutgert Cos. and the Barron Collier Cos.
The person in charge at Premier Properties of Southwest Florida is a man of many mentors.
Mom and Dad. A congressman scholar from North Carolina. The U.S. Army. A Connecticut bank president. A good friend and business partner named Tony Parker. Sarasota real estate magnate Michael Saunders.
Steve Bailey has learned from them all.
His path to his post as vice president and Sarasota regional manager for Naples-based Premier Properties led through Miami, Virginia, Delaware, New Jersey, North Carolina, New Orleans and Connecticut.
Once it led from Jacksonville — right back to Jacksonville.
Bailey’s father was a Pratt & Whitney turbojet generator supervisor and moved from place to place to help clients build and maintain the machines. As often happened, the elder Bailey’s bosses told him to leave one job, in Jacksonville, and move on to the next one in Niagara Falls, N.Y.
Halfway there his dad checked in with the boss, who said the New York job had been cancelled and to head back to Jacksonville.
“I don’t remember it being a big problem. We just reversed directions and returned to Florida,” Bailey said. “My parent’s bought another home, and we enrolled in the same school system. The Realtors loved us.”
Bailey said situations like that helped set him up for success later in life, making it easier for him to move to new places as his education and career unfolded, and adjust to the new surroundings and people without being intimidated by either.
His father, a giving, fair man who stopped just short of letting anyone take advantage of him, taught Bailey one of the axioms he still lives by — and runs Premier with — today.
“This, too, will end,” Bailey said. “If you are on top of the world, it will end. And if you are at the bottom, it will change, too.“
Taking a risk
Since Premier opened its Five Points Plaza office in November 2006, the luxury real estate firm has consistently ranked No. 1 in average listing price ranging from $1.17 million so far this year to $1.34 million in 2007, according to data from California-based Trendgraphix.
Premier also is holding its own against some of Sarasota’s larger firms in terms of sales of properties for more than $5 million — Premier had nearly 10 percent of that market share during the last year with barely 30 agents.
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Stiles Corporation and Naples Harbour, Ltd., developers of Vista Royale on Moorings Bay in Naples have selected James Kunstel ASID, of Bay Design Store as the interior designer. Stofft-Cooney produces elegant luxury homes and progressive boutique commercial structures in Southwest Florida.
The firm is on the leading edge of design and consistently delivers high-end architecture as evidenced by the Vista Royale project. James Kunstel designed the Vista Royale model located at 231 Harbour Drive. Kunstel is known for bringing a fresh approach to classic design; creating rooms that are decorative and elegant, yet livable. His expertise extends from intimate residential projects to large-scale commercial hotel developments. Kunstel has earned numerous awards and recognition, establishing him as one of the area’s leading interior designers. He is a licensed Interior Designer in Florida and is a professional member of ASID for over twenty years.
Premier Properties of Southwest Florida, Inc. REALTORS and Sales Associate Michael Lawler are the exclusive representatives of Vista Royale. Naples Harbour, Ltd, and Stiles Corporation, developers of Vista Royale have enjoyed a partnership for over twenty years dedicated to the construction of high-quality developments on the west coast of Florida. The Stiles Corporation is headquartered in Ft. Lauderdale and has offices in Naples, Ft. Myers, Tampa, and Jacksonville Florida.
Their collection of developments includes such landmark projects as Las Olas Place, Las Olas Centre, New River Center, Bank of America Plaza, and Sunrise Harbor. Pricing begins at $3,295,000. For more information on Vista Royale, contact Michael G. Lawler at Michael (at) premiermail.net or call 239.261.6161.
Posted by briank | Real Estate | Posted on October 21st, 2008
In the latest, special issue of Links magazine, some of the properties from The Lutgert Companies were named one of the “best” around. . .
Best for Golf Courses: Linville Ridge
Best for Boating Communities: The High-Rises at Bonita Bay
Others in the area that Premier Properties services:
Best for Golf Courses: Tiburon in Naples
Best for Value for Golf Real Estate: Founders Club in Sarasota
Best for Beaches/Communities with Beachfront Facilities – Mediterra in Naples
Best for Club Life – Grey Oaks Country Club, Twin Eagles and Fiddler’s Creek in Naples
The Susan G. Koman Race for the Cure is celebrating its’ 25th anniversary this year. Walks, runs and three day events are scheduled all over the country this month. Breast cancer awareness and research has come a long way during this time but still has a long way to go.
October 18 – Naples – Making Strides Against Breast Cancer 5K walk benefiting the American Cancer Society. Registration begins at 7:00 A.M. at the Village On Venetian Bay. The walk begins at 8:00 A.M. For more information, to start a team, join a team or donate please visit the American Cancer Society web site.
Posted by briank | Real Estate | Posted on October 17th, 2008
The buyers are still out in Naples.
In September, home sales activity increased again for local Realtors.
Pending sales — sales that have yet to close — grew 106 percent, while overall home sales grew 50 percent, according to a monthly report by the Naples Area Board of Realtors.
The report shows sales made through the SunshineMLS, or multiple listing service, in Collier County, excluding Marco Island. There were 361 total sales in September, up from 240 a year ago.
Meanwhile, pending sales grew to 481, from 234 last year.
“I think that’s a good indicator there is a lot of people out there who are really getting off the fence, who have had this pent up demand,” said Brett Brown, managing broker for Miromar Realty of Southwest Florida and NABOR’s president-elect.
Pending sales are up in all six geographic areas that NABOR tracks, from Naples Beach to Immokalee. The biggest jump was seen in Central Naples, where they grew nearly 244 percent to 110, up from 32 last year.
The highest number of sales was in North Naples — at 104.
“Generally speaking, sales are up in all areas, whether it’s pending or sold. I think that is the most important part of this. It’s not about what happens month to month. It’s about a trend,” said Tom Bringardner, president of Premier Properties of Southwest Florida.
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Posted by briank | Real Estate | Posted on October 17th, 2008
Since 2002 the Marco Island Woman’s Club has been sponsoring the Elegant Home Tour, an event that has become one of the most important fundraising affairs for the club.
The tour attracts women from Marco Island, Naples, Bonita Springs and other cities to join forces in the Club’s mission to raise funds for Marco Island scholarships and local charities that they are involved in. Each year the goal is to add one more charitable organization.
Special thanks to Cindy Timmerman, Senior Sales Consultant at Fiddler’s Creek; Natalie Kirstein and ML Meade, Realtors, at Premiere Properties of Southwest Florida, Inc. in working with the Club to make this day a special event.
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Fresh produce and upscale shopping are taking up partnership at The Promenade at Bonita Bay.
It kicks off Saturday when the Bonita Springs Lions Club farmers market makes its debut at The Promenade.
The idea came from Lisa Paul, director of commercial properties for the shopping center owner, The Lutgert Cos. in Naples.
“I called them up and asked them if they would be interested,” Paul said.
“We felt it would be better exposure for them and good for The Promenade.”
John Elliff, past president of the Lions Club and coordinator of the market, said Paul was looking to draw more people to The Promenade.
“We bring in about 2,000 to 3,000 people every Saturday morning,” Elliff said.
The market’s focus will shift somewhat to put more emphasis on fresh produce. The name will change from the farmers market to Farm Fresh Market.
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