Speakers at a real estate forum Monday night painted a picture of a Southwest Florida market plagued with tight money, low appraisals and commercial projects worth less than the borrowed money that paid for them.
But most believe the area will see good times again within five years as bargain-hunting home buyers arrive in droves and industrial companies move operations here to take advantage of rock-bottom commercial building prices.
That was the message from experts at a town hall meeting Monday night sponsored by the University of Florida Friends and Alumni of Real Estate at the Islamorada Fish Co. restaurant at the Gulf Coast Town Center in south Lee County.
“I think it’s just a matter of time before it comes back, bigger and better,” said Howard Gutman, president of The Lutgert Cos., a major builder of high-rise condominiums in Southwest Florida.
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The Lutgert Companies today announced the grand opening of Blue Martini, nation’s premier martini lounge, at The Mercato in Naples, Florida. Blue Martini occupies a ground floor space adjacent to McCormick & Schmick’s Seafood Restaurant and is the first such upscale martini bar to open in Southwest Florida.
With locations in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Boca Raton, Orlando, West Palm Beach, Tampa, Phoenix and Las Vegas, Blue Martini is a growing chain of premier martini lounges offering an impressive menu of 40 superior martinis, live entertainment and outstanding events. The bars also offer upscale casual dining with a tapas food menu, assorted entrees and a dessert menu complimenting a selection of fine wines and spirits.
Blue Martini at The Mercato offers three distinctive settings for patrons to experience – a casual outdoor patio bar, heart of the party stage room and a secluded VIP room. The bar has a daily happy hour from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. with half-priced food and discounted drinks. The location also offers custom-tailored parties with entertainment for groups of all sizes.
“We are very pleased to announce the opening of Blue Martini at The Mercato,” said Dougall McCorkle, Senior Vice President of Commercial Real Estate for The Lutgert Companies. “This upscale entertainment concept nicely complements our restaurants, shops and movie theater and adds more nightlife energy and excitement to The Mercato.”
Located on 53 acres at the intersection of U.S. 41 North and Vanderbilt Beach Road, The Mercato is a premier lifestyle community that will offer the finest in condominium living together with the best in shopping dining and entertainment all in one location. The project is a joint venture of The Lutgert Companies and the Barron Collier Companies.
Posted by briank | Real Estate | Posted on July 20th, 2009
ESTUARY AT GREY OAKS: Listed at $6,995,000
SPECS: 9,472-total-square-foot home has five bedrooms, five full baths and two half-baths. Special features include a two-story wood-paneled study, coquina stone columns and archways, marble floors, Tischler mahogany-framed windows and doors, wine room, elevator, and theater with a 10-foot HD screen. The outdoor area with stone columns frame the pool and spa.
DETAILS: With 7,659 square feet of living area, this furnished home at 1389 Great Egret Trail in Estuary features an outdoor entertainment area that includes a screened-in loggia with a summer kitchen, gas fireplace and ample room for dining and lounging. The resort-style lap pool includes a spa and shallow water sundeck with westerly views across a lake and the sixth and seventh fairway. This residence has two master suites, one on the ground floor, a guest house, living room, dining room, family room, loft, balcony, wet bar, and three garage spaces. Located in the city of Naples, Estuary at Grey Oaks offers 54 holes of golf on three courses. Members enjoy access to a fitness facility, tennis center, lagoon-style pool and two clubhouses.
SOURCE: Sam Heitman, Premier Properties of Southwest Florida, Realtors, 239-537-2018, samh@naples.com.
The Lutgert Companies today announced the grand opening of Pandora at The Mercato in Naples, Florida. The fashion jewelry store is among the latest of several new restaurants, national retailers and specialty stores to open in the premier lifestyle center located at the intersection of U.S. 41 North and Vanderbilt Beach Road.
Pandora is a locally owned franchise retailer offering a wide variety of jewelry, interchangeable designer charms, fashion accessories and more. Customers have the opportunity to create custom Pandora necklaces and bracelets with complimentary shipping. The Pandora store at The Mercato occupies approximately 1,000 square feet.
Pandora is located at 9123 Strada Place, Suite 7101. The store is open daily. The telephone number is 239-431-5520 or customers may visit www.pandoramercato.com.
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Posted by briank | Real Estate | Posted on July 11th, 2009
ESTUARY AT GREY OAKS: Listed at $5,550,000
SPECS: 10,088 total-square-foot luxury estate custom home built by Borelli Construction features five bedrooms, a guest cottage, six-and-a-half baths, a den, exercise room, home office, wine room, private elevator and screened balcony. The outdoor entertainment area has a covered lanai with two large screen TVs, an outdoor kitchen, built-in grill and a pool and spa with lake and golf course views.
DETAILS: This single-family home is located at 1449 Nighthawk Pointe. With 7,332 square feet of living area, this Florentine plan is personalized with extensive custom backgrounds, faux finishes, granite, marble and stonework. It is accented by designer finishes fabrics, accents and upgrades. The kitchen has Saturnia flooring, a Sub-Zero appliance package and natural gas Dacor oven. The master suite offers his-and-her baths and a sitting area overlooking the lake and golf course. There is also an attached two-car garage, plus a two-car detached garage. Special features include surround sound and Lutron lighting system and a 100 kilowatt automated Kohler home generator fueled by natural gas.
SOURCE: Lynn Anderson/Carolyn Weinand, Premier Properties of Southwest Florida Inc. Realtors, Lynn Anderson, 239-290-6674, LynnA@premiermail.net; Carolyn Weinand, 239-269-5678,
Posted by briank | Real Estate | Posted on July 11th, 2009
MOORINGS: Listed at $3,495,000
SPECS: 4,945 total-square-foot waterfront villa overlooking Moorings Bay. This unique residence includes a private pool, spa, multiple balconies, an outdoor water feature and an available boat slip. Moorings Bay offers easy access to the Gulf of Mexico. The furnished model offers four bedrooms, 5 ½ baths, private elevator, gourmet kitchen, marble flooring, fireplace, terrace and bar. Moorings Bay offers easy access to the Gulf of Mexico.
DETAILS: Located at 231 Harbour Drive in the gated subdivision of Vista Royale in the Moorings, the exterior of this three-story, 3,977-square-foot villa evokes a Tuscan-flair with details such as imported shellstone embellishments and mahogany doors. The upstairs master suite includes a large balcony, walk-in closets and master bath with dual sinks, jetted tub, bidet and built-in vanity. Additional features include a family room, wet bar, wine cooler, island and pantry in the kitchen, skylight, built-in cabinets, custom mirrors and French doors. Exterior features include a private lanai with summer kitchen, privacy wall and an attached two-car garage.
SOURCE: Michael G. Lawler, Premier Properties of Southwest Florida Inc. Realtors, 239-213-7475, michael@michaellawler.com.
The contract for the last developer unit in the Lutgert Companies’ Aria on Park Shore Beach has been inked. The closing last month marked the final chapter in the Lutgert Companies’ development story of Park Shore.
With its iconic circular red tops, Aria is the capstone to Lutgert’s development on Park Shore Beach. Testament to the company’s forward-thinking philosophy and the advancement of luxury high-rise living in Southwest Florida, the tower’s residences feature natural gas cooktops and natural gas fireplaces, volume ceilings and the Lutgert trademark “window walls.”
Comprised of 18 stories, with 52 residences and 13 penthouses, Aria is the final building of the 17 luxury high-rise towers developed by the Lutgert Companies along Park Shore Beach.
Seeing the future
In 1964, company founder Raymond Lutgert visited Southwest Florida and found a promising, uninhabited tract of land spanning 760 acres and bordering 1¼ miles of Gulf-front beach. The Chicago native also brought years of experience in real estate development. His ability to envisage this land as a one-of-a-kind community with five beachfront parks, open space commons and a beach promenade now known as Park Shore Beach established Mr. Lutgert as a true visionary.
The Park Shore community was the first planned unit development in the state of Florida and has served as a model for many subsequent developments. The designed natural dune system is revered as a significant achievement in beachfront preservation.
Horizon House, built in 1970, is the southern anchor to the Lutgert collection on Park Shore Beach. The first beachfront high-rise by Lutgert, it was constructed with increased ceiling heights and introduced a parking garage, which heralded Mr. Lutgert’s quest to advance the environment of condominium living.
Although at the time Horizon House was deemed by some locals as a controversial structure, Mr. Lutgert was not deterred. Taking risks was part of his method to success; a commitment to surpass the ordinary, a passion for the best of the best and a desire to reach literal new heights were his guiding lights.
Click here for more information on Lutgert Companies closing the book on its developmemt of Park Shore Beach
Posted by briank | Bonita Springs, SWFL News | Posted on July 9th, 2009
We know your summer vacation time is precious: You want to land where you can truly relax, breathe fresh air, get in some exercise and eat well — without breaking the bank. That’s why we teamed up with a panel of travel and health experts to help us find the healthiest of the nation’s most popular beach and lake towns.
They evaluated air and water quality, the abundance of parks, the cost of a hotel room and more to zero in on the top 10 healthiest getaways. When you’re ready for that much-deserved vacay, you won’t go wrong with one of these 10 shore bets.
7. Bonita Springs, Florida
Calling all beachcombers! Our judges rated this town, which is midway between Naples and Fort Myers, as having the best sand anywhere. “It’s like talcum powder,” Howes says. “Your feet feel like they’re getting a spa treatment when you walk on it. I could go for miles and miles.”
If you have kids with you, stick around for high tide in the afternoon, when seashells wash ashore. Families can take a guided canoe excursion, swim in the calm Gulf waters, or explore the area’s parks (1,500 acres of them). You have to look a little harder for healthy-food options. One spot our judges liked: Crispers, which offers healthy salads, even for kids.
Stay here: Hyatt Regency Coconut Point Resort and Spa (starting at $149 per night) has its own climbing wall, around-the-clock fitness center and volleyball games. If you don’t need all that, opt for Bonita Beach Resort Motel (starting at $62 per night), where you get a kitchen, too.
Click here for more on America’s healthiest beach and lake getaways
Posted by briank | Real Estate | Posted on July 1st, 2009
| When you pay a lot of money for something, you hope to get a lot of value in return. Despite the housing downturn and the number of cheap houses it has left in its wake, there is still plenty of expensive land left. According to the Global Property Guide, an online real estate investor’s guide, New York might have slipped from the second-most-expensive city in the world in 2008 to the sixth most expensive in 2009, but an average 120-square-meter (373-square-foot) apartment in the central business district will still cost you a hefty $14,898 per square meter.So why are people willing to pay a fortune to live in certain places? And what are they getting in return for their money? According to a recent working paper from University of Michigan economist David Albouy, there’s a great deal of value to be found in those high prices.
Economists look at every asset as having an “amenity value,” which measures the amount of satisfaction the asset brings to its owner. For example, your home has an asset value that is worth much more than the roof it puts over your head. The land where you live brings with it a certain quality of life: How nice is the weather where you live? How close are you to the coast? How many cultural and recreational opportunities are nearby? These quality-of-life factors contribute heavily to the amenity value of a city, and they help explain why housing costs are so high in some places.
Another big component of a city’s amenity value — trade productivity — is essentially, how many goods does the city produce that other people value? The San Francisco area has Silicon Valley. New York has Wall Street. But productivity boosters can come in other forms, such as universities that produce an educated workforce, easy access to water or other transportation, or proximity to natural resources. How do these factors create amenities? Residents of highly trade-productive cities tend to enjoy higher wages. What’s more, businesses flock to these cities to enjoy the advantages. As incomes and employment go up, so do housing costs.
Click here for more on Top Ten Pricey Cities That Pay Off. |
Located in Estuary at Grey Oaks at 1505 Marsh Wren Lane, The Lutgert Companies’ Cascada model presents the spaciousness of an estate home with the convenience of a virtually maintenance-free villa.
The Cascada’s great room plan offers three bedrooms, a library, and four-and-a-half baths, 3,682 square feet under air, and 5,261 total square feet. With a nature preserve as a backdrop and a landscaped cul-de-sac homesite, there is generous privacy afforded to both the indoor and outdoor living spaces.
The home’s exterior features a brick-paver driveway, side-entry three-car garage, plus golf cart storage, barrel tile roof, arched passageways and the window trim represent touches of the villa’s Italian inspired architecture.
An arched mahogany entry door, fitted with oil-rubbed bronze hardware, opens to the finished foyer and transitions to the gallery, which leads to the formal dining area to the left; the master quarters to the right; and the great room ahead.
Square columns act as a gateway to the great room where step crown ceiling moulding, a large niche for the media center and 18- by 18-inch porcelain tile define the space. The double French doors open to the pool area and expand the periphery views to the inside.
The gourmet kitchen is custom designed with cabinet-front KitchenAid appliances including a 48-bottle wine cooler; a five-burner gas cook top; Cherry Bordeaux custom cabinets with full extension drawers; and Baltic brown granite countertops with bevel edge. The island has a stainless steel Franke vegetable prep sink with Grohe faucet. An Insta-hot water filtration system conserves the homeowner’s time and resources.
The formal dining room is accessed through the neighboring kitchen, and also the gallery, which features a groin vault ceiling. The walls of the dining room are finished in a gold tone and the ceiling vault faux paint is done in a complementary terra cotta hue. A three-panel window with transoms draws in natural light and dense landscaping provides privacy to the room.
On the opposite end of the gallery, a double door entry opens to the vestibule of the master quarters. The suite features his-and-her baths, a sitting area positioned in front of a bay window, and a morning bar located just inside the vestibule.
Her bath features Monticello cherry Bordeaux cabinets with marble countertops; a Riva six-foot soaker tub with porcelain tile deck and floor; separate shower; water closet with toilet and bidet, and an open archway to the closet. His bath features Monticello cherry Bordeaux cabinets topped with marble, a porcelain tile shower with bench seat and walk-in closet.
Click here for more on the Cascada in the Estuary at Grey Oaks.
