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Castles in the Sand
Business, Castles in the Sand

Real estate websites changing our lives

Sep 5, 2022 – Louise Bolger
August 15, 2022
By Leslie Lake
Ambrose explores new venues for market

Ambrose explores new venues for market

BRADENTON BEACH – Since the Aug. 2 announcement that Manatee County would take over the Coquina Beach Market from Nancy Ambrose, its director for the past decade, she has been looking for new venues…
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August 8, 2022
By Louise Bolger
Castles in the Sand

Is the country in a housing affordability crisis?

This pains me to say, but I’m glad I‘m not in my 30s anymore. Not because I didn’t think it was the best decade of my life, but because I would hate being in the real estate market now shopping for m…
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August 1, 2022
By Louise Bolger
Castles in the Sand

Are we starting to turn a corner?

It’s a fact – the number of real estate sales around the country appears to be slowing, but the sale prices aren’t. There is no way to spin this. It’s a fact. The question is, what does it mean and w…
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July 25, 2022
By Louise Bolger
Castles in the Sand

Cash is king in today’s real estate market

Are we starting to see an adjustment in the real estate market, maybe, or are only some parts of it changing? One thing that is still very strong relative to the country as a whole are the cash offer…
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July 18, 2022
By Louise Bolger
Castles in the Sand

Adjustable rate mortgages right for some

Less than a month ago, around the middle of July, I reported that the 30-year fixed rate mortgage loan interest rate was nearing 6%. It never went over 6%, but instead started dropping back down. As…
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July 11, 2022
By Louise Bolger
Castles in the Sand

Homeowners consider renting in tight market

The majority of people in my generation and even those decades younger couldn’t wait to stop paying rent. It was drummed into our brains by our parents and grandparents that paying rent was a waste o…
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July 4, 2022
By Louise Bolger
Castles in the Sand

Mortgage interest rates rising again

Here’s a little perspective on the continuing increase of the 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage. Several months ago, I did an analysis of the average fixed-rate mortgage rates starting in 1971 recorded on…
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July 4, 2022
By Jason Schaffer
New owners take over Monkey Bus

Monkey Bus sold; new owners to focus on safety

ANNA MARIA ISLAND – Sally Dirbas and her son, Mitchell Gross, a Monkey Bus driver for more than a year, have acquired the Monkey Bus from Island Beach Monkeys LLC, operated by Roque Pastorius. Dir…
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June 28, 2022
By Louise Bolger
Castles in the Sand

Homebuyers getting hit every day

Buying a home was once a happy time for families. Homes were plentiful to choose from, and imagining your grandmother’s credenza in the dining room and the Christmas tree in the living room f…
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June 28, 2022
By Jason Schaffer

Spring tourism surges on AMI

ANNA MARIA – Spring tourism was strong on Anna Maria Island, according to Anne Wittine, Director of Quantitative Research for Tampa-based Research Data Services. The Manatee County tourism consult…
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Upcoming Events

April 9, 2025
11:45 am

The Off-Stage Ladies of the Island Players, April luncheon meeting