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Shore Acres spec home sells for a record-breaking $7.57M

A spec home in the exclusive Shore Acres community has sold in a $7.57 million deal, shattering the record for the highest-priced home sale in the neighborhood.
The waterfront estate at 3801 Bayshore Blvd. NE went under contract last year in December when the home was in the drywall finishing stage, said Jennifer Zales, Coldwell Banker Realty’s top Florida agent who represented the seller and buyer. The deal closed in late June.

An image of the estate.
The 6,828-square-foot home was built by Modesta Homes of Tampa. The group worked with general contractor Tide Homes.
“Modern construction is fairly new to the Tampa Bay area. We typically see coastal or Mediterranean-style homes. A lot of buyers from Miami and California came to look at the home,” Zales said.
The home was on the market for 81 days before going under contract.
A 1950s ranch-style home was previously developed on the 0.35-acre site.
“St. Pete is very ripe for this type of development. There’s still a number of ranch-style homes on beautiful bayfront lots that don’t meet FEMA’s [Federal Emergency Management Agency] new codes and required elevations that could be torn down and replaced with a modern home like this,” Zales said.

An image of the estate.
The newly built five-bedroom, four-and-a-half-bathroom estate has 10-foot-high ceilings, a home theater and a wine cellar and bar. The home has hardwood flooring and custom chandeliers. A floating staircase leads to the second level.
The outdoor entertainment area features a kitchen, a pool and a dock with dual boat lifts. The home also has an eight-car garage with electric vehicle charging stations.
The previous highest-recorded spec home sale in Shore Acres closed in May. The home at 4219 Bayshore Blvd. NE, designed by West Central Design Build, sold in a $6.55 million deal.
From renderings to reality
When presenting spec homes, Zales has her iPad in-hand to show accurate renderings of the envisioned estate – an approach she used to sell the Bayshore Boulevard property.
“If a home is at the frame and drywall stage, it doesn’t have the cabinets or flooring yet. We use a very realistic rendering process in spec homes where people could see the actual finishes and the 3D rendering of the home before they buy it,” Zales said.

An interior rendering of the home.
Her team inputs the homebuilder’s specs and materials for flooring, lighting and hardware into the program, which then matches all of the finishings and generates images.

A rendering of one of the estate’s bathrooms/spas.
Zales has sold four homes in Tampa by leveraging the rendering process.
The state of St. Pete’s luxury market
Based on insights from appraisers, Zales said the Tampa Bay real estate market peaked around April last year.
“We saw the market soften a bit towards the end of last year, and when we got to this January, the market strengthened again and has been fairly healthy through the spring,” she said.
During the pandemic and awakening of the remote workforce era, thousands of people relocated to the Sunshine State. As a result of the increased demand and limited supply, home prices jumped significantly.
“When the homes started selling for over the asking price, people started shooting for the stars and overpricing their homes. We went through a period when people realized they weren’t getting offers,” Zales said, explaining how the listing becomes stale and buyers start making low-ball offers.
“Generally speaking, when owners aren’t getting offers or showings for their home during an extended time, they lower the price. People have started adjusting the prices. If you price it at or below market, you can still sell the home for a healthy sales price, but if you overprice your home, it will sit on the market for an extended time and will sell for less than what it would’ve sold if it were properly priced in the beginning,” Zales said.
There are also outside factors that are causing fluctuations in the market.
The average home interest rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage hit 7.22%, according to Mortgage News Daily.
“For luxury homes, we are still seeing cash deals so that market it’s not as rate dependent. However, these types of media headlines do cause people to look more carefully at a purchase,” Zales said. The higher monthly mortgage payment may translate to a buyer making a lower offer on a home.
Since Hurricane Ian devastated Florida’s coastline last year, concerns from buyers heightened. Insurance and flood rates also spiked.
“The rule of thumb is the newer the home, the more credits someone will get for insurance premiums and more favorable rates compared to older homes,” Zales said.
Additionally, the new election year in 2024 may cause some hesitation from buyers.
“Historically, any time I’ve sold real estate in an election year, there is a lot of uncertainty, and the market reacts to that. The economic data that gets released drives a lot of decisions,” she said. “My message to sellers is that it is still a good time to list their home. I consider our current market to be healthy and balanced.”

Shore Acres Resident
July 10, 2023at1:12 pm
This home brings a harsh edge to Bayshore Blvd NE. It appears out of place in the context of the existing streetscape and would be suitable as a xeriscaped property in South Florida. The black gloss stone is expressive yet comes off unappealingly tacky. Unfortunate as it may be, it is unlikely the new owner would alter the facade in place, but vegetation such as shade trees and vines would go a long way in softening the home’s over-imposing nature and harsh corners.