Christine Pope,

The more effective (and fun) way to find your home here in Sarasota is by first deciding upon the lifestyle you want. Once that's clear, then we can get to work exploring the neighborhoods that offer the lifestyle you want. Then we find the right home for you. Here in Sarasota we have golf communities, beachside communities, high rise luxury condos, historic communities, brand new communities, sprawling estates and so much more.

Make your home shine as much as possible. Purge, clean, hire a handyman to fix all the little things, freshen up your landscaping, pressure wash the driveway and ask your real estate agent to give you their honest feedback about what needs to be done before it hits the market. This will give you the best chance of getting a your home sold for the highest price to a qualified buyer. In Sarasota, it's smart to make any indoor/outdoor space look as inviting as possible. If you have a lanai or pool enclosure, be sure it looks as inviting as possible. For many people moving to Sarasota, their biggest reason for moving is the warm weather and the lifestyle associated with pools and palm trees. Show them how amazing it can be!

I've had clients from Canada, the UK, New York, New Jersey, Minnesota, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, California, Georgia, Indiana, on both the buying and listing side. I've also worked with clients on 1031 exchanges (investment properties), probate (inherited properties), duplexes and other multi-family investment properties, and luxury waterfront listings as well as the more traditional single-family home buyers, first time homebuyers, people upsizing and downsizing, and relocating from or to other places. I've worked with a LOT of clients who have purchased or sold properties with me sight-unseen through video calls.

Earlier this year I was working with a home seller whose home was picture-perfect, but the market was slow and it we weren't getting as much traction as I'd like, despite a LOT of marketing. My brokerage secured a great deal with Zillow Showcase and I was able to get her home into this enhanced listing program so instead of just being another home on Zillow, we were able to get triple the amount of home views and the home went under contract after just two weeks. She was thrilled (me too!) and everything went very smoothly from the inspection on through to closing. I'm very thankful that I have this extra (very powerful!) tool that I can use for my listings!

Sideways. I'll admit it, I didn't start out thinking it would be fun to be in real estate. I came here the long way around! First a teacher, then a magazine editor, then a digital marketer...and finally a realtor. Those three past careers set a solid foundation for a successful real estate business. The teacher in me is eager to answer every question; the writer in me loves writing up property and neighborhood descriptions (if you get my Sarasota Neighborhoods emails, you understand!) ; and the digital marketer in me is thrilled to list and sell properties using all the best tools.

Absolutely. I love education and am a voracious learner so I take as much training as I can get my hands on. I am a Certified Pricing Strategies Advisor, a Certified Listing Agent, I've earned the Commitment to Excellence Certification, and aside from the National Association of Realtor certifications, I also hold a Digital Marketing Science certificate from the University of North Carolina. Being a true expert at marketing has been a tremendous help to my clients particularly when it comes to marketing their properties to the most qualified buyers.