‘Special residence’ on Longboat Key sells for the highest price ever in the region
At $16.5 million, the sale of an estate at 845 Longboat Club Road set a record Monday for the highest registered residential purchase in the history of the Manatee-Sarasota-Charlotte area.
Although the three-story, six-bedroom, six-bath, 17,714-square-foot home was on the market for 3 1/2 years, selling agent Michael Moulton of Michael Saunders & Company said he never lost faith that the home would sell.
“I have been in this business nearly 40 years,” he said Tuesday. Previously, the most that he had sold a home for was slightly under $10 million.
The Venetian-style estate, dubbed “Serenissima” — the most serene — is located behind the gates of the Longboat Key Club on 1.18 acres along the Gulf of Mexico.
“It is a great honor to represent the sellers of this record-setting, residential transaction,” Moulton said.
“I had worked with the sellers on a prior real estate transaction and was delighted that based on that experience they trusted me to guide them through the complex process of selling their impressive estate, screening those interested, and navigating them through the many details that go into the transition of ownership for such an outstanding home,” Moulton said.
The home was completed in 2005, after a five-year building process, by Mike and Michele McKee, who sold the property. Moulton would not divulge the names of the buyers due to a confidentiality agreement.
Real estate agent Rich Polese of Fine Properties, who represented the buyer, identified the new owners as a retired chairman and CEO of a well-known Fortune 500 company and his wife, who will be relocating from out of state.
“Rich professionally navigated us through the process step by step from day one and put us in the best negotiating position,” said the buyer. “He connected us with the right resources, from local attorneys and contractors to inspectors. I would include Rich in the same category as my most trusted advisors, and I look forward to our relationship continuing long after the paperwork is signed.”
Serenissima first came on the market in 2017 for $26.5 million.
“It is rare that a single agent has the privilege of retaining a listing for such an extended period. That alone speaks to the caliber of service Michael offers to his customers,” Michael Saunders, founder and CEO of Michael Saunders & Company, said in a press release.
“As with any home that owners have poured their heart and soul into, it is important for an agent to understand the emotional element involved. What began as a business relationship quickly transformed into a personal one in which both parties had a mutually passionate interest in finding just the right buyer for this very special residence,” Saunders said.
The estate features a marble-clad main hall capped by a glass sky dome, a grand salon that that accommodates 100 guests, a master chef’s kitchen, 10-seat theater, sun room, and open-air pool terrace with infinity pool overlooking the beach and Gulf of Mexico.
There have been 89 sales of single-family homes over $3 million across the Sarasota, Manatee, and Charlotte counties, according to a November report of the Gulf Coast luxury market. Michael Saunders & Company agents were involved in 52 percent of those transactions,
Home sales in the Bradenton and Sarasota area have accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic. Sales of homes more than $5 million in the local area have increased by 57 percent year-over-year in 2020.
Michael Moulton is located at the Michael Saunders & Company Longboat Key South office, 440 Gulf of Mexico Drive.
Asked what he is going to do next, Moulton said, “Remember the football player after the Super Bowl game? We truly are going to Disney World today to see our grandchildren!”
This story was originally published December 1, 2020 at 10:55 AM.
