Southern Exposure

Under The Rosemary Sun

Fabulous home in Rosemary Beach just listed. It has been kept immaculate and has a history of consistent rental income. The pool is a luxury in Rosemary Beach. Enjoy the pictures!

“Under the Rosemary Sun” is a wonderful inviting getaway that combines the allure of the beautiful Gulf of Mexico with the warmth of a Tuscan villa. Located in the heart of Rosemary Beach, a unique beach community with custom-designed homes, native landscapes, and open, green public spaces nestled around a small town center full of activities. Only the finest has been incorporated into this Rosemary Beach home which is evident by the quality of design (award-winning architect and design firm), complete with expansive windows that soak in an abundance of light and sunshine making this home ideal for family and friend gatherings and vacations. Further enhancing the design is an open and airy living area with 20 foot ceilings and a wood-burning fireplace. The gourmet kitchen is an epicure’s delight, with a 48” Viking Range, Bosch dishwasher and Kitchen-Aid refrigerator.

The second floor boasts a wraparound porch with a view of the Gulf, a screened sleeping porch, and two master suites, one of which features a dual fireplace between the bedroom and adjoining bath; the other a quaint sitting room perfect for lazy summer afternoon naps. A sense of luxury is further enhanced by recycled Oceanside glass tile, limestone/marble countertops and antique heart pine flooring throughout. Spacious decks and patios along with a beautiful Ann Sacks inlaid tile (heated) swimming pool encourage spending lots of time outdoors year round. Children can enjoy their own loft (sleeping) area complete with a TV, DVD player and PlayStation.
Beautiful white sandy beaches are just a three-minute stroll away down landscaped footpaths, and five community pools make “Under the Rosemary Sun” a perfect vacation retreat. Other features include Euro-style bathrooms, custom design vanities, private outdoor shower, flat-screen TVs and DVDs, a security system and wireless internet service throughout. Sleeps up to 10. One bedroom downstairs with queen bed. Two Master suites on second floor with king beds, and full loft (sleeps 4) on third floor. 4 full baths and a powder room.

Contact Price at 850-259-8287 to preview this incredible home.

New York Real Estate Theory

Interesting article that appears today on Barron's online. Traditionally Manhattan sees the real estate market and economy slow down later than the rest of the nation. So by that time the theory is other parts of the nation might start to recover. what do you think?

http://finance.yahoo.com/real-estate/article/105253/Signs-of-Softness-Appear-in-Manhattan-Real-Estate;_ylt=Ammz5GTCz6KwyHc7UmZYJVq7YWsA

International Surfing Day

2008 Parade of Homes Begins

Today marks the start of the 29th Annual Parade of Homes held each year in Walton and Okaloosa Counties.

This year Beach Properties of Florida is proud to market the community of Audubon Point in Point Washington. Named for the famed Naturalist James Audubon, Audubon Point features an exclusive enclave of homes surrounded by lush, forested green areas that integrate the wild spaces around the property and serve as an important sanctuary for wildlife. It is being developed by Romair Group,LTD and FaKouri Devlopment.

The Parade takes place June 14th through June 22nd. All the homes, which are spread from Navarre to the WaterSound, will be open from 10:00am until 6:00pm on weekends and from 1:00pm until 6:00pm on weekdays.

There will be a Parade-wide Twilight Tour on Thursday, June 19th when all homes will stay open until 8:00pm. In addition all of the Parade’s seven Featured Neighborhoods will have special Twilight Tours during the event. There is no charge for the public to tour the Parade homes.

Rosemary Beach Wrap Up

Ok-so when I say tomorrow sometimes I mean a couple of days. When I started this blog I was posting just when I had time but now it has taken on a life of it's own. I meant to wrap up of the spotlight on Rosemary Beach on Friday but I actually got busy working on a listing I have in Rosemary Beach. I wish I had some better pictures of this house because it is going to be incredible.

Within steps of the beach, this house is designed by Tim McNamara Architecture and is being built by Christain Tennant. The main house includes 4 bedrooms, 4.5 baths and totals 2,985 square feet with an additional 670 square feet of porches and a 484 square foot carriage house. The main house features wood beams, Tuscan columns (wooden) and many other features. Enter your courtyard and find a private fountain, pervious pavers, two planter benches, cast-in-place hearth, very detailed trellis leading to the second story summer kitchen sealed with Bahaman shutters and a two car garage below.

So I thought I would give you a glimpse of the pools at Rosemary and give my parting thoughts on this community.

The Barbados Pool is located on the western side of Rosemary and is designed in French West Indies architectural style. It's features include a dramatic entrance with copper roof, shaded loggia and stucco tower and vestibule fountain.

The Sky Pool is located next to the Fitness Center. It's features include a metal structure roof with motorized panels that can be opened in warm weather, and closed in cooler weather. In addition to heated water, the pool decking features radiant heating, providing a warm walking surface during winter months. This is a great pool to exercise in.

The Cabana Pool is the most family friendly pool area with a Mediterranean design. The Cabana Pool features cabana-style dressing rooms and separate children’s pool. Paired sun loungers against a backdrop of dense green hedges offer pool-side privacy and sunbathing.

The Coquina Pool is a negative edge pool that is heated located beach side.

Another pool that is really cool is the rooftop pool at The Private Residence Club in Rosemary Beach(a fractional ownership condo).

The Hotel Saba is a long awaited upscale hotel project that is scheduled to open this year. It has been under construction for quite some time and I have heard that it will have convention/meeting space and a gourmet restaurant. I am eager to see this open.

I have really enjoyed this walk through Rosemary Beach with you. I learned so much more than I knew and have had the chance to talk and meet with some great homeowners. Usually the first question I get from family and friends when I see them is "How's real estate?" It's interesting to me when people talk about the economy and how we are doing locally. To me it is one part reality and one part attitude. The simple truth is real estate and the economy always have it's ups and downs. This down cycle might be harder to take for some because we had such a high. The beauty of our area cannot be overstated. I just read in the paper about another group of celebrities that visited our area recently. The quality of life here is incomparable. People will always want to come here. Rosemary Beach will be visited even more when the new International Airport opens. But I digress. That is another post!
Rosemary Beach is a treasure that will come to be appreciated more and more.
See you on the beach!

Rosemary Beach Part 3

Today I wanted to share a few more photos and talk about the shops and restaurants in Rosemary Beach.

This is an example of the many boardwalk footpaths the Rosemary Beach. Many homes front boardwalks instead of vehicular streets which allows for the homes to be closer together, creating an intimate urban streetscape. The idea to use boardwalks came when Andres Duany visited Maine, where boardwalks are used along the Rockport harbor.

Gate that leads into one of the charming courtyards you find at Rosemary.

Great details on this upper porch.

Town Hall.

Window details.

The shops on Main St.

On Main Street there are many great shops and places to eat.
Stop at Cowgirl Kitchen for great take home dinners
and be sure to try the Turkey BLT with avocado and toffee cookies.
Onano Cafe is one of my favorite places to eat and is on the bottom floor of The Pensione Bed and Breakfast

You also have to make a stop at Courtyard Wine and Cheese.
Some shops include:
Gigi's
Tracery
Moonpize
Shabby Slips
Willow
Tropez
The Rosemary Beach Trading Co.
Pish Posh Patchouli's

On the north side of Rosemary are 2 more GREAT places to eat:
Summer Kitchen
They have great wrap sandwiches at lunch and the fish taco's are great at night! These are our neighbors and fellow school mate. A great family.

Lastly there is Wild Olives. They have just about everything including an olive bar!

I hope you are enjoying this little feature of Rosemary Beach. I will wrap it tomorrow!
It goes without mentioning that if I can help you with your home in Rosemary or if you are looking for a home in Rosemary, do not hesitate to contact me at price@beachpropertiesofflorida.com

Rosemary Beach Part 2

In Rosemary Beach there are 13 different house types or variations ranging from live/work buildings, beach houses, courtyard homes, townhomes, small houses and large houses. Each neighborhood in Rosemary is defined by the type of house the lot is assigned. This creates such a unique feeling there.
As promised here are a few of my favorite homes in Rosemary Beach.......

This is a spectacualr home overlooking the Tennis Center

This is on the north side of Rosemary by the Montessori school

This home faces the Western Green overlooking the Gulf

This home is overlooking the Gulf and faces the Eastern Green

The following 2 homes are on the Gulf side of Rosemary

More tomorrow!

Don't forget Jazz Festival at Seaside this weekend!

Rosemary Beach

I have to admit that I did not "get" Rosemary Beach the first or even second time I drove through in the late 90's. It has only been in the last couple of years since our children began attending school there that I was able to take it all in and see how incredible it is. You really have to get out and walk it to get up close to the architecture and see how well it functions not just as a resort town but as a livable,workable town.
After spending the past couple of years walking in and around Rosemary Beach, I picked up the book Rosemary Beach by Richard Sexton to learn more about it's history.
Rosemary Beach is located on 107 acres which fronts the Gulf of Mexico in the southeast corner of Walton County.You cannot look at Rosemary without acknowledging the tremendous success that Seaside has had since the beginning. In the 1990's the New Urban Development was booming;garnering national attention and home values going through the roof. It was during this time that Seaside resident, Geoffrey Wilder secured an option on 49 acres at the east end of 30A from local real estate tycoon, Doodle Harris. At that time Doodle owned the property from Inlet Beach to what is now Alys Beach. (Doodle Harris just passed away last week and I noted in his obituary that of all the land developments he was involved in, this tract of land that became known as Seacrest was that of which he was most proud).
Wilder commissioned a local architect, Carey McWhorter, to plan a development for this 49 acre parcel. In 1994 Wilder died unexpectedly and Leucadia National Corporation purchased the land and hired DPZ to create a town plan. They did not want to copy Seaside but rather use the same principles that made it successful.
Out of many design charrettes came 3 core concepts that identify Rosemary Beach.
1) The architecture incorporates European Colonial influences from the West Indies, New Orleans and St. Augustine. This consists of vernacular that European types adapted to a tropical climate such as: facade length porches, large windows and doorways that are shuttered to filter out harsh sunlight, steep roofs to shed rainwater and dormer windows to allow ocean breezes in.
2)Wooden Frame above a masonry base.
3) Cars would not be dominant in the landscape at Rosemary. Alleyways were created to provide vehicles rear access to homes.
A couple of interesting facts worth noting:
Around the time that the development of Rosemary got cranking up, the 58 acres adjacent to it on the north side of 30A suddenly was cleared completely(usually a sign of new construction). When the attorney for Rosemary contacted the owner, Doodle Harris, Doodle was said to have mentioned that he thought it was the perfect spot for a trailer park or a strip mall. Negotiations began to purchase the land and the size of Rosemary more than doubled!
Also, the prototype for the architecture of Rosemary was the Corn Cottage in Seaside. A carriage house owned by Seaside architect Richard Gibbs(who later came to Rosemary).

Tomorrow I will show you some pictures of some of my favorite homes in Rosemary Beach. For now I leave you with a few shots.....

Spotlight on the communities of 30A

Today I am starting a new series on the communities of 30A. I will begin with Rosemary Beach this week and end up with the grand lady of New Urbanism, Seaside. I hope to share some of my favorite homes and architectural elements in each place. Hopefully I will highlight what makes each place special and you will learn something that you might not have known.

Enjoy!