Nico Guillen
Nico Guillen
Sarasota & Manatee County
Where to live on the Suncoast, the honest version
The best-selling master-planned community in the country, and for good reason: A-rated schools, 150+ miles of trails, golf and social clubs, and a downtown of its own. Villages range from attainable townhomes to gated golf estates at Wild Blue and The Lake Club, with lakefront living at Waterside and two downtowns of its own at Main Street and Waterside Place. The trade-off to know about: most villages carry CDD fees. Nico will tell you exactly what they are before you fall in love with a floor plan.
Downtown high-rises over the bayfront, walkable neighborhoods like Southgate and Arlington Park, and the barrier islands of Siesta Key, Lido Key, and Longboat Key, with some of the best beaches in America. Sarasota is the cultural capital of the Gulf Coast: opera, ballet, and a restaurant scene that keeps getting better.
The fastest-growing new construction corridor in the region: 55 communities were actively selling new homes here as of a late August 2026 MLS pull, more than anywhere else in the two county area. North River Ranch, Seaire, Prosperity Lakes, and Oakfield lead the way, with pricing that beats almost anything closer to the coast. Critical local knowledge: CDD fees run the full spectrum here, from zero in communities like Windwater and Canoe Creek to roughly $4,600 a year. Nico tracks them all.
Riverfront living on the Manatee, quick access to Anna Maria Island, and West Bradenton neighborhoods minutes from the sand at a fraction of island pricing. Palmetto is quietly becoming one of the best value plays in the region, with new waterfront-adjacent communities like Sanderling and Silverstone North.
One of the fastest growing master-planned communities in America, on Sarasota County's southern frontier. Wellen Park pairs new construction from nearly every major builder with a genuinely walkable downtown on Grand Lake, weekly events, and the Atlanta Braves' spring training stadium at CoolToday Park. Minutes to Venice beaches, with price points that still beat most of the county.
Tell Nico your budget, lifestyle, and timeline and he'll tell you exactly which three neighborhoods to look at and why.
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