Waterfront Sarasota home sells for record $22M, despite large price cut

A record-breaking sale occurred Thursday in Sarasota. The highest–ever residential property sale in the city was recorded when 8501 Midnight Pass Road sold for $21.95 million.

Even at the record price, at $21.95 million the deal is significantly less than the original listing price: Called Crystal Waters, the property debuted on the market in 2025 for $31.5 million. It was taken off the market then returned in June with a listing price of $29.99 million.

The closing price is about 70% of the initial asking price. In Sarasota County, sellers received a median of 94.7% of their original list price in August, according the latest real estate market report from the Realtor Association of Sarasota and Manatee.

The seller of the Siesta Key home is Sarasota philanthropist Crystal Lahners; her late husband, Dr. Bill Lahners, was a pioneering and prominent eye surgeon at Center for Sight in Sarasota. Bill Lahners died Dec. 10, 2021, while on a trip in the Bahamas. He was 53.

The buyers are Edward and Julie Burke, according to Douglas Elliman Real Estate, which represented the Burkes in the deal. The agency says the Siesta Key home sale surpasses the previous city record of $20 million for the sale of 1233 Hillview Drive, set in March 2024.

Designed by Florida firm Stofft Cooney Architects and built by Florida West Builders, the home at 8501 Midnight Pass Road was completed in 2024, according to Michael Saunders & Co., which represented the seller. The waterfront estate sits on 2.78 acres.

The main residence spans more than 10,200 square feet with 217 feet of direct frontage on Little Sarasota Bay. It includes five bedrooms, six full baths and two half-baths. The property also has a guest house, tennis court and private tennis pavilion, 56-foot vanishing-edge saltwater pool that appears to merge with the bay beyond, 90-foot dock with deep-water access, floating kayak launch and 20,000-pound boat lift.

Kim Ogilvie and Lynn Morris of the Kim Ogilvie Group at Michael Saunders & Co. represented the seller, while Andrew Greenwell and Kelly Mooney from Douglas Elliman were the buyers' agents.