Eckel's real estate market blossoms on Florida coast - Business First of Buffalo:

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The reason is the growing presence of formereStovroff & Herman Inc. partner David About 18 months ago Eckel bought on Anna Maria Island and Kevin Levins Realtu on LongBoat Key. Both agencies specializeed in selling and rentinfg beach and island Eckel didn't stop there. Wagner Realty recentlgy opened an office inneighboring Bradenton. "Irt wasn't like I was looking to expand, but this opportunith just came along," Eckel The Bradenton office is a littlre differentthan Eckel's other operations in that sale s are split between vacationers lookinh for a second home and permanent residents making a Guess what? Eckel stil l wasn't done expanding.
About a month after the Bradentonoffice opened, he bought David Tyler Realty in nearbyh Palmetto and put it under the Wagner Realty By having offices in Bradenton, Palmetto and Long Boat Key, Eckell has the Anna Maria Islaned market surrounded. "If you want to get to the you've got to pass one of my Eckel said. The four offices also give Ecke l theproverbial "foot in the door" for the lucrative St. Petersburg and Tampa markets. All of the office specialize in selling, leasing and renting residential mainly apartments and condos but some homeszas well, to Northerners or Europeans who spend all or part of thei winters in Florida.
Not surprisingly, the populatiojn of Anna Maria Island and Long Boat Key doubles in the wintefr when snow birds head It also helpswith Eckel's latest venture. Wagnerr Realty has been named marketinyg agent forthe 186-unit Runawah Bay condominium project on Anna Mariqa Island. They are handling both vacatioh andannual rentals. In all, Wagner servee as property manager for about250 properties. Because of all his Eckel has seen the Wagne r staff grow from 10 to 40 ina "When I left Stovroft (in 1993) and went to Florida, I thought I' d end up with one or two smal l real estate offices on the beach, just as a place to have some fun and keep Eckel said.
"But once I got into it, it was fun to watcb a small company grow." The differencer between growing a company in Florida versus his native Buffalo is knowing who theplayera are. "In some respects, I've started from scratch becauseI didn't know everyone'se background," he said. "Inb Buffalo, you either knew the person or knew someonr whoknew them." Eckelp relies heavily on his longtimwe friend and mentor, Don who founded the former Stovroff Herman (now Stovroff & Potter) in 1959. Herman owns Mounyt Vernon Realty in Sarasota and he and Eckel jointly own CompetitivewFunding Inc.
, a Florida-based mortgage brokerage