TRIM Notice week

In this world nothing is certain but death and taxes.

--Benjamin Franklin

It is once again every Lee County investors least favorite time of the year, TRIM Notice week.

Mine came in an oversized manila envelope affixed with $0.87 worth of postage. With much trepidation, I sliced opened the heavy-duty envelope......slowly pulled the stack of papers out.....and voila.......most of my properties had doubled in value from last year with a corresponding tax increase. Some of the valuations are quite a bit higher than what I could sell the property for today.

The first thing that came to my mind was "maybe I should dress up in an Indian outfit like our founding fathers and dump some tea off the Sanibel Bridge." Probably not a good idea as the local authorities would most likely put me away for violating the Clean Waterways Act.

After cooling down, I read every last word of fine print on the back of the TRIM Notice and came away with the following tidbit, property value for the purpose of this TRIM Notice is the value on January 1, 2006. Unfortunately this is a challenging date for investors as values have dropped in many cases since that date.

Being an analytical sort, I ran some fair market value(FMV) analyses using direct sales comparisons on my properties and some of my customers properties. Unfortunately, it looks as though Ken Wilkinson and his team have in fact nailed the value as of January 1, 2006 on the properties that I looked at. Tragically, this is no longer a valid valuation, but according to the law, the taxes due are based on the older January 1, 2006 figure.

In looking for a bright spot, the only solace that we can take in this situation is that we will get the benefit of lower January 1 valuations once property values start to increase again.

The Cape has arrived

Starbucks is coming to town

The recent announcement that the first Starbucks will be opening in Cape Coral has left the accounting folks at LeeWay scrambling to make up the toll revenue that will be lost from caffeine-crazed Cape Coral citizenry no longer having to cross the bridge for a fix.

The Cape's first Starbucks will be located at the Coral Walk Shopping Center which is at the intersection of Pine Island and Pondella Roads.

At last: Starbucks coming to Cape [News-Press]

Reply.com

Site aids buyers in making unsolicited offers

Reply.com is a new real estate site that allows a buyer to make an unsolicited offer on a property. For $24.95, reply.com will create, prepare and priority mail an offer to a seller. The reply.com site provides estimated valuation information for properties in a manner similar to zillow.com. Reply.com offers are non-binding and serve as a means for connecting buyers and sellers without real estate agents.

This model works well for properties that are not currently on the market, as most listed properties would contractually require a broker commission payment regardless of who produces the buyer. Reply.com is an interesting concept and one that has the potential to catch on quickly once it gains critical mass and credibility in the marketplace.

Forged deeds

Growing problem for absentee owners

Forged deeds continue to plague absentee owners of Florida property. Although notorious deed scam artist Ben Ari is facing justice, the practice is still common in Florida. While other states have taken steps to tighten the notary public process including log books or even thumb prints, Florida has not taken any steps to tighten control.

Out-of-state property owners should make it a habit to check the local property appraiser site in the Florida county where they hold property to insure that the property remains in their name. Here locally, the site is the Lee County Property Line.

Criminals steal houses through deed forgery [Miami-Herald]

Demographic shift

Lee County is getting younger

The Fort Myers area is undergoing a significant demographic shift with the average age of our residents rapidly dropping.

Much of this growth has occurred in Cape Coral and Lehigh as families have been attracted to these communities in large numbers. Since 2000, Lee County has added over 100,000 residents. It is estimated that nearly half have settled in Cape Coral, whose population now exceeds 156,000 residents.

Between 2000-2005, the average age has dropped in Lee County from 45 to 43. The number of residents over the age of 65 has also dropped from 29 percent to 26 percent. These age shifts are quite significant in such a short period of time.

While relatively affordable housing has fueled much of this growth, the jury is still out on whether or not Lee County can attract companies to provide growth in quality jobs. Diversifying our economy beyond construction, real estate, and tourism will be key for maintaining a good quality of life in the area.

We're getting younger as population grows [News-Press]

Real estate vultures

Market ripe for picking?

A recent CNN/Money article suggested that in many markets across the country experiencing slowdowns, there are very few bargains for vulture investors to prey upon. The article cites the fact that too many bargain hunters in Manhattan are driving up the prices of potential deals.

These conditions are certainly not reflective of the current environment in Southwest Florida, where bargains are available across many sectors and price ranges. There do not appear to be many bargain hunters trolling in the residential waters right now and this is most likely due to the lackluster rental market for investor-owned property.

There has been an uptick in investor activity in the lower end of the vacant land market, particularly in Lehigh. Offers are being written on property at the lower end of the pricing scale. Many of the offers that I have seen lately are written to heavily favor the buyer and have included discounted prices, long closing intervals and multiple contingencies.

It will be interesting to watch the residential sector as summer fades to fall and many more visitors come to the area. Will the across the board price reductions that we have seen in 2006 be enough to spur on buying activity?

Slim pickings for real estate vultures [CNN/Money]

Marina South at Cape Harbour

Cape Coral project open to aclaim

The first tower at Cape Harbour's 15 story Marina South is completed and residents started moving in on Friday. This project, which features retail establishments on the ground floor, is another notch in Cape Coral's coming of age. A second matching tower will be opening in May 2007.

Back in March 2005 when the pre-sale was held via lottery, Marina South sold out in just hours. In city yearning for upscale ammenities, Marina South offers a new lifestyle choice for its residents.

Currently Marina South units are available from the the high $300,000s through $1M.

Unique condo community welcomes its first residents [News-Press]

Housing starts Naples + Fort Myers

Topping the housing starts in Southwest Florida

The top ten communities for housing starts in the Naples-Fort Myers market are: Gateway, 730; Village Walk of Bonita Springs, 562; Bella Terra, 375; Verona Walk, 359; Sandoval, 328; Olympia Pointe, 312; Verandah, 308; Coral Lakes, 245; Tuscany Cove, 223; and Palmira, 191.

Long-term market growth

Study bullish on Southwest Florida real estate

Housing industry market research firm Metrostudy recently released a study which recognizes long-term health of the Naples-Fort Myers market.

“Demographic and economic trends suggest continued growth in demand for new homes over the long term, driven by a current average annual growth rate of 18,600 new jobs. That is an impressive number, given the low unemployment rate — 2.3 percent — in this market.”

The study cites move-ins as a methodology for measuring housing demand rather than closings and deed recordings. This is a much better way of evaluating a market like ours that has such a heavy investor presence, particularly in new construction.

While the market is stalled right now across nearly all sectors, I too remain optimistic for the long-term in Southwest Florida. Nearly every day I hear from prospective clients living north of the Mason-Dixon Line that are looking to relocate to this area at some point in the future.

Study sees long-term demand in local market [Naples Daily News]