While no one is going to confuse the current market with the investor insanity of 2005 and 2006, there is a growing buzz of investor activity in the Fort Myers area market. Many of these investors are targeting distressed single-family homes that need some spiffing to be resold to a traditional buyers.
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Over the past few years, Cape Coral has been one of the areas in the nation with high rates of foreclosures. This foreclosure phenomena can be attributed to significant speculative investing during the real estate boom years.
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With its quirky and historic downtown and status as the county seat, Fort Myers serves as a major commercial hub for Southwest Florida.
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Investopedia reports on 10 reasons real estate could rebound in 2011. While the article generalizes about real estate trends on a national basis, several of these points are very relevant to the market in Southwest Florida.
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The Cape Coral-Fort Myers area was ranked fourth nationally as a retirement destination in a study just released by Portfolio.com. Our region was second in Florida only trailing Bradenton-Sarasota in the Sunshine State. This designation is a significant coup for our battered real estate market as it validates the overwhelming sense of value many are seeing in the market.
[more] →We are wearing the contrarian hat this morning…..instead of discussing the hottest new listings to hit the MLS, lets take a look at the oldest, stalest listings in our MLS. These are the certifiable dogs of the market, all have been active since…….2005! Yikes, these owners have had their property for sale with the same Realtor for nearly five years.
The general consensus in the real estate industry is that listings have the most activity in the first seven days, have the best chance of selling in the first 30 days and become stale in the 90 day time frame. It is hard to imagine any buyer giving a second thought to a listing that has been on the market over 1700 days like these 2005 listings.
[more] →Over the past year many investors have entered or are re-entering the Southwest Florida real estate market. Home prices beaten down by the extensive inventory of distressed property in our area has allowed investors to see positive ROI in some sectors.
The almost daily question that I get asked from out-of-region investors is what Southwest Florida real estate investment will provide the best return? While this is one of those questions that will often get a wide range of answers, there is no need to rub the crystal ball right now as one sector of our market really stands out for offering the best returns. The answer to the million dollar question is……Cape Coral single-family homes.
[more] →A new book, Exiles in Eden: Life Aong the Ruins of Florida’s Great Recession, offering an insiders view to the Florida housing crisis is hitting the shelves this week.
The Fort Myers area is prominently covered by author Paul Reyes including a look at a mostly abandoned, upscale gated community. A book about the housing bust would not be complete without an examination of Lehigh Acres, where the authors parents purchased a vacant lot in 1969 on the $10/month plan while honeymooning in Miami.
[more] →The latest report on the Lee County rental market released by RealFacts of Novato, CA detailed shifts in our rental market for 2Q10. Lee County apartment occupancy rates in 2Q10 climbed 4% to 90.8%, the fourth highest in the 12 major Florida markets. Lee County rents for the same period dropped 9.1% to an average of $762/month. This decline in rental rates was the highest in Florida during 2Q10. The Fort Myers-Cape Coral market now ranks 9/12 in average rental rates in the 12 major Florida metro markets.
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