Real Estate News

CONSUMER CONFIDENCE RATHER FLAT BUT PENDING SALES UP

Thursday, September 2nd, 2010 at 4:43pm. 12 Views, 0 Comments.

Rightfully so, consumer confidence is rather flat and one can certainly attribute that to the fact that there has been no clear cut indication that nationally we are recovering fully from the recession. August statistics showed a 1% point increase which is pretty lackluster.

Despite that fact, pending sales are continually rising month to month which is a good sign. One should also remember that there is no tax incentive for first-time home buyers the way that there was this time last year, so if you look at in that light, things are getting better and better.

Here are the pending sales numbers in key areas:

Crayton Road area: 41
Olde Naples: 16
Pelican Bay: 29
Vanderbilt Beach: 15
Port Royal/Aqualane 4
Royal Harbor/Windstar: 18
Golden Gate Estates: 114
Marco…

OLDE NAPLES CONTINUES TO LEAD THE WAY

Monday, August 30th, 2010 at 7:46am. 49 Views, 0 Comments.

There are many reason why Olde Naples is one of the most desireable areas of Naples, not the least of which it is the only area of Naples where every avenue (running east and west) ends at the public beach. There are many other reasons as well, such as Fifth Avenue and Third Street, where world-class shopping and dining abound.

As the US economy struggles to regain its former stature, Olde Naples and Port Royal continue to do well in the real estate market. To date, there have been 50 closed single-family sales in Olde Naples and some 59 other condominiums and town homes sales totalling 109 units sold year-to-date.

BYE...BYE BUY OWNER

Friday, August 20th, 2010 at 7:19pm. 69 Views, 0 Comments.

With the struggling housing market in other parts of the country, the real estate firm Buy Owner based out of Deerfield Beach, Florida is saying bye bye. Known for its "Thanks, Buy Owner" slogan the firm has filed for liquidation. The firm blames a down market, as well as a large Bank of America loan which requires repayment as the reason for the filing.(Court records show that the company approximately 3.9 million to the bank, as well as 1.2 million in back pay to its executives.)

One might also suspect that their core business is off drastically because sellers are now wise to the fact that they need the services of a real estate professional to get their properties sold, especially in today's economy.

It gives one pause to wonder whether some of the…

NABOR RELEASES MONTHLY STATISTICS FOR JULY

Saturday, August 14th, 2010 at 10:44am. 72 Views, 0 Comments.

The Naples Area Board of Realtors (NABOR) has released the monthly statistics for the month of July and the message remains upbeat.

Sales on the beach were strong showing a 13% increase and that despite all the prior concerns about the Gulf oil spill. The greater Naples market continues to deplete inventory and the median home price continues to rise showing that the general state of the market continues to get stronger.

To view the report CLICK HERE.

REAL ESTATE INVENTORY HITS 3-YEAR LOW

Thursday, July 29th, 2010 at 3:53pm. 118 Views, 0 Comments.

Laura Layden of the Naples Daily News published an article about the quarterly statistics that the Naples Area Board of Realtors (N.A.B.O.R.) published last week regarding the state of the real estate market. You can review the news article below.

N.A.B.O.R.'s president, Brenda Fioretti, stated the real estate market has now become a balanced market. A balanced market is one in which the inventory has reached a 12-month supply. It is neither a buyer's or a seller's market, but if the current trend continues, it will push the market toward a seller's market. We have been in a strong buyer's market for the better part of the past two years, and since we work primarily with buyers, we have had a strong two years.

VIEW REPORT HERE

TAX CREDIT EXTENSION CAUSING A BIT OF CONFUSION

Thursday, July 1st, 2010 at 7:06pm. 119 Views, 0 Comments.

It seems that many people are confused by the first-time homebuyer tax credit extension that was passed by the Senate late Wednesday evening and had been passed by the House previously. The bill now awaits the expected signature of President Obama.

There seemed to be a rush of excitment because some people had thought that what was being extended was the time period for new home buyers to get under contract and closed and that is just not the case. The thing that the bill extended was the closing date for all those people already under contract by 30 April 2010 from the original deadline of 30 June to 30 September 2010. 

NAR (National Association of Realtors) estimates that the passage of the bill will help some 14,000 first-time homebuyers in Florida alone…

OIL SPILL HAVING MINIMAL EFFECT ON REAL ESTATE SALES

Thursday, June 24th, 2010 at 9:41am. 201 Views, 0 Comments.

With the advent of the Gulf Oil spill now almost 70 days old, the question becomes how is it affecting real estate sales. The answer is that it is has not been affecting sales to any great degree at all. There have been rumors that there have been a few beach front sales that have fallen through, but I have not heard of any personally.

What has been affected are some of the seasonal rentals for the upcoming season. People seem to be worried that given enough time, the oil spill will eventually affect our beaches. I personally do not subscribe to that because of the way that the currents flow. In my opinion, it would take a strong hurricane blowing directly from west to east on the scale of a Donna in 1962 to impact our beaches.

The Naples Daily News…

AND THE BEAT GOES ON!

Wednesday, June 16th, 2010 at 9:18am. 396 Views, 0 Comments.

If you thought that the Gulf oil spill, hurricanes and the like might be affecting people moving to Southwest Florida, you might think again.

Real estate sales, despite being in the throws of the summer doldrums, are doing exceptionally well, especially in the higher end markets. There were two homes in Port Royal that went pending yesterday for $15,000,000 and $22,000,000 respectively and there are an additional $86,000,000 in homes pending sales. Olde Naples currently has $22,000,000 in pending sales. That is just in two areas and in no way reflects the total picture.

Several days ago, Forbes Magazine wrote an article after analyzing data taken from IRS files titled "Where America's Money Is Moving" and you guessed it, Collier County and specifically the…

OLDE NAPLES AND PORT ROYAL LEADING THE WAY

Thursday, June 10th, 2010 at 8:38pm. 127 Views, 0 Comments.

As the greater Naples real estate market continues its steady climb from the depths of despair of a year or two ago, not suprisingly two communities are leading the way, Olde Naples and Port Royal.

Olde Naples has always been one of the most desired Naples communities of all for many reasons, not the least of which are 5th Avenue and Third Street. It is the only community in Naples where every avenue (running east and west) ends at the public beach. Olde Naples is literally the heart of Naples and the downtown area where shopping and dining abound and is always vibrant with visitors and locals alike.

The real estate product in Olde Naples runs the gamut...single family estate homes, luxurious condominiums, town homes, coach homes, as well as villas. The good…

SALES CONTINUE THEIR UPWARD TREND

Sunday, March 14th, 2010 at 7:47pm. 159 Views, 0 Comments.

NABOR just released their monthly report and statistics the other day and the upward sales trend is continuing. Closed sales are a solid 50% higher than the same period last year, while the inventory has been shrinking by almost 15% per month.An important point is that normally we see an increase in inventory in "season", but this year is totally different with it continuing to decrease.

While the low end of the market ($300,000 and less) has been helping to fuel the fire, a real bright spot has been the fact that we are now seeing strong sales above the $300,000 price point.

Another interesting point is that single family homes have been primarily driving the market during the past year, but recently condominiums have come storming back. Pending…