It’s season again and it’s not uncommon for listings to rise during season which is usually a good thing except for those sellers that decide to “Test” the market.  There’s an old saying that goes “If your home is over the market it isn’t really on the market.”

Perception Vs Reality in the SW Florida Real Estate Market

Perception Vs Reality in the SW Florida Real Estate Market

Sellers overprice homes in all kinds of markets; good, bad, and sideways.  Overpricing is nothing new, but it seems to be gathering steam these days as sellers read headlines that the market is improving and prices are on the rise.

It is true, the market has continued to heal itself, and prices have been rising for many homes.  Some price points have a shortage of homes on the market while some price points have as much as 3 year supply.

The other day I noticed the following post on Facebook from a Bonita Springs agent who I’m friends with “Well, I see we’re back to listing properties based on list prices, not sales prices again.”  Several local SW Florida agents chimed in and agreed.

Personally I’ve been on dozens of listing appointments in the past several months.  Some we’ve taken and many we have not.  Some sellers are interviewing as many as 8 agents trying to get an agent that will agree with their price.

I’ve gone back and tracked several of the listings where we recommended a true market price and the seller chose to list with another agent at a much higher than market price.  Some have even listed just slightly higher than market and they all have one thing in common.  Their homes are still on the market.  They have not sold, and they will not sell because they are over-priced.

Oh, sellers can justify about anything.  Perhaps the Germans or the Canadians will come and fall in love with it and buy it.  We do extensive marketing to foreign buyers but one thing I can tell you is they research the market and don’t want to overpay either.  Imagine if you were traveling to another country, or even another state.  You’d research the market before you felt comfortable buying wouldn’t you?  Germans, Canadians, and Snow Birds from here in the States do the same thing.  Nobody wants to overpay.  They don’t care how much you need for the property, only what it’s worth.

Pricing your home correctly is only part of the battle.  So much more goes into effectively selling and successfully closing the sale.  Many owners and agents can get the contract, but closing it is another story.  This is where the real expertise comes in.  Notwithstanding this fact, overpricing the home negates the experience it takes to close a sale because you rarely even get that chance.

And if you are lucky enough to over-price and find a buyer, the appraisal will trip you up when the property doesn’t appraise.  Even many cash buyers are putting in contingencies that property must appraise.

A lot of sellers like to overprice in season then get serious when many of the high end buyers go home.  Why would you want to do that?  Again, if you’re over the market you’re not really on the market.  Why not have your home on the market when the most higher end buyers are here?

Sure, many of these seasonal buyers come back and visit in the summer, but some buy on impulse while they’re enjoying the weather and good times here as well.  Especially when they see how bad the weather is up North.

Sellers don’t like when buyers have erroneous perceptions about the market.  Buyers don’t get what they want when that happens and the seller just sells to a buyer with correct perceptions.  The same is true for sellers.  If you have erroneous perceptions, buyers will pass you by and work with a seller that perceives the market correctly.

Agents don’t control prices, the market does.  I don’t care if prices go up $10,000 or $20,000.  I can’t.  It’s my job to research and interpret the market for our clients so they can be successful.  I can’t make the market anything it’s not.  If I could, I’d start with my own property.

If you’re thinking of selling, give us a call and we’ll work with you to get the best price.  You might find other agents who will list it higher, but ask yourself this question, “Am I looking to sell my property or just list it and waste my time?”

All those other listings we walked away from are still on the market.  Our listings are selling. Things that make you go hmmm.  Call us at 239-489-4042 or stop by our office at 7910 Summerlin Lakes Dr Fort Myers, FL 33907

 

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SW Florida real estate market continues recovery. Many would say our market is Hot, and compared to 2006-2009 it’d be pretty hard to disagree with that statement. While we are seeing some nice gains, our market is healing, which is a good thing.

SW Florida Real Estate Market Continues Recovery

A couple of things we look for are the percentage of cash vs. financing to identify the liquidity in the market as well as the percentage of traditional sales vs distressed sales. Our market has good volume now and would be higher if we had more inventory to sell.

We’ll come back to inventory in a moment. As you can see from the attached graph, traditional sales are above 70% of the total sales. Back in 2009 they were close to 20%, so that’s a big swing.

Cash sales are dropping as a percentage of total sales. Many would say that’s a bad sign, but it’s actually a good sign. Banks add money to the market. For awhile banks weren’t lending much. There is a cap on cash sales and the amount cash buyers will pay, but not so much on financing. Buyers will use leverage to purchase more, so it helps add liquidity to the market. Cash is always good, and having cash buyers is a good thing, but relying on them is a sure fire way to a stagnant market. Infusing capital into the market helps pull the market higher, and we’re seeing definite trends in financing. Banks have finally made it possible to borrow again, and that will help us continue this recovery.

I recently had a potential seller ask me why I didn’t say the market has fully recovered and that we were in full blown market mania. When I showed the seller how much his home value had increased from 2009 he was impressed, but he had refinanced his house during the boom and owed more today than it’s worth. Had he not taken money out at the height of the market he would have had equity, but since he did, he was still underwater. He chose not to sell today but we’d revisit the issue next year.

This is exactly why I say we’re still recovering. Back in 2005 we had artificial influences affecting the market, and we still do today. Today the artificial influences are the fact that some sellers still owe more than their property is worth today. If we didn’t have upside down sellers we’d have more inventory, and if we had more inventory we’d have more sales.

Short sales, foreclosures, and traditional sales in Fort Myers Cape Coral Florida real estate market

Some sellers are above water but just don’t like their equity position because it doesn’t leave them much down payment for the next home. In any event, equity positions are holding back many sellers who’d otherwise like to sell but are still trapped in their homes. This is perhaps one of the last barriers to calling this a full blown market recovery.

When the economy finally takes off, we could move closer to that point. Signs point to a recovering economy, but things like ObamaCare could stall that if companies cut back to stay afloat. We’re also hearing from small business owners who are facing large premium increases, so this cuts into their disposable income and their real estate purchasing power. Something tells me that when fully implemented, the public will turn to their congressmen and demand some changes, and they’ll make some changes to lessen the effects.

In the meantime, let’s keep this economy rolling, and keep the banks lending. We’re doing our jobs in the trenches and we’ve got this market heading in the right direction. If the banks and Washington all play nice, 2014 is going to be a great year. To search the MLS go to www.TopAgent.com You can always call us at 238-489-4042

If you’d like to search the MLS, visit our website at www.Topagent.com  If you’re considering selling and would like the Ellis Team to show you what we think we can get for your home, go to www.SWFLHomevalues.com or call us at 239-489-4042  Good luck and Happy Selling!

To search the MLS for properties go to www.TopAgent.com or give us a call at 239-489-4042     Good luck and Happy House Hunting!!!

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For the 3rd month in a row median sales prices increased in SW Florida.  Median sales prices are up 24.8% over last year so it’s safe to assume all properties in SW Florida are sky rocketing, right?  Not so fast.  Media prices county-wide are increasing, but that doesn’t mean every property is going up.

September 2013 Real Estate Sales Numbers Just Released for SW Florida

September 2013 Real Estate Sales Numbers Just Released for SW Florida

Average sales prices are coming down.  Since April the average sales price is down about $60,000.  So how can two sets of data tell two very different stories?  The answer is, they’re not telling two stories.

Average sales price is influenced by high end sales.  If there are several multi-million dollar sales it can skew the average up.  When using the median price, it really doesn’t.  Let’s say for example there are 10 sales of 5 million dollars+.  That’s at least $50 million in sales in just those 5 sales.  By using the average, that adds $50 million to the total number, but by using the median it just counts as 5 sales at the top.  Remember, median sales are the number in which half the sales occur at or below a certain price and the other half are at or above that price.  When we use average they all get thrown in together and divided by the total.

The average price is more seasonal because that’s when our high end buyers are visiting Florida and purchasing higher end homes.  This is why you’ll always see the peak of the average market around March-May.  They typically go to contract January through April and close March through May, sometimes even June.

Realtors like to use the median price because it’s more stable and less affected by a few sales.  Median prices have been fairly constant to the upside.  Even the median can have fluctuations if certain closings get delayed.  A government shutdown for instance could delay certain types of loans which would disrupt closings.  One year we had flood insurance coverage lapse and we couldn’t close until the program opened up again.

Speaking of government shutdown, the government is open since last time we wrote an article.  Yeah!!!!  Don’t hold your breath though as we might be right at it again in a few months.  November is shaping up to be a big month for the Ellis Team.  Let’s hope that’s indicative of the entire market.  Buyers have been particularly active in recent months.  October has been a good month too, but November is shaping up to be fantastic.

Inventory is on the upswing, which is good.  We need more inventory to sell.  We’ve even been going out to developers and builders looking over their inventory as sometimes we just don’t have much to sell in certain price points with certain features.

If you’re considering selling, now might be a good time to call us. 239-489-4042  We recently listed a home that was previously on the market but failed to sell with another Realtor.  We raised the price and marketed it using our advanced marketing system and it sold in 19 days.  If you price it correctly and market it where the buyers are, it should sell today.  Call us while prices are rising and before interest rates creep up next year.  Good luck and Happy Home Selling!

To search the MLS for properties go to www.TopAgent.com or give us a call at 239-489-4042     Good luck and Happy House Hunting!!!

Feel free to view our Virtual Tours .

Visit our Google+ Business Page

 

This week we decided to focus on the local Southwest Florida real estate  market and study how the distressed sales market is affecting the overall market.  As we’ve been reporting median prices have been dropping the past few months which is typical this time of year.  Many people will blame it on foreclosures and short sales dragging down the market but a closer look reveals it may not be.

Cape Coral Days on market, Fort Myers real estate

Average days on the market has been slowly rising, however it did the same thing this time last year so we’re not too concerned.  There is sometimes a brief lull before the season sales heat up beginning in January.  Inventory is up slightly but hardly enough to keep up with demand in season.  This upcoming season could be held back due to limited inventory.  Depending on how election goes, prices could rise quickly or stagnate.  We’re writing this article before the election so we have no idea what consumer sentiment about the national budget, the fiscal cliff in January, or anything else until more is known.

What is known is that distressed sales actually increased in the 3rd Qtr of 2012.  This isn’t the end of the story however.  People usually associate foreclosures and short sales with lower prices, and it’s true the distressed sales were at lower price points than traditional sales, but an in-depth look reveals something interesting.

Fort Myers Beach Traditional sales graph

Traditional sale median single family home prices actually fell $6,000 while short sale median prices rose $3,500 and foreclosure prices rose $1,775.  We can’t blame the decrease in prices to distressed sales, so something else is going on.

It is seasonal. It can also be the economy.  Employers have been on hold waiting to hear what the health care regulations will be, along with what will happen in January with the financial cliff.  Several large employers nationwide were set to give pink slips to employees until the Obama administration said by law they don’t have to give the notice.  He made an executive order to suspend that law during the election.

The thinking must be that whomever is elected will work with Congress in Nov and Dec to avoid severe cutbacks in defense spending and high tax increases in January.  Once employers know what the true cost will be to hire employees they can make decisions.  Our nation has been in a no-man’s land and it’s hurt the economy.

The economy drives the real estate market, and in turn real estate sales pays back the economy with spending on things like appliances, carpet, home improvement, etc.

Either way I think season will be good because we have low inventory..  The question is will it be great?  The answer to that relies on the economy and the next president’s ability to work on solutions with Congress, for the benefit of us all.

Good luck, and Happy House Hunting!!

Well, it’s that time of year again and the tropical season is heating up.  Because we have an impending storm approaching we decided to do a video on Hurricane tips for agents and the public alike.  We hope these tips will help you prepare for this storm or any others that may come our way.

Hurricane Tips for SW Florida

 

If you’d like market information on SW Florida including the Fort Myers, Cape Coral, Bonita Springs real estate market and how it stacks up against the national real estate market be sure to  watch our National Housing Report

In the old days agents would ask sellers to come into their office in hopes that the seller would be so impressed they’d select the Realtor they were going to list with on the spot.  This was a good strategy, and if a Realtor stands out from the crowd by a wide margin, why wouldn’t a seller be impressed?  Some Realtors even refused to visit the seller’s property until the seller selected them as their agent.  While this may seem a little over the top, some Realtors actually used this strategy with some success.

Listing Presentations Going Mobile
90% of Homebuyers Now Shop on the Internet to Buy a Home

Listing Presentations Going Mobile

Today there is no reason an agent cannot do both!  With the advent of Tablets like the iPad or an Android Tablet an agent can now bring the office to the seller.  It’s quite easy to show your office, how you work, and how you market in a mobile world.  If the agent works and negotiates contracts in a mobile world, why can’t they list in a mobile world?

The truth is they can, and they should.  The two most important ingredients in a successful home sale is the relationship between the seller and the listing agent, and the property itself.  The agent’s office really doesn’t matter.

33% Repeat Buyers Find Their Agent on Internet
How do Buyers Find Their Agent

Oh, we’re proud of our physical office and all the things we can show a buyer or seller from the office.  However, many times offers have come in while I’m out of town or away on appointment and I’ve been able to look at the offer, make changes, negotiate, and close the sale, all in the amount of time it would have taken to drive back across town from the appointment and begin that process.  The office never entered into the equation.

Sure, we have a team of assistants back at the office assisting us, but that had nothing to do with negotiating the offer.  Just the same, we no longer feel the need to show a seller the office and meet the team before listing their home.  We can bring the team to the seller.  We even have powerful video conferencing we can utilize with our sellers and our team.

A seller can surely list a home without going to an agent’s office, but it’s pretty tough for an agent to list a home without seeing the sellers home. Pricing the home depends on condition, functionality, upgrades, etc.  There is no substitute for viewing the home.

You have to ask yourself, am I listing my home or listing the agent’s office?  We all know the answer is the home, so why not focus there?

You’re also hiring an agent, so it’s important to ask questions, such as how will you market my home?  Why should I hire you?  What do you bring to the table that another Realtor doesn’t?  Show me examples.

Some things are just hard to show on paper.  So much marketing today is online or the print is not the standard 8 1/2 x 11.  I remember the days when we used to handout 80 page packets explaining the sales process and our team.  Those days are now gone.

An agent today can show a seller how buyers are using Apps to search for their home.  We can show how the home looks online, how many people have seen it, and where the agent ranks in search engines.  Sellers can see virtual tours, photos, satellite views, etc all in the comfort of their home.

Not all agents are the same.  Results can vary greatly from agent to agent, and from company to company.  Ask your Realtor to show you everything.  Buyers today are demanding tech savvy agents when searching for a home.  If your Realtor can’t show you their business in a mobile world, how in the world are they going to market your home to today’s buyer?

Later on it may be necessary to meet at the office, but selecting which Realtor to list with is no longer one of those necessities.  If you’re considering selling your home, let us show you how buyers really view your home, and why selecting an agent with today’s tools matters.

Good luck, and Happy Home Selling.

 

The Ellis Team at RE/MAX Realty Group in Fort Myers has created an interactive map for searching data in Reflection Lakes in South Fort Myers. By clicking on a listing the map will give you detailed information on the property including links to further detailed information. If a virtual tour is available it will link to that as well.

Reflection Lakes Fort Myers Update

 

 

View Reflection Lakes Fort Myers Florida in a full screen map

Check it out and let us know what you think. Feel free to check out floor plans at our Reflection Lakes website

Watch the SW Florida Real Estate Update June 2012

Official sales numbers were released this past week by Florida Realtors and as expected median sales prices fell 3.46% from July as more distressed sales sold in August 2011 than July. Sale prices were up 16.74% from August 2010 which is positive. Listing inventory continues to slide which bolsters prices as well. Last year Lee County had 11,667 combined single family homes from all MLS’s on the market and today we’re down to 7,675 combined. Actually there are less than both numbers because some homes are listed in multiple MLS’s, especially high end homes or homes in Estero, Bonita, San Carlos park where Realtors may belong to more than one MLS and desire additional exposure. Sanibel and Captiva is another example of where agents might list homes in the Sanibel board and the Fort Myers board.

SW Florida Real Estate Homes Closed 2009-2011
SW Florida Single Family Homes Closed

As you can see from the attached charts, even though inventory has been falling, Realtors have been successful at closing high numbers of homes even though many are short sales. This is a testament to the fact buyers are being forced to look at short sales which may take longer to close to find homes in their price range. It is also testament that Realtors are increasing their education to handle these complicated sales, and banks are gearing up to close more of these sales rather than selling through foreclosure.

SW Florida Single Family Sale Prices 2009-August 2011
Single Family Home Sale Prices in SW Florida 2009-2011

While sales prices have declined from their 2011 seasonal highs, they are still significantly higher than last year’s numbers signifying the bottom may be behind us. Before our market reaches for the skies again, we must first repair our fragile economy and create jobs and income growth. Combining that with a coherent, understandable, and definite tax policy will also help settle the real estate market. Congress and presidential politicians keep proposing changes to mortgage deductions, increased capital gains taxes on certain groups of people, and worst of all they’ve failed to extend the National Flood Insurance Program which puts hundreds of thousands of current transactions in jeopardy.

Washington couldn’t script are more harmful strategy to disrupt housing, which is amazing as housing leads to 32% of the nations GDP. There has got to be a better way, and thankfully there is a better way, but it won’t happen until the next election.

So for the next year the nation’s economy and housing market will have its ups and downs and will take its lumps until certainty returns to the market. I never understood why the president proposes raising taxes on certain people and not others. While I’m certainly not rich, nor is any real estate agent I know in SW Florida, I just don’t understand how taxing those that make more money encourages them to work harder or hire more people, which is what our economy really needs right now.

Last week I wasn’t paying attention and I received a speeding ticket. A day later I thought. Hey, if certain people get to pay more taxes because they earn more, then why can’t certain people drive faster than others? If I’m paying more shouldn’t I be allowed to drive faster? Well, it’s a silly argument as we should all obey and drive by the same rules, and so it goes with taxes, we should all pay the same rates. If someone makes more, they automatically pay more. So why should they pay more, and pay a higher rate?

And when companies are taxed at one of the highest rates in the world, why do we wonder when they move operations overseas? Perhaps we should lower taxes and encourage them to come back and hire US workers, which would raise income to the government.

Have you ever wondered why certain corporations move to Delaware or South Dakota? It’s because those states learned to compete with other states they must have lower taxes. It’s about time our Federal government understood this. We are in a global competition. When someone can accurately predict when our government will get its act together, almost anyone will be able to predict the real estate market. Until then, we’ll keep reading the tea leaves and reporting what we see.

 

SW Florida Real Estate September 2011 Official Numbers Released

SW Florida September 2011 State of the Real Estate Market ReportTown & River is a waterfront community tucked away on the river side of McGregor Blvd on the Fort Myers side of the river.  The community features deep water gulf access lots as well as a fresh water lake offering some nice lakefront views.  Not every home is waterfront, but all enjoy the peace and serenity of South Fort Myers living off historic McGregor Blvd and all the conveniences to everything that comes with it. Spotlight on Town and River.

McGregor Blvd was the original center of town and housing in Fort Myers used to be defined by which side of the street you lived.  While growth has certainly moved eastward, the charm and beauty of McGregor Blvd remain a fixture alongside Thomas Edison’s vision for McGregor Blvd showcasing why Fort Myers is named The City of Palms. It was Thomas Edison after all who was responsible for lining McGregor Blvd with the majestic palms we see today and defines our place in SW Florida history as people from all over come to visit our beaches and gaze at McGregor Blvd and the seemingly endless flow of palm trees as you drive down McGregor.

Spotlight on Town and River
Riverfront Home in Town and River Sold For $1.31 Million in 2011

 

 

River and Pool View of Town and River Home
River and Pool View of Town and River Home

Town & River features some amazing homes.  The highest priced home we could find in MLS in 2011 sold for $1.359 Million. It was a 4 bedroom 3 bath home with 3,241 sq ft of living area and had a nice view of Deep lagoon canal.  We found another home at the end of Cypress Lake Cir that sold for $1.31 Million which is a riverfront view home and features 4,430 Sq Ft of living area and 5 bedrooms along with 5 baths and 2 half baths, also shown above.

Canal Front Home Town & River
Town & River Canal Front Home

The home pictured above is a canal front home just seconds to the river and has 3,921 sq ft of living area.  This home sold in 2011 for $1.275 Million.

On the other end of the spectrum we just closed a home for $260,000.  The home is lakefront and featured 4 bedrooms, 2 ½ baths and a pool with a metal roof.

Lakefront Home in Town and River Fort Myers
Lakefront Town and River Home Closed in 2011

Currently homes are priced from $171,000 to $1.695 Million.  We found 21 homes actively on the market and 2 pending sales.  So far in 2011 our MLS shows 29 sales from $100,000 to the $1.359 Million sale we reported earlier.

The lowest priced home in Town & River listed for $171,000 is a 3 bedroom 2 bath home built in 1978 and features a pool, corner lot, and is also located on the lake.

If you’d like to search for Town & River homes you can do so on our website www.townandriver.net or search all MLS listings at www.LeeCountyOnline.com

Watch our September 2011 SW Florida Real Estate Market Report Video

SW Florida September 2011 State of the Real Estate Market Report

As you can see from the SW Florida Sales chart, SW Florida single family homes sales have been somewhat seasonal the past few years with sales peaking around April and declining after June or July.  Although it’s too soon to tell, early indicators tell us 2011 may repeat recent history as pending sales are trending even with last year and closed sales have begun their descent.

Single Family and Condo Sales in SW Florida
SW Florida Real Estate Sales 2010-2011

Even more importantly this year may be the lack of inventory compared to previous years.  We’ve seen a major decline in inventory in recent years.  Currently single family inventory stands at 6.89 months supply, but even that number is a little high because many of the short sales are tied up and not closing.  In fact, last month only 13.8% of the pending short sales closed which is much lower than traditional pending sales.  It’s unreasonable to think all pending sales will close, but 13.8% is practically nothing.

If we took out active short sales from the equation, the month supply of inventory would be lower.  I believe the month supply of inventory is deceiving as many homes on the market aren’t really on the market as they’ll never close.

As you can see from the listing inventory chart, it’s really come down in the last 18 months.  Lehigh Acres inventory is below 1,000 homes for the first time in years. Of the 975 homes on the market in Lehigh, 470 are short sales and 117 are bank foreclosures.  60.21% of all homes on the market in Lehigh are distressed, and last month 63.06% of all single family sales in Lehigh were distressed.

Single family and condo listing inventory in SW Florida
SW Florida Real Estate Listing Inventory August 2011

Cape Coral and Fort Myers inventory has come down too however the ratio of distressed sales is much less.  For instance, Cape Coral distressed inventory now stands at 44.15% compared to 60.21% in Lehigh.  Fort Myers distressed inventory stands at 37.18%.  On the closed sale side, Cape Coral distressed sales were 50.51% last month and Fort Myers distressed sales were 42.97% last month.

Buyers are finding they just don’t have as many choices today.  They love the prices, and they realize homes priced $150,000 or less have seen rising prices, but they’ve been increasingly frustrated by competing with other buyers with multiple offers, or long wait times on short sales.  This is just all part of the SW Florida housing market and it may last another few years.

Foreclosures will run their course in due time assuming the economy picks up in the next few years, but short sales may remain for awhile until prices return to points where a seller can afford to sell.  We see increasing prices in the low to moderate end going forward; however we don’t envision a return to 2005 levels.  The market has reset and people are accepting the new reality of the market.

This is good news for the younger generation as they’ll be able to purchase the American Dream and not be saddled with debt their parents have endured.  It’s a fresh slate and we can only hope generations going forward can study the past and learn from it.

While we believe buying real estate today may be a great investment long term because eventually prices will rise, we also recommend buying a home that suits your needs versus focusing strictly on investment potential.  Investment potential is what caused so many people to buy into the last market frenzy and some forgot the whole purpose of buying real estate is to fulfill a need, especially if it’s your primary home.

If you’re buying a second home or investment home, there are some factors to look for that may assist you in making the best decision for you.  Real estate can be a good investment, and it helps to clearly define what your goals are and think long term.  If you’re buying a primary residence, it’s rarely a good idea to buy solely on investment potential if you don’t like the home or it doesn’t meet your needs.  Plan B is always to keep it awhile longer until the market works in your favor, and if you’re unhappy with the home, that’s harder to do.

It is a good time to buy, so if you’re in the market, seek professional advice on current market conditions, and put your best foot forward.  Don’t be afraid, be informed. Call us at 239-489-4042 if we can help.