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US Census Report Shows Cape Coral Fort Myers Third Fastest Growing Area
The hot Fort Myers, Cape Coral housing market helped fuel census estimates which shows Fort Myers and Cape Coral was the third fastest growing metro area in the country, with 29.6% growth. Naples Florida wasn’t far behind at #7 with 25.2% growth.
Data was from April 1, 2000 to July 1, 2006. SW Florida real estate is still very popular, and we are expected to grow at steady rates. Housing supply in SW Florida may have slowed down until demand has a chance to catch-up with supply.
As this process occurs, housing affordability in SW Florida becomes more affordable, until which time we reach equilibrium again. Housing numbers are expected to regain strength throughout 2007, while prices are expected to remain flat.
SW Florida RE/MAX Showing Index March 2007
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Showings remained steady in March compared to February 2007. We noticed March showings were particularly strong the first two weeks of March, then trailed off a bit the second half of March. March 2007 Statistics:
February 2007 Statistics:
January 2007 Statistics:
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SW Florida International Airport Has Busiest Month on Record
SW Florida International Airport, serving Fort Myers, Cape Coral, Bonita Springs, Naples, and all of SW Florida received more visitirs in February 2007 than any other month in its history, marking over 841,000 passengers for the month.
AirTran had the most passengers with 101,261, followed by Us Airways and Delta. SW Florida continues to a nice vacation spot, and as more people move to SW Florida, airline traffic increases as residents take business trips, and friends come to visit.
It’s always been said, just move to Florida and you’ll find out how many friends you have.
Lee County Florida Real Estate Blog
SW Florida Real Estate Market Numbers Tell the Story
The Ellis Team at RE/MAX Realty Group in Fort Myers has created some custom graphs to illustrate the nature and scope of the SW Florida Real Estate Market.
Our first graph, shows the number of homes closed by month for the years 2005-2007, and you can see the first few months of 2007 are down drastically over 2005 and 2006. We expect these numbers to increase each month in 2007, however we don’t expect them to return to 2005 levels.
Our next graph illustrates home prices in SW Florida real estate by month. As you can see, prices are above 2005 levels and trailing 2006 levels. As 2005 was a year in which prices rose, we epect this number could fall below 2005 levels anytime in the next few months.
Our last updated custom graph shows price changes by month instead of looking solely at the past year. We think this graph is particularly useful to spot trends. Home prices rose last November, December, and January of this year. February of 2007 gave back a large portion of the past 3 month increases in SW Florida.
Of course you can view many updated statistics in the SW Florida real estate market by visiting our Southwest Florida Housing Statistics page.
Record Numbers Appeal Property Taxes in SW Florida
Lee County Florida saw a record number of property tax appeals for the 2006 tax year. 2,896 property owners appealed their taxes, while only 250 were granted.
It’s not surprising people would appeal their 2006 taxes as property values increased dramatically in 2005. 2006 tax assessments are based upon property values set Jan 1, 2006. 2006 was a year in which property values declined, but much of the decline wouldn’t be included in the 2006 tax bills as it was based upon Jan 1, 2006 data and not November data when tax bills actually came out.
2007 property tax assessments should be lower as they will be based upon January 1, 2007. Keep in mind that there are two components to your final tax bill, the assessed value and the millage rate. Politicians set the millage rate, and the property assessor sets the assessed value. While assessed values should go down, we don’t know what the millage rate will be for 2007, so stay tuned.
Lennar Profit Drops
Lennar profit dropped 74% due to slower sales in the Western and Central regions. Home builders are facing competition from sellers in the resale market, which is affecting profitability. Builders have been reducing prices as sales have slowed. Sellers don’t always have to sell, they can stay and live in their home. Builders must build and sell, as that is their business so they’ve been much more sensitive to pricing in the market.
I-75 Expansion Could Begin in 2 Months According to DOT
Expansion of I-75 would be a welcome sign. I-75 needs to be widened today to 6 lanes, and really 10 lanes to accomodate future traffic. The SW Florida quality of life is at issue as I-75 is a parking lot in high season and at rush hour.
Bank of America Newest Sponsor of Future of Real Estate Radio Show
Julie Scott of Bank of America joins the Ellis Team in sponsoring SW Florida’s only weekly radio show on real estate, "The Future of Real Estate."
The show airs weekly on AM 1240 in Lee County and AM 1270 in Collier County Saturday’s at 11:00 It is also broadcast online on NBC’s website, as well as ABC’s website. It is also Podcast on iTunes.
Next week we’ll announce another new sponsor.