SW Florida real estate market Archives - Fort Myers Real Estate and Homes For Sale

We are writing this article the morning after the election. At this time, it is unclear who the next president of the United States will be or when we will know. What we do know are the real estate statistics pre-election. Today we decided to focus on pre-election dollar volume for the SW Florida real estate market.

Pre-election dollar volume measures the total dollar volume of sales in a defined time period. We calculate this by adding up all the sales volume in each month. September 2020 SW Florida saw $564.8 million dollars in total dollar volume. That is a whopping 63.4% increase over 2019 numbers which were $345.6 million.

Pre-Election Dollar Volume up in Summer

Pre-election dollar volume started taking off back in June. Keep in mind we have been in the middle of a pandemic and we are still eclipsing 2019 numbers. 2019 is the benchmark, and we know that was a good year in real estate in SW Florida. June was only up 1.5%, but it started a trend we will look back on as a defining moment. July posted a 20.1% increase in pre-election dollar volume in real estate sales. Along came August which blew June and July away. People thought the market could not get any stronger, and September would prove them wrong.

New pending sales in September are 58.2% higher than 2019. We know you must have a pending listing before you can have a closed sale. New pending sales are a leading indicator of what may happen 1-2 months down the line. Because many home loans are taking a minimum of 45 days to close, many of the September new pending sales will close in December. August new pending sales were up 42.4%, so we believe October official numbers when released will show increases as well.

We may not see a rise of 63.4% like we saw in September, but October numbers should rise compared to 2019. We have seen excellent demand. One thing that could limit sales would be limited supply. The other factors that will influence the market going forward is how people feel about the eventual winner, and the makeup of congress.

Will economic policies spur growth? How will northern states react to the winner, and will they continue moving to Florida? Will that pace speed up or slow down? How many people will decide to list their home post-election? All these factors will play a role in the total dollar volume moving forward into 2021.

Waiting on a Winner

Once a presidential winner is determined, it may take people awhile to digest how they feel about it and how future economic, social, and tax policies will affect homeowners. This may vary by state and county. We have seen a migration away from high tax states to low tax states. We do not know if other factors will come into play post-election.

It would be impossible for anyone to predict how the SW Florida real estate market will fare going forward. Heck, as of today writing this article we cannot even tell you who the president will be or who will control congress. We can report that pre-election dollar volume was excellent in SW Florida and on the rise. It should remain great for another few months. Other indicators have been excellent as well. Right now, SW Florida has an exceptionally good real estate market.

If you would like to talk about selling your home, please call Sande or Brett Ellis 239-489-4042 Ext 4. We can discuss your options, how the overall market is doing today as well as your neighborhood and put a game plan together for you should you decide to sell. Or, you can always get an instant value of your home at www.SWFLhomevalues.com It’s instant and easy. We can validate the online price in person if you are considering selling. Your choice.

Always call Sande or Brett Ellis at the Ellis Team Keller Williams Realty! We’re never too busy to talk to you. Good luck and Happy Selling!

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In a shifting market it’s not uncommon for real estate appraisal values to lag behind the market of the moment. We have such a market in SW Florida.

Real Estate Appraisal Values Lag Behind Market

Have you ever noticed when gas prices at the pump rise, they seem to do so quickly and when they fall it tends to be slow? Appraisals feel kind of the same way. In a rapidly rising market appraisers are slow to pick up on the rise, but when prices are falling, they get conservative and offer time value adjustments to the downside. Appraisers are simply protecting themselves because they have risk. The last thing they want is a lender accusing them of over valuing property values.

Appraisers concentrate on what happened in the past and must wait on data to reflect on what is happening on the streets today. It’s a lot like looking in the rear-view mirror, they can tell you where the market has been but not where the market is headed. Appraisers must prove values with data all the while mitigating risk by being caught in a rapidly changing market.

There are things agents can do to improve value with the appraiser as well as sell over appraised value. It takes an experienced agent to deal with these issues. Sellers mistakenly believe it does not matter who they list with in a seller’s market. It always matters who you list with, and now is no exception!

Experienced buyer’s agents are counseling buyers on what it takes to score a property today. We are seeing multiple offers and many times the winning buyer will pay well over asking price. Buyers are being counseled it may or may not appraise depending on the appraiser and the buyer will have to pay the difference. The lender will lend based upon a loan to value ratio of the appraisal. This does not stop the buyer from purchasing, but it might raise their down payment. Lenders are now counseling buyers too that homes are selling for more than appraised value in many cases. Real estate appraisal values simply are not keeping up.

Sellers are not accepting as many repair items after inspection either. They do not have to. If the buyer backs out there may be 10-20 other buyers willing to pick up that property the day it falls out. In fact, many buyers are scoring deals simply on the fear of greed of a previous buyer who backs out. Sellers have the upper hand right now. Buyers are not really in competition with the seller, they are in competition with all the other buyers that would love to have their deal.

You never want to go back to sell a property a second time, unless the first buyer is not being reasonable or if the line of backup buyers is stronger and more motivated than the first. This is one reason we spend time on selecting the best 1^st contract. We evaluate how likely this buyer is to complete the sale. We look at pre-approval letter, amount down, amount in escrow, and all terms. The offer tells a story and prompts questions. We may call the lender or ask further questions to help the seller make the best decision for them.

For buyers it helps to work with a team that represents a lot of sellers, because we know what listing agents are looking for in an offer, and we can help structure your offer to be more desirable. Remember, your offer not only has to be acceptable to seller, it must beat out all the other offers. Price is just one term among many the seller and listing agent looks at.

If you are looking to buy and sell, give us a call. Brett and Sande can be reached at 239-489-4042 Ext 4. We’ll be happy to talk about your situation and give you the advice you need to succeed. Visit www.SWFLHomevalues.com to see what your home is worth. Good luck and Happy House Hunting!

See last week’s article “Correctly Priced Homes Selling with Multiple Offers”

SW Florida Real Estate Market Update September 2020

Most people tend to believe the lower end is always the strongest segment of the real estate market. If you looked at the October Months’ Supply of Inventory you would agree. The months’ supply graph is a snapshot in time, so we added a little something to it this month. Upper end homes leading the SW Florida real estate market.

What if you looked at the change in direction from our previous snapshot in July? Would that change your opinion? Static data paints a picture and changes in direction tells a story. The changes are not huge numbers. For instance, the $Million+ went from 15.66 months in July down to 14.62 months in October.

Each price point above $300,000 saw a reduction. Each price point below $300,000 saw an increase in months’ supply. Many times, we see a price range here and there flip, so it stood out to us when we saw such a shift up to a point certain.

Upper End Homes Leading the SW Florida Real Estate Market

So, what does all this tell us? Perhaps a lot, and perhaps not much. It tells us we should keep an eye on it more so for the change in direction than for the change in numbers themselves. You see, the number change isn’t particularly significant.

We did have a disruption in the market in September. Could it be that lower end homes were hit harder than upper end homes? Possibly, but if it were true that closed sales were disrupted you would also think that current inventory would be disrupted too. Could it be that prices have risen to a point where first-time buyers and below $300,000 buyers are tapped out and can’t afford more increases?

If the latter were true we’ll see that going forward. Keep in mind, as season approaches we’ll have more listings coming to the market and more buyers from up North buying homes too. That can skew local buyers’ affordability issues until after season.

My intuition tells me numbers going forward will be strong. While we’ll track these numbers going forward they may just be a blip. I would have expected the lower end to have done better simply because we see lower end homes being gobbled up in days if not minutes.

Data Speaks For Itself

We like to report the numbers as we see them. We don’t use the numbers to prove what we think is happening in the market. The numbers tell us what actually is happening. From there we can interpret what we think it means, but it does no good to try to use numbers to prove a point just to be right.

Throw in a hurricane for good measure and numbers can state about anything you want them to say. We’ll report September housing numbers for Southwest Florida soon. As you would imagine, our market was disrupted, and the numbers bear that out. We may even see a rise in October numbers due to sales that were postponed from September.

Our team is bringing several homes to market. We’ve got some good values and more coming. If you’d like to search the MLS like a pro, visit www.LeeCountyOnline.com Customers love it because the data is updated instantly. This past week a customer asked me why a home shows one price online but a different price on our website. I explained that our website has an instant feed, so when any agent in MLS changes a price or adds a new listing, it shows up right away on our site.

Accurate, Speedy Data Wins

This is particularly important when you’re looking to find the right home. Speed wins, and beating out other buyers to hot new properties can be the difference between owning that home and watching someone else buy it. The same is true with price changes. Imaging having your eye on a property and seeing it sell because it was reduced. But you didn’t see the reduction because the site you use never displayed it. It was sold before they could display it. That doesn’t happen with our website.

If you have a property to sell, the Ellis Team can sell it fast and for Top Dollar. Call Brett or Sande 239-489-4042. We can help you buy that dream home too. Always Call the Ellis Team at Keller Williams Realty!

Ellis Team Featured Property of the Week

New Listing in Reflection Lakes

I recently read an article in USA Today about how the housing inventory shortage nationwide reached 20-year low and how it’s affecting the market. While every market is local and is influenced by its own factors we do not work in isolation of other markets. Therefore, national stats are also of interest to us.

For instance, if the economy is down nationwide chances are it’s affecting us here in SW Florida. Additionally, if snow birds have a hard time selling their properties up North, they may not all be able to purchase down here.

The article mentions there is a 4.3 month supply of homes on the market nationwide. Locally we calculate the supply to be 4.22 months, so we’re pretty similar to national statistics. One of the reasons mentioned in the article for the tight supply is that baby boomers aren’t likely to move in the next year. 78% of baby boomers are happy with where they live, and baby boomers own about 33 million homes.

While many baby boomers would love to move to Florida or Arizona, some are reluctant to leave family and friends behind. While this is mentioned in the article, it’s not a trend we’re seeing locally. It appears to us now more than ever baby boomers are eager to move and family isn’t holding them back. Of course, we tend to deal with those that are contemplating making the move versus those that never would.

Millennials have started purchasing recently which will add to tight supplies. We believe as baby boomers age they will begin to think about smaller homes, homes in warmer climates, or homes that meet their needs due to health reasons. Not every baby boomer will appreciate a 2 or 3 story home up North. Once they decide a 2-story home is no longer their best option, they may consider whether staying up North is too. It opens the whole gamut once a move is considered.

Thankfully builders are building again. Unfortunately, most buyers don’t know all the building developments available to them, nor which ones are offering incentives and discounts. Most buyers don’t realize they get a better deal through a realtor than they do walking in on their own.

If they walk in and ask that question the answer will be it’s the same price whether you’re represented by a Realtor or not. They may not tell you about incentives, and they certainly won’t tell you about competing builders in other neighborhoods.

We’re getting early word that the Fed will scale back it’s $4.5 Trillion in bonds beginning in September. This will raise interest rates. If rates go up we could see a buying frenzy followed by a reduction in the rate of growth in home prices. Nationwide the S&P Core Logic Case Shiller home price index was up 5.6% due to low inventory. Rising rates could curtail that growth.

Either way we need more homes. The economy is doing better and people are buying. If you’re thinking of selling, you might want to cash in before the stream of sellers enter the market. You can see from the chart inventory is lowest in the summer and picks back up again starting in September/October. Why compete with all the other sellers next season when you can have them all to yourself now?

If you’d like to talk about selling your home, please call Sande or Brett at 239-489-4042 Ext 4 Or you can go to www.SWFLhomevalues.com and find out your home’s value for free in minutes.

If you’d like to search for your next home check out www.LeeCountyOnline.com Our team can help you find your next home and sell the one you have, making it a smooth transaction.

Always Call the Ellis Team at Keller Williams Realty! We’re here to help.

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While pulling data for the latest monthly supply of inventory we noticed some increases in buying activity in certain price ranges. Today we thought we’d bring you the latest monthly supply numbers and answer what price ranges are hot in SW Florida real estate market.

The overall months’ supply of homes on the market today stands at 4.2 months. 5.5 months’ supply is considered a balanced market, so overall, we’re in a seller’s market. However, as we all know, there are segments in the market and supply changes by price range.

Obviously by looking at the chart, anything $250k or under is the sweet spot for this market. However, anything up to $400k isn’t too bad either. So where did we see a pickup in home sales since we last published this report?

What Price Ranges Are Hot in SW Florida Real Estate?

We saw a nice gain in sales in the $200-250 range. For the past 365 days there were 2,177 sales compared to a rolling 365 day count back in April of 2,059. That’s a pickup of 118 sales in a 3-month period. The overall market saw a pickup of just 6 homes. There were almost 19,000 home sales in the last 365 days, so 6 homes is almost dead-even.

The $300-$399k range saw a pickup of 87 homes, and the $400-$599k range saw a pickup of 86 homes. So, if the overall market only picked up 6 homes, there had to be some drops. The $100-$149k range saw the largest drop of 160 homes followed by the $100k or less of 108 homes. Now, this isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It means these homes graduated to higher prices and there were fewer homes available in those ranges. The market didn’t suffer because as those homes graduated, we saw an increase in home sales into the prices ranges they graduated into.

What does all this tell us? It tells us the market is segmented and you have to know your numbers. Pricing is still important as to how aggressive you choose to be. When you’re stretching it, you must market the home well, and be prepared to adjust if the market doesn’t respond.

Nationally, homes sales slipped month over month. Interest rates are creeping up. Rents are high in Southwest Florida which motivates buyers to purchase, however rising rates crimp their ability to pay. We love a seller’s market that is close to balanced. There are winners and losers in every transaction.

Getting to Win-Win

Many times, there are two winners, the buyer and seller. The loser is the buyer who missed out because they weren’t ready. Getting pre-approved before you offer helps so much, especially in a multi-offer situation. Having an experienced agent who can help make your offer look the best to the seller helps too.

Remember this. The buyer and seller are not in competition with each other. Buyers are in competition with all the other buyers out there competing for the same supply of homes. The sellers are in competition with all the other sellers out there for the interested buyers. When you find a home you like, don’t screw it up. Go get it.

Sellers, when you find a buyer that works, don’t screw it up either. The best homes go fast, and the best buyers go fast. You must ask yourself, am I willing to lose this transaction, because the next may not be as appealing to me as this one?

It Takes a Pro

It takes a strong real estate professional who knows the market and knows the numbers to properly help you make that decision. If you’re thinking of buying, selling, or both, always call the Ellis Team at Keller Williams Realty. We’ve been doing this awhile, and we’ve seen a few things. We can help make the difference for you!

Feel free to search the MLS, or find out what your homes is worth online for free at www.LeeCountyOnline.com Or call us at 239-489-4042 We’re glad to help!

Ellis Team voted best real estate team in SW Florida News Press Readers Poll — Brett and Sande Ellis Voted Best Real Estate Team in SW Florida

Ellis Team Voted Best Real Estate Team in SW Florida by News Press Readers

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Rising mortgage rates motivates home buyers in position to buy to do so sooner rather than later. In a rising rate environment like we are in right now, It costs home buyers in two ways.

First, their purchasing power goes down about 10-11%. Let’s say a buyer picks out a home at their max budget of $1294/mo. This is the figure their lender approved them for based upon their income of $51,765 Not long ago rates were at 3.625% Today they are at 4.25% and according to Ruben Gonzalez, staff economist at Keller Williams, rates should gradually increase throughout 2017.

If they go up another .4% or so, we’ll have had a 1% increase in a relatively short period of time. Nothing has changed for the buyer. If they were maxed out for a home at $200,000 a few months ago, they are now maxed out at $180,000. Their job didn’t change. Their finances didn’t change. The only thing the changed was interest rates, so they just lost 10% purchasing power by waiting.

Rising Mortgage Rates Motivates Home Buyers

If the selection of homes didn’t look enticing at $200,000, it will look even worse at $180,000. Waiting may have just cost this buyer a chance to buy a home at all.

Secondly, if this buyer was not maxed out at $200,000, buying the same home will now cost about $50 more per month. Over 30 years that equates to $18,000 in extra interest payments simply because rates went up.

Rates are still historically low. Many people remember back to double digit rates or even worse. To think that we’re even warning people about rates in the 4’s is comical, except for the fact that it’s real money. Home prices are much more today than they were when rates were in the high teens. So many things cost much more today, like gas, health care, groceries, etc. than they did decades ago. Even though rates are low by historical standards, we now have to stretch that money further because everything else has gone up so much.

It’s hard for young people to scrimp and save money for a down payment. Add in homeowner’s insurance, rising rates, and high costs of everything, and we see the pressure on first-time homebuyers today. First-time home buyers are a springboard to move-up buyers, so if we eliminate first-timers we one day won’t have move up buyers.

Don’t think that rising rates only affect first-timers. It affects all segments of the market. It may help cash buyers in that rising rates pay greater returns on savings, but it still affects all price ranges as it trickles up sooner or later.

If you’re a seller, you’ll notice someday there are less buyers for your home than there once was simply because less qualify at the higher rates. Less buyers can be a drag on home prices. If rates keep rising it could take some steam out of the housing market. If you’re waiting for higher prices later, you may be sorely disappointed if they don’t rise at the pace you’re expecting.

Many sellers replace their current home with another home, and if they’re getting a new mortgage on that home they may be in for some sticker shock when they get that new loan. It can cost you buying your next home, and selling your existing home. Rising rates are no fun for buyers or sellers. Low rates are one of the factors that have propelled the real estate market.

We feel the SW Florida real estate market is fairly valued. We don’t see risk of decline like we had back in 2005. However, rising rates may damper future gains. Even though wages may increase, rising rates may offset those gains and help keep prices steady instead of rapidly rising. In other words, if you’re waiting to make a move, be warned. Whether you’re a buyer or seller, the risks are the same. It will cost you to wait!

Feel free to search the MLS like a pro at www.Leecountyonline.com for your next home, or just get an idea of what homes are selling for. To talk with a real Pro, Always call the Ellis Team at 239-489-4042 We’ll advise you so you can make a great decision for your family.

Hopefully everyone had a great Labor Day weekend. The Ellis Team household celebrated with friends and family with a cookout and football party. Good times were definitely had by all, and that’s the way it should be. Beating the post Labor Day real estate stall isn’t rocket science, but more on that after we tell you about the stall.

I started cooking the day before. I made all the sauces, put the rub on the meat, and eventually placed the pork on the smoker at midnight. The plan was to smoke the meat at 225 degrees for about 17 hours. The meat must reach a certain temperature, but inevitably the temperature gains stall out at about 160 degrees for a period of 5 hours or so. This frustrates many who are not accustomed to the stall.

The stall is that period where temperature gains cease for a long while. This is because at 160 degrees the meat begins to sweat and cool itself. Juice go from the center to the edges during this time period. One way to beat the stall is to wrap meat in aluminum foil at 160 degrees and keep the heat on. By doing so you can retain some of the moisture and cut the heating time down.

Beating the Post Labor Day Real Estate Stall

So you might ask how does all this relate to real estate? Each year after September the SW Florida real estate market reaches a stall. If you know it’s coming there are things you can do to shorten the time-frame of the stall. You must power through it as buyers and sellers are counting on you.

Knowing it’s coming is half the battle. The other half is preparation. Just as most of the work to cook the meat was done the day before, so it is true with the real estate market.

We continue to list and sell properties. In fact, we’re cranking some sales now at a time when county-wide sales are down. We don’t stop advertising, and we don’t stop prospecting for buyers for our listings.

In fact, much of the work we’ve done the past few months helps us with sales during the typical “Stall” time. Some Realtors take off in the slow months, but this is the time to put the real work in. Championships are built in the off season. This was opening weekend and you can tell which teams put in the work as they were the most prepared for week 1.

When we list a home in September it’s very possible we already have the buyer we obtained in July or August. We have a database of thousands of buyers we’ve worked hard to build up. Some are buying today, some are buying tomorrow, and some next month. We don’t control their time frame, we only control our efforts to obtain buyers for our listings.

Often times sellers will ask us if we have a buyer for their home. Quite often the answer is yes. When we take a listing we bring it back to our team of agents who cross-check our database to see if we’ve got someone for that home. Perhaps we have someone flying in on October 2^nd who matches perfectly. Perhaps we have someone now.

In any event, we market the home too, because even though we may have 3 buyers for our listing the market may have one ready, willing, and able to buy it today. And you never know which buyer will pay the highest price.

Don’t Sweat the Stall

It’s the hard work we put in year-round that enables us to sell homes every month of the year. So we don’t worry too much about the “Stall”. We advise our clients on what the market is doing, and if we’re doing our job at the highest level, perhaps we can shorten our client’s time-frame and power through it for them.

If you’ve got a home to sell, we should probably talk. It’s possible we have a buyer for it, and either way our marketing attracts buyers. If you’re a buyer, we’ve got some great new listings coming to the market in the next few weeks. You can search at www.LeeCountyOnline.com or call us at 239-489-4042

We look forward to working with you! Good luck, and Happy House Hunting!

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Reflection Lakes Open House — Reflection Lakes 3 Bedroom 2 Bath $215,000

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Gate 4 Reflection Lakes

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Affordable Living in Great Neighborhood

Watch the Future of Real Estate September 2016

One of the things we like to study is the SW Florida real estate market velocity. In a snapshot it tells us several key indicators about the state of the local real estate market.

We used this graphic at a recent filming of our Ellis Team Seller’s Club video shoot. Each month we dive deep and share key factors we’re looking at and how they’re affecting various segments of the market.

For instance, the market doesn’t all move at once. Certain segments may lead and others follow. Because it’s a video we’re able to illustrate more than just a graphic or two and 700 words. We can really explain each force and its effect.

SW Florida Real Estate Market Velocity

One of the numbers we look at not on this graphic is Total Dollar Volume. Total dollar volume is down 27.7% in July. Last year Realtors sold $420.4 Million dollars worth of residential real estate. In 2016 was $304.1 Million in July. Two factors contribute to this decline.

First, closed sales were down 17.3% Secondly, average sales price was down 12.6%. That’s a double whammy to the market. While these two numbers aren’t on the velocity graph, it does confirm a few trends on the graph.

Listings are up and new pending sales are down. Now you might ask, if new listings are down 2.5% how is it that overall active listings are up 15.5%? This can be for a number of reasons. Older pending sales could have fallen out and come back on the market. These would not be new listings. And even though new listings entering the market declined, new pending sales are roughly equal to the new active listings. So if any pending contracts fall out, and some always do, it adds to the listing inventory.

Lastly, inventory has been rising. It’s actually down from where it’s been in the last few months, but definitely up over last year.

When you hear the market is up, down, or sideways, it doesn’t tell the whole story. The headline tells one story, but the market may have several stories to tell. Right now there are 3 distinct markets with a possible 4th developing. We have the buyer’s market, the neutral market, and the seller’s market.

In our Seller’s Club video we dive into which segments are in the buyer’s market, which ones are neutral, and which ones are seller’s markets. Knowing where your home stands is important to know. And if you’re a buyer, this is also important information as it dictates how much you can gamble in your negotiations. We’ll be starting up a Buyer’s Club soon so buyers too can see in-depth information.

Whether you’re buying or selling, it pays to understand where the market is today, and where it’s headed. Interest rates and economic events can also influence the markets and we bring you our analysis on those as well.
If you’re a buyer and would like to search the MLS or view neighborhood reports, simply go to www.LeeCountyOnline.com

If you’re a seller, you can find out what your home is worth online, or view the same neighborhood reports. Neighborhood reports show you all the homes for sale, pending, and sold in particular neighborhoods. It also shows you time on the market for each listing, dollar per sq ft calculations, sold dates, and photo galleries of each listing.

Of course there’s no substitute for working with experienced agents who know the market. Our website is for those that wish to do their own research before speaking with a Realtor.

If you’d like to be added to our Buyer’s Club or our Seller’s club, send me an e-mail at Brett@topagent.com and let me know which one. We’ll get you on the list and on your way to receiving these great in-depth monthly video reports.

If you have a home to sell, please call us at 239-489-4042. Ask for Sande or Brett and we’ll be glad go over our marketing and show you why our homes sell faster and for more money!

Good luck and Happy Labor Day Weekend!

Now it really gets fun. We’ve been doing a series of articles on what you can buy at various price points, and today we answer the question, what does $ 1 Million buy in SW Florida real estate market?

We concentrated our search on single family homes but there are some nice condos available in SW Florida in all these prices ranges. None of the listings presented here today are our listings. In fact, in all four articles so far, none have been. We’ve been trying to educate readers on what you can buy, so we’ve hand selected some interesting properties.

What Does $ 1 Million Buy in SW Florida Real Estate Market?

In Fort Myers we found a home listed for just under $1 Million. It is a large 2 story home with over 4,400 square feet of living area. It is located between McGregor and the River and this pool just really caught our eye. There are so many great homes located in this area it was hard to choose. This is a fairly newer home built in 2007 so it was unique.

1 Million Buy in SW Florida Real Estate Market St James City — St James City Million Dollar Home

We found a home in St James City listed for just under $1 Million as well. It has 3 bedrooms, 2 ½ baths and has gulf access with a boat dock right out your back door. You can be fishing some of the world’s best fishing spots in minutes. This home is bay front and has 2 boat lifts.

1 Million Buy in SW Florida Real Estate Market Sanibel Island — Sanibel Island Million Dollar Home

Next we head over to Sanibel Island, home to some of the world’s best shelling. This home is a 4 bedroom, 2 bath home and has excellent rental income. You can enjoy this home for yourself on gorgeous Sanibel Island or you can rent it out and receive close to $70,000 income until you’re ready to call it home. Or you could do both, renting it out and vacationing here. It is nicely decorated and is furnished.

1 Million Buy in SW Florida Real Estate Market Cape Coral — Cape Coral Million Dollar View

Lastly we found a home in Cape Coral priced just over $1 Million by a few thousand dollars. Imagine heading out on your boat in this gulf access waterfront home and when you come back after a great day of fishing or boating you can jump right into your gorgeous pool. That’s living the good life and what SW Florida is all about. This home features 4 bedrooms plus a den and 3 full baths. It is over 3,000 square feet of living area. If you’d like to rent this home you can for $8,000- $10,000 per month.

They say SW Florida sells itself, and it does. Once people vacation or visit SW Florida they’re hooked, but where do you go to find more information and snoop around all the homes for sale?

Simply go to www.LeeCountyOnline.com and you can search like a Realtor. The database includes all homes for sale in the MLS and is updated every 5 minutes, so you’ll know about price changes or new listings hitting the market before other buyers. The key to scoring a great deal is to work with an agent who is knowledgeable about the market and having access to the data.

We provide both for you. If you have a property to sell, we can help with that too. Many buyers must sell a property before they can purchase another. If your property is located in another city, we can find you the best agent in that city.

You can always call us at 239-489-4042 if you’d like to speak with an experienced agent, or search away on our website until you find something that interests you. Our team is here to help you wherever you are in the process, and on your terms. Give us a call, you’ll be glad you did.

The Ellis Team at Keller Williams Fort Myers & The Islands is hiring agents– Read more and see if you have what it takes.

If you read our article on a consistent basis you’ve been hearing about a decrease in pending sales and a potential shift in the SW Florida real estate market. Official numbers confirm a February real estate sales drop in SW Florida.

Nationally existing home sales fell 7.1% in February. Locally home sales were down 12.8%. This wasn’t a difficult prediction to make as we’ve been watching pending sales decline. The good news is we made some adjustments to our listings in reaction to the market and we’ve been able to get many of our listings under contract in March. Regardless of whether the market is up, down, or sideways, understanding the market and making changes can be the difference between success and riding the merry go round awhile longer.

Median sales prices are up 11.8% over last year. They are down 6.95% from January numbers. Average sales prices are down 1.2% from last February and down 31.23% from January. This is why we use median price as a more valid indicator than average price because it’s a more stable indicator and less susceptible to wide variations due to a few large or small sales.

February Real Estate Sales Drop in SW Florida

It does tell an interesting story though. While we hesitate to read too much into one month, we did see a fall-off in sales and prices in February. SW Florida wasn’t alone as the overall US market seems to be affected as well.

We have a new metric to track which is the total dollar volume of the local market. Obviously if sales are down it will influence this number. When prices are rising its not uncommon to see declining sales as less people can afford the higher prices. If you have lower sales you can sometimes make up for it with higher prices, but we didn’t see that this month.

Total dollar volume fell 13.6% in February. We’ll be keeping an eye on this indicator going forward and help you track it.

It pays to know the numbers. If you ask an agent how the market is doing most will give you an honest answer based upon how their own sales are going. Knowing the underlying numbers is critical. If an agent is having a good month or a lousy month it may have no bearing on what the overall market is doing. I would even go so far as to tell agents you’ll have better months if you study the market and take actions for your clients based upon what’s really happening.

New pending sales fell 12.1% in February and new listings increased 14.3%. This tells us March and April sales might not be at 2015 levels either. Keep in mind some January pending sales may get extended into March as new lending guidelines can extend some closings.

Buyers may have a few more choices if new listings keep rising. We have a pretty healthy market, but as of right now, gone are the days when the seller can name the price and the buyer had to comply if they wanted to buy. It’s a more balanced market now and sellers must justify their price. Buyers and sellers are on a level ground in many price ranges with the seller still having the upper hand in a few ranges.

If you’re looking to buy or sell, consult a professional who can guide you through the market, financing, and closing process. We’d be happy to help 239-489-4042 or visit our Free SW Florida MLS Search Site where you can search the MLS for free and do valuable market research.

Good luck and Happy Hunting!

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