Since my last article, I have been sitting in my cubby hole waiting for my business cards and blank contracts to be delivered so I could get back to work. They took longer than expected because the printer said he has been extremely busy printing “For Sale” signs for other clients. Nevertheless, I am now fully prepared to go out and take the real estate world by storm. But where are all of the buyers? And what happened to our real estate market in the past six months?
You may recall from my article dated January 1st, 2006 that the general misunderstanding was we had a large inventory, and every reporter and their brother was predicting a crash in the real estate market due to a classic “Buyers Market”. If that wasn’t enough to scare everyone away from buying a piece of paradise, maybe the four increases in interest rates this year would help. Well, at that time we had 190 houses, 174 condominiums, and 61 vacant lots available for purchase on Sanibel. Today, we have 171 houses, 194 condominiums, and 64 vacant lots for sale. These numbers are consistent with the average number of properties we have for sale any given month on Sanibel. At a quick glance, the savvy reader might assume that our market has stagnated, and the Realtors have been answering “Help Wanted” ads in the Island Reporter. However, I am happy to report that since January 1st, 2006, we have sold 127 houses, 112 condominiums, and 13 lots on Sanibel. That is almost one property per licensed Realtor on the island!
At this point, the naysayers from the mainland will inform us that, yes properties are selling, but the prices are coming way down. In fact, most of my buyers who are interested in purchasing in the near future have informed me that they are going to wait because the market has not yet hit rock bottom. “It has to keep dropping because that is what Aunt Edna in Bismarck heard from her stockbroker.” Again, I am happy to report that the average and median prices for ALL houses, condos, and lots on BOTH Sanibel and Captiva have gone up comparing the first nine months of this year to last. In fact, the average sales price of a Sanibel house has gone up over nine percent, while the average sales price of a condo has gone up over 17%. How can this be? “Stop the presses and tell the Realtors not to raise the white flag!”
Sanibel & Captiva Islands are truly a special place in the world. Naples, Fort Myers, and Cape Coral have recently received more attention than the islands for their drastic increases and ultimate decreases in real estate prices. Last year, waterfront properties in Fort Myers were priced at or above comparable properties on Sanibel. This year, Sanibel prices continue to go up while there was an average of 500 price reductions per day this summer for properties in the Greater Fort Myers Multiple Listing Service. The mainland is going through a vicious slow cycle, and the real estate market will turn back around only when the thousands of baby boomers pick up confidence again in the next twelve to 18 months.
Today at VIP Realty Group, however, we can hear the cell phones buzzing through the cubby hole dividers. Faxes are rolling in, and the e-mails are piling up. With no storms this year, construction moving ahead on the now recognizable Sanibel causeway, South Seas ready to roll out the red carpet in December, and the cold front bringing the evening temperature down into the ’80s, we are poised for a busy and exciting “season”. I am so excited, I think I’ll take some of those blank contracts to my Open House this weekend!