Cape San Blas Real Estate Blog

If you’ve driven along C-30 between the Cape and Simmons Bayou lately, you’ve no doubt noticed the inordinate number of survey crews lining the sides of the road.  I’ve had a number of e-mails and calls from folks wondering what’s going on so I decided to check it out.

Turns out there’s two separate projects going on, one public, one private.  Preble Rish has crews over by Country Club Road (just east of Presnell’s) surveying for installation of sewer lines for the new subdivision there, Shallow Reed.

The other crews are further west not far from the old Treasure Bay Lodge which now houses the Buffer Preserve folks.  They told me the Florida Department of Transportation is getting ready to replace the two little bridges along that stretch.  I asked if there are plans to widen any portion of the road but they didn’t know.

Driving 130 miles round trip from the Cape to Panama City hospitals for health care is scheduled to become a thing of the past by Spring of 2009. If you haven’t driven past the community college on Hwy. 98 recently, you’ll be surprised the next time you do as huge swaths of land have now been cleared on either side of the road in preparation for construction to begin on both the new Sacred Heart Hospital and the housing/commercial development to support it.  This morning’s News Herald has a detailed update on the current status.

Time once again for our Saturday week in review of real estate activity in the Cape San Blas market.  Fairly quiet week, with the greatest activity being new listings and price changes.  Only one sold and one new pending.  Our total tally at week’s end of active listings is 568, up 10 from last week’s 558, with the net change being in 10 additional lots, now at 366; the housing inventory remains static at 202.

Our solitary sale this week was once again a townhome in Barrier Dunes.  This 3-bedroom, 3 bath home built in 2003 was listed for just 63 days at $399,000 and sold at 96% of list for $382,500.  This popular community is a place people just love and it’s the only area where we’ve seen with consistent sales activity. 

We always like to see how our Seller fared so let’s take a look. This Seller is a Broker/Developer who, according to Gulf County tax records, purchased the property in March of 2004 for $313,000. So, in 3 1/2 years, he has a rough return of 27%, or, after 3 1/2 years, about a 7.85% annual rate of return.  I don’t know about you, but the best I can squeeze out of my bank right now is 6% and I have to jump through a lot of hoops to maintain that.  Real estate is still a sound investment.

Our pending sale was a detached single family bayfront home with a dock near Rish Park which has been on the market 682 days since November 2005.  This 2188 square foot, 3 bedroom, 3 1/2 bath home built in 1998 has been listed at $899,000 and is scheduled to close by November 23, so we won’t know until then what the actual sale price is.

Twenty-seven properties tried lowering their prices this week to see if they could stir up some new interest.  Most were modest, in the 5-15% range.  Our free-fall winner of the week, thought, the property taking the biggest dive in list price, goes to a lot on C-30 out towards the Franklin County line which dropped a whopping 58%, from $285,000 to $110,000.  Before you choke on your chai latte, the records show the last time this lot sold was in 1996 for . . . $20,000! Let’s see . . . 90% return over 11 years works out to be what? About 8.18%.  Still better than my bank.

Do you have property you’d like to get an estimate on its likely current market value?  If so, give me a call at 850-227-7891 or shoot me an e-mail to sherri@sherridodsworth.com .

Dealing with all the regulatory agencies that control any type of human activity on the beaches, especially construction, is a daunting gauntlet of government red tape.  Right now hundreds of property owners are facing the possibility of the State of Florida deciding on a whim that with the stroke of their pen they might alter a line in the sand known as the CCCL which will render these owners properties unbuildable and hence, unsellable.

The CCCL, according to FDEP Bureau of Beaches and Coastal Systems’ own guidelines, states that the “Approval or denial of a permit application is based upon a review of the potential impacts to the beach dune system, native salt resistant vegetation, and marine turtles”.

So you have to wonder, how in the world did the folks building a house on Haven Road manage to get both DEP and the county to sign off on a house whose pilings are not only seaward of the primary dune line, but almost in the surf itself.  The photos are amazing:

If I owned a lot threatened by the impending possible changes to the CCCL rendering my property both unbuildable and unsellable, I would be in Tallahassee demanding an explanation as to how, in what parallel universe, can they possibly justify denying me a building permit when they have signed off on this? 

My thanks to friend and colleague Dee Mitchell for sending me these photos.  She said she was told by DEP that a law suit has already been filed in this case which begs the question, then why is construction still continuing.  Our beach renourishment program has been stopped in its tracks until a pending lawsuit against it is resolved, so you have to wonder: are the rules different for some people?

One of the contributing factors stagnating our market is the incredible increase in property taxes in the past few years exacerbated by the inequity in taxes between homestead and non-homestead properties. With the vast majority of our properties having absentee owners, this is a major concern here. On Saturday, October 20, Florida’s House of Representatives released its updated property tax reform plan.

House leaders now hope to build a bipartisan consensus to show the Senate they’re serious about drastically cutting state property taxes. If Democrats and Republicans pass the measure with something close to a majority, they reason, the Senate would have to consider the plan.

In addition to portability  - which the governor, Senate and House already advocate - the updated House proposal includes a 5 percent assessment cap on commercial and non-homestead property. The cap applies to properties, not owners, so a change of ownership would not change those taxes under a new owner, giving non-homestead property owners a degree of stability and predictability.

The House also advocates a new homestead exemption. Instead of doubling the current $25,000 exemption, a proposal I have been vehemently against because it’s a proven disaster, the plan would guarantee a minimum Save Our Homes exemption of 40 percent of a county’s median home price. According to a staffer in Jimmy Patronis’ office whom I spoke with, the current figures being used for Gulf County, subject to change of course, would be 40 percent of $138,000 for non-moving, $397,000 for moving, and $428,000 for first time claimants of the homestead exemption. These cuts would provide a net -24.1% change in taxes.  House leaders believe this will provide relief to not only new buyers but also those who have purchased in the past few years.

Issues proposed in the House plan include:

1. Homestead property owners would pay tax based on their existing Save Our Homes value or current value minus 40 percent of their county’s current median home price, whichever is less.
2. 5 percent cap on commercial and non-homestead property taxes
3. Under portability, homeowners may transfer Save Our Homes benefits to a new homestead anywhere in Florida within two years of leaving their former homestead.
4. Tangible personal property exemption of $25,000
5. Limits the authority of local governments to increase property taxes
6. Provides limitations on the assessed value of properties used for affordable housing
7. 5 percent assessment growth limitation for all non-homestead properties
8. More flexibility for the Legislature to limit assessments for working waterfront properties
9. Election of all county property appraisers

The House went into session late Monday afternoon for further debate, so I will keep you posted as I hear of updates.  If you would like to contact our representative, Jimmy Patronis, his contact info is as follows:

Capitol Office:
1102 The Capitol
402 South Monroe Street
Tallahasse, FL 32399-1300
850-488-9696

District Office:
Suite A
455 Harrison Avenue
Panama City, FL 32401-2775
850-914-6300

Two years ago the Cape cocktail circuit buzz was all about development, and everyone you knew had some sort of project working.  It seemed as if everyone you met was involved in developing land in one way or another.  Today it seems developers are so scarce they should apply for protection under the Endangered Species Act.  Where have they all gone?  According to the cover story in this month’s edition of Florida Trend, the answer is North Carolina.  It’s an interesting read so check it out at The Carolina Connection.

Our inventory inched up a bit again this week, reaching 558 active listings in the MLS for Cape San Blas, the C-30 corridor and Indian Pass, with 202 homes (up 3) and 356 lots (up 5).  Once again there were two sales, one home and one lot.

The home was a gulf front townhome at Cape Shoals, located by Cape Palms Park.  It sold for $285,00,  91% of the list price of $312,000, and was on the market 147 days.  The Seller purchased it in November 2002 for $250,000, and the unit rented well, with a gross rental income (GRI) in 2006 of $13,600 and projected 2007 GRI of $12,600.  I’d say our Seller did okay on this one, not great, but still a profit none the less vs. a loss.

The second sale was a lot at Park Point, one of the northernmost developments on the Cape, and this sale isn’t pretty. The lot has been listed since March of this year for $210,000 and sold this week for $119,800 with the Buyer paying all closing costs associated with the sale.  Ouch.  But it gets worse.  The Seller purchased the property in August 2005 for $280,000, meaning he sold it for a 57% loss. You can’t hit a homerun out of the park with every investment.

Lots of price changes this week, 23 in all, and only 3 of those were increases.  Lots lead residential almost 2 to 1, with 15 lots vs. 8 homes trying to see just what the market will bear.  We’re starting to see some attractive opportunities out there.  Biggest movers and now definitely priced to sell is this series of waterfront lots on Indian Pass lagoon, just east of the Raw Bar, which were lowered by over 32% each, from the $289,000 range down to $189,000.

Give me a call at 850-227-7891 or shoot me an e-mail to sherri@sherridodsworth.com if you’d like info on these or any other real estate investment opportunities.

Most people are crying when they ought to be buying, and buying when they out to be crying. Donald Trump was on MSNBC this week in a show called The Billionaire Inside You. He talked about the real estate market as a great investment and how in the ’80s it was so bad in NYC that some of his friends went bankrupt and others lost lots of money, but somehow, although he was bleeding, he managed to hold on. He bought a building in Manhattan then for $1M which today is worth $655M. 

He said the next six months are critical; it may go down more, however, we are almost out of it.  Take a tip from The Donald. If you are thinking of buying BEGIN negotiations now. He advised that indeed people are discouraged by the news, but this is the time to buy if they can overcome the news, and soar for the deals.  Give me a call at 850-227-7891 or shoot me an e-mail to sherri@sherridodsworth.com for the latest info on real estate investment opportunities.

1. Selection. There are over 3,300 properties listed for sale in the MLS in Franklin and Gulf Counties. Regardless of the price range you’re looking for, there are plenty of properties from which to choose. The inventory of homes was at its lowest in May 2004 when there were only 312 homes listed for sale in the MLS.  It peaked this year in June at 1,684, and is currently at 1,526.  Back then buyers were forced to make compromises if they were going to locate the home of their dreams. There is a great selection of attached homes, condos, and townhouses. You can find large lots, small lots, and a lot that will accommodate your boat or RV. There are lots of options in this market.
2. No Multiple Offers. In 2005 one of the greatest challenges Realtors faced was dealing with multiple offers on a property.  Not today.  There is no competitive bidding in this buyer’s market.
3. Offers are Welcome. A few years ago when you made an offer, the only question was how high above the list price did the offer have to be to have the best offer on the table. Today the sell price vs. price ration is about 92%. A seller will not be insulted if you ‘make them an offer they can’t refuse’.
4. It’s ok to be patient. In the hot seller’s market everything was rushed. Find the best investment before other buyers did. Hurry up and make an offer.  Today buyers can take their time. Look at and research a number of properties and think about your decision for a few hours.
5. Due diligence is ok. In this market buyers are encouraged to obtain a home inspection, termite inspection, and appraisal. Not long ago many buyers waived these contingencies in order gain an advantage with multiple offers.
6. There are plenty of builders. In the not too distant past buyers had to ‘play games’ if they wanted to build. Contractors were so awash in work orders, sometimes bidding jobs as much as 18 months out, that cost per square foot sky rocketed to over $250 per sf, and buyers still had to wait.  Today they’re hungry for work again and you can negotiate much better deals.
7. You can request repairs. After a buyer completes a home inspection, they are allowed to submit a repair request to the seller. In the past a seller might insist the home was sold ‘as is’. Many times, there were back-up buyers waiting for a primary buyer to upset the seller whose home was increasing in value almost daily.
8. Fewer competing investors. It is estimated that one third of all sales in 2005 were to investors. These non-owner occupied buyer caused the market to inflate and affordability to decline. It’s a great time to buy without having to compete with hundreds of prospective landlords.
9. Location. Today’s investor can find primo waterfront, water view, water access properties in abundance.
10. Real Financing is back. The ‘wink, wink’ zero down, no doc, adjustable, sub-prime loans are gone. Fixed rates are back. FHA financing, first time homeowner bond programs, special loans for teachers, and police officers are back in business. It’s a great time to buy real estate!

Autumn is finally in the air this week as we take our Saturday look back at real estate activity in the Cape San Blas market. Let’s see what the current inventory is.

As of this morning the total inventory of homes sits at an even 550, up a bit from last week’s 539.  We have 199 homes and 351 lots, and increase of 6 homes and 5 lots.

We had one sale this week and one new contract pending.  The closed sale was a home in Gulf Pines, and the new pending contract is for a bay front home by Rish Park on the Cape. 

Let’s take a closer look at the Gulf Pines house that closed.  It was on the market for 559 days, having been listed originally in March 2006 for a starting price of $1,275,000.  After 6 months, they lowered the price to $995,000 in September 2006. It finally went under contract on September 30 for $898,000, 90% of it’s current list price and 70% of the original list price. 

We always take a closer look at the history in the county tax rolls for a property before we whip out our crying towels for our Sellers, so how did this week’s Seller do? Pretty well, I’d say, since they bought the unimproved 100′ wide Gulf front lot in 1993 for $70,000 and built the home the following year.

I built my home on the Cape that same year and it cost about $70 per sf., so this Seller’s 1,536 sf home probably cost him about $107,520 for a combined out-of-pocket cost with the lot of $177,520.  Using my favorite inflation calculator we can translate that into today’s dollars which would be $238,918.  Subtract that from the sold price of $898,000 and you can see our Seller realized a return of $659,082, or an average of $50,699 per year for the 13 years they held it.  Not bad at all for being able to enjoy the pleasures of owning a beach front home for all those years.

Until next week, if you’re thinking of selling and would like to get an idea of what the market might bear right now, call me at 850-227-5197 or drop me an e-mail at sherri@sherridodsworth.com .  Remember: price it right, and buyers will bite.