Cape San Blas Real Estate Blog

I hope you had a terrrific Thanksgiving with family and friends. It was a gorgeous day here on the Cape, warm and clear. Lots of people here for the holiday, with this traditionally being when our many absentee owners who rent their homes block this week out for them and their families to use. Seems as if everybody had turkey, football and fishing on their minds rather than real estate as there was very little activity, with no sales though we did manage to serve up two new contracts, four price changes, and one new listing. Accordingly, virtually no change in our inventory, moving down by only one to 387, ending the week with107 homes and 280 lots listed for sale in the Cape San Blas, Indian Summer, and the C-30 Corridor market.

  Both of our two new contracts are on lots, the first being this one-third acre first tier  lot on the Cape listed for $109,000. The sellers bought this “X” zone lot in May 2000 for $96,000, and have been trying to sell it since August 2005 when they initally listed it for $750,000. The county has it pegged at $120,000. There are no contingencies to be met so it should close relatively quickly.

  Our second new contract is on this quarter-acre second tier lot nestled among the pines and palms at the Cottages at Indian Summer near Indian Pass along the C-30 Corridor. It goes under contract with a list price of $27,500. The owners have had it since late 2003 when they pcked it up for $50,000. Theystarted tyring to sell it in early 2008 when they listed it for $229,000.  The county’s assessment is way above list at $73,600, but they describe it as a first tier rather than a second tier, so that error may be causing the discrepency.

Can’t really have a “New Listing Pick of the Week” when there’s only one new listing, but from our four price changes I do have a Price Change Pick of the Week. I’m going with this 1.25 acre gulf front lot in Jubilation on the south side of the Cape which was reduced in price from $265,000 to $225,000 as a short sale; that’s well below the county’s assessed value of $315,000. The sellers paid $900,000 for it in late 2004.

That does it for this week. Since this weekend offically kicks off the Christmas shopping season, if you’re considering a place at the beach for that special someone on your list, by all means let me know and I’ll gladly play the part of Santa’s helper to help you find it. You can call me on my cell at 850-227-5197 or text me or send me an email to sherri@sherridodsworth.  Have a great week, and thanks so much for stopping by today.

So far, despite weather.com graphics, Ida has pretty much been a non-event for us here along the Forgotten Coast. We’ve had a bit of rain during the day, and tonight the wind is picking up, expected to peak around 40 knots by midnight which is no big deal. As I write this around 10 p.m. it’s noisy from the wind, but the rain has stopped, and the forecast is only for about a 2 to 3 foot storm surge on top of the expected 1.5 foot high tide around 4 a.m.  We should be just fine.

  Did someone say summer is over? You’d never know it around here as the thermometer seems stuck around 90. While some parts of the country will see their first dusting of snow this weekend, we’ll be heading to the beach which is where I think most of our buyers must have gone this week as they sure weren’t doing much in the way of real estate. After several consecutive fairly active weeks, we had only two closings, no new contracts, two new listings and seven price changes.  Unfortunately what did change was our overall inventory, which continues to creep back up, this time by five, to end the week with 411 active MLS listings in the Cape San Blas, Indian Pass and C-30 Corridor market, with 144 homes and 265 lots. I hope this isn’t a reversal of the downward trend we’ve seen in the inventory since 2007.  We’ll want to keep a very close eye on this.

Interesting that both of our sales were at Barrier Dunes, one a townhouse the other a lot for a single family home. Let’s start with the townhouse which is one of only two one-bedroom units in the complex. It has a very pleasant tropical view from the living area.

This 1,164 square foot unit was built in 1986 and last sold in November 2005 for $380,000. It went under contract with a list price of $214,000 and sold on Monday for an even $200,000, impressively close to the county’s assessed value of $205,668.

If you read this update regularly you’re probably having a deja vu moment about now thinking didn’t I just see this lot? Well, yes and no. You see it here today as our second sale of the week, but you also saw it just last week as one of our new contracts. Talk about a quick cash deal. This bank-owned lot on Lakeshore Drive at Barrier Dunes went under contract with a list price of $220,000 and closed this week for, get this, $99,000. Amazing. It went to the bank in September 2008 with a county recorded value of $314,300, and was originally listed back in December 2004 for $450,000. Old Kes thinks even this $99K was too high; he figures $63,000 would have been closer to the mark.

There may be only two new listings but one of them is an eye-catcher. I like this 3-bedroom, 2-bath, 1,200 square foot lagoon front home on C-30 built in 2008 which enters the market at an affordable $199,000. It seems like only yesterday the lot alone would have sold for more than that. It’s a pretty home with great water views located in a quiet country setting. What a peaceful weekend retreat.

I couldn’t find any gems among our seven price changes worthy of my Price Change Pick of the Week, so we’re not going there today.  I can’t remember the last time we’ve had such a brief update; it’s a trend I definitely prefer not to continue.  Personally I’ve had a very active week showing a lot of property to a number of people which will hopefully turn into some new contracts soon, so there is activity our there, just not any sense of urgency.

I hope you have an active and productive week, and if this is a three day weekend for you, make it count. Get out there and have one last summer hurrah. If you want in on some of the good real estate deals we’re seeing here locally, give me a call on my cell at 850-227-5197 or shoot me an email to Sherri@SherriDodsworth.com. I love hearing from my readers, a group which I’m happy to say is growing to a steady number right now of about 150 daily. Thanks for stopping by today and hope you’ll check back soon.  

  Our brisk pace continued this week with buyers stepping up to the plate and writing offers, and we also started to see some  making it to closing. Overall a very good week, with three closings, two more contracts, only three new listings, and six price changes. Even our inventory returned to trending in the right direction as we end the week with 404 active MLS listings in the Cape San Blas, Indian Pass and C-30 Corridor market, down 4 from last week, with 160 homes and 244 lots.

Our three closings offer a little bit of everything, with a town house and single family home on the Cape, and a gulf front lot at Indian Pass. We’ll start on the Cape with the townhouse at Barrier Dunes.

This is a 2-bedroom, 2 1/2-bath 1,364 square foot interior unit situated on one of the ponds near the back of Barrier Dunes.  The sellers bought it from the developer brand new in 2002 for $187,900.  They have had it on the market since September when they originally listed it for $284,500 but have had to lower the price incrementally since then, finally reaching $218,00, very close to the county’s assessed value of $221,429, and that did the trick. They went under contract on the first of June and closed Tuesday for $204,500.

Next up is another Seagrass sale, this one a 4-bedroom, 3-bath 3,049 square foot spec home which has sat vacant and unsold since it was built in 2006, and which county records indicate the bank took back from the developer last December. The lot alone last sold in July 2005 for $525,000.  The home has been on the market since mid-2006 when it debuted at $1.15M and meandered downward from there but never to a price the market would bear. When Bank of America got it they listed it for $512,900, finally got it to $450,900 in late April and closed on Tuesday for $440,000.

Now out to Indian Pass, almost all the way out to the point, where this 50′ wide bank-owned gulf front lot in the St. Vincent Point subdivision sold for – are you sitting down? – $135,000. No typo, folks: $135,000 as in 2,700 per waterfront foot, or about half of what the last bay front lot on the Cape sold for. These buyers got the deal of the year, especially considering it last sold in July 2005 for $735,000! I’m not sure what the appraisers are going to do with this one but it will be interesting to see play out. The county has it assessed at $308,500. This lot has the most amazing views overlooking St. Vincent Island.

Our two new contracts have much in common: they’re both short sales on Cape San Blas first tier lots and went under contract with contingencies on Friday.

The first is just a bit north of Scallop Cove BP off Tiffany Drive and it has been on the market since October 2005. It’s current list price is $139,000 and from what I can tell from county records it seems to have last sold in mid-2001 for $100,000.  I say that because it has been quit-claimed several times since then and it’s a short sale at $139K. 

  The Seagrass lot has been on the market since January 2008 when it opened  with a list price of $325,000. By the time it went under contract this week that was down below the county’s assessed value of $227,500 to $199,000 as a short sale. The sellers purchased it mid-2004 for $345,000.

I’m just not seeing anything gems among our three new listings and six price changes that makes me sit up straight and pay attention so I’m not going to have a pick of the week in either category this week. I’d like to keep these picks truly noteworthy, so I don’t want to feature something just for the sake of having one.

Unlike last week’s marathon this has been a pretty quick ride. I’m enjoying hearing from more and more of you and welcome your comments and excellent input. If I can help you at all with any real estate or area questions or information please call me at 850-227-7891 or send me an email to Sherri@SherriDodsworth.com . I hope to see you back here, and appreciate your stopping by today.

Saw this on the WMBB Twitter feed tonight and thought it important enough to share in case you missed the mention I tweeted several days ago. Could save you big $$ if you have cars/boats/trailers registered in Florida.

 06/10/09 – 04:14 PM  Allyson Walker – WMBB

You will soon be paying an increase of 100% or more for some fees at the tax collector’s office.
   
The increases were enacted by the Florida Legislature to put more money in the state’s general revenue fund.

During the last legislative session Governor Charlie Crist signed a bill that increases fees for car tags.  Walton County’s Tax Collector is trying to get the word out to residents that if they wait, they may be paying nearly 200% more. 

Walton County residents walk into the tax collector’s office today only to get a message they didn’t expect; you better pay now to save later.  Deputy Tax Collector Cory Gibson says the State of Florida will get the extra revenue, not the local governments. 

Walton County Tax Collectors wanted its residents to know that they can can go ahead and get this year’s rates locked in for two years.

The breakdown of the fee increases shows about a six to twelve dollar increase depending on the size of your vehicle.  For title transfers, you could pay two hundred dollars more for your plate, decal, and registration fee.  If you’re new to Florida and have to change to a Florida license, you also could pay two hundred dollars more after September 1st.

Cory Gibson said that the only mrevenue the local governments actually make comes from a two dollar and fifty cent transaction fee that hasn’t changed since 1983.  So in esssence, all this money is going straight to the State of Florida.  Tax collectors all over the state have gathered to voice their concern.

Unfortunately, the MLS links gremlin is back – the work-around solution I had figured out last week is no longer working. I think it may be an Internet Explorer 8 issue. I apologize for the inconvenience; it will let me email links but not post them online. Go figure. I have people looking into it and hope to have it resolved ASAP. 

Our mini market rally continues along the Forgotten Coast with prospective buyers slowly but steadily making inquiries and looking at property. Our inventory dipped ever so slightly this week, which is a good thing, ending with 408 active MLS listings in the Cape San Blas, Indian Pass, and C-30 Corridor market, down 2 from last week, with 158 homes and 250 lots. We had one sale, two new contracts, and we welcome six new listings (one of which is already umder contract) and six new price tags.

Our one sale was a bank-owned 3400 square foot, 4-bedroom, 3 1/2 bath home on Cape San Blas Road just north of the old Anchor office not listed in the MLS prior to sale, but entered for comp purposes on Monday after it closed last Friday.  According to the property appraiser’s info, the prior owner purchased the home in 2004 for $757,300.  They put it back on the market in March 2006 with a list price of $1.295M but had no takers and lowered the price incrementally down to $950,000 which is where it was when the county records indicate the Clerk of the Court issued a certificate of title deed to the bank. It sold on Friday for  $545,000, 28% less than it’s 2004 selling price, but still slightly above the county’s assessed value of $506,756.  This is a beautiful home; here is an apt description from the MLS notes:

4 BR 3 1/2BA, Spacious Entertainment Home. 3rd level great room/DR/ kitchen has heart pine floors, custom beadboard trim, spectacular gulf/bay views.  Level 2 master suite and 2 bedrooms have private entrances and decks. Ground level includes tile entrance, office, elevator and master suite with private outside entrance. Home has finished garage, in-ground pool, fully irrigated/landscaped/fenced 1/3 acre in the ‘X’ flood zone.

This is a lot of home for the money. Somebody just got themselves a very good deal.

 Buyers were looking for a variety of things, and we ended up with contracts on both a gulf front lot on Indian Pass and a gulf front home on the Cape under constructon. We’ll start with the lot which was a short sale listed for only $199,000. If you’re familiar with Indian Pass, it’s located shortly past where you make the big left curve on the main road.  According to the county records, the seller purchased the propety in March 2005 for $725,000. Since there had been a minor replat done to the parent parcel I checked the clerk’s records to see if maybe this was the price paid for the entire parent parcel, but apparently not as the warranty deed describes just this lot.  So the list price alone is only 27 cents on the dollar of what it last sold for, and even that is above the $174,000 at which the county has it assessed. Amazing. The contract has contingencies so we’ll have to wait and see what the closing date will be and what it actually goes for.

Next up is a mammoth 3,295 square foot,  6-bedroom, 4-bath gulf front bank-owned home under construction on the Cape on Louisiana Lane, in Beachside, the gulf front subdivision seaward of Surfside Estates (next to Loggerhead Grill/Beachcombers Pizza). The tax rolls say the 50′ wide lot itself sold in May 2007 for $867,000; even with the new construction the bank put it up for sale this week with a $449,900 asking price and it went under contract Friday, no contingencies, scheduled to close by the end of the month.  The county has the land valued at an even $300,000.

My pick of the week for best priced new listing is a no-brainer; how can you not go for an 83′ wide lagoon front lot on C-30 for only $49,900? We’re being consistent today in that this, too, is a bank-owned sale with Suntrust having foreclosed on it in January. The lot last sold in June 2004 for $220,000, exactly twice the $110,000 it had sold for just ten months earlier in August 2003.  That was so typical of what the market was doing during that period. Demand was that strong.

I’m not finding anything that can compete with that among our six new price tags. so I’ll hold onto our pick of the week for best new price tag blue ribbon until next week.

The market is definitely starting to move again and I’m hearing it from all areas of the local housing food chain. I had both an insurance agent and home inspector tell me this week they’ve done more business in the past month alone than they have in the previous six.  And it makes sense; when you have gulf front lots back down to $199,000 and lagoon front at $49,900, it’s bound to cause a stir. Now is a good time to buy because the clock is ticking away for inflation to kick into gear with the Treasury presses burning up printing all that money Washington is flooding the market with.  I will be glad to help you locate property that will work well for your particular situation. If you’re interested in an income-producing property, ask me for a cash flow analysis. My direct line to my cell phone is 850-227-5197 or shoot me an email to sherri@sherridodsworth.com . I sure appreciate your stopping by today, and look forward to hearing from you.

This I hated to see. Gracie O’Malley’s, a restaurant in Simmons Bayou open less than a year, showed up in the MLS for sale after posting a closed sign on the marquee earlier in the week.  This place has unbelievable views overlooking the bay from its more than 300 square feet of quality decks off the dining area. The owner, Doc McKay, who has also owned and run the Tradin’ Post out on the Cape since the ’80s, pulled out all the stops when he built this and it was a lovely place to relax after work, especially just now as the weather’s warming up a bit and the days are getting longer.

The food was great, too, with the chef team in the kitchen from Beachcombers days, Mark and Bill. The seafood platter was easily enough for two, and their she crab soup was reason enough alone to justify stopping in.

According to the MLS, the real estate (roughly 2 1/2 acres on 122 feet of waterfront), business, equipment and licenses are all included for the $895,000 price tag.

Another busy, busy real estate week and I have to admit I’m liking this new tempo a lot. No real change in our inventory, down just one, with a total of 419 MLS listings in the Cape San Blas, Indian Pass and C-30 Corridor market, with 159 homes and 260 lots. Plenty of activity, with two closings, three new contracts, six new listings and eleven price changes. I wrote most of this morning’s post Friday afternoon to make sure I could get it out on time – I don’t want to go three weeks in a row posting it past noon on Saturday, but I’m showing property again today starting at 11:30 which is a very good thing.

Here’s another good thing: both of our sales this week were lots so it’s great to see some renewed interest in raw land again.  Both of these are on the Cape, one gulf front, the other gulf first tier.

Let’s start with the gulf front, whch is located on the southern part of the Cape in a platted subdivision named Beachside but which looks like a development only on a plat map as there is no real infrastructure in place i.e. paved road, street lights or whatever. There’s no sales data in the property appraiser’s site as to what it last sold for, but it was listed for $450,000 and sold on Thursday for $291,500. The MLS notes a potentially serious issue with the property which may have been what affected the price, in that it lies entirely seaward of the Coastal Construction Control Line (CCCL) so the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) gets the final say so as to whether or not they’ll grant permission to build on the lot.  I’m personally a bit more risk averse than to put my investment fate in the hands of bureaucratic enviro-weenies. (Before I get deluged with emails telling me I should be more sensitive about zealous environmentalists and not refer to them as “enviro-weenies”, let me assure you I have nothing against enviro weenies, who, for the most part, are pretty harmless. Some of my best friends are enviro-weenies. But government enviro-weenies are an insidious, dangerous, meddling menace, which anyone who lives here or owns property here will readily attest to).

Oddly enough, our second lot sale is also impacted by the location of the CCCL which runs through the gulf front lots in front of our subject sale. According to the listing agent’s MLS notes,

“This lot is not platted as a “GULF FRONT LOT” however it is highly unlikely that the platted lot seaward of this lot will get a permit from the FDEP for building. When the new FDEP maps go into effect then the seaward land will definitely not be buildable by the rules that FDEP has established. X flood zone building area on lot. Located in the premier subdivision on Cape San Blas. Come build your home here and have unobstructed views forever”.

According to the property appraiser’s records, this lot last sold in February ’04 for $350,000.  In January of 2006 it went back on the market sporting a $995,000 price tag (hey, it doesn’t hurt to ask) and has been drifting back down from that statospheric level to a final list price of $375,000, and on Thursday it sold for $323,500 cash.

Our three new contracts are a veritable Whitmans Sampler, with a gulf front home on the Cape, a first tier home off C-30, and a gulf front lot on Indian Pass.

We’ll start at the Cape where this one side of a gulf front duplex which came on the market only last Wednesday as a short sale fixer-upper listed for $250,000 was under contract by Saturday morning. I’ve been in this place and it really does need some TLC and a lot of handyman know-how but at this price someone will be able to afford to do a lot of renovation and still end up with a great priced super gulf front Cape escape. The contract has contingencies so no known closing date yet. This last sold in April 2008 for $519,800.

Next up is this lovely first tier home in Treasure Shores off of C-30 which might look familiar because I recently featured it as a pick of the week when it appeared with a list price of $479,000.  This is a beautiful 1,750 square foot, 3-bedroom, 2 1/2-bath home which fit the bill perfectly for a nice couple I’ve been working with who want to live here when they retire in a couple years. The gulf views are unbelievable, especially from the upstairs master suite.  There are contingencies to be met so no disclosed projected closing date.

Our third new contract is on this gulf front lot on Indian Pass which should also look familiar as it, too, has previously graced these pages as a price change pick of the week when I featured it with its then new price tag of only $269,000. I’m beginning to sound like the Sham Wow pitch guy but really, folks, we can’t do these kind of prices forever. There are some great opportunities out there again and people are finally starting to wake up to that fact and jumping on them.

It’s a pretty small selection of new listings for choosing my pick of the week, only six, but there’s a hands down, no doubt about it winner, a 100′ wide gulf front lot in Gulf Pines for only $395,000, well below the county’s assessed value of $500,000 and way below the (are you sitting down??) $1,225,000 it last sold for in February 2005. Ouch! I think its safe to say this is a short sale. The listing agent says the lender is offering qualified buyer financing and assures that all offers received will have a quick response.  Gulf Pines is a very nice neighborhood and someone is going to get a steal with this.

Now onto our eleven price changes where there are several tasty tidbits worth touting, and so I’ll hand out more than one this week. In fact, let’s make it a trifecta since there are three new price tags that I can’t decide which one is the hottest.

First up is a gulf front townhome at Barrier Dunes, which was $525,000, coming in this week at $449,900. This 1,716 square foot, 3-bedroom, 3 1/2 bath unit (number 172 for those of you familiar with Barrier Dunes) comes fully furnished. She was built in 1985 and needs a little fresh makeup, but put a little lipstick on her (some fresh paint, updated linens, and a few other such cosmetic touches) and she’ll be a dazzler and a real money maker on a vacation rental program. The potential of this home is amazing.

My other two picks are both lots, the first of which is this gulf front lot on clipper Way on the Cape which goes from an already low $319,900 to down to an eye-popping $269,900. That’s not a typo – you read that right. This is a 51′ wide lot in between two nice homes in a western-facing section of beach which has benefited tremendously from our successful beach renourishment program.

And last, but absolutely not least, how about a bay front lot on Cape San Blas for under $200,000? That’s what we have now with this beauty in Eventide on the southern end of the bay, now only $199,000. This is a private and tranquil setting surrounded by all the natural flora and fauna of the Real Florida. Talk about heaven on earth. If you’re into nature and looking for a peaceful, quiet retreat, this is it.

Now’s a great time to get serious about diversifying your portfolio with some retro-priced real estate investments. I think today’s post illustrates just what a variety of truly good values there is on the market right now. Let’s talk about what might work for you. Call me any time toll free at 877-512-9366 or shoot me an email.  Also – we’re heading into our busiest season and if you’re interested in selling get in touch with me so that we can get you on the market ASAP in time for summer buyers. I’m hearing from a lot of my readers and putting buyers and sellers together. I’d love to do the same for you.

 Lots of activity around the Cape this week as spring arrives and with it kids on break from school. Average activity in real estate, with bargain hunters continuing to roam the area sniffing for killer deals. We ended up this week with one sale, one new contract, ten new listings, twelve new price tags, and 13 expired unsold. Magically, with all these numbers, our inventory remains unchanged from last week at an even 390 active MLS listings in the Cape San Blas, Indian Pass and C-30 Corridor market, with 150 homes and 340 lots.

Our solo sale of the week is this gulf first tier 4-bedroom, 3 1/2-bath, 2,097 square foot home located just outside the state park. According to the tax rolls, the seller paid $755,000 for it in November 2004. The county has it assessed at $395,930; list price is $599,000, and it has been on the market since February 2007 when it originally listed for $875,000. It sold on Friday for $575,000.

Our new contract is on a gulf first tier lot in Seagrass on the Cape and I am so glad to see all this recent activity on lots. As you can see in the photo, this one has an awesome gulf view, and because of pending changes in the CCCL there is some question as to whether the gulf front lot seaward of it is permitable for building. It appears unlikely. This lot’s only been on the market for two weeks so someone has jumped on it right out of the gate. Listed for $375,000, it is projected to close by April 17.

Since we didn’t have anything enticing enough to warrant a pick of the week last week from that new crop of listings, I’m going to go with two this week as there are a couple of lots among our ten new offerings that I like.

First up is a gulf front lot for $439,000 on the Cape which, in the interest of full disclosure, is my listing. This is a property for which beach restoration has provided a new lease on life. It is 100 feet wide and the seller has worked out with DEP permittable plans for a 2000+ square foot home with roughly a 50 foot wide footprint. Great location close to Scallop Cove.

My other pick is a 50 foot wide and 750+ feet deep bayfront lot next to Scallop Cove listed for a very attractive $235,000. The property is cleared, pretty level and has buildable X zone area on it. It is located at the southernmost tip of Pig Island for easy bay access to some of the best areas for scalloping.

  You’re going to love my pick of the week from our twelve new price tags; how about a gulf front lot for only $249,000? Wow! Located in the gated subdivision of Curve at the Cape on C-30, it just doesn’t get much better than this. Better move quickly – someone’s bound to snap this up soon. Calle me at 850-227-7891, ext. 109 or email me if you want that someone to be you.

That’s a wrap for this week – let me know if you want info on these or other properties. Also, if you’re considering selling soon, call me this week because we are meeting on Friday to plan our print marketing plan for the summer quarter and if we list your property soon we’ll be able to promote you in that mix. Summer’s the best time for sales so let’s talk.

Spring has arrived here on the Cape just in time for Spring Break, and the weather has been absolutely gorgeous all week with foggy mornings clearing into warm sunny days up in the 70s then into the 60s at night.  There’s even a glimmer of sunshine in the real estate market, with one sale and three new contracts. Our inventory of active MLS listings in the Cape San Blas, Indian Pass and C-30 Corridor barely changed coming in at 390, up only three from last week, with an even 150 homes and 240 lots.  In other activity we have eight new listings, sixteen price changes and four expired unsold.

Our one closing is a gulf first tier lot on Cape San Blas which sold on Thursday for $160,000 but don’t attach much weight to that price because the MLS notes that this is a pre-development price, assignment of original contract, and shouldn’t be used for comp purposes. But we can be encouraged by two things here. 1.  We had a sale and 2. Someone’s planning on bulding, both things we like to see.

Our three new contracts are all on the Cape, and there’s more encouraging news in that two of them are on lots.  There hasn’t been a whole lot of interest in land for a while, so this is very encouraging. We’ll look at the house first.

  Our home is this gulf first tier 4-bedroom, 4-bath 2,176 square foot home built in 2001 with a list price of $599,000.  It is located in San Blas Shores, one of the original subdivisions out here on the Cape, about 3/4 mile south of the state park entrance (adjacent to the north boundary of Ovation). The owners have been trying to sell since September 2005 when they first put it on the market for $1.15M. They’ve been adjusting downward ever since finally dropping it below $600K in early February and that did the trick. There are contingencies to be met, so no posted projected closing date.

 Now onto our lots, the first of which is also a gulf first tier property, this one located on Bonny Dunes Drive about a mile and a half south of the state park entrance in no named subdivision.  According to the MLS notes, it has

73 feet of frontage facing the beach. Direct walkway to beach in place from lot and 10 ft shared dolomite driveway is in place. Faces west for great sunsets. Low density beach – minimal development for 1 mile north. Room for swimming pool.

This property’s been on the market since October 2006 when it entered the MLS for $599,000. On March 4, the sellers changed the price one more time to $249,000 and finally a buyer stepped up to the plate. No projected closing date noted. 

And lastly, we have a lot in my neighborhood on Leeward Street in Cape Breezes, just one mile south of the state park. This is roughly a half acre lot situated on a cul de sac in a very quiet residential area with a greater number of year round residents than most neighborhoods on the Cape. According to the tax rolls, it sold in 1997 for $20,000, so this seller should hopefully be in good shape. The county has it assessed for $126,500 and it was listed for $99,900 with the MLS noting the seller was negotiable on that price.  This lot’s been on the market since September 2007 when it was listed for $375,000. The usual downward tweaking and when the price changed on Monday from $125,000 to $99,900, it went under contract the very next day.

No problem selecting a pick of the week from our eight new listings - how can you not like a large bayfront lot on the Cape for only $199,000, well below the county’s assessed value of $271,50, and which last sold in 2005 for $595,000? This is a bank-owned foreclosure offering. Here are more details from the MLS notes:

This is a huge lot with 108′ of bay front on the North End of Cape San Blas. This 1.3 acre lot is even has an “X” flood zone building area. This lot has already been filled and elevated. The sewer tap has been paid for and previous MLS remarks state that a dock permit was in place prior to foreclosure. This lot overlooks Pig Bayou and a navigable channel is in front of the lot. A home on this lot will have incredible bay views and should have gulf views as well if elevated.

I’m not seeing anything anywhere near as enticing among our sixteen new price tags, so I’m not going to bestow pick of the week honors this week. Maybe next week . . .

That makes it a wrap for this week. Let’s hope the stock market is able to build on its 4-day rally of this past week and maybe start to be the beginning of the road to recovery. There are a lot of highly stressed people among the folks we all come in contact throughout the course of our daily business; never underestimate the tremendous value in offering a warm smile, a kind word, and a bit of encouragement. And if it’s real estate values you’re looking for, (how’s that for a segue?), send me an email or call me at 850-227-7891, ext. 109. Have a great weekend, and thanks for stopping by today.