It’s been the busiest week in real estate we’ve had since I started this blog almost a full year ago so we’re just going to jump right in and get started, because there’s a lot of territory to cover. Yes! ’bout time.
The total inventory of active listings in the MLS is down 3 to 452 in all, with 178 homes and 274 lots. The big news is we have a one-week record six new contracts, two sales, thirteen new listings, eighteen listings sporting new price tags, and seven expired unsold.
Our two sales have a lot in common: both are interior lots, under $95,000 and with gulf access. One was in Peninsula Estates on the Cape, the other in Waters Edge out on C-30.
The Peninsula Estates lot was listed in May for $99,000 and touted itself as the lowest priced lot on the Cape. It quickly went under contract in mid-June and closed on Monday for $93,000. Not bad considering the sellers bought it in 1998 for $45,000. I’d be happy with more than doubling my money in just 10 years. Well done.
How did our Waters Edge sellers fare? They’ve been trying to sell it since September 2006 when they listed it for $145,000, have reduced the price incrementally before finally reaching $110,000 just a few weeks ago, and closed this week for $80,000 with the buyer paying all closing costs outside the sale price, including the commission. Since they only paid $60,000 for it in 2002 they did ok, too.
Our six new contracts offer up an interesting mix, with three waterfront lots, two townhouses and a gulf front single family home. Let’s take a look at the lots first.
We saw this 116′ wide gulf front Cape San Blas lot when it came on the market at only $3,700 per waterfront foot, and was subsequently dropped below $3,500 per waterfront foot. The sellers bought it in June 2004 for $460,000 and when it went under contract this week the list price was $399,000.
No surprise here – the bank-owned lagoon front lot for $50,000 that caused such a stir weekend before last went under contract on Monday with a projected closing date of late October. I am dying to see what this goes for.
The third lot under contract this week is this acre-plus bay front property located in Heron Bay just south of the old Treasure Bay Lodge over on C-30. The sellers paid $575,000 for it in February 2005 and have had it listed since mid-2006, originally for $835,000 but down to $299,000 before going under contract on Friday.
This 2-bedroom, 2 1/2 bath 974 square foot gulf front Cape Shoals townhouse last sold in June 2005 for $310,000 and has been listed since January of this year for $309,900 and finally went under contract on Tuesday. There are contingencies to be met so no indication as to its projected closing date. This property will benefit nicely from the beach renourishment program.
Next up is this 2-bedroom interior end unit at Barrier Dunes with a list price of $299,000 when it went under contract on Tuesday. The sellers bought it in August ’04 and put it back on the market in April ’06 for $379,000. It’s scheduled to close by September 1.
Our sixth and final contract this week is a gulf front, 2700 square foot, 3-bedroom, 3 bath circa 1990 home in Secluded Dunes on Cape San Blas. The sellers bought it in September 2006 for $1,695,700 and listed it in March of this year for $1,048,000, or 62 cents on the dollar. There are contingencies to be met so no closing date scheduled as of yet.
Nothing truly eye-popping among our thirteen new listings this week so let’s move to our eighteen price changes. Although it’s going to be tough to top that $50,000 lagoon front lot from two weeks ago, my picks of the week are two bay front properties on the Cape that caught my eye, one lot and one cottage, each with docks and, ironically, both broker-owned.
We’ve seen this lot before when it changed price to $299,000; this week it goes to $279,000. It’s a 55′ wide lot on the waterfront and according to the MLS it is roughly half an acre. This is a good section of the bay, just south of Rish Park, and you should be able to get a flat to shallow-V boat in and out at mid to high tide.
My second pick is a 575 square foot, 2 bedroom, 1 bath bay front cottage located behind Scallop Cove reduced this week to $279,000. My husband and I used to own the one next door so I know these cottages rent like crazy and are very popular with guests, many of whom return year after year. The dock is a huge draw, and the fact that the cottage was totally renovated in 2003 adds to the attraction. In the interest of full disclosure I should note that we sold ours in December 2006 for $256,000 but, hey, it was Christmas and we got caught up in the spirit of giving.
Whew! We finally made it. Let’s hope this kind of activity keeps up. If you’d like more info on these or other properties please give me a call toll free to 877-512-9366 or shoot me an email to [email protected] . Thanks for stopping by this afternoon – come back soon.