Good News! The MLS Links Gremlin is gone. Turns out it was an Internet Explorer 8 issue so I uninstalled IE8, and everything’s working much better, including my computer in general. My good deed for the week is to caution you against installing this system nightmare on your computer. Stick with IE7. OK – enough tech talk. Time to talk real estate and there is a lot to talk about today. Been another busy week around here, with two closings, four new contracts (one of which has already closed), nine new listings and eleven price changes. All that activity brings our total number of active MLS listings in the Cape San Blas, Indian Pass, and C-30 Corridor to 415, up seven from last week, with 160 homes and 255 lots.
We had a house and a lot sell this week; let’s start with the house, which was my price change pick of the week back on March 28th for this bay front home in Cape Breezes which had been $599,000 and was then reduced to the number that did it, $499,000.
That’s like buying a bayfront lot and having the home and dock thrown in for free. This is a nice home, perfect for the boater, fisherman, and photographer!. This spacious waterfront home is move-in or rental ready. Situated on a large lot with 100 feet of frontage on pristine St. Joseph Bay, this fully furnished home comes complete with everything you are looking for in a vacation get-a-way including, a dock, all furnishings, kayaks, bicycles, & an aluminum skiff to catch “the big one.” Large decks to enjoy beautiful sunsets and sea breeze, fireplace, and two spacious living areas make this home perfect for entertaining. Also comes with deeded gulf access with a walkover to the beach just a short stroll away.
The sellers bought it in November 2004 for $800,000 and put it back on the market in June 2006 for $1.15M where it has sat ever since, slowly coming down with the market to its sale price on Friday for $425,000 cash. I’m very familiar with this home as it is on my street and the buyer has really stuck a great deal with this purchase.
Our other sale was a road front lot on Cape San Blas Road which was listed for $121,700 and sold on Thursday for an even $110,000, also cash. This sale is encouraging not just because it’s land for which there has been so little demand during this correction, but also because it was on the market such a relatively short period of time, a mere 84 days, which for this market is lightning fast. This lot was carved from a larger parcel which sold only recently so no property appraiser’s assessed value had yet been established.
Onto our multitude of new contracts, of which there are four including the above-mentioned bay front home, all single family detached homes, three on the Cape and one in Gulf Pines along the C-30 Corridor. Let’s start in Gulf Pines.
This is a gulf first tier 1,634 square-foot, 3-bedroom, 3-bath home with an in-ground pool. The home is being sold furnished and is a good rental property, with a gross rental income last year of over $60,000. At its list price of $585,000 that would cash flow with a cap rate over 6%. Not too shabby. The sellers paid $760,000 for it in early 2005, past the market peak, so they’re going to take a bit of a hit at closing.
Our other two new contracts are both in Seagrass on the Cape, at 220 and 205 Seagrass Circle respectively; we’ll look at 220 first, which is a bank-owned, foreclosed property. It is a 3,049 square-foot, 4-bedroom, 3-bath gulf view home with an in-ground pool built in 2006 as a spec home and has never been occupied. The bank took title to it in December and had it listed at $450,900.
Not quite so sad a story over at 205 Seagrass where this lovely 3,200 square foot, 4-bedroom, 3-bath gulf view home is listed at $629,000 and under contract scheduled to close by June 15. It’s a very nice home, with a private pool, hand scraped dark maple hardwood floors, granite countertops in flip flop kitchen , Corian countertops in bathrooms, bonus room, loft plan, the works. X-Flood Zone. Has a great rental history and income. According to the MLS it has a strong rental history though no actual GRI was noted.
No problem selecting a pick of the week from our crop of nine new listings. What’s not to like about a gulf front place at Seacliffs up by the state park for only $450,000? The views from these homes are truly outstanding. Want proof? Check this out:
I don’t know about you but I could easily get used to that! Here’s the scoop from the MLS notes:
Sunsets are amazing from this gulf front location. Nice wide white sand beach on America’s top rated beach. Living Room, one guest bedroom and master bedroom each have decks overlooking the gulf. You can watch dolphins playing in the surf and enjoy the sound of the waves crashing into shore. Master bedroom has large bathroom and walk-in closet. Two bedrooms are on the second level. Fully furnished and ready for you. Great rental potential.
Equally easy selecting a price change pick of the week from our eleven price changes and it’s one of my faves which you’ve already seen here. I love this 1,724 square foot, 3-bedroom, 3 1/2 bath gulf first tier classic beach cottage over in Money Bayou which goes from an already sweet $449,000 down to $429,000. If you like cottage style you’ve got to see this place. Although it was built in 2004 it has the comfy look and feel inside of a beautifully cared for cottage from the 40’s: white bead boarding, quality period fixtures, built in fireplace, hardwood floors, white windowpane kitchen cabinets, beach views you have to see to believe and a huge covered front porch overlooking the beach. I would live here in a heartbeat. Bonus: it’s furnished fabulously and it’s all yours at closing.
There’s another price change so sweet I’m going to give you a twofer this week. Sorry you missed out on getting in on the ground floor at beautifully appointed, upscale Ovation on the Cape? Here’s your second chance to cure those “woulda, coulda, shoulda” blues.
This lot last sold in late 2005 for $235,000, has been listed for $149,900 and seller says “Move It” this week, slashing the price to $114,900. Look at the location. You’re going to have great gulf and bay views when you build, not to mention access to the gulf front and bay front clubs complete with pools, exercise room and community center. The bike path goes right through Ovation and you’re less than a mile from the state park. The price includes architectural plans by Donofro Architects who designed those Ovation Clubhouses so that’s a huge added value. This is truly a lot of bang for your buck.
We covered a lot of territory today and I like having so much going on. If you want to get in on the action now’s the time to do it before inflation kicks in. Call me direct on my cell, 850-227-5197 or send me an email, [email protected] to explore the available opportunities. Glad we got the links back so you can check out all the details! Thanks for stopping by – I look forward to hearing from you.