February is typically one of our slowest months on the Cape, but if what we’ve been seeing here this month is “slow”, we’re really going to be smokin’ once the busy summer season rolls around. I went to the office this morning to write this post and ended up instead writing a contract, meeting with several walk-ins and showing property. Loving every minute of it. We have a lot to cover today, as we have four sales, five new contracts (two of which are mine, I’m happy to report) seven new listings and three price changes. Our inventory of active MLS listings in the Cape San Blas, Indian Pass and C-30 market inches down slightly by two to 357, with 131 homes and 226 lots currently listed. Let’s see what’s moving, starting our caravan at the north end of the Cape by the park and working our way southward.
First stop in our tour of sales is this modest little interior home off Driftwood Avenue in Peninsula Estates. It’s a 3-bedroom, 2 1/2-bath, 1,056 place built in 1988 which the seller bought in September 2005 for $325,000, and put back on the market five months later for $425,000 but no joy. It went to closing on Friday with a list price of $189,900, and the buyer stroked a check for $121,000 to make it his own, a pretty good deal as even the county had it assessed at $140,491,
Here’s a little change of pace from what we normally see. The Cape San Blas landmark The Tradin’ Post changed hands on Tuesday. The new owners are members of the family who also own the Gulf Foods grocery store in Mexico Beach, and they have been busily working at getting it ready to reopen all week, working late into the night. Doc MacKay had it listed for some time at $849,000, but took $599,000 for it on Tuesday, a price which included the business name, goodwill, inventory, actual real estate, supplies and liquor license. The building itself is roughly 3300 square feet and it’s situated on 200′ of prime commercial roadfront.
Down the road a bit to Turtle Dunes where this well-appointed 4-bedroom, 4 1/2-bath, 3,120 square foot gulf front home with a list price of $899,900 sold on Monday for an even $800,000. The home was just completed last year and has been on a rental program since then.
Our fourth and final sale is also our lone lot located over near Indian Pass at the Cottages of Indian Summer. This sale was entered into the MLS for comp purposes, meaning it was not one listed for sale, but the agent who facilitated the sale entered the pertinent data so we can have it readily available for market analysis. It’s a 50′ by 200′ roughly quarter acre first tier lot which last sold in August 2006 for $274,100 and is currently assessed for $126,000. On Thursday it sold for $100,000.
The first of our five new contracts is a short sale on a lot in Sunset Pointe adjacent to the state park listed for $69,000, below the county’s assessment of $75,000. It last sold in January of 2006 for $359,000.
A few blocks further south we’re back in Peninsula Estates, this time on the gulf side of the subdivision, where this first tier half acre lot went under contract with a list price of $145,000 and an assessed value of $135,000. The seller has owned it for nearly thirty years, having bought it in 1982 for $19,500. I ran that price through an inflation calculator and learned that what cost $19,500 in 1982 would cost $42,782.25 today, so depending on what we find it actually closes for, this property grew at roughly $3,500 per year, or $290 per month. That’s a nice little ‘annuity’.
Our third new contract is on this corner second tier lot in the high end neighborhood of Ovation which last sold in September 2005 for an even $500,000, and goes under contract with a list of $199,000. It’s not a short sale, but the sellers are highly motivated to sell. No contingencies, and we’re scheduled to close next Friday, March 5.
Our fourth contract is on this 2-bedroom, 1-bath, 585 square foot bay front cottage at Scallop Cove Villas located behind the Scallop Cove BP. This cottage last sold in June 2006 for $200,000 and was listed last February for $249,000. The seller dropped the price to $199,000 around the first of the year and that did the trick. No contingencies on this one either, and we’re scheduled to go to closing by March 21st.
Our fifth and final contract this week is on a 3-bedroom, 2-bath, 1,468 square foot first tier home in Treasure Shores which dropped its list price to a feeding-frenzy-inducing $250,000 which was all it needed to attract a buyer with an offer. It’s a short sale at this price so they’re off to the bank to see what the lender will have to say about it. The sellers bought it for $275,000 in May 2001, and listed it in May 2008 for $695,000.
There is a clear winner for New Listing Pick of the Week among our seven new listings.
If you’re looking for a gorgeous, quality gulf front lot on the Cape for a fantastic price, this is it. It’s located at Sunset Pointe, just outside the state park, and it’s entering the fray as a bank-owned foreclosure at only $250,000. If you want this you need to call or email me pronto because this is going to go fast. It’s 77′ wide and 209′ deep, roughly a third of an acre, and it last sold in January 2004 for $836,000. That owner listed it the following spring for $1.55M. Right now the county has it assessed for $463,240.
What would have been my Price Change Pick of the Week from our three price changes, the $250,000 first tier home on Treasure Drive for $250,000, is already under contract. One of the other two is a price increase, and the remaining one still needs to move a bit.
Well, we finally made it, later than hoped for but complete at last. If you’re ready to buy or sell, get in touch with me. My cell phone is 850-227-5197 and my email address is [email protected]. Thanks so much for checking back – I’ll do my best to be back on track next Saturday. Have a terrific week. Hope to hear from you soon.