Is it really November already? 2022 continues to fly by as we get an extra hour to maybe slow down just a little this weekend. The feds announced the fourth consecutive three quarter point interest rate hike this this week, as we’re now seeing rates as high as they’ve been since January of 2008. It’s important to keep in mind that our rates have been historically low since 2009, and while rising rates will no doubt continue to affect the our real estate market, our current rates are still not cost-prohibitive for many buyers. We are also still seeing a decent number of cash buyers in our second home market. While activity has slowed considerably since our thriving spring and early summer, we are still in what experts term as a nuanced sellers’ market, with limited inventory and fewer buyers. On to our local market update, quite a few expired listings and price reductions to report this week on Cape San Blas, Indian Pass and the CR/SR 30-A corridor, along with a few more new contracts almost keeping up with our new listings. Here we go with a quick review of the 4 recorded sales from the past 7 days:
- 147 Mirador Way – This new construction Truland Home is located in the popular Villa Del Sol subdivision on the south Cape, which features beach and bay access, a community pool and pickleball courts. It’s another unfurnished spec home with 5 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms and 1,803 sq ft living space which lasted 7 days on the market before going under contract and selling for the full asking price of $834,900 with assumed financing. The builder purchased this Gulf view lot from the latest Villa Del Sol developer in January of this year for $165,000 and immediately started construction.
- 197 Cape Pointe Drive – Our next recorded residential sale also comes from the south Cape in the Club At The Cape condo association, which was built in 2006. This Gulf front end unit # A1 was sold fully furnished with 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms and 1,404 sq ft of living space. Features include great beachfront views, a community pool, boardwalk to the beach, common ground parking and storage. This attached unit came on the market in early October asking $769,000, went under contract after 6 days, and it just sold for $753,250 cash. The seller purchased this condo 10 years ago as a bank-owned property for $235,000.
- 0 Secluded Dunes Drive – The first recorded vacant lot sale this past week comes from the Secluded Dunes gated community on the north Cape. This first tier lot (one behind beachfront) has nice Gulf views, a nearby deeded beach access, and measures 0.55 acres. The vacant property came on the market asking $359,000 in July of 2021 and went under contract 18 days later. After over 1 year in probate, the vacant lot just sold this week for $345,000 cash, which is up from the $55,000 the selling family paid back in 1998.
- 7757 Cape San Blas Road – Here’s another first tier vacant lot sale from the north Cape, this one measures 42′ in width, 0.19 acres in the Cape Estates mini-subdivision. This Gulf view cleared lot has deeded beach access via a community boardwalk with utilities in place, and it was on the market for 124 days asking $249,000. The property just sold directly from the developer for $230,000 with conventional financing, and the online tax records do not show how much the developer paid for the original larger Gulf to Cape San Blas Rd parcel before subdividing.
There were 3 new contracts executed between buyers and sellers in our comparative market in the past 7 days, 2 residential properties and 1 vacant lot. 6 more sellers reduced asking prices, and our inventory dipped slightly with the end of October marking an expiration date for 12 listings no longer on the active market (10 lots and 2 homes). 5 fresh new listings were added to our inventory this week, which brings our total counts to 42 residential properties for sale and 107 vacant lots on the market for all of Cape San Blas, Indian Pass and the CR/SR 30-A corridor.
Another busy and beautiful Indian Summer fall weekend on the Forgotten Coast, be sure and check out the 59th annual Florida Seafood Festival in Apalachicola on Friday and Saturday. It’s also the first weekend of November, so the Salt Air Farmer’s Market will be back in Port St. Joe on Saturday morning. I’ve also heard there are a few good football games worth checking out. Have a good one in the meantime, and please let me know anytime I can help, (850)899-8765 or [email protected].