Like most of the country, Florida’s Forgotten Coast is freezing this morning, 28 degrees at day break, and there were large patches of ice on my car port when I left for the office. It may be freezing outside but our real estate market continues to sizzle, with two sales, four new contracts, three new listings and six price changes this week. We end the week with our total inventoryof MLS listings in the Cape San Blas, Indian Pass, C-30 market at 357 (128 houses and 229 lots).
Both of our sales were bank-owned first tier lots at Ocean Haven on the Cape – somebody’s year started off on a bright note as they picked these up for only $130,000 each, despite their list prices of $169,000 and assessed values of $181,500. There are good views of the gulf from these high and dry properties, and they’re in the coveted X zone. Not a bad size, either, measuring 65′ by 215′ or roughly a third of an acre each. These are lots the developer of Ocean Haven was unable to sell, so there is no pertinent previous sales data.
Our new contracts were on two houses and two lots. Let’s start with the houses.
First up is this gulf view townhouse at Barrier Dunes which goes under contract with a list price of $287,500. It’s a 3-bedroom, 3 1/2 bath, 1,845 square foot home built in 1985 which the sellers purchased in 1999 for $150,000. They put it on the market last May with an asking price of $320,000. Their current list price is closer in fact to what the county has it valued at, which is $276,945.
Our second contract is one we’ve seen here before – it’s a 2-bedroom, 2 1/2 bath, 900 square foot Key-West style house on a first tier lot in Money Bayou, listed for $315,000. The views from this home are outstanding. It was built in 2002, and first debuted in the MLS with a $675,000 price tag. The county seems to think that tag should read something more like $205,736. We shall see.
Our next two contracts are on Cape San Blas lots, one gulf front, one bay view.
The gulf front lot is a bank owned 50′ wide property south of Scallop Cove last sold in late 2004 for $675,000 and currently listed for $220,000, well below the county’s assessment of $304,440. The buyer made a cash offer with no contingencies and the deal is scheduled to close by Monday the 11th.
Our fourth and final contract is on a half-acre bay view lot in the Cape Breezes subdivision located a mile south of the state park entrance. The seller bought it in mid-2004 for $275,000 and listed it in 2007 for $499,000. It’s currently listed as a short sale at $115,000, just a smidgen below the county’s assessment of $126,500.
I am midway through writing this and our MLS has gone down. Frozen up, perhaps??? Hopefully it won’t be for long but being a weekend . . . I’m going to post what I have finished so far and when it comes back online I’ll add the links and post my Picks of the Week, but I don’t want to not post an update at all. I hope you’ll check back. Keep warm!