Real Estate

During the year 2006, and even more in 2007, seasonal sales slowed down considerably in Spanish Wells, and throughout much of Southwest Florida. The current decline seems to have started following Hurricane Wilma in late 2005, and has been impacted even more by stories from national news agencies, who insist that this area is significantly overvalued. The truth is, there are a large number of properties on the market right now. But, we are seeing almost daily downward adjustments to prices, as anxious sellers do what they can to attract would be buyers. However, we view this as a much needed adjustment to an economy which was producing out of control inflation and skyrocketing prices, for which there was no logical explanation. The market we experienced prior to 2006 most certainly could not have continued as it had.

The fact is, some properties are still selling in Spanish Wells, as evidenced by recent sales reports from both Sunshine MLS and Lee County Tax data. As of the end of 2007, we showed a total of 105 total closed sales in Spanish Wells for the year. (See Chart of 2007 YTD Sales) This means that roughly 9% of all the properties in Spanish Wells sold, even during what was pegged as one of the worst years ever in Southwest Florida's real estate market. While 52 of these represent new product in Marbella from Engle Homes, that's still an additional 53 resale properties since January 1st, 2007. Of these 53 resales, 28 were single family or detached villas, while the other 25 were condos and attached villas. The highest priced sale in 2007 in Spanish Wells was $755,000 for a luxurious single family, and the lowest priced sale was $180,000 for a small two bedroom condo.

As prices continue their freefall, we anticipate a significant increase in sales to be noted soon! So far, there have been four additional closings (3 single family homes and 1 condo) since January 1st of 2008. Scheduled showings are definitely on the increase. The fact remains, pent-up demand increases each month where sales activity is slow, and there are still the many "baby boomers" with dreams of owning property in a lovely gated community, with a brand new clubhouse, and all the amenities that make Spanish Wells such a great place to live.

Lots of families live in Spanish Wells, and not all of them are people! But, for those of you who are, we have provided links to all sorts of information about real estate Inside Spanish Wells which we believe will be invaluable to you, should you not know where else to go to find it. I hope you'll contact me with any needs for additional information that you might have.

Real Estate Associate Broker, Marti Timple with John R. Wood, lives and works in Spanish Wells. She regularly maintains information on all available properties in Spanish Wells. In addition, these updates provide detailed information for pending and recently sold transactions.

Should you have questions on anything pertaining to real estate in Spanish Wells Marti is available to you anytime by simply calling them at (239) 405-1608 or emailing her at RealEstate@TheTimples.com. She'll also be happy to provide you with a complimentary market analysis of your Spanish Wells property anytime! Call her today if you'd like to know how your home compares to others in the neighborhood that are on the market or have sold recently.