February Was A Solid Month for Cape Coral Real Estate
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High-season has brought good news for the SWFL real estate market. Home prices rose from February 2023, and most importantly, inventory dropped significantly from the decade's high number in January. The charts below are most encouraging for our local market.
On the caution side, insurance and property taxes continue to be buyer’s major obstacles. I expect insurance prices to ease up as several new insurance companies are gradually entering the state later this year.
Cape Coral February 2023 vs. February 2024
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Feb 2023
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Feb 2024 |
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Cape Coral |
375 Sales $503,000
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376 Sales $522,000 + 4 % |
Lee County February 2023 vs. February 2024
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Feb 2023
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Feb 2024
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Lee County |
1048 Sales $579,000 |
951 Sales $580,000 + 0 % |
Inventory: Available homes for sale in the Cape dropped from 10 monthssupply in January down to a more neutral 7 1/2 months. This was a strong indicator.
Cape Coral Gulf Access Homes: Jan = 61 Gulf Access Sales, Avg Price: $915,000
Feb = 73 Gulf Access Sales, Avg Price: $970,000
Cape Coral $1M+ Homes: Jan = 17 $1M+ Sales, Avg Price: $1,526,000 Highest: $3,420,000
Feb = 27 $1M+ Sales, Avg Price: $1,500,000 Highest: $3,300,000
Notes: Although the Cape Coral home prices were only up by 4% from last February, it was a significant hike from December’s low price point of $454,000. I expect prices to remain above the $500K mark for the foreseeable future. Lee County’s prices in Feb were neutral from last Feb, but also up from the low point of $547K in December.
Note the significant jump in C.C. sales of both Gulf-Access and $1M+ home sales, a traditional spike each high season.
Cape’s Crystal Lake Park Has Broken Ground
Rendering CapeCoral.gov
The $9M park project in Northwest Cape Coral broke ground on February 23. Construction is expected to take approximately a year (Spring of 2025) and will offer a new beach and much more. Cape residents are excited about the new park.
Features of the park will include:
ÕA beach surrounded by a 45-acre lake ÕRestrooms
ÕPicnic shelter ÕScuba diving area
ÕSun shelters ÕFitness stations
ÕHill overlook ÕA boat launch that connects to canals
ÕA kayak launch that connects to canals ÕPaved parking stalls
ÕBoat trailer parking stalls ÕA 10’ wide multi-use path
ÕA 6’ wide walking path ÕAn emergency boat launch
ÕGrass parking spots ÕOverflow parking area
Fla. Ranks 2nd Best Small Business State
SimplifyLLC: Florida ranks No. 2 as the best state for entrepreneurs and small businesses in the U.S. in 2024. Coming in just behind Texas, Florida was No. 1 for net influx of educated workers, No.6 for job creation (12.7% increase), and No. 15 for consumer spending, which rose by 3.4%.
The study considered six key factors to determine the rankings of states and their level of small business development, including corporate tax rates, inflation, migration of educated workers, new business formations, job creation and consumer spending. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, more small businesses were launched in the nation in 2023 than ever before, with 5.5 million new small businesses created last year.
Lisa & Jenna: We’ve always known that Florida is a wonderful place to live, but it’s also a great place to start a small business. We see new business start-ups almost every week in our area.
Sales of $100M+ Homes Are Skyrocketing
Sales of homes that exceed $100M are skyrocketing, with Florida taking a leading spot in megadeals. In the last four years, about 24 homes nationwide sold for $100 million or more, which is 20 years after the first $100 million home sale.
The number of megadeals in the U.S. has significantly increased, as the median sale price of luxury homes rose 75% to $1.14M in 2023, according to Redfin. Between 2011 and 2020, 19 homes sold for $100 million or more, compared to 22 megadeal homes sold between 2021 and 2023. Tom: I’m showing my age by admitting that I’ve been in the business so long that I actually remember when a million-dollar home was a very big deal. Now that's simply a starting point in many communities.
Facts & Stats and Tom’s Musings
30% of FL. Homes Fully Paid Off, Above U.S. Average: In Florida, housing costs as a percentage of income with and without a mortgage stands at 21% and 10%, respectively. Nationally, just 27.7% of owner-occupied homes are paid off.
Are New Starter Homes Becoming Smaller? As home affordability continues to challenge buyers, builders are now testing the market for smaller, more affordable homes - some just 400 square feet. So-called “tiny houses” are popular among retirees and minimalists who are looking to simplify their lives while still owning a home. In the last five decades, home buyers are increasingly couples without children, singles and empty nesters, rather than families with three or more children.
Florida’s Single Women Lead in Homeownership: More than 14.5% of homes in Florida are owned by single women, compared to 10% by single men, according to Axios. Florida has the fifth-largest share of single-women homeowners in the nation.
Lego-Style Bricks Used to Build Apartments: Interlocking bricks made from recycled glass, recycled plastic, resin and stone have been used to construct 100 apartments in Palm Springs, Ca. Eight weeks and 11 people were all that were needed to complete the apartment project which was finished off with traditional stucco. The only tools required were a rubber mallet and a glue gun, and the materials are rated to withstand a Category 5 hurricane.
Wall Street Sees a Solid Year for Homebuilders: According to the Commerce Department, sales of new homes rose nationally in 2023 for the 1st time in 2 years, up 4.2% from 2022. Housing market trends are shaping up in favor of a solid 2024 for U.S. homebuilders – as long as mortgage rates don’t jump back to the highs they hit late last year.
*Life Changing Events That Move The Housing Market
*Why Pre-Approval Is Even More Important in 2024
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