Look Closely for Florida Mortgage Deals in Lee County
There’s no arguing that this is a tough time to be in the real estate business. Inventory is up, sales are down and Florida real estate agents are finding themselves with way more free time than they’d like to have.
But some say there is good news to be had if you look closely enough.
Steve Braunstein spent 13 hours earlier this summer analyzing south Lee County housing market sales data for February, March and April of this year. He didn’t include mobile home sales or vacant lots that were sold after a house was built on them.
His findings: Most people who sold their home after owning it for five years or longer walked away with money in their pockets.
“Is it a good time to sell? Not if you bought 12 months ago. But if you bought it five or six years ago you can make money,” said Braunstein, who sells homes for Real Estate 9 in Fort Myers and also started writing Florida mortgages for HomeBanc four months ago. “And people thinking about buying need to remember that instead of waiting around for some sort of bottom, if they buy now and stay in a home for at least five to seven years they’re going to make money.”
The data, based on the sales of homes in the Estero and Bonita Springs areas, shows that of the 62 home sales that closed in February, all but six showed a profit. The average gross profit was $209,258.87 and the average length of time the home was owned by the seller was 6.07 years.
In March there were 115 closings, with all but 11 being sold at a profit. The average gross profit in March was $153,791.99, and the homes involved had been owned by the seller for an average of 5.04 years.
In April there were 94 closings, seven of which sold at a loss. The average gross profit was $133,778.19, and the average length of time the seller owned the home was 4.69 years.
Skewing the average gross sales price upward slightly in February and again in March were a couple of houses that were sold at an extraordinary profit. For example, a Bay Creek Drive home purchased for $400,000 nearly 12 years ago sold for $2.5 million, creating a gross profit of $2.1 million.
Still, during the three months there were 271 closings, and all but 24 of them closed at a gross profit. Not bad for a supposedly slow Florida housing market.
Braunstein showed the data to fellow Realtor Joe Pavich Sr., who said it illustrated what he already knew, and something sellers should consider.
“People have to understand that if they bought for $150,000 several years ago and had it listed for $450,000, and now in order to sell they have to sell for $350,000, they did not lose $100,000,” said Pavich, owner/Florida mortgage broker of Realty World in Estero.
Of course, making a profit under that scenario assumes the seller didn’t use his home equity “like a debit card” a few years ago when Florida mortgage rates were at historic lows and property values were at historic highs, he added.
Between 2001 and 2005, homeowners across the nation and in Southwest Florida dipped heavily into their equity for home improvements, vacations and other purchases.
Jayson Matthews walked away from his Fountain Lakes home with money in his pocket a month ago. The 37-year-old Estero man bought his 1,600-square-foot house with a pool and a lake view six years ago and paid just under $200,000 for it. Once he decided to sell, it was on the market for eight months, first at $420,000 and then progressively lower. It sold at $350,000.
“We all have the dream of making a lot of money on a sale, but you have to be realistic, and I was happy with the way it went,” he said. “It’s all relative. If the market is low when you sell it means the next place you buy is probably going to be low, too.”
Another bit of good news is this: Even in the current market, certain properties, like those in particularly desirable communities like Bonita Bay; and properties that are unique in their square-footage, lot size or both, are being shown, and in many cases, selling, Pavich said.
And Realtors say buyers are out there — they’re just hovering until they feel confident the market has reached bottom.
“My impression is there’s a huge pent-up market of buyers out there, but they’re all waiting for the media to say something positive before they jump in,” said Wes Brodersen, broker and president of Exit Gulder Real Estate in Bonita Springs.
Brodersen believes much of the blame for the current market belongs on the shoulders of the media.
“I’m beginning to believe the media actually has an agenda with this,” he said. “The market we’re in now started two years ago, but I’ve been reading about it for three years. Can you say self-fulfilling prophecy?”
SOURCE: The Naples News
