The Lee County Florida housing market is on a positive trend. Whether
you are a first time home buyer or you are looking to purchase a second
home, the largest increase in sales is mainly from buyers taking
advantage of the lower pricing and abundance of homes in Lee County to
choose from.

With the average Lee County home sitting on the market for upwards of
120 days, buyers have the upper hand in negotiating final pricing that
is around 90% of the already low asking price. Lee County, with its
world-class beaches, including Sanibel and Captiva Island, Bonita and
Ft. Myers Beach, its international airport with direct flights to and
from Europe, as well as its exceptional university located just south of
Ft. Myers makes purchasing a home even more enticing.

We are getting a lot of potential home owners inquiring about the
bank owned properties in our area. Accordingly, the bank-owned
properties continue to impact our sales and closings.  Since June
of last year, 66% of all single family homes sold listed in the MLS were
bank-owned; of these 64% were cash deals, according to the REALTOR®
Association of Greater Fort Myers and the Beach, Inc.

Home sales continue to rise in our area and in June there were 1,586
homes sold, which is a 121% increase from June 2008. Again, this is an
indication that the Lee County housing market is on a positive trend and
possibly on a more upward spiral. In addition to the always warm
climate and pristine beaches, Lee County offers a relaxing lifestyle
which has consistently attracted second homeowners and vacationers, a
government which is business friendly, accessible beachfront or canal
front properties and median home prices 50% below the national average.
For example, the REALTOR® Association of Greater Fort Myers and the
Beach, Inc. states that in June the median price for all homes was
around $83,000. To date, the median price for “traditional” sales is
$175,000. For the available bank-owned homes the median price is $69,000
and $105,000 for short sales.

According to the Lee County Economic Development, Ft. Myers, Cape
Coral and surrounding areas have acquired the reputation as being some
of the best places to live, vacation or own a second home. With that in
mind, the potential buyers we are seeing are “market watching” which
means they are seeing the growth in our area and are getting more
excited about purchasing a home at an affordable price in an area that
is economically stabilizing at a steady pace. Additionally, our office
is seeing more and more banks working closely with us to process short
sales which coincide with the stabilizing market.

With the steady and consistent economic growth, the affordable and
abundant homes available to buyers, the consideration of the banks and
lenders; it is only likely that Lee County will stay on the positive
trend, steady pace and rising swing we are experiencing now. For more
information on bank owned properties, short-sales, foreclosures and
traditional home buying please contact one of our team members at
239-542-8521 or search for
Cape Coral real estate online now!

Copyright 2009 Florida Future Realty, Inc.