Life In Bonita Springs

The real estate market in Bonita Springs and Estero, Florida continues to exhibit strength and resilience, as reflected in the latest market reports for the month of May 2023. Foreclosures are almost non-existent, a healthy number of units sold in the MLS, and a significant proportion of cash transactions, both homebuyers and sellers have reason to be optimistic. In this blog post, we will delve into the key highlights of the May real estate market reports, focusing on the sales statistics, financing trends, and the dominant price range.

Sales Volume and Unit Statistics: According to the May market reports, a total of 336 units were sold in Bonita Springs and Estero, signaling a robust level of activity. This does not include new construction. This figure reflects the sustained demand for real estate in the area and the attractiveness of these communities as desirable places to live. The strong sales volume suggests that buyers are actively seeking properties in Bonita Springs and Estero, contributing to a healthy real estate market.

Cash Transactions and Financing Trends: One of the standout features of the May market reports is the prevalence of cash transactions. A significant 72% of sales were conducted in cash, highlighting the presence of cash buyers who are likely investors or individuals who have liquid funds readily available for property purchases. This statistic showcases the confidence in the local real estate market and the attractiveness of Bonita Springs and Estero for cash buyers.

Conventional mortgages also played a prominent role in the real estate market, accounting for 25% of the transactions. This indicates that many buyers opted for traditional financing options, suggesting a positive lending environment and the availability of competitive mortgage rates. The presence of conventional mortgages further widens the buyer pool, making homeownership more accessible to a wider range of potential buyers.

Dominant Price Range: The May market reports reveal that the largest segments of sales in Bonita Springs and Estero fell within the price range of $400,000 to $600,000. This range demonstrates the strength of the mid-range market, catering to buyers who seek a balance between affordability and desired amenities. The popularity of this price range underscores the availability of quality homes within a reasonable budget, making Bonita Springs and Estero attractive destinations for buyers looking for value for their investment.

Conclusion: The May real estate market reports for Bonita Springs and Estero, Florida paint a promising picture of a thriving real estate market. With a limited number of foreclosures, a robust sales volume of 336 units, and a significant percentage of cash transactions, the market indicates both stability and investor confidence. The presence of conventional mortgages highlights the accessibility of financing options, ensuring a diverse pool of potential buyers.

Furthermore, the dominance of the $400,000 to $600,000 price range suggests that Bonita Springs and Estero offer a compelling blend of affordability and desirable amenities. These statistics indicate that the local real estate market is vibrant, offering ample opportunities for both buyers and sellers.

As the year progresses, it will be intriguing to monitor the real estate market in Bonita Springs and Estero, observing any potential shifts in sales patterns, financing trends, and price ranges. Nonetheless, the current market reports provide a positive outlook, indicating a flourishing real estate sector in these sought-after communities.

The real estate market in Bonita Springs and Estero, Florida continues to exhibit strength and resilience, as reflected in the latest market reports for the month of May. With a notable decline in foreclosures, a healthy number of units sold in the MLS, and a significant proportion of cash transactions, both homebuyers and sellers have reason to be optimistic. In this blog post, we will delve into the key highlights of the May real estate market reports, focusing on the sales statistics, financing trends, and the dominant price range.

Sales Volume and Unit Statistics: According to the May market reports, a total of 336 units were sold in Bonita Springs and Estero, signaling a robust level of activity. This figure reflects the sustained demand for real estate in the area and the attractiveness of these communities as desirable places to live. The strong sales volume suggests that buyers are actively seeking properties in Bonita Springs and Estero, contributing to a healthy real estate market.

Cash Transactions and Financing Trends: One of the standout features of the May market reports is the prevalence of cash transactions. A significant 72% of sales were conducted in cash, highlighting the presence of cash buyers who are likely investors or individuals who have liquid funds readily available for property purchases. This statistic showcases the confidence in the local real estate market and the attractiveness of Bonita Springs and Estero for cash buyers.

Conventional mortgages also played a prominent role in the real estate market, accounting for 25% of the transactions. This indicates that many buyers opted for traditional financing options, suggesting a positive lending environment and the availability of competitive mortgage rates. The presence of conventional mortgages further widens the buyer pool, making homeownership more accessible to a wider range of potential buyers.

Dominant Price Range: The May market reports reveal that the largest segments of sales in Bonita Springs and Estero fell within the price range of $400,000 to $600,000. This range demonstrates the strength of the mid-range market, catering to buyers who seek a balance between affordability and desired amenities. The popularity of this price range underscores the availability of quality homes within a reasonable budget, making Bonita Springs and Estero attractive destinations for buyers looking for value for their investment.

Conclusion: The May2023 real estate market reports for Bonita Springs and Estero, Florida paint a promising picture of a thriving real estate market. With a limited number of foreclosures, a robust sales volume of 336 units, and a significant percentage of cash transactions, the market indicates both stability and investor confidence. The presence of conventional mortgages highlights the accessibility of financing options, ensuring a diverse pool of potential buyers.

Furthermore, the dominance of the $400,000 to $600,000 price range suggests that Bonita Springs and Estero offer a compelling blend of affordability and desirable amenities. These statistics indicate that the local real estate market is vibrant, offering ample opportunities for both buyers and sellers.

As the year progresses, it will be intriguing to monitor the real estate market in Bonita Springs and Estero, observing any potential shifts in sales patterns, financing trends, and price ranges. Nonetheless, the current market reports provide a positive outlook, indicating a flourishing real estate sector in these sought-after communities.

Bonita Springs Estero Florida Market Reports Feb 2023

Happy New Year!  Here's the wrap up of 2023 and some insight into February 2023 as far as the Bonita Springs and Estero Florida real estate market are concerned.  You can read the full report on our blog here or watch the video. Click here to watch video We also recap the conditions of the beaches and condos/homes on Bonita Beach.  The beaches themselves are still closed but the authorities are still working hard getting the coast in order, again. We are updating YouTube regularly so be sure to subscribe to stay up to date on current events, local businesses and things to do.  We mentioned a few videos you can watch. Click the headline to watch the video:

Thinking of buying in Bonita National in Bonita Springs? ✔️the absorption rate & your leverage! 💰
What's it' really like to live in Bonita Springs, Florida?
Find you Home Value In Bonita Springs
Bonita Springs Homes on Land With Acreage

 

Downtown Bonita Springs Calendar of Events

The Downtown Bonita Spring Calendar of events is complete. If you’re local, you can also pick up the calendar in person at Bella Luna Photography at Flamingo Island and Survey Café in Downtown Bonita Springs and For Heaven Shakes in Downtown Bonita Springs, Florida.

Feb 19 2023 - Save the Date!

We are continuing our in-person meetups through season. Come meet your SWFL neighbors plus members of the Bonita Springs Estero Community Forum, our vendors and past and present clients!  We are scheduling the next ice cream meetup, post football season, THIS SUNDAY Feb 19, 2023 at 5pm.  It will be at Heaven Shakes in Downtown Bonita Springs Florida at the corner of Pennsylvania and Old 41 Road. Put it on your calendar! 5-7 pm!

Post Hurricane Ian Home Buying

A few important things to note are that if you are purchasing real estate in the next few months it is imperative that your representation has resources to protect you from both the insurance pitfalls and the potential of hidden hurricane damage. We have great vendors and professional on our team who can help you properly research the property so that you’re secure in your purchase.  We can walk you through the process from search through closing. You can set up a strategy session to get started.  Buying real estate is a big deal and you should have a solid plan before you hit the ground. It will remove a lot of the stress and will help streamline the process.  239-273-7430
 

Gulf access homes for sale in Bonita Springs, Florida

Living the dream in Southwest Florida very often includes boating, fishing and paddle recreation.  The crème de la crème of enjoying water sports is owning a gulf access home in Bonita Springs. As a matter of fact, the nickname of the city of Bonita Springs is “The Gateway to The Gulf”.

Bonita Springs features a variety of waterways that include the Imperial River and tributaries such as Oak Creek, Leitner Creek, Spring Creek and a few tidal influenced waterways. What makes each of these waterways different to boaters and water enthusiasts is the location or proximity to the gulf, the width of  the water way and the depth of the water.  All of these factors also contribute to the value of a gulf access home. Naturally, the deeper the water, the bigger the boat so the bigger the boat, the bigger and more luxurious the home.  To generalize, the closer a waterfront home is the the Gulf of Mexico the higher the price tag. Many of the homes on wider, deeper water are considered luxury real estate. Many of the homes on smaller tributaries may still read gulf access in the MLS but they are only suitable for paddle craft; kayak, canoe, paddleboard.  They price tag would be considerably lower than homes near the Gulf.

There are a variety of gulf access canals off of the Imperial River and Spring Creek.  The canals offer boaters gulf access from their own homes.  Many of the canal homes have boat docks, boat lifts and davits so that vessels can be raised and lowered into the water. The size of the boat is generally limited by the width and depth of the waterway.

Bonita Springs is not a yachting or sailing community. Many boaters in Bonita Springs use pontoon boats, center console fishing boats and pleasure boats.

The most coveted of all gulf access homes is bay front living. At the west end of the Imperial River are Hickory Bay, Fishtrap Bay, Estero Bay. Some may refer to the bays as an intracoastal waterway.  Bay front homes offer the widest views of water, the fastest access to the Gulf of Mexico and some of the most popular luxury homes in Bonita Springs.

To schedule learn more about what gulf access home is the right fit for you, schedule a strategy session, today.  You can also see a list of gulf access homes here: Gulf access homes for sale in Bonita Springs

What's It Really Like To Live In Bonita Springs Florida?

Well, if you really want to know what it's like to live in Bonita Springs, Florida, you should ask people who live in Bonita Springs, Florida. I am a real estate agent in southwest Florida. But I've also lived here since the mid 80s. And when I moved here in the mid 80s, when the population was only about 16 1700 people, I would have never dreamed in a million years that we would become the small city that we are now our population has grown to about 55,000 people.  We have really developed a good portion of what there is in South Lee County, Florida.

Now the Bonita Springs area has grown a lot, especially when you start looking at the eastern end of the Bonita beach road corridor. Now that's where a lot of the new development has happened. Valencia Bonita the Seasons at Bonita, Bonita National, Bonita Landing  and Village Walk of Bonita Springs  plus there are other communities coming onto the real estate market. Every once in a while a buyer or a potential home shopper will say you know we don't want to be “out there” and “out there” really isn't that far. While it is on the outskirts of Bonita Springs. We really aren't on the outskirts of the population as a whole. If you look at Florida as an aerial, as on a map, the population of humans on the coast of Florida is sort of shaped like an hourglass and Bonita Springs is the pinch and the hourglass. So even when people think of the far East side of Bonita as being “out there”. It's really only a few miles across.

We are a small bedroom community we are nestled between Naples and Fort Myers,  Florida. And we also have a smaller community just above us called Estero. The nickname of Bonita Springs is the Gateway to the Gulf and that's because you get to the Gulf of Mexico on Bonita Beach  Road so you just had do West and you will find parking for beaches on both the Collier County side of Bonita Springs and on the Lee County side. If you continue north on hickory Boulevard along the Gulf of Mexico, you will eventually come to Lovers Key State Park. We are one of the few areas in southwest Florida with a dog friendly park we do have dog beach where you are allowed to bring your dogs and you will also see boats anchored offshore in that location.

Speaking of parks Bonita Springs has about twenty-five parks some of them are large parks and some of them are what we call pocket parks or node parks and they are sprinkled throughout the city of Bonita Springs. The city has a comprehensive plan and a great new set of plans that are coming forward for both a revamped skatepark a splash, pad at the community swimming pool as well as an expansion of soccer fields, potentially around the dog park on East Terry Street in Bonita Springs, Florida. In addition two new entrances to Island Park and Riverside Park, and a variety of other undeveloped park land that will be coming in the future.

In addition, the Southwest Florida area particularly Bonita Springs and Estero are a paddlers delight if you are a kayaker, canoer or even a Stand Up Paddle boarder. We have miles of estuary preserves to paddle through. We even have something called the Great Calusa Blueway  which is a marked trail map that you can follow all through southwest Florida all the way to Charlotte County if you so desire. This trail was set aside  and is a beautiful nature preserve strictly for the paddlers.

One of the great pastimes besides going to parks in this area is taking advantage of a lot of the walking trails that we have. Some of them are not even connected to regular city owned parks. We do have some trails here that are part of the Lee County Conservation 2020 project including Flint Penn Strand. In addition, we have been Bonita Nature Place which is on Kent Road and Cullum’s Trail which is a lovely walking path that goes all along the eastern end of the Imperial River. There were a variety of other walking paths. You just need to only look on some of the park maps to find.

At one time Bonita Springs Florida was the tomato capital of the world and now it is probably the golf course capital of the world. Now, at one point or another Naples was getting built out close to the coast so people started moving northward. Major developers came to the area including WCI Communities, Bonita Bay group and many other national builders we have a lot of gated and deed restricted neighborhoods now so that portion of the pie that is not in HOA is rather small in this area. We are mostly gated deed restricted which is a good thing. They also had an influence over the commercial development along US 41 - Tamiami Trail, which led to a very pleasing aesthetic. There's a color paint palette that is sort of like the Mediterranean, tranquil colors, terracotta barrel Thai tile roofs, as well as low signage and underground utilities. They put in lovely ample landscaping so when you drive all the way through Bonita, from Bonita Beach Road to Coconut Road, it is very congruent and appealing to look at.

Bonita Springs has a variety of schools that include elementary schools middle schools, and the newest addition to the Lee County School System. Bonita Springs High School, which is located on the Imperial – Three Oaks Parkway at the intersection of Shangri La Road. The Lee County School system is school choice, which means the neighborhood you purchase your home in does not dictate what school your child goes to. You do have to go through Lee County school system to sign your child up for a school and there does have to be space in that school for the child to be able to go.

A frequent question we get to people who are thinking of relocating to Bonita Springs is what are the hospitals like and are there enough doctors? We've seen a lot of growth in southwest Florida and that has included both bringing in great medical professionals as well as expanding campuses. So now on the border of Bonita Springs and Estero we have a new Lee Health Systems campus, as well. As NCH and a variety of walking clinics medical centers like the Brooks medical centers, plus we are midway between a lot of hospitals in Fort Myers including Health Park, Gulf Coast and the Naples Community Hospitals on Immokalee Road, downtown Naples and physicians regional in East Naples.

As far as shopping is concerned we have shopping in a lot of different plazas. There are a variety of small pocket malls throughout the area but the biggest one in this area would probably be Coconut Point Mall. There are dozens of restaurants and dozens of places to shop. You can grocery shop at the Super Target. We have a Publix nearly on every corner. Usually at just about every intersection there's either a Walgreens or a CVS and sometimes there's both. This is a great place you would not be in a position where you would have a hard time finding specialty food. Even a Whole Foods a few miles away in North Naples, there's a Fresh Market in Bonita Springs and our most recent grocery store in addition the Aldi chain has come to Southwest Florida.

There's something to do for just about every age. person, every type of hobby in southwest Florida, whether you are a golfer, a tennis player, or even if you just want to lay around by a swimming pool, we've got a beautiful temperate climate that is very comfortable most of the year. Our rainy season is in the summer. So that's when we get most of our watershed. That's also when we get some of our tropical storms.  During the winter we have fairly blue skies, almost no rain and a wonderful climate. That's why we are growing by leaps and bounds. If we can help you learn more about Southwest Florida and perhaps relocating to this area, pick up the phone and give us a call. And don't forget to subscribe to this channel. We frequently update with a lot of information about Southwest Florida real estate and also YouTube shorts. Don't forget to leave a comment we do read the comments and respond to them. If we can answer any questions for you about Southwest Florida and Bonita Springs real estate do not hesitate to reach out. 239-273-7430 call/text

Hey friends January 2023 Happy New Year to you I've entered the new year with a little bit of congestion. If you hang in there with me I'll get through some of the numbers at the end of December what we're seeing right now in January in the Bonita Springs and Estero Florida real estate markets. What we did see towards the end of last year is just odd and part of it is because we had a major hurricane go through. We're about110 days out from hurricane hitting the area so it really did upset a lot of buying and selling because the people who were lucky to have homeless to live in may have had to have repairs done. A lot of the people who had severely damaged homes, moved into homes that were secondary homes as rentals. So we just sucked up a lot of the real estate in his area while everybody sort of looked and realized he got back to normal again there's no means we can be a lot of homes have been replaced a lot of the damage has been replaced. We had our last broken traffic light in town fix and what we're seeing right now is a little strive to get back to a regular real estate market.  Click photo to see larger images:

Of course in January here is beautiful. It is freezing cold elsewhere. So here's what we're actually seeing. We're seeing a little bit of a trickle down in foreclosures and short sales. What I'll say about this is I actually went into the tax roll. These are not new (recently developed) foreclosures. These are things that have been years in the making. Investment Companies or lending institutions have held these properties for quite a while some of them did the rehab process. I know of a couple in town myself, even in a neighborhood in which I've lived. I think the bank has owned the foreclosure close to 10 years and it's just rounding the bend and gotten a new roof, painted etc.  I'm looking for that to hit the market. Soon. So there's a lot of stuff still in the market as a foreclosure from the last housing downturn that happened like around the 2010 to 2012 area that those properties are now coming to market. So we are still seeing an occasional short sale it doesn't happen all that often. But when we do see them, you know, it must have really been quite a situation for them to be upside down in the market such as this.

We were to talk about our historical sales. If you look at this graph, we're just kind of even with many other years 2017 and 18. This is all the sales that closed in Bonita Springs and Estero during the month of December going back year over year over year. You can see nothing earth shaking, nothing huge to report. I believe that 209 number would be much much higher if we hadn't had a hurricane just a couple months before. If you can imagine any of the homes that were under contract may have needed repairs to happen in order to satisfy the bank or the insurance company to close them. Plus, during that initial, you know 30 to 60 days after the hurricane. We didn't have anywhere for tourists to stay. Our hotels were at capacity with support personnel, tree service people, emergency responders, first responders, all these folks that came from all across the United States to get our electrical grid back on had to be in our hotels. So we're going to have this little pickup in some odd numbers for a couple of months and some of it is not really any indication of what's going on with the economy or with what you hear in the news. It really had to do with people not being able to be here and not having enough real estate on the market. So the long and the short of what price range actually sold of those 209 units. If you look at this graph, basically that fuchsia, hot pink, the navy blue, and that green section is everything that's 600,000 and under, and that's the lion's share of what we've sold. The more affordable real estate is in the Bonita Springs area, the faster it sells because, of course, everybody's looking for a little getaway or an entry level place to get into the neighborhood. And we're still dealing with that unique phenomenon of not enough rentals to go around. So without enough rentals to go around folks are sometimes at a quandary of just picking up and inexpensive unit. Inexpensive for this area, condo, you know, around $300-400,000 Just to have a place to be this winter so that they can enjoy the warm weather.

Last thing we'll look at is how these properties were paid for. Of course, mostly cash. You know, we're a cash heavy area, we're about 67% cash transactions, follow it up with about 28% of conventional mortgages. We don't do a lot of VA mortgages here so we only see maybe one or two of those go through the system. The same with FHA. The catch with those properties is our most affordable properties here. are generally properties in lower lying areas, older homes, flood zones, or maybe with some latent issues like cast plumbing, or needing a new roof and those do interfere with FHA and VA funding. So it's just not one of those things that we deal with a lot here. We also are not near a base so that makes a big difference with the VA funding popularity. But we do get it from time to time with some of the homes in better condition. That might be a little bit east of 75 perhaps and that fall under the loan limits.

So finally, what are we seeing on a topical view of what's going on in Bonita Springs and Estero, Florida right now we're watching a lot of price reductions happen and honestly they needed to be reduced. There was a lot of sellers that really got big in their britches and unfortunately, I've been in real estate for well over two decades. It's a cyclical thing and when the real estate market gets a little bit easier, you see a lot of new real estate agents come to the market. That's not a bad thing. You know, everybody deserves to start somewhere. However, some of these agents are a little bit thirsty and they do a disservice to their sellers by just making up numbers or agreeing with a number that a seller might have come up with. It's not the best thing for the market and it's a great thing for the neighbor next door that's priced appropriately. That overpriced property does sell other property. So what we're seeing now are people who really are getting serious. We are at mid January and we're watching some of the price reductions of some of these crazy prices that we've seen.  Home sellers are realizing the buyers aren't willing to pay next year's prices and there aren't cars parked out front in the line. But we are not in any sort of a hardship of real estate across the board.

When I did the calculation, the absorption rate for the Bonita Springs and estero area in general. We're at a little over four months of inventory. You know six months is balanced inventory. We still are on the seller’s side. So what does this mean to you? This means to you whether you're a buyer or seller, real estate is super local and you need to be able to do these calculations not only for your neighborhood, but maybe your price bracket or other neighborhoods that are very similar to yours. So that you can really drill down and what you can expect your home to be on market for days on market. So that if you do price ambitiously, you'll know whether or not there's demand that maybe somebody will make an offer or you're just going to collect days on market. Right now when homes that I market, you know 60-90 days people are like what's wrong with that property?  Price cures everything. So you know, pricing your property accurately or even making an offer on a property and understanding what that inventory rate means to for to you for the style of property you're looking at is important. We know how to do that for you whether you are a buyer or seller so we can help you drill down to that number so you know more than your competition, or even the buyer or seller for your property. Let us know! We'd be happy to help you with that. As far as festival season, everything is kicked off well here. There's a lot going on. In downtown Bonita Springs. There's an art show this weekend. And we are also going to plan an ice cream social in mid February. So keep your eyes peeled for that. We'll have an announcement in the next newsletter that we send out as well in the Bonita Springs Estero Community Forum on Facebook. So everybody … happy new year once again. So glad you watch and make it a great year.

Used Car Salesmen vs Real Estate Agents in Bonita Springs Florida

There is a bit of a psychological equivalency between buying and selling car and buying and selling a home. How is that, you’re thinking?

• It’s one of those things that you don’t do very often so it can be foreign.
• The car and real estate market fluctuates with supply and demand. There is no fixed price.
• You may feel out of the loop because you’re at a loss for information and how the procedure works. 
• There is a perception of slick wheeling and dealing and lack of transparency.

I’ll preface this conversation by offering that I have been a real estate agent for twenty-five years and have only sold cars recreationally. That doesn’t necessarily make me better than all of the other agents, it just means that I do have longevity … or I am just too stubborn to quit. I’d like to think I also have a great reputation. So imagine worlds colliding when I volunteer to deliver a leased truck to a car dealership for a past client who is no longer able to drive due to illness. I was doing this to help as the family lives up north.

When I arrived at the Fort Myers dealership, twenty miles from where I live, I asked for “Mike” or “Chip” as I was instructed to do, at the kiosk. It turns out I was talking to both of them. They instantly didn’t know what I was talking about. Perfect, I thought. I gave the elevator pitch of what I was doing and was met with “don’t know what you’re talking about and don’t how to help you”.  I explained the man was incapable of driving again and that they family wanted the lease turned it.  Still nothing. I had another appointment to get to and said I’d be back in touch in a few hours when I worked through whatever the matter was. There are a dozen buildings on the campus of this dealership and I wasn’t going door to door to try to find someone who wanted to help.  After I left, the family placed some calls and lo and behold the details were magically worked out.

I’d be the first to admit that I hate when people hide behind blaming it on “because I was a woman” but I just knew it was that. These old guys didn’t care and they didn’t look at me as a potential way to make money so they basically blew me off instead of asking a few basic qualifying questions about what was going on and how they could eventually help. When I later returned with the key fobs for the vehicle there were a few clean up attempts at the sloppy interactions we had had hours before. Honestly, I really didn’t care and I cared even less  when “Mike” started dribbling his car dealership jargon about “grounding” vehicles, final inspections, and corporate blah blah blah. (I am just a consumer and I don’t care to know how the sausage is made) What he had to say doesn’t matter because I was done respecting the man, what he had to contribute what he had to offer.

When I left I knew there was a component of the vehicle that I still needed to return and I did that part this morning. Job complete. Relationship ended.

The long story short of this awkward story is that every person is a potential sale. (Nobody ever asked me what I drove or if I was interested in their year end specials) Maybe I didn’t need a car that day but eventually I could need a car. That whole experience just rubbed me the wrong way. There was one bright part of the whole experience and was a sales person that worked on the lot and every time of the three times I drove up he walked over to say hello and ask how my day was and walked me to the manager. He acted professional even though he knew I was there turning in a lease for someone else and not buying that day.

That’s is what got me to thinking about the equivalency of real estate to car sales. I feel I have always done a good job of helping home buyers and home sellers but I am going to be conscious of whether I am breaking it down into bit size pieces and also spending enough time with people who may not be immediately buying or selling a home in Bonita Springs.

That is one of the reasons we offer complimentary real estate strategy sessions for buying and selling property in Bonita Springs before we even begin the process. Even if it’s on zoom we will walk a buyer or seller from point A to point B in the process so there are no surprises. It’s such a time saver for consumers and I feel it sets us, as realtors, apart from all of the other real estate agents who came in on the forty-four dollar Groupon special when the market was all low-hanging-fruit. This is actually what we do for a living for decades. We live in the communities we work in and we are also community organizers. Service. Value. Experience.

Listen, I can’t help you buy a car and have it be a great experience but I can help you with real estate and there are a few things you can do as a consumer to help yourself.

• Be transparent about everything and engage.  Let us as your Bonita Springs realtor know how long it has been since you’ve bought or sold real estate so we can help you understand some of the changes in procedure. If you’ve had a bad experience let us know what that was so we learn, too.
• Find out what the supply and demand is for the real estate you are about to buy or sell.  It’s crucial to your success.  How do you know what to list your home at or what price to offer if you don’t understand the real estate inventory and the competition in Bonita Springs, Florida.
• Get more information. Talk through the entire process from start through closing so there are no questions or a clear path for what is expected from you.  This will remove the majority of the stress and anxiety that happens during the real estate transaction. I promise.
• Real estate isn’t about slick wheeling and dealing.  If you are using an experienced real estate agent, with a great reputation, who walks you through the process it will be a win for you. Your real estate agent will also be able to prove, with stats and data, the condition of your real estate market and has an entire team of great inspectors, attorneys, title companies, vendors and contractors it is about as transparent as it is going to get.  There are often unexpected things that happen but they shouldn’t be life altering surprises.
• Last, if there is something in particular that worries or troubles you about a real estate transaction, get it out up front. Let’s talk about that and strategize how to get you the information that will keep you comfortable.

We really do pride ourselves on helping home buyers and sellers have great real estate experiences. If you’d like to talk about how to get started buying or selling and not have it feel like a car dealership experience, give us a call 239-273-7430 We can sit down at a time that is convenient for you and walk through the process from A to Z.

Read also:

Hiring a listing agent in Bonita Springs

Hiring a buyers agent in Bonita Springs

The Post Hurricane Evolution of Fort Myers Beach

Hurricane Ian ripped through southwest Florida in the fall of 2022. It left a path of destruction that many residents had not experienced in their lifetime. The coastal cities of Bonita Springs, Fort Myers Beach, Cape Coral, Sanibel/Captiva and many other barrier island were not only ravaged but, in some circumstances, building sites were wiped clean. Entire buildings were washed away, plus coastlines and the landscape of our communities were forever changed.

In circumstances like this, Americans are strong and rally to help each other. The camaraderie that happens after a storm of this magnitude is amazing to experience. It is the glimmer of hope we all look for in humanity. Everyone comes together and we all look out for one other. We all protect each other and our absent neighbor’s property. We hear vows of rebuilding secretly knowing that it’s not going to be possible in many circumstances. When we’re down and out nobody wants to say the quiet part out loud.

Southwest Florida is about three months out from landfall of Hurricane Ian. The beaches are still closed which is still mind blowing and difficult to process. Many buildings and structures are still uninhabited. Coastal homes and condo buildings are still in process of determining if they are structurally sound and if they will ever be habitable again. This storm was a strong category four, creeping in on cat five, when it hit the coast. The winds battered us but storm surge that Ian delivered was mind bending. In Bonita Springs alone there were homes that took surge in the river basin east of Old 41 Road. It deserves mentioning because it seems the media and political dignitaries seemed to skip right over beautiful Bonita Springs and landed their helicopters where the donors live. Many gulf-access homes, especially those on the Imperial River and bays were compromised. The homes and condos directly on the coastal beaches took the brunt of this beast of a hurricane, however.

Prior to Hurricane Ian, Fort Myers Beach has had an ‘olde Florida’ charm that drew visitors from around the world. The kitschy, older buildings, many from the mid and late 1900’s were built when storm codes and flood elevations were basically non-existent by today’s standards. Many of the structures were built before the Florida Coastal Construction Line of 1978 and the National Flood Insurance program of 1968 and flood elevation requirements have changed dramatically in the last fifty years.

Fort Myers Beach was popular with the locals and visitors alike. Because of the legacy building codes there was a ground level walkability factor between hotels, bars, restaurants and the shops closer to Times Square. Most of the ‘mom and pop’ restaurants and bars were built at or very close to beach level so patrons could walk right out the door, drink in hand, and have their feet in sand. Besides adult beverages, this environment also served up a delicious entrée of people watching, too. Fort Myers Beach was quintessential flip flop, bikini wearing and melting pot of casual beach life. You can close your eyes and almost imagine the smell of salt air, coconut sunscreen, canola restaurant grill exhaust being punctuated with the rev of a Harley electric glide on Estero Blvd. Fort Myers Beach delivered miles of sandy beach with vibe unlike anything else on the gulf coast.

Now, three months later, the boulevard is still dusted with sand at the edge that is reminiscent of drifting snow. There are barricades on the shoulders of the road and the ground floors are washed out most buildings. In fact, there are whole structures wiped away, gone. Many buildings have not been certified by an engineer or had an electrical inspection which are prerequisites for power to be turned back on for habitation. The damages are so extreme that there are condominium complexes that do not expect electrical service to be restored until fall of 2023. Countless structures, both residential and commercial, will be demolished under the FEMA fifty percent rule and this will change the face of Fort Myer Beach.

The ugly truth of rebuilding on the coast of Southwest Florida is that it’s at one of the costliest times in American history to permit, source supplies and develop new construction. The quiet part being said out loud would include that fact that when the properties get rebuilt it will be luxury status, luxury hotel suites and restaurants. The developers may try to replicate a facsimile of the casual beach lifestyle, but it will be done on top of real estate worth millions of dollars and, quite frankly, somebody’s got to pay the vig and that will be the patrons of these establishments.

Immediately after the hurricane real estate started changing hands. Gulf front residential sites are listed in prices ranges from about $2-4 million and, most recently, the land where The Cottage and Shuckers became available for $16M. While there are still going to be proprietors who hang in there and rebuilt, there are legacy properties that will have come down, forced by government regulation and insurance costs. The corporate establishments will have their shingles out before you know it. They’re negotiating in the back ground and trying to cobble together parcels to expand their properties as you read this.

Whether a weekend warrior or a vacationer who flew halfway around the world to enjoy that sandy stretch of Lee County it will be different on the next visit. Southwest Floridians, grateful to be alive, are still licking their wounds and working on getting back to the new normal. For some establishments there will be signs that have the Hurricane Ian “water level was this high” arrow but we would be lying to ourselves if we didn’t recognize that in a few short years visitors will be valet parking their car and taking an elevator up to the “ground floor” to enjoy brunch at the beach behind impact rated, glass railings.

- Chris Griffith

Chris is a SWFL Realtor with decades of experience. She's also a special feature columnist, best selling author and public speaker. Please direct inquires through the website contact link.

Bonita Springs Estero Real Estate Market Report Dec 2022

December 2022 Bonita Springs Insider Report

Bonita Springs Estero Florida Market Reports

Even though we have had a hurricane at the end of September the market has only skipped a small beat.  We are at capacity in housing and hotels in the month of December, already. With the loss of so many private residences from hurricane and storm  surge along the coast and up the river many rentals and homes were lost.  If we were going to get any slack in the real estate market that certainly sucked the air out of the room. We currently have about four months of inventory, to generalize, city wide. It is far lower in  many areas. Click here to  Watch video We also recap the conditions of the beaches and condos/homes on Bonita Beach.

We are updating YouTube regularly so please subscribe to stay up to date on current events, local businesses and things to do.

Downtown Bonita Springs Calendar of Events

The Downtown Bonita Spring Calendar of events is complete. If you’re local, you can also pick up the calendar in person at Bella Luna Photography at Flamingo Island and Survey Café in Downtown Bonita Springs and For Heaven Shakes in Downtown Bonita Springs, Florida.

Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway

Ongoing ...  the “Twelve Days of Christmas” giveaway in The Bonita Springs Estero Community Forum on Facebook is live now and will go through Christmas day! If you’ve participated before, local businesses donate items for us to give away daily in that group. It usually lasts a lot longer than twelve days, too. If you’d like to participate as a business just let us know. Otherwise be sure to join the group so you can participate as contestant starting the first week of December. It’s as easy as guessing a number from 1 – 10,000 on the daily prize!

Post Hurricane Ian Home Buying

A few important things to note are that if you are purchasing real estate in the next few months it is imperative that your representation has resources to protect you from both the insurance pitfalls and the potential of hidden hurricane damage. We have great vendors and professional on our team who can help you properly research the property so that you’re secure in your purchase.  We can walk you through the process from search through closing. You can set up a strategy session to get started.  Buying real estate is a big deal and you should have a solid plan before you hit the ground. It will remove a lot of the stress and will help streamline the process.
 

Marketing Your Bonita Springs home in the MLS

Great update in the local Multiple Listing service. Up to 50 photos per listing is  now allowable!  In addition to the photos the Bonita Springs MLS also allows for two visual tours. It is an ever changing real estate market it has never been more important to showcase your home for sale with multiple photos of the property, the floor plan and surrounding amenities and conveniences.  Home sellers take alert and make sure your property is getting the marketing it deserves! Click to learn more about selling your Bonita Springs home. You can also schedule a home selling strategy session here: Schedule call

We have a few big announcements before we get into market reports! We’ve swung into the fall season and launched a few programs that you might find fun and useful!

Pie Day For Current & Past Clients and Customers

First things first, we have planned Pie Day for past clients and customers on Monday Nov 21 5:30 to 7:30pm. If you’ve purchased or sold real estate with The Griffith Group or are currently working with a team member, your invitation is in the USPS mail. Please RSVP for your pumpkin pie by responding to this email or texting your name and “pie day” to 239-728-7599. Besides pie pickup we will have a few other giveaways. Pie pickup is at the Downing Frye office ​27399 Riverview Center Blvd. Suite 101, Bonita Springs, FL 34134.

Downtown Bonita Springs Calendar of Events

Second, the Downtown Bonita Spring Calendar of events is complete. Those are also in the USPS mail with the pie day invitation (for current/past clients). It’s a large white envelope. I mean large! We ordered a large size calendar this year. If you’re local, you can also pick up the calendar in person at Bella Luna Photography at Flamingo Island and Survey Café in Downtown Bonita Springs and For Heaven Shakes in Downtown Bonita Springs, Florida.

Twelve Days of Christmas Giveaway

Third, we are already organizing for the “Twelve Days of Christmas” giveaway in The Bonita Springs Estero Community Forum on Facebook. If you’ve participated before, local businesses donate items for us to give away daily in that group. It usually lasts a lot longer than twelve days, too. If you’d like to participate as a business just let us know. Otherwise be sure to join the group so you can participate as contestant starting the first week of December. It’s as easy as guessing a number from 1 – 10,000 on the daily prize!

Bonita Springs Estero Florida Market Reports

Even though we have had a hurricane at the end of September the local real estate market has only skipped a beat.  We are at capacity in housing and hotels in the month of November, already. With the loss of so  many residences taking surge along the coast and up the river many rentals and homes were lost.  If we were going to get any slack in the real estate market that certainly sucked the air out of the room. We currently have about four months of inventory, to generalize, city wide.  Entry level pricing (excluding manufactured homes) is $250,000 and that entry level property was a 1 bedroom condo that needed updated. This is a link to the 20 second video about inventory & housing. Watch video We are updating YouTube regularly so please subscribe.

Post Hurricane Ian Home Buying

A few important things to note are that if you are purchasing real estate in the next few months it is imperative that your representation has resources to protect you from both the insurance pitfalls and the potential of hidden hurricane damage. We have great vendors and professional on our team who can help you properly research the property so that you’re secure in your purchase.  We can walk you through the process from search through closing. You can set up a strategy session to get started.  Buying real estate is a big deal and you should have a solid plan before you hit the ground. It will remove a lot of the stress and will help streamline the process.