NAPLES, FLORIDA (June 4, 2009) — According to John R. Wood Realtors, there is a renewed
interest among buyers in the luxury home market as sales of properties priced above $1 million
become more prevalent. After seeing sales in this sector considerably drop off late last year, the Wood Company reported increased activity in 2009, with 74 sales so far this year. While the majority of the sales are between $1 and $4 million, two were well above $10 million, and several are in the $5 to $10 million dollar range.
There is no denying that strong buyer activity exists throughout the low end of the real estate
market, but with bargains to be found all along Southwest Florida’s coast, the luxury home
segment in Naples, Bonita Springs and Estero is coming back to life. Sunshine MLS shows homes priced at $1 million and up drawing little activity during the third and fourth quarters of 2008, reporting less than 120 pending sales during each quarter. However, first quarter 2009 saw a signifi cant increase in pendings within this sector with Sunshine MLS reporting 184 units became pending sales.
When compared with the same time last year, pendings still fall a bit short from the 250 total of
fi rst quarter 2008, but the increase is promising, in part because a good portion of the sales
occurred after the traditional “end of the season”. Neighborhoods to note include the affl uent
area of Port Royal which has suddenly sparked motivation among buyers as 10 pending sales
were reported during April 2009 alone. This even surpasses the number of pendings back in
April 2005, when the market was considerably stronger. Even Bay Colony, a million-dollar-plus market that has been reporting one pending sale monthly since mid-2005, recently shows two and sometimes three pendings per month.
Regardless of price, it is important to note that residential pending sales are at their highest
levels in four years. In April 2009, 1,441 units went pending, a signifi cant increase over the
same time last year which had 929. In fact, since November 2008, pendings have constantly
increased every month.
John R. Wood Inc., Realtors has eight offices throughout Collier and Lee counties and
approximately 300 agents. After 50 years in business, this oldest major Naples real estate
firm still focuses on legendary customer service, innovative marketing, and superior use of
emerging technologies.
Reprinted from Florida Weekly, June 11th
No comments:
Post a Comment