Published CNBC.com Sun, May 5 2019 9:00 AM EDT Emmie Martin@EMMIEMARTIN
Though wages remain largely stagnant for many American workers, there are several cities around the U.S. where incomes are on the rise.
Personal finance website GOBankingRates analyzed 347 American cities with populations of 500,000 or under, looking for places experiencing a combination of economic prosperity, population growth and rising incomes. To rank the top “boomtowns,” or cities that meet these criteria, the site looked at five-year data on population, housing, GDP and per capita income from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2017 American Community and the Bureau of Economic Analysis.
One region stood out: The American South. It claimed nine of the top 30 spots, including the No. 1 location on the list, Naples, Florida.
These cities are good alternatives for people who want to avoid notoriously expensive cities, such as New York or San Francisco, because they “offer incentives, such as a more affordable cost-of-living or a higher paycheck — or both,” GOBankingRates reports.
Below, check out nine growing cities across the southern U.S. where the economy is booming and salaries are on the rise.
9. Richmond, Virginia
Personal income growth, 2012 to 2017: 15%
Population growth, 2012 to 2017: 7.6%
GDP increase, 2012 to 2017: 22.4%
8. Port St. Lucie, Florida
Personal income growth, 2012 to 2017: 18%
Population growth, 2012 to 2017: 9.2%
GDP increase, 2012 to 2017: 21.1%
7. Durham, North Carolina
Personal income growth, 2012 to 2017: 15.8%
Population growth, 2012 to 2017: 11.9%
GDP increase, 2012 to 2017: 14.8%
6. Charlottesville, Virginia
Personal income growth, 2012 to 2017: 17.9%
Population growth, 2012 to 2017: 7.6%
GDP increase, 2012 to 2017: 22.4%
Miami Florida skyline
5. Miami, Florida
Personal income growth, 2012 to 2017: 17.7%
Population growth, 2012 to 2017: 10.2%
GDP increase, 2012 to 2017: 29.4%
4. Raleigh, North Carolina
Personal income growth, 2012 to 2017: 15%
Population growth, 2012 to 2017: 11%
GDP increase, 2012 to 2017: 33%
3. Fayetteville, Arkansas
Personal income growth, 2012 to 2017: 23.4%
Population growth, 2012 to 2017: 10.4%
GDP increase, 2012 to 2017: 37.6%
2. Sebastian, Florida
Personal income growth, 2012 to 2017: 20.9%
Population growth, 2012 to 2017: 9.3%
GDP increase, 2012 to 2017: 23.5%
1. Naples, Florida
Personal income growth, 2012 to 2017: 22.8%
Population growth, 2012 to 2017: 6.8%
GDP increase, 2012 to 2017: 34%
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Resale Values Continue to Rise Despite Increased Competition from New Construction
BONITA SPRINGS, Florida | May 3, 2019 – New construction communities in Estero and Bonita Springs are sprouting up like weeds overnight. In previous years, a main focal point when buying real estate in Southwest Florida was being within a mile or two of the beaches. “Location, Location, Location” is what this is most commonly referred to in the industry, as the resale value on a beach-centric home is increasingly larger than one beyond the sights of the shoreline. Although the resale value of a home is top priority to a buyer when making a purchase, it is not the only consideration. Agents in the SWFL market are finding that buyers are looking towards new construction communities more now than before as homes near the beach do not offer the same rich amenities and square footage at the same price point.
According to the Bonita Springs-Estero REALTORS® (B.E.R.) Media Committee, with reporting from the SWFLAMLS, year-to-date sales in new construction, pre-construction and under construction homes have increased 29.2% compared to this time last year. Consumers are reminded, if interested in new construction, always engage a REALTOR® from start to finish in order to assist in price negotiations, selecting the right lot and upgrades for future resale value.
Besides being able to purchase more home for the same dollar amount and living in new construction, buyers are migrating away from the beach because of the evolving community that is now the Village of Estero. Over the last decade, there has been tremendous growth in the Estero area, from the expansion of Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU) to the migration of Hertz Global Headquarters. This alone, along with the opening of many new businesses, has brought more attention to Estero, therefore pushing for the need to build more homes. According to the Village of Estero website, there has been a 23% increase in households from 2014-2019. In layman’s terms, a large influx of people are deciding to make Estero their permanent residence. In addition to this, the average age of residents is decreasing, making Estero more desirable for families and working professionals.
When deciding where to purchase a new home, Estero is becoming more desirable for many reasons, but one that is critically important to families with young children is the ability to attend Estero schools when residing in the town. Thanks to the Estero Education Initiative, families living in Estero now have priority when choosing a school for their children to attend. Nick Batos, former Mayor of Estero and Councilman, states that “The Village of Estero has entered into a public private partnership agreement with Lee County Schools, serving the Estero students to augment and improve the educational opportunities offered to the students. This initiative will allow for additional educational, recreational and aesthetic experiences for our students while at the same time making Estero even more attractive and desirable for students, residents and business alike.” This creates a huge incentive for those considering the move to Estero as the rest of Lee County does not have priority over their school of choice.
Although the new construction market is an option, the resale market is still on an upturn compared to this time last year. Pending sales showed an increase of 9% from March 2018 as well as a 6.5% increase in new listings coming on the market. “Based on current market conditions, it appears that our REALTOR® members will have a busy summer” remarks B.E.R. CEO, Meighan Harris.
The Bonita Springs-Estero REALTORS® March 2019 Report shows these overall findings for both single-family homes and condominiums combined.
|
Month over Month |
Month over Month |
|
|
March 2018 |
March 2019 |
% Change |
| New Listings |
426 |
458 |
7.50% |
| Pending Listings |
422 |
459 |
8.80% |
| Closed Listings |
347 |
313 |
-9.80% |
| Median Closed Price |
$296,415 |
$299,560 |
1.10% |
| Average Days on Market |
54 |
65 |
20.40% |
|
|
|
|
|
12-Month Ending |
12-Month Ending |
|
|
March 2018 |
March 2019 |
% Change |
| New Listings |
3.543 |
4,926 |
39% |
| Pending Listings |
3,065 |
3,238 |
5.60% |
| Closed Listings |
3,015 |
3,182 |
5.50% |
| Median Closed Price |
$291,000 |
$297,500 |
2.20% |
| Average Days on Market |
62 |
60 |
-3.20% |
|
|
|
|
| *Current Active Listings |
1,857 |
|
|
| *Current Avg. Month’s Supply |
7.6 |
|
|
To ensure your next real estate transaction in the Bonita Springs or Estero market is a success, contact a B.E.R. member by visiting BonitaEsteroRealtors.com.
Attributions given by B.E.R. Media Committee members Ursula Weinkauff, Joseph Pavich Sr., Angela Parker, Chris Maccarone, Becky Jaarda, Michael Fagan and Julie Ross.
*Inventory calculations are based on property listings that exist within the Southwest Florida MLS. Only properties in zip codes 33928, 34134 and 34135 are included. Single-family homes are tabulated with the building design of single family, villa detached or manufactured with land conveyed. Condo units are tabulated with a building design of low-rise, mid-rise, high-rise or villa attached.
The Bonita Springs-Estero REALTORS® Multiple Listing Service (MLS) syndicates to LISTHUB, which distributes to 2,000+ real estate search websites.
Founded in 1966, the Bonita Springs-Estero REALTORS® is a local trade organization of over 950 REALTORS® and more than 150 affiliated industry members. Bonita Springs-Estero REALTORS® is part of the National Association of REALTORS® and Florida REALTORS® and provides its members with a wide range of services designed to educate and empower members and consumers alike through the opportunity to sell or purchase real property. It also provides the public with up-to-the-minute real estate reports, trends and information about the Bonita Springs and Estero real estate market.
###
Released by Bonita Springs-Estero REALTORS®
Jennifer Beeson, Naples Daily News Published 10:00 a.m. ET April 28, 2019 | Updated 10:38 p.m. ET April 28, 2019
The 3-bedroom, 3½-bath home at 325 Gulf Shore Blvd. N., sold March 29, 2019 for $25.5 million.
The quaint three-bedroom, 3½-bath home at 325 Gulf Shore Blvd. N., in Old Naples sold March 29. It last sold in 1987 for $1.275 million.
Built in 1948, the salmon-colored home with teal shutters sits on nearly 2 acres overlooking the Gulf of Mexico with 240-feet of beach frontage.
“For a $25 million dollar lot that’s not the kind of home you would want to live in,” said Kathy Morris, a real estate agent with Downing Frye Realty who found the buyer.
The transaction
William Raveis Real Estate agent John Paul Prebish represented the seller.
Previously the 4,261-square-foot home was owned by Harvey and Anne Shreve, who have died in recent years. The identity of the new owners has not been disclosed.
According to the Collier appraiser website the home is owned by Gulf Shore Land LLC.
Morris, who has been selling real estate in Naples for 20 years, said she couldn’t say what plans the new owner has for the property, but she hinted the home is not in any livable condition.
“It’s not like a fixer-upper,” she said. “You can pretty much guess what they’ll do, no one can live in that home in that condition.”
Tear-down trend
Recently a trend of multimillion-dollar homes being torn down to build new contemporary homes has popped up in the Old Naples and Port Royal neighborhoods and has many locals scratching their heads.
“Compared to some of the others that have been torn down recently, this one isn’t anywhere near in the category that those were,” Morris said. “The other ones are kind of hard for me to understand why they were torn down … those homes were maybe 20 years old.”
The priciest home to ever sell in Collier was torn down five months after the new owners purchased the mega-mansion at 2500 Gordon Drive for $48.8 million last June.
That 10,825-square-foot home sitting on 5.49 acres was built in 1994.
Just two houses down a 6,209-square-foot, Southern-Colonial mansion built in 1986 sat on 2.53 acres. That home sold in January for $22.5 million and was demolished two months later.
“People have their own personal tastes and preferences and don’t want to live with decorating decisions that others made I guess,” Morris said.
To read this article in its entirety and to view photos and related articles go to https://www.naplesnews.com/story/money/real-estate/2019/04/28/quaint-beach-home-old-naples-fetches-25-5-million/3561978002/
Laura Layden, Naples Daily News Published 5:00 a.m. ET May 2, 2019 | Updated 5:20 p.m. ET May 2, 2019
The U.S. Open Pickleball Championships are bigger than ever this year in Collier County, attracting more players and spectators from around the world.
The game is played on a badminton-size court with a hard paddle and a ball that resembles a whiffle ball.
The U.S. Open Pickleball Championships are a win for Collier County.
The county has won economically and socially from the event.
The championships, held at the East Naples Community Park, are bigger than ever this year, with more players and more spectators.
Events kicked off April 27 and run through Saturday, May 4. This year they’ve drawn a field of 2,161 players from 46 states and 15 countries.
More than 10,000 fans will attend to cheer on some of the best players in the world.
“It has put us on the map internationally because this is the U.S. Open,” said Collier County Commissioner Penny Taylor. “It has given us the impetus to build a facility that is just a first-class facility in a part of our town that basically was asleep. We are so grateful to pickleball.”
While the county has made big investments in pickleball, Taylor said they’ve paid off in spades.
“As much as we have given them, they have given back to us. The leadership is just extraordinary. We couldn’t ask for better leadership,” Taylor said.
In its first contract with the county, Spirit Promotions, the organizing group, agreed to hold the championships annually at East Naples Community Park for three years through 2018. The county eagerly extended that hosting agreement another three years through 2021.
“We forged a relationship that we look forward to renewing year after year after year,” Taylor said.
While competition is fierce, the mood is festive at the championships. In fact, the event has been labeled the “biggest pickleball party in the world,” offering a fun atmosphere with food, drinks and entertainment every day.
“We want to be the pickleball capital of the world,” Taylor said. “We’d love it.”
East Naples Community Park now has 58 pickleball courts, with 54 of them configured for use in the tournament, plus the Zing Zang Championship Court, where high-visibility matches are played. All courts were recently upgraded through the county’s Parks and Recreation Department.
“It’s growing, and we’ve made a commitment as a county to keep up with pickleball, and we’re better for it,” Taylor said.
The county has not only invested in more pickleball courts, it also has spent hundreds of thousands of tourist tax dollars since their inaugural year in 2016 to help promote the championships. In the last sponsorship contract, the county agreed to spend $345,000 on marketing for the event over three years.
“It’s really not the birth of pickleball here,” Taylor said. “It’s really the birth of the U.S. Open that Collier County has witnessed and been part of — and that’s the exciting part. We didn’t do it, but we opened our arms to it, so it’s something to be very proud of.”
Pickleball hasn’t just brought thousands of visitors to Collier County, she said, it has brought the community closer together, with more than 600 volunteers stepping up to help out with the U.S. Open championships this year.
The sport and the championships have also improved the quality of life in the community, offering a new way to socialize and stay healthy, Taylor said.
“It’s healthy,” she said. “It’s a wonderfully social game. It’s an athletic game and it’s something that is a lifelong game. That is what is so important. You have generations playing pickleball.”
Read this post in its entirety, see photos, and get related information on https://www.naplesnews.com/story/money/business/local/2019/05/02/u-s-open-pickleball-championships-boon-collier-county/3626095002/
The Naples City Council unanimously approved a proposal Wednesday to replace the shuttered Sears department store and automotive center with a new state-of-the-art luxury movie theater.
“This is a beautiful project and obviously we are all thrilled and looking forward to it being very successful,” Councilwoman Ellen Seigel said.
In addition to the six-screen theater, the proposed project also includes a new facade and entrance plaza at the west end of the mall, which would sit next to the theater. Other planned improvements include adding more restaurants and a bank, along with all new landscaping.
The new theater, CMX Cinébistro, and entrance plaza would be built on nearly 12 acres at 1900 and 2000 U.S. 41 N. The project will cover approximately 71,000 square feet. Sears is currently 152,000 square feet.
The reduction in square footage will result in an increase of 354 parking spaces, according to Greg Wilfong of Kimley-Horn and Associates, the project’s planning and design engineering firm.
Wilfong also said the project has 15 more parking spaces than what’s required by the city’s code, and there’s additional parking available in the mall’s existing parking garage.
But council members still had some concerns.
“Because this is a (planned development) I want everybody to understand that your PD document allows 4.5 spaces per 1,000 (square feet) when normally a restaurant requires 1 space per 100 (square feet) or 10 spaces per 1,000,” Seigel said.
“So your statement that there’s sufficient parking is really based on the PD and not the normal parking that would be required.”
Like he told the planning board last month, Wilfong said the theater is relatively small, which will help mitigate any parking issues. He also said the theater’s staggered movie screening times will prevent any mass influxes.
“It’s a smaller theater, it’s a lot nicer, it’s not your big AMC where you have 20 (screens). This is a much smaller scale theater,” he said Wednesday. “And not all of the theaters will be getting out at the same time, so you’re not going to have 500 people leaving at once. We just don’t believe (parking) is going to be a concern based on our history and expertise on this.”
Vice Mayor Gary Price also noted that the theater will likely be busier at different hours than the rest of the mall, or even the other businesses proposed as part of the project, and that should also help alleviate parking issues.
“I would think the majority of people would go (to the movies) later in the evening … between 6 and 10 p.m. when I don’t know that the mall traffic is that great,” Price said.
The developer is not requesting any variances or deviations from the city’s code; however, city law requires any changes to a planned development, like Coastland Center, to be approved by the planning board and Naples City Council, said Donald Pickworth, the developer’s attorney.
The planning board unanimously approved the project on April 10 with the condition that the restaurants, which have not been finalized yet, not have drive-thru windows.
However, some council members disagreed with that stipulation.
“I think that really ties our hands,” Councilwoman Michelle McLeod said. “I think that when you put a condition like that it deprives future councils from vetting a request in the future.”
Council unanimously approved the project without the ban on drive-thru windows. Council is expected to take a final vote on the project at its May 18 meeting.
Demolition is set to begin by the end of this month with a tentative opening of late 2020.
“We can’t wait to watch the whole series of Avengers,” Mayor Bill Barnett joked.
Read this post in its entirety see artists renderings, and learn more about CMX Cinemas on https://www.naplesnews.com/story/news/local/2019/05/01/naples-council-approves-luxury-movie-theater-coastland-center/3641886002/
