Mark H. Bickel | Naples Daily News
A Naples home in the Port Royal neighborhood is No. 1 on the list for most expensive single-family property transfers in Collier County from May 1-May 31, 2023.
This home is located at 3773 Rum Row. It has five bedrooms and 6.5 bathrooms.
Even after Hurricane Ian, property values are rising in Collier County.
Following are the Top 10 real estate sales in Collier County recorded for April 2023:
1. 3775 Rum Row, Naples
List price: $29,000,000
Sold price: $29,000,000
Neighborhood/Subdivision: Port Royal
Size: 9,663
Year built: 2002
Days on market: Zero
Amenities: Bayfront, Boat Dock/Lift, Private Pool/Spa, Built-In Grill
View: Bay
See the rest of the list on naplesnews.com
Are you looking for a home in the Naples-Bonita Springs area of southwest Florida? Email or call David@DavidFlorida.com or 239-285-1086.
Home Values Continue to Climb in April
Naples, Fla. (May 26, 2023) – The Naples real estate market enjoyed another month of increased home values driven mainly by another month of below typical inventory levels. According to the area’s top real estate brokers, resale home inventory in Naples this year will unlikely spike to levels we enjoyed before the pandemic. However, since 2019, the number of new listings each month has remained fairly consistent, with most months enjoying an average of between 1,100 and 1,300 new listings. According to the April 2023 Market Report by the Naples Area Board of REALTORS® (NABOR®), which tracks home listings and sales within Collier County (excluding Marco Island), overall inventory increased 64.4 percent in April to 2,868 homes for sale from 1,745 homes for sale in April 2022.
“One factor holding back home sales right now is interest rates,” said Mike Hughes, Vice President and General Manager for Downing-Frye Realty, Inc. “Even though a majority of our sales in Naples are cash transactions, many buyers who own a home up north and want to purchase a home in Naples are having a hard time selling their northern home because the pool of potential buyers that can afford a mortgage at today’s rates is limited.”
Interest rates may also be influencing prospective sellers in Naples who currently enjoy a low interest rate on their mortgage too. In April, new listings decreased 25 percent to 1,116 new listings from 1,488 new listings in April 2022. Though many homes in Naples have doubled in value since 2019, providing sellers with a nice profit to use toward their next home purchase. With a hefty down payment, these sellers can minimize their next home’s mortgage obligation to make monthly payments affordable, even at a higher interest rate.
Interestingly, and according to Cindy Carroll of Carroll & Carroll Appraisers & Consultants, LLC, months of inventory is decreasing in communities off the water and east of I-75; a telltale sign that living in close proximity to the beach is not always a required factor of homeownership in Naples anymore. “In January 2019, Port Royal had 1.3 years of inventory; and today it has 1.3 years of inventory. But in January 2019, the Vineyards had 10 months of inventory; and today it has less than a month.” Carroll went on to add that in some areas east of Collier Boulevard (SR 951) there is less than four months of inventory.
As a result of slow inventory gains this year, pending and closed sales activity simmered slightly in April compared to March. Pending sales decreased 18.4 percent to 1,123 pending sales from 1,377 pending sales in April 2022, and closed sales in April decreased 24.2 percent to 947 closed sales from 1,250 closed sales in April 2022.
While the April report revealed 1,128 price decreases occurred during the month, Hughes said, “some price negotiating is happening, though low ball offers are not a good strategy in today’s tight inventory market.”
The report also showed the area’s overall median closed price is not increasing by double-digits each month anymore. In April, the median closed price for single family homes increased 3.1 percent to $825,000 from $800,000 in April 2022. But it’s a different story in the condominium market, where the median closed price increased 14.3 percent in April to $526,000 from $460,000 in April 2022.
The NABOR® April 2023 Market Report provides comparisons of single-family home and condominium sales (via the Southwest Florida MLS), price ranges, and geographic segmentation and includes an overall market summary. NABOR® sales statistics are presented in chart format, including these overall (single-family and condominium) findings for 2023: 
Find your home in southwest Florida! Contact David at David@DavidFlorida.com or 239-285-1086.
Diana Biederman | Naples Daily News
…with idea that began on Bonita Beach
What if we just stayed on vacation forever?
It’s something that many of us fantasize about, but this meditation on life was inspired during a Bonita Springs snowbird season decades ago, leading to the birth of Tommy Bahama.
Although Tommy’s not an actual human, the behemoth Floridian lifestyle brand encompassing products ranging from fashion and home furnishings to food and tropical cocktails is celebrating its 30th anniversary in 2023.
The founders’ first foray was menswear, hitting store department stores in 1993.
Two years later, what was initially planned as the company’s first standalone retail store changed when a real estate opportunity in Olde Naples proved irresistible.
The brand’s CEO, Doug Wood, credits Barbara Walker of Neapolitan Enterprises for igniting an idea in 1995 when two of Tommy’s co-founders, Tony Margolis and Bob Emfield, wanted to open their first retail store.
It was Margolis, Emfield and their wives who were inspired on Bonita Beach years ago to create the brand.
The gents thought 1,000 square feet, but Walker showed them a space eight times that size.
The result? Two shops, one for menswear, a second for womenswear, both sandwiching what would become the brand’s first-ever restaurant.
From Naples to a National Presence – read the story on Naples Daily News
Contact David to find your home in the Bonita Beach area of southwest Florida. David@DavidFlorida.com or 239-285-1086.
Mark H. Bickel | Naples Daily News
It’s one of the least looked forward things to do in life: pay the bills.
Usually, it happens only once a month if that is any consolation. And these days things have gotten a little less painful thanks to online banking. But the bottom line is whether you still write out a check and put it in the mail, or if you pay be some kind of automated transfer of your money, the bills like the mortgage or rent, auto loans and utilities must be paid!
Doxo, a third party bill pay service that enables consumers to pay and manage all their bills in one location, released a report in May providing data and rankings for 200 towns and cities Florida and who pays the most in household bills and who pays the least.
Naples is the No. 62 most expensive city in Florida for household expenses, according to the doxo report. Naples bills are $1,583 per year higher than the US average.
The average Naples household pays $2,178 a month, for the 10 most common household bills compared to the state average of $2,112 and the national average of $2046.
The household expenses in Naples, on average, are 6.4% higher than the national average of $2,046, and 3.1% higher than the state average of $2,112.
Naples households spend 35% of their income on household bills.
Breaking the numbers down even further, the doxo report showed what Naples households spend per month on specific bills.
Here is the list:
- mortgage ($1,814 per month)
- rent ($1,510)
- auto loans ($522)
- utilities ($365)
- auto insurance ($263)
- mobile phone ($120)
- cable and internet ($99)
- health insurance ($88)
- alarm and security ($77)
- life insurance ($73)
What about the rest of Florida? Read on Naples Daily News
Contact David to find your home in southwest Florida. David@DavidFlorida.com or 239-285-1086.
Dave Osborn | Naples Daily News
…the Sunshine State remains among the most desirable places in the country.
Fourteen Florida cities made the new 2023-24 list of the 150 “Best Places to Live in the U.S.” that U.S. News & World Report released Tuesday.
Other highlights:
Florida is home to four of the top five “Fastest Growing Places” and four of the top five “Safest Places.”
Sarasota was ranked No. 5, again leading the state as the top place to live. Naples was the only other Florida city to make the top 10, at No. 6.
6. Naples is ‘retirement spot for the rich, powerful’
In the Know: Built in 2014, this Naples beachfront residence at 25 16th Ave. sold for $62 million on June 30, 2022, setting a new Collier County record.
This long-ago sleepy fishing town jumped to No. 6 this year from No. 12. Naples also ranked as the No. 1 safest place. Last year, the magazine referred to Naples as “a preferred retirement spot for the rich, powerful and cold-averse,” with “pristine beaches, sprawling golf courses, and fine dining and shopping. Naples, the 2023-24 list said, jumped into the Top 10 because of its “high desirability score,” meaning the city scored well as a place where people want to live, based on SurveyMonkey polling in March…which ranked Naples #1…for places to live in the U.S. by Scholaroo, a nonprofit educational research company and scholarship website engine.
Read about the other cities on the list.
Contact David to find your home in this great place to live – Naples, Florida. David@DavidFlorida.com or 239-285-1086.
Laura Layden | Naples Daily News
The iconic Ritz-Carlton, Naples will welcome back visitors this summer.
Shuttered since Hurricane Ian, the hard-hit resort on Vanderbilt Beach has announced a reopening date.
It won’t open in time for Fourth of July, but within days of it. The date of its return: July 6.
With its reopening, the resort will debut more than a few changes. And it’s hiring again, after laying off nearly 600 workers.
The coastal property was in the midst of a multimillion-dollar renovation when Ian hit in September, forcing an unexpected closure and triggering hundreds of layoffs.
With 474 rooms and suites, the resort promises to be bigger and better, as it ushers in a new chapter.
Upgrades include the new Vanderbilt Tower, with an expansive new club lounge and more than 70 club-level guest rooms.
Get all the details, read the full article.
Contact David to find your home in southwest Florida. David@DavidFlorida.com or 239-285-1086.
