Hurricane Ian Failed to Upset Naples Housing Market’s Resilience Naples, Fla. (October 21, 2022)
The impact of Hurricane Ian, as witnessed on the last two days of September, is not reflected in the September 2022 Market Report by the Naples Area Board of REALTORS® (NABOR®), which tracks home listings and sales within Collier County (excluding Marco Island). Given this, September’s data showed a predictable pattern of slow closed and pending sales with a slight increase in inventory, which is traditionally the case in historically stable Septembers. While the report captured activity prior to Hurricane Ian’s arrival, broker analysts who reviewed the report on October 18th are confident Naples’ recovery will be swift and the resiliency of its home values will be protected.
“There is indeed significant loss, yet the full scope of [the hurricane’s] impact was limited to a specific area along the coast and tributaries [in Collier County],” said Budge Huskey, CEO, Premier Sotheby’s International Realty. “Such an event always brings with it a rebuilding boom, and most people will make the decision to restore and improve rather than exit the area. It’s remarkable how quickly progress is being made each and every day.”
Mike Hughes, Vice President and General Manager for Downing-Frye Realty, Inc., added that “Unlike Hurricane Irma, Hurricane Ian was not a severe wind event so roughly 80 percent of the county was not severely affected except for landscaping debris cleanup.”
Not surprising, several broker analysts said there has been an increase in buyer interest for homes in communities east of U.S. 41 since the storm. Adam Vellano, a Naples Sales Manager at Compass Florida, remarked that, “Some homes have been withdrawn from the MLS, some have been terminated, but there’s also been a steady flow of new listings in these last two weeks.”
Obviously, some properties in Naples that experienced damage from the hurricane will come off the market because they will need to be assessed by insurance adjusters and undergo repairs. But unlike harder hit Lee and Charlotte counties, very few properties in Collier County were destroyed.
A considerable number of businesses and properties that experienced the storm’s surge were swift to recover. Major area attractions like the Zoo, popular restaurants and golf courses have already reopened. Vellano added, “If you visit our popular shopping districts today, you’d be hard pressed to recognize we had a major hurricane event two weeks ago.”
Indeed, our county’s hurricane building code standards and quality craftsmanship by local builders helped to greatly reduce the amount of major structural damage in the area. Additionally, drainage improvements to the City and County’s stormwater infrastructure and new flood prevention management ordinances attributed to Naples’ quick recovery efforts.
Read the full September 2022 Market Report
David will be happy to help you find your new home in the Naples area. Contact David at David@DavidFlorida.com or 239-285-1086.
August Report Shows a Healthy Housing Market
Naples, Fla. (September 23, 2022) – Indications that the Naples area housing market is transitioning to a balanced market became more evident during August as both inventory and days on the market increased. According to the August 2022 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 71.3 percent to 2,140 properties from 1,249 properties in August 2021. Of the homes on the market during August, 35.8 percent of them (766) experienced a price decrease and the overall list price received for the month slipped slightly to 96.4 percent from 99.2 percent in August 2021. Broker analysts say these factors are attributed to seller and buyer behaviors that resemble a healthy market environment.
While overall closed sales for August decreased 36.7 percent to 669 from 1,057 in August 2021, it increased 5.6 percent compared to July’s closed sales. Historically, closed sales and pending sales (homes under contract) in August do not outperform July’s closed and pending sales. But this year is different. “Pending sales in August
increased nearly 20 percent [19.2%] compared to July,” said Bill Coffey, Broker Manager of Amerivest Realty Naples. “This means that people wrote more contracts in August, but we will be tracking to see if this becomes a trend.”
Jeff Jones, Broker at Keller Williams Naples, commented, “There are many opportunities for buyers. The market is healthy, inventory is up, demand continues and prices are realistic. Also, with rents skyrocketing, the option to buy is more desirable.”
The overall median closed price continued to increase in August, up 30.7 percent to $575,000 from $440,000 in August 2021. “There were only 31 single-family homes and 79 condominiums under $300,000 on the market during August,” said Mike Hughes, Vice President and General Manager for Downing-Frye Realty, Inc. In August 2019, there were over 1,400 properties on the market under $300,000. But with so few available in the lowest price category today, Hughes remarked that “we should expect the median closed price to continue to stay high as long as the high-end market continues to stay very active.”
While looking at new listings reported in August, Molly Lane, Senior Vice President at William Raveis Real Estate, commented that, “We are on par with new listings compared to pre-pandemic levels in August 2019.” There were 850 new listings in August, a 16.9 percent decrease compared to 1,023 in August 2021. Jones responded that “buyers should be aware that new listings don’t just come from new sellers entering the market, but also from existing inventory where the home’s list price was decreased or from sales that were pending but fell through and went back on the market.”
The NABOR® August 2022 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 2022:
Click here to read the full August 2022 Market Report
Get in touch with David for all your real estate needs in southwest Florida – Email or call David@DavidFlorida.com or 239-285-1086.
July Home Sales Return to Prepandemic Levels
Naples, FL (August 23, 2022) – Naples housing market experts reviewing the July 2022 Market Report by the Naples Area Board of REALTORS® (NABOR®), which tracks home listings and sales within Collier County (excluding Marco Island), confirm the data reflected familiar activity levels akin to prepandemic summer months. Historically, closed sales in Naples during summer months trend around 800 sales a month. But during the last two years, summer sales were well above 1,000 closed sales a month. This July, overall closed sales decreased 43.4 percent to 662 closed sales from 1,170 closed sales in July 2021. For perspective, in July 2018 and 2019, there were 774 and 829 closed sales, respectively. The current level of activity is what market experts expected in a postpandemic summer and consider it a sign that we are on a path back to a balanced market.
Additional indications in the July report that support this shift is the number of pending sales. As such, overall pending sales decreased 33.8 percent to 751 pending sales from 1,135 pending sales in July 2021. The tempering of closed and pending sales, which began in June, is producing one very welcome result: an increase in inventory. In July, inventory rose 87.6 percent to 2,429 properties from 1,295 properties in July 2021 (there were 5,200 properties in inventory during July 2019).
Starting in the fall of 2020 and continuing into this past spring, the Naples housing market experienced remarkable sales activity that was fueled by a frenzy of home buying by those seeking the ideal Naples lifestyle. However, as pandemic pandemonium diminished, broker analysts predicted a slow, gradual return to a balanced market would occur in Naples.
Market experts reviewing the July report say buyers should not expect home values to drop dramatically. While year over year price growth is trimming, demand is still high, and inventory is still not at prepandemic 2019 levels. The median closed price in July increased 16 percent to $545,000 from $469,950 in July 2021; it decreased 9.8 percent from $604,000 in June.
The NABOR® July 2022 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 2022: 
June Real Estate Market Shows Signs of Balancing
Naples, FL (July 22, 2022) – Data reflecting activity in the Naples area housing market during June showed signs of a return to pre-pandemic summer activity when market conditions were balanced. According to the June 2022 Market Report by the Naples Area Board of REALTORS® (NABOR®), which tracks home listings and sales within Collier County (excluding Marco Island), pending sales decreased 36.8 percent in June to 794 pending sales from 1,236 pending sales in June 2021, and closed sales decreased 38.4 percent in June to 952 closed sales from 1,545 closed in June 2021. On the positive side, an 80.5 percent increase in inventory during June to 2,294 properties from 1,271 properties in June 2021 is expected to spark sales.
“It appears the housing market in Florida is returning to a more traditional seasonal environment,” said Budge Huskey, CEO, Premier Sotheby’s International Realty. “We began to see a deceleration in sales during May and median closed prices for single family homes dropped in June compared to May as well.”
With 2.2 months of inventory available in June (up from .8 months in December 2021), the journey back to a balanced market is starting to take place. But broker analysts say it will be a slow climb. Huskey added that, “We will remain in a sustained low inventory environment this year, which will serve to insulate prices. In almost all segments of the market, it will prove a story of deceleration rather than depreciation.”
Click to read the full Market Report.
David will be happy to help you find your new home in the Naples area. Contact David at David@DavidFlorida.com or 239-285-1086.
Inventory Heating Up is Good News for Summer Buyers
Naples, Fla. (June 24, 2022) – During a meeting to review the May 2022 Market Report by the Naples Area Board of REALTORS® (NABOR®), which tracks home listings and sales within Collier County (excluding Marco Island), long-time Naples broker Bill Coffey, Broker Manager of Amerivest Realty Naples, remarked that, “May had the highest number of new listings than any May in the last three years.” Fellow brokers who also analyzed the May report are pleased with this trend as it will lead to more options for summer buyers. New listings during May pushed the inventory of homes for sale up 58.6 percent to 2,046 properties compared to
1,290 properties in May 2021.
“Inventory has been rising since December,” said Jeff Jones, Broker at Keller Williams Naples. “By the end of May, our inventory in Naples has nearly doubled since the same time a year ago. And if you include the 889 homes that had a price reduction in May to this inventory mix, then we’re in good shape heading into summer. Price reductions are basically like new listings because the home’s new price point becomes a new opportunity to a larger pool of buyers.”
Read the complete report here.
David will be happy to help you find your new home in the Naples area. Contact him at David@DavidFlorida.com or 239-285-1086.
Naples, FL (May 23, 2022) – Overall inventory in Naples during April increased 16.5 percent to 1,668 properties from 1,432 properties in April 2021. Fueled by a swell of new single-family home listings, up 5.7 percent over last year, broker analysts reviewing the April 2022 Market Report by the Naples Area Board of REALTORS® (NABOR®), which tracks home listings and sales within Collier County (excluding Marco Island), are confident the Naples area housing market has reached a crossroad and is making its turn toward a balanced and healthy market.
Demand for the Naples lifestyle remains strong. Days on market for April was 16 days, considerably less than the historic 90-day average. As inventory begins to rise, days on market may increase and list prices in some neighborhoods may shift down slightly; but broker analysts agree that we should not expect home prices to drop to anywhere near pre-pandemic levels.
The overall median closed price in April increased 39.2 percent to $599,000 from $440,000 in April 2021. The uptick reflects the low number of sales in the $300 and below price category. Median closed prices continue to rise in the single-family home market, up 8.7 percent from March, but median closed prices during April in the condominium market decreased 1.1 percent from March.
The NABOR® April 2022 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 2022:
Rising mortgage rates are likely reducing the number of buyers who can get pre-qualified for a home purchase in Naples, but it did not negatively impact buyer interest during April. In fact, there were over 200 more showing appointments during the month than reported in March, and 66.7 percent of all closed sales in April were cash sales.
Read more of the April 2022 Market Report from NABOR.
David will be happy to help you find your new home in the Naples area. Contact David at David@DavidFlorida.com or 239-285-1086.
