Mark H. Bickel | Fort Myers News-Press & Naples Daily News
Here’s some good news for people looking to purchase a home in SW Florida, at least according to one analysis.
As the summer homebuying season kicks off and National Homeownership Month approaches, new data from Bankrate shows that Florida is home to six of the nation’s 10 best markets for buyers, according to Bankrate’s Buyer Opportunity Index.
Among them, the Cape Coral-Fort Myers market ranks No. 2 nationwide, supported in part by strong job and population growth in recent years, along with a faster pace of new residential construction than many other parts of the country.
What they are saying: Florida is a ‘buyers’ market
“In some parts of the country, including Florida, the pandemic housing boom is clearly over,” says Jeff Ostrowski, Housing Market Writer and Analyst at Bankrate. “This is frustrating for sellers, but it represents an opportunity for buyers who have been waiting for market conditions to turn in their favor.”Bankrate’s Buyer Opportunity Index compared market conditions in February 2026 against February 2022 by analyzing four key metrics:
- housing inventory
- price cuts
- median days to a pending sale
- the sale-price-to-list-price ratio, to identify which markets buyers and sellers have the upper hand
Buyers markets in Florida ranking in Top-10 in U.S.
Florida markets ranking in the top 10:
- No. 2: Cape Coral-Fort Myers
Are you looking for a home in beautiful Southwest Florida? Contact David at David@DavidFlorida.com or 239-285-1086.