Joshua Bahoff bought a three- bedroom luxury condominium in Naples, Florida, in December for $235,000, about one-third of the price that the seller paid near the height of the U.S. housing boom.
“It was a great deal,” said Bahoff, 59, a Philadelphia dentist who plans to spend one week a month every winter in the 2,700-square-foot (250-square-meter) property in Fiddler’s Creek, a residential and golf development south of the city’s downtown historic district on the Gulf of Mexico. “We can’t see this market going down any lower.”
While much of Florida’s real estate market remains depressed by foreclosures, buyers seeking a second home in the state’s affluent vacation enclaves are “finally getting off the fence,” Karen Van Arsdale, an agent at Premier Sotheby’s International Realty in Naples, said in a telephone interview.
Sales in the Naples area last year rose 10 percent, the first annual increase in at least five years, while the median price for homes listed at $300,000 or more gained 4 percent to $544,000, according to data compiled by the Naples Area Board of Realtors. About half of the properties in the market are second homes, and discounts from 2006 peak prices average about 25 percent, said Brenda Fioretti, president of the group.
“Wealth determines housing, and the good places pick up first,” Karl Case, 64, a professor emeritus in economics at Wellesley College in Massachusetts who has been visiting Naples since a family vacation took him there when he was 13, said in a telephone interview. “For people with deep pockets, it’s generally a flight to quality.”
Atlantic Coast
Resort towns on Florida’s Atlantic coast are starting to follow the lead of Naples, said Patricia Fitzgerald, president of the Florida Realtors. Sales in Boca Raton, Jupiter and West Palm Beach rose 32 percent for existing houses and 40 percent for condos in February from a year earlier, according to the group.
Rising stock prices and the decision by President Barack Obama and Congress not to increase tax rates in 2011 contributed to the surge in deals, according to Van Arsdale. Record cold temperatures in parts of the Midwest and Northeast this winter “nudged people” to make real estate purchases they’d been putting off, she said.
Home values in South Florida markets may show a “surprise upward” trend while U.S. prices remain flat this year, according to Lawrence Yun, chief economist in Washington for the National Association of Realtors.
“Given that they are historical vacation destinations for the wealthy, and the stock market having risen so much, it’s possible that they get a nice snap back even though I’m calling for no change nationwide,” Yun said.
International Buyers
The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index, a benchmark for U.S. equities, has risen 91 percent since reaching a 12-year low in March 2009.
International buyers seeking to protect their wealth with U.S. hard assets may also buoy South Florida, according to a June 2010 report by the Chicago-based Realtors association. Florida properties accounted for 22 percent of all purchases made by buyers from outside the U.S. in the 12 months ended in April, the most of any state, according to the report.
The surge in Naples luxury prices contrasts with much of Florida’s housing market, where values are falling amid a glut of foreclosed properties. Loan servicers have been slow to resume home seizures as state attorneys general investigate mortgage-industry practices such as robo-signing, or using employees to sign affidavits and other documents, according to RealtyTrac Inc.
Foreclosure Ranking
Florida’s ranking of foreclosure filings per household fell to eighth among states last month from second in September, before the robo-signing controversy broke, the Irvine, California-based data seller said March 10. Florida ranked second in the number of filings sent to property owners with 18,760.
“The foreclosure market is completely dysfunctional,” said Michael Olenick, founder of LegalPrise Inc., a data seller based in Palm Beach that focuses on distressed properties. “People have given up finding a really cheap foreclosure.”
WCI Communities Inc., a Florida homebuilder that emerged from bankruptcy in September 2009, has “aggressively” reduced peak prices by as much as 40 percent at nine of its developments around the state, including three in Naples, Chief Executive Officer David Fry said in an interview.
The Bonita Springs-based builder, which cut its staff from 4,000 to 600, expects to sell 300 units this year and almost double that number in 2012, he said.
Land Prices
“The stock market has favorably affected confidence in recent months,” Fry said as he sat on the back patio of the Ritz-Carlton Hotel and Golf Resort in Naples, which WCI developed in 2002 as part of its Tiburon community. The hotel hosts the Naples Winter Wine Festival, a charity auction and social event that raised $12 million in January, 48 percent more than last year.
Land prices are rising as the real estate recovery takes hold, according to Steve Hagenbuckle, managing principal of real estate investment firm TerraCap Management Corp. in Cape Coral, Florida. Undeveloped land with zoning approvals in Estero, north of Naples, sold to a public builder he declined to name for $40,000 per quarter-acre lot. Eight months ago, Toll Brothers Inc. (TOL) bought similar land for $10,000, he said.
Premier Sotheby’s International Realty sold 41 Naples residences priced at $2 million or more this year through March 17, a gain of 14 percent over the same period in 2010, according to Lutgert Cos., a Naples property developer that owns the brokerage. There were 55 sales of homes priced between $1 million and $2 million, an increase of 17 percent, President Howard Gutman said in an e-mail.
Closing the Deal
“The buyers are value-conscious, but they’re making decisions,” said Van Arsdale, who brokered four transactions for a combined $27 million since Christmas. The properties sold for about 30 percent less than peak prices, she said.
Richard Azrael, 65, wanted to buy last year at WCI’s Marquesa subdivision next to the Ritz-Carlton until the company bankruptcy delayed his purchase. Last month, he closed on a three-bedroom, 3,000-square-foot condo and golf membership for $720,000, saving about $80,000 over the 2010 price, he said.
“We’ve been thinking of this for several years, and we felt that if we were going to do it, we should do it now,” said Azrael, a real estate developer from Columbia, Maryland. “We’ve been spending a lot of time in Florida on both coasts, and we happen to like the pace and environment in Naples.”
Interstate Access
Naples, with a bay like its namesake Italian city, was developed in the late 1880s by John S. Williams, a U.S. senator from Kentucky, and Walter Haldeman, publisher of the state’s Louisville Courier-Journal. They built homes, a pier and a 16- room hotel, according to the Naples Historical Society website.
The town, about 170 miles (270 kilometers) south of Tampa, remained “a small, lovely oasis along the Gulf of Mexico” until the 1950s, the website says.
After U.S. Interstate 75 was extended from Tampa to Naples and international service began at Southwest Florida Airport, Ritz-Carlton opened the first of its two hotels, a resort on Vanderbilt Beach near downtown, in 1985.
“That put Naples on the map,” Gutman said.
Midwest residents had always been the core vacation group, driving south on I-75, and now they were joined by air travelers and international visitors, Gutman said.
The office portion of the Mercato commercial development, a Lutgert joint venture with Barron Collier Cos. that opened in late 2008, is 83 percent leased with tenants including securities brokers Merrill Lynch & Co. and Wells Fargo Advisors, Gutman said.
Click here for more on Naples Housing Market. Via Bloomberg.com.
Naples, Florida (March 2011) Friends of Foster Children of Southwest Florida announced that the first Sip and Sample fundraising event held on February 23 at the Village on Venetian Bay was a vintage success. Nearly 200 patrons in attendance purchased $25 passports to sample wines and appetizers at the participating Village merchants.
The event raised $4,800 to benefit children in foster care in Southwest Florida according to Jennifer Weidenbruch, the Executive Director Friends of Foster Children SWFL. “We are very pleased with the response from the community to participate in this fund-raising effort,” said Ms Weidenbruch. “It was a great time for a great cause and The Village Merchants and The Lutgert Companies were wonderful. Children placed into Foster Care are primarily due to tragic circumstances such as losing their parents, abuse or neglect. Often, they have no other family members to care for them. Taken from your home is a traumatic experience for anyone, and especially for kids.”
The funds raised at the Sip and Sample event will provide clothing, tutoring, summer camp and after-school activities for local children in foster care.
Statistics from the Children’s Defense Fund and Department of Children and Families Data from district 8 Foster Care System (Collier, Lee, Charlotte, Hendry & Glades Counties) are distressing with a child being abused or neglected every 4 minutes. 134,567 children are victims of abuse of neglect each year and 29,229 children are in foster care.
Licensed foster parents receive between $443 and $546 per month, depending on age, to help with room and board. Less than half of the children removed from their homes are in licensed care. Non-related unlicensed foster parents are eligible for only Medicaid for support.
FFC recognizes that these children deserve to have their childhood kept intact and provides them with opportunities to become successful and strong adults. FFC, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization, focuses on filling in the gaps in the state system. FFC’s support ranges from tutoring or after-school programs to enrichment activities that nurture the child’s talents and passions.
Visitors will get a glimpse into high-rise living this month as they tour six model homes at Tavira at Bonita Bay.
The Southwest Florida Symphony Society is featuring the models during its 2011 Sanctuaries in the Sky Designer Showcase, which continues through March 13. The annual event has raised more than $118,000 for the symphony during the past five years, showcase chairwoman Ruth Condit said.
Tickets for the event – which includes complimentary valet parking and refreshments and an on-site vintage jewelry boutique – are $15.
Built in 2009, Tavira is the sixth and newest Bonita Bay high-rise developed by The Lutgert Companies, based in Naples. The 26-story tower offers panoramic views of Bonita Beach, Estero Bay and the Gulf of Mexico with residences priced between approximately $1.8 million and $2.5 million, including furniture and finishes.
The lifestyle
Roughly three of every four buyers at Tavira are people who already live at Bonita Bay and are looking to upgrade to the 2,400-acre community’s newest high-rise, said Billie Jan, an agent at Sotheby’s International Realty who focuses on Bonita Bay’s Tavira and Esperia towers.
Twenty-three of the 90 residences at Tavira have sold. The Realtor said interest is picking up, and she wrote three contracts for the property last week.
“We have very good, qualified traffic coming in the door and the product is absolutely gorgeous,” she said.
People choose Tavira for the ease of high-rise living as well as the amenities, which include a rooftop terrace, resort-style pool, a 10-seat theater, card and game rooms, a fully equipped health club and a golf simulator.
Homes at Tavira range from approximately 3,500 square feet to more than 4,400 square feet. They include 10- or 12-foot ceilings, private elevator lobbies, gas fireplaces and summer kitchens with electric grills and sinks on screened terraces.
“It’s luxurious,” Jan said of the property. “You offer the views and no maintenance so it’s a turnkey situation they (buyers) can walk into.”
Click here for more on Sanctuaries in the Sky Designer Showcase.
The Southwest Florida Employer’s Association will address “Bridging the Generational Communication Gap: How to Communicate with Different Generations in the Workplace” during its monthly meeting March 8 at the North Naples United Methodist Church in the Wesley Center Building, 6000 Goodlette Road.
The program is free to association members or $25-$30. Register at human-resources-now.com or 285-4777.
Stacey Deffenbaugh, NBC2 and ABC7 weekend-morning news anchor, and area philanthropists Scott and Simone Lutgert are serving as honorary chairs of the 2011 Southwest Florida Symphony Designer Showcase opening gala set for Friday at the high-rise residences of Tavira at Bonita Bay in Bonita Springs.
“Jazz in the Sky” from 6-8 p.m. kicks off “Sanctuaries in the Sky,” which gives visitors the chance to explore six of the 90 high-rise residences from March 5-13.
The event is organized by the Symphony Society, an all-volunteer group that serves as the Southwest Florida Symphony’s largest fundraising arm.
Scott Lutgert also is chairman of The Lutgert Companies, which planned the Tavira high-rise.
Tickets for the gala are $45. Tickets for the showcase are $15 and available at the door. For more information, call 418-0996.
LaBelle financial representative James Holland with The Glenn Black Group of the Northwestern Mutual Financial Network has been appointed college unit director in Lee and Hendry counties.
His responsibilities include recruiting, training and mentoring financial representative interns, while still providing clients with financial services.
Article via News-press.com
PARSIPPANY, NJ and GIRONA, SPAIN–(Marketwire – February 28, 2011) – Sotheby’s International Realty Affiliates LLC today announced it has further expanded its global real estate network across Spain with the addition of Costa Brava Sotheby’s International Realty.
The firm is jointly owned by Markus Thoene and Christoph Toelle and serves Costa Brava, Spain, which includes the coastal region of Girona, located next to the province of Barcelona. The Sotheby’s International Realty® network already has firms representing its brand in Madrid, Costa del Sol, Costa Blanca and the Balearic Islands of Mallorca and Menorca.
“The addition of Costa Brava Sotheby’s International Realty reinforces the strength of our presence in Spain, one of the most important markets in Europe,” said Michael R. Good, chief executive officer, Sotheby’s International Realty Affiliates LLC. “We look forward to further growth in this market with Markus and Christoph and their team of professionals.”
The area Costa Brava Sotheby’s International Realty serves includes the beach locations of Lloret de Mar, Tossa de Mar, Playa de Aro, S’Agaro, Llafranc, Begur and the countryside around the medieval towns of Pals and Peratallada. For the last five years, Thoene and Toelle have run four luxury real estate offices located in Playa de Aro, Calella de Palafrugell, Begur and Pals.
“We have strong partnerships and client relationships at home and abroad, a professional infrastructure and a focus on highly-trained sales agents that speak multiple languages,” said Thoene. “We have always been dedicated to serving the luxury segment of the Costa Brava real estate market and have plans to expand soon to Barcelona, one of the major European hotspots for luxury properties. The demand for high-end properties in the area of the Costa Brava and the city of Barcelona remain stable, however, the current economic climate also is generating attractive opportunities for cash buyers.”
Toelle believes the affiliation with Sotheby’s International Realty brand will enable the firm to continue to deliver the highest level of customer service while adding a global reach. “The Sotheby’s International Realty network offers a worldwide strength that is especially powerful in France, the United Kingdom and Russia, which currently are the most important source markets for buyers of Costa Brava luxury properties,” he said. “The Sotheby’s International Realty brand is known throughout the world for its commitment to excellence in every phase of the real estate business. Our clients deserve the highest possible level of service and by taking this step we will be able to deliver such a service immediately.”
The Sotheby’s International Realty network currently has more than 11,700 sales associates located in approximately 550 offices in 44 countries and territories worldwide. Costa Brava Sotheby’s International Realty listings will be marketed on the sothebysrealty.com global website. In addition to the referral opportunities and widened exposure generated from this source, the firm’s brokers and clients will benefit from an association with the Sotheby’s auction house and worldwide Sotheby’s International Realty marketing programs.
About Sotheby’s International Realty Affiliates LLC
Founded in 1976 to provide independent brokerages with a powerful marketing and referral program for luxury listings, the Sotheby’s International Realty network was designed to connect the finest independent real estate companies to the most prestigious clientele in the world. In February 2004, Realogy Corporation, a global provider of real estate and relocation services, entered into a long-term strategic alliance with Sotheby’s, the operator of the auction house. The agreement provided for the licensing of the Sotheby’s International Realty name and the development of a full franchise system by Realogy’s subsidiary, Sotheby’s International Realty Affiliates LLC. Affiliations in the system are granted only to brokerages and individuals meeting strict qualifications. Sotheby’s International Realty Affiliates LLC supports its affiliates with a host of operational, marketing, recruiting, educational and business development resources. Franchise affiliates also benefit from an association with the venerable Sotheby’s auction house, established in 1744. For more information, visit www.sothebysrealty.com.
