Sanibel and Captiva Islands are busy with lots of holiday vacationers. The weather certainly has been wonderful for them with mostly sunny days and temperatures in the mid- to high-70’s, while down into the 60’s at night. Restaurants are reporting waits – so if you are here, be sure to make dinner reservations.

The team advised that yesterday was their first winter 1-hour trek getting off-island at 5 p.m. “Yes, they take the back way.” It’s that time of the year when we plan our travel … by turning right … and allowing plenty of time.

More visitors are expected to arrive tomorrow during Saturday arrivals at weekly rental properties. I will be out during turn-overs showing a few 3-bedroom condos. We had multiple requests for big condos this week. Though, there are 130 Sanibel condos currently for sale, larger units are hard to come by. Those looking for gulf-front 3 bedrooms, there are six available in residential complexes and another seven in complexes that rent weekly. If you want a condo in a particular complex, let us know and we’ll do our best to snoop one out.

Island Sales Stats

With it almost the end of the year, below is a snapshot of the Sanibel and Captiva market today. There is plenty of inventory, but we are looking for new listings so please keep us in mind if you know someone thinking of selling.

The below data from the Sanibel & Captiva Islands Multiple Listing Service is as of today, 12/27/19. The activity posted for the last two weeks in the MLS follows a couple of news items:

SANIBEL	Condos		Homes		Lots
	No.	Avg Price $	No.	Avg Price $	No.	Avg Price $
For sale	130	806,859	195	1,380,871	72	717,724
Under contract	18	821,555	20	913,575	2	1,672,450
Closed this year	123	701,250	207	954,957	15	372,200
Closed in 2018	155	720,617	218	1,112,748	21	602,095
Closed in 2017	140	728,793	186	1,004,237	32	327,229

 

CAPTIVA	Condos		Homes		Lots
	No.	Avg Price $	No.	Avg Price $	No.	Avg Price $
For sale	39	1,140,478	43	3,220,111	4	3,397,250
Under contract	2	514,450	5	3,518,599	0	N/A
Closed this year	29	1,037,077	16	2,808,597	1	1,375,000
Closed in 2018	27	797,532	25	2,127,352	0	N/A
Closed in 2017	34	671,551	22	2,457,023	2	2,312,500

New Year Events

New Year’s Eve Shellebration at Sundial Beach Resort & Spa with island-style buffet, stilt walker, fire dancer show, games, pie-eating contest, DJ & live entertainment, face painting, fire pit s’mores, free throw contest, WII dance, wishing tree, corn hole, countdown toast. Reservations needed 800-838-3006.

20^th Annual Polar Bear Plunge at noon Jan 1 at Tarpon Bay Beach at 111 Tarpon Bay Rd. Sign in and song sheets available at 11 a.m. Wear a bathing suit and bring a towel, chairs and coolers optional.

Study: Lots of Listings Coming as Baby Boomers Age

From FloridaRealtors®: “Boomers own about 1/3 of all U.S. properties and 27% of them will sell their home within the next 20 years – but some metros will feel the impact more than others.

“SEATTLE – Builders have struggled to overcome land scarcity and rising labor costs and materials. But a flood of homes will come on the market over the next 20 years as baby boomers age – enough to affect local economies in traditional retirement areas.

“Northerners are struggling. They love winter sunshine and low taxes, but a decision to move 1,000 miles to Fla. isn’t easy. Will homesickness set in? How much does a trip “back home” to see family cost? And how much tax savings are we talking about?

“The boomer generation, once 76 million strong in the U.S., dwarfed the 55 million Gen-Xers and 62 million millennials it preceded. Today, the 60-and-older generation owns about a third of America’s homes, and a new analysis by Zillow attempts to show how their aging will impact the housing market.

“The study predicts that a “Silver Tsunami” of sellers will build slowly as the number of adults aged 60 or older pass away each year. However, a rise is expected in the 2020s and 2030s.

“In the decade from 2007 to 2017, roughly 730,000 U.S. homes were released into the market each year by seniors aged 60 or older. From 2017 to 2027 and from 2027 to 2037, that number is set to rise to 920,000 and 1.17 million per year, respectively. This means more than 27% of today’s owner-occupied homes will become available by 2037.

“While virtually all areas will feel the effects to some degree – between one-fifth and one-third of the current owner-occupied housing stock was impacted in every metro analyzed – the wave won’t hit all at once and won’t strike all markets equally.

“Retirement hubs like Florida and Arizona are likely to feel the sharpest impact. If demand erodes because fewer people choose to retire there in the coming years, those areas might end up with excess housing. Also heavily impacted will be regions like the Rust Belt, which saw younger people move away in recent decades, leaving older generations to make up a larger share of the population.

“Some regions will be far less affected. These include Salt Lake City, where a much smaller share of homeowners are in their golden years, as well as Atlanta, Austin, Dallas and Houston – all of which are vibrant but relatively inexpensive places that tend to attract younger residents looking for an affordable alternative to expensive coastal cities.

“Still, the differences in the share of homes released by seniors among metros are small compared to the differences within them. Palm Springs, for example, will see 45% of its owner-occupied homes vacated by 2037, compared with 23.8% of the combined L.A.-Riverside metro area overall. El Mirage and Sun City figure to see nearly two-third of their homes available, compared with 28.2% of the Phoenix area at-large.

“Housing released by the Silver Tsunami – upwards of 20 million homes hitting the market through the mid-2030s – will provide a substantial and sustained boost to supply, comparable to the fluctuations that new home construction experienced in the 2000s boom-bust cycle. Whether this housing is appropriately located, priced and styled to meet future demand, however, will be an important factor in how it pairs with new construction to alleviate today’s housing shortage.

“It seems likely, however, that the construction industry will, over the next 20 years, start to put a greater emphasis on updating existing properties rather than building from the ground up.” © 2019 Florida Realtors®

Sanibel & Captiva Islands Multiple Listing Service Activity December 13-20, 2019

Sanibel

CONDOS

4 new listings: Captains Walk #B3 1/1 $239.9K, Sandpebble #4E 2/2 $489K, Cottage Colony West #134 1/1 $614.5K, Blue Gulf #201 3/2 $1.398M.

5 price changes: Sanibel Arms #B1 1/1 now $449.9K; Seawind #A107 2/2.5 now $574,777; Mariner Pointe #421 2/2.5 now $639K; Heron at The Sanctuary #3B 3/2.5 now $818K; Sanctuary Golf Villages #1-4 3/3 now $838.5K.

3 new sales: Sundial #H211 1/1 listed at $395K, Sundial #C204 1/1 listed at $480K, Loggerhead Cay #134 2/2 listed at $995K.

3 closed sales: Seashells #15 2/2 $425K; Sanctuary Golf Villages #5-1 2/2.5 $736,750; White Pelican #114 2/2 $830K.

HOMES

9 new listings: 569 Lake Murex Cir 3/2 $499.5K; 1845 Ardsley Way 3/3 $599,555; 2065 Wild Lime Dr 3/2.5 $639K; 9418 Moonlight Dr 3/2 $699K; 238 Daniel Dr 3/2 $777,126; 215 Robinwood Cir 4/3 $884,488; 2417 Wulfert Rd 3/3 $1.089M; 707 Anchor Dr 3/2.5 $1.175M; 5618 Baltusrol Ct 4/4/2 $2.195M.

10 price changes: 1954 Roseate Ln 3/2 now $594K, 513 Lake Murex Cir 3/2 now $709K, 405 Tiree Cir 3/2 now $735K, 1351 Middle Gulf Dr #1F (Moonshadows) 3/3 half-duplex now $765K, 1410 Sanderling Cir 3/2 now $835K, 5422 Shearwater Dr 3/2.5 now $899K, 1345 Eagle Run Dr 3/2.5 now $1.049M, 1560 Royal Poinciana Cir 3/2 now $1.05M, 1283 Isabel Dr 3/2 now $1.1M, 500 Sawgrass Pl 8/8/3 now $2.85M.

4 new sales: 257 Daniel Dr 3/2 listed at $750K, 245 Christofer Ct 3/2 listed at $799K, 982 Whelk Dr 3/2.5 listed at $1.15M, 707 Anchor Dr 3/2.5 listed at $1.175M.

5 closed sales: 706 Nerita St 3/2 $774K, 9436 Yucca Ct 3/2 $839K (our buyer, available as a seasonal rental with Sanibel Holiday, called Annabel’s Cottage), 1243 Sand Castle Rd 4/4 $980K, 758 Sand Dollar Dr 3/3 $1.285M, 5723 Baltusrol Ct 4/4.5 $1.8M.

LOTS

1 new listing: 255 Hurricane Ln $399K.

1 price change: 1292 Par View Dr now $349K.

1 new sale: 1800 Woodring Rd listed at $2.595M.

No closed sales.

Captiva

CONDOS

No new listings.

1 price change: Gulf Beach Villas #2112 1/1 now $510.9K.

1 new sale: Bayside Villas #4212 1/2 listed at $368.9K.

1 closed sale: Ventura Captiva #2B 3/3 $875K.

HOMES

No new listings.

2 price changes: 11540 Laika Ln 3/2.5 now $1.299M, 11504 Wightman Ln 4/3.5 now $1.5999M.

No new or closed sales.

LOTS

Nothing to report.

Sanibel & Captiva Islands Multiple Listing Service Activity December 20-27, 2019

Sanibel

CONDOS

2 new listings: Mariner Pointe #1051 2/2 $499K, Oceans Reach #4D1 2/2 $898.5K.

1 price change: Cottage Colony West #101 1/1 now $595K.

2 new sales: Sandpiper Beach #203 2/2 listed at $699K, Sanibel Moorings #1111 2/2 listed at $ 947K.

3 closed sales: Seashells #37 2/2 $405K, Sanibel Siesta #108 2/2 $570K, Kings Crown #213 2/2 $755K.

HOMES

4 new listings: 970 Black Skimmer Way 2/2 $636K, 930 Kings Crown Dr 3/2 $1.295M, 912 Kings Crown Dr 3/3.5 $1.445M, 1480 Middle Gulf Dr 4/4/2 $1.65M.

4 price changes: 9448 Begonia Ct 3/2.5 now $549K (our listing), 1717 Sand Pebble way 3/2 now $635K, 1567 Sand Castle Rd 3/3 now $849K, 2391 Shop Rd 3/2.5 now $1.875M.

3 new sales: 569 Lake Murex Cir 3/2 listed at $499.5K, 1269 Par View Dr 3/2.5 listed at $1.099M, 1525 San Carlos Bay Dr 3/2 listed at $1.4695M.

6 closed sales: 1805 Ibis Ln 2/2 $515K, 1585 Bunting Ln 3/2 $545K, 6447 Pine Ave 3/2.5 $552.5K, 1418 Sanderling Cir 3/3 $599.5K, 9440 Cotten Ct 3/2 $617.5K, 707 Cardium St 3/2 $685K.

LOTS

No new listings or price changes.

1 new sale: 2510 Coconut Dr listed at $749.9K.

No closed sales.

Captiva

CONDOS

No new listings or price changes.

1 new sale: Bayside Villas #5316 3/3 listed at $660K.

1 closed sale: Captiva Hide-a-Way #2D 2/2 $835K.

HOMES

3 new listings: 11521 Laika Ln 3/3 $1.385M, 15843 Captiva Dr 3/3 $7.489M, 16500 Captiva Dr 6/6/2 $7.989M.

2 price changes: 11525 Wightman Ln 3/2 now $1.225M, 11504 Wightman Ln 4/3.5 now $1.5999M.

No new or closed sales.

LOTS

Nothing to report.

This representation is based in part on data supplied by the Sanibel & Captiva Islands Association of Realtors® Multiple Listing Service. Neither the association nor its MLS guarantees or is in any way responsible for its accuracy.  Data maintained by the association or its MLS may not reflect all real estate activity in the market.  The information provided represents the general real estate activity in the community and does not imply that SanibelSusan Realty Associates is participating or participated in these transactions.

Best wishes for a wonderful New Year!

Susan Andrews, aka SanibelSusan