Rain, rain, and more rain. It has been another week of beautiful mornings, but with eyes on the skies in the afternoon and evenings. Roadway swales remain full in many locations. The forecast calls for more of the same in the upcoming week. Today, the rain rolled in at 3 p.m. Some days it holds off until evening and sometimes the storms pass quickly.

Today at the Donax St beach access just b4 the afternoon rain. Access still flooded at Fulgur St.

I had an appointment in town Wednesday afternoon, saw the black clouds on the horizon so scooted there early. This time of the year storms come across the state, passing Fort Myers before reaching the islands. On average, Florida has 3,500 cloud to ground lightning flashers per day. This week certainly illustrated that.

Lightning strikes Wed afternoon when I was in town. It was crazy!

The good news is that it is green, tropical, and lush almost everywhere. Quite beautiful to see communities being restored and with their new landscaping flourishing.

Wrapping up Florida Realtors® 2024 Meetings

Though it was wonderful to be in Orlando last week, working and networking with Florida Realtors® leadership team, it also is special to be back to home-sweet-home. I travel the back roads through the middle of the state to see the lakeside towns, miles of orange groves, and cattle ranches. It is an interesting route and always makes me smile, especially when I hit the causeway.

Above and beyond the many classes, business meetings, trade show, and events, the highlight of these conventions is the renewed friendships with colleagues from around the state. Though we often only see each other biannually at these January and August committee meetings, I have served with some of these folks since the 90’s. It is all about relationships in this real estate business including having pals and resources for every facet and in every locale.

With Patti Ketcham.

(Check out my Facebook post pix, including at Capital Club Luncheon with Patti Ketcham, Broker/Owner of Ketchum Realty Group from Tallahassee. Patti sits on and has chaired Florida’s Real Estate Commission and has already taught thousands of Realtors® the new buyer brokage classes. She also was just announced as the 2025 Chair of the National Association of Realtors Professional Development Committee. She’s special.)

Florida Realtors® now has over 238,000 members, huge growth in recent years. Last Saturday, voting as a member of FR Professional Development Committee, we approved motions for new instructors to join Florida Realtors® faculty and for existing instructors to add classes to their approved curriculums. Recommendations also were made to approve new classes, extend some that were expiring, and approve development of new ones to keep up with the ever-changing industry and national changes. Recent requirements dictate more class offerings covering buyer brokerage and fair housing.

Florida’s legal team and contracts specialists have done a great job in updating the forms associates need to both list and sell property. Those are free for our Realtors® through Forms Simplicity electronic-signature program.

SanibelSusan Realty

September is usually the quietest month here, with new listings often popping on the market starting in October as the first of the snowbirds start arriving. Meanwhile, we are getting our marketing wheels in motion for “season”. The new “Real Estate Guide” with our ad hits the streets next Friday.

Some Temporary Closures

Several businesses are closed/closing for pre-season updates and breaks:

·        Tarpon Bay Explorers is closed all of Sept

·        Over Easy Café will be closed Sept 9-19

Sanibel & Captiva Islands Association of Realtors®

John Talmage, Director of Lee County Economic Development Office, was the speaker at the Realtors® monthly membership meeting yesterday. It was a full house with more in attendance than any meeting since pre-hurricane. John offered much positive news on the growth and expansion in the county. A few tidbits below.

·        Lee County population is ~835K and expected to reach 1M within six years. 25K-30K people a year are moving here.

·        86K new homes are in the pipeline.

·        County challenges are how to stay caught up with the growth. Some roadways are being expanded. New schools being built, communities being developed.

·        Lee County is the capital of the U.S. with “seasonal” properties = 96K. Cape Code is in 2^nd place with 64K, followed by Collier County with 56K.

·        This year, the population is up in every area of Lee County, including Sanibel up 10%.

·        Don’t need to recruit businesses to come here. Business owners first come for vacation, then buy a seasonal property, then move here, then want to move their business here.

·        18 different utility companies service Lee County (10 private/8 public), cooperation of those efforts is in the works.

·        Airport expansion project is about done.

·        FGCU also is growing with campuses planned at Babcock Ranch and Cape Coral, including offering undergraduate education and medical school.

·        Quality of life has many businesses looking to move here. Included are robotics firms, three additional Amazon facilities (which provide prepaid college education at local colleges).

·        15 major apparel companies have moved here since Covid.

·        Transportation and employee housing continues to be challenging. The longest commute to work in Florida is in Lee County. The new development in the works at the Sanibel Outlet stores will have both 300 low-rent units and 300 condos.

·        In the works are vertical cars at the airport and sensors on U.S. 41 for autonomous vehicles.

For more details on the projects underway in Lee County go to their development activity map at LeeBusinessGov.com.

A new listing caravan followed the guest speaker with four Sanibel homes open for easy viewing. During the Caravan announcements, there were no new listings, no new sales, and no price reductions, but there were some posted in MLS this week.

Below with data from the islands MLS are summary tables of the residential sales statistics, followed by the Sanibel/Captiva MLS action reported this week.

Sanibel & Captiva Islands Multiple Listing Service Activity August 23-30:

Sanibel

CONDOS

2 new listings: Blind Pass #C101 2/2 $499K, Oceans Reach #1A4 2/2 $1.099M.

1 price change: Mariner Pointe #541 2/2 now $755K.

2 new sales: Colonnades #1 1/1 listed at $299K, Oceans Reach #4C3 2/2 listed at $870K.

1 closed sale: Loggerhead Cay #401 2/2 $875K.

HOMES

4 new listings: 421 Lake Murex Cir 3/2 $1.125M, 5300 Umbrella Pool Rd 3/3 $1.479M, 1002 Kings Crown Dr 3/2 $1.495M, 1985 Wild Lime Dr 3/2 $1.789K.

2 price changes: 9448 Begonia Ct 3/2.5 now $1.05M, 519 Kinzie Island Ct 4/3.5 now $2.95M.

2 new sales: 490 & 460 Old Trail 3/2.5 listed at $650K, 9114 Mockingbird Dr 3/2 listed at $899,999.

4 closed sales: 1524 Wilton Ln 3/2 $862.5K, 1220 Par View Dr 3/2 $1.2M, 623 Lighthouse Way 4/3.5 $1,312,500; 994 Whelk Dr 3/2 $1.325M.

LOTS

Nothing to report,

Captiva

CONDOS

No new listings.

1 price change: Bayside Villas #4110 1/2 now $415K.

No new sales.

1 closed sale: Beach Villas #2521 2/2 $900K.

HOMES

No new listings.

1 price change: 11531 Paige Ct 4/3.5 now $8.5M.

1 new sale: 1119 Schefflerra Ct 5/4.5 listed at $10M.

No 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.

Enjoy your Labor Day weekend! Susan Andrews, aka SanibelSusan