It’s Susan with your Friday news from The SanibelSusan Team. After recent reports about the weather up north, you may not want to hear that it has been another week of wonderful weather here. (Photo above taken today. It doesn’t get much prettier!) Temperatures topping out in the low 80’s and cooling into the 60’s at night is near- perfect to many locals. We hope it continues.
The roadways and bike paths continue to fill up, so though we are not quite into “season”, it is getting close. I heard the first “the traffic is awful” comment this week. That very well may be the norm this winter. With so many resort areas in Southern Florida and the Caribbean recovering from the summer storms, I bet Sanibel and Captiva are more popular than ever this winter. Many vacation rental properties already report that they are “fully booked” for season.
At the Sanibel & Captiva Island Association of Realtors®
Wed evening from 5 to 7 p.m., the Sanibel/Captiva Association of Realtors® “Fall Into Christmas” benefit for Friends Who Care was a huge success. Member attendees and their families and guests came with unwrapped toys, gift cards, and check/cash donations. With close to $3,000 collected as well as a tree full of toys, these contributions will be delivered to this local non-profit before their toy sorting and wrapping event at The Community House on Dec 19. Deliveries then will be made by Kiwanis Santas on Dec 23.
It sure was fun and rewarding to spearhead such an event. Thank you to event sponsors: American Momentum Bank, Barrier Island Title, Dorado Property Management, Florida Community Bank, Private Client Insurance Services, Rosier Insurance, Seacoast Cottage Company, Superior Title, and Tru-Clean Carpet and Tile Care.
Thanks too to Danny Morgan who provided the music and Jim Anderson the photos, while many Realtors and affiliate business partners helped behind the scenes, especially our hardworking committee members, aka Santa’s elves.
Yesterday was the first “east end” Caravan of the now-weekly schedule. Thirteen new listings were open for viewing, with several other new listings announced too, but only a handful of new sales.
Next week is “west end” caravan, followed by Thanksgiving, so the next “east end” caravan is not until Nov 30. We will have our new Anchor Drive listing open then.
A weekly report after a few news items below, covers the action posted in the Sanibel and Captiva Islands Multiple Listing Service since last Friday.
Upcoming Events
Veterans Day Ceremony – Tomorrow, Saturday, Nov 11, on the grounds of Sanibel City Hall at 10:45 a.m.
Taste of the Islands – CROW’s 36th annual fundraiser, this year called “A Taste of CROW at Taste” is Sunday, Nov 12, from noon to 5 p.m. at the Sanibel Community House and Park, right across the street from our office. The new twist this year is the opportunity to attend programs and visit some of the animal ambassadors. Bring your lawn chairs, but no pets, as wildlife will be there this year. Tickets are $7 for adults. Free for children up to 12. The trolley starts at 11 a.m. with parking available at Bank of the Islands, Sanibel-Captiva Trust Company, and the Post Office. Starting at 1 p.m., parking also is available at the three near-by churches.
Inside the Community House, at 12:30 p.m., 2 p.m. and 3 p.m., CROW will have animal ambassador presentations with Bashful (a Virginia opossum), Sheldon (the gopher tortoise), Lola (an American Kestrel), and Violet (an Eastern Indigo snake). Also at The Community House, attendees may purchase from the popular Adopt-A-Species program. Some of the species offered for adoption include a bald eagle, sea turtle and gopher tortoise. A silent auction in The Community House will be ongoing until 4:30 p.m.
Outside, fourteen restaurants are participating in the event and looking for your votes. Dishes will range in price from $1 to $6 and can be purchased with CROW bucks. Beer, wine, and margaritas will be available, plus a variety of music by LCEC Killa-Watts will entertain all afternoon.
Annual Sanibel Thanksgiving Celebration – Sunday, Nov 19, at 6:45 p.m. at The Community House. Free admission. A non-denominational program with music and song by the BIG ARTS Community Chorus and Sanibel School’s Seahorse Chorale. Following the celebration, cookies and apple cider donated by Bailey’s General Store and Jerry’s Foods. Guests are encouraged to bring a donation for FISH of San-Cap.
To Addendum Or Not to Addendum?
Those of you who know me well, know that I am conservative and a stickler for detail. Some good examples are offered in the below article posted on-line Nov 6 at FloridaRealtors®.org. It is by Meredith Caruso, Manager of Member Legal Communications for Florida Realtors®.
“In an ideal world, after a buyer and seller execute a contract, things proceed seamlessly, no issues arise at all, and the parties close on their agreed-upon closing date.
“The reality: While that can occur in your transactions, many times it just isn’t the case. One thing or another pops up along the way, and the parties need to change their current agreement, whether that’s an extension of a closing date or amending the contract to add a new term. Before you race to grab an addendum, though, first consider whether or not it’s actually needed. Depending on the details, it’s entirely possible you don’t need to do anything. This article considers a few different scenarios that can occur and whether or not an addendum is needed. (For purposes of this article, the Florida Realtors/Florida Bar (“FR/Bar”) contract is referenced).
“Scenario 1 – The title company handling the closing finds a lien on the property that the seller didn’t realize was there. The seller says he’ll handle it, but it probably can’t be settled on time for the agreed-upon contract closing date. Do the parties need to sign an extension for the closing date? In short, no.
“Per Standard 18A of the FR/Bar contract, the buyer is supposed to notify the seller, in writing, of any defect in the title commitment within five days after receiving it. The seller then has 30 days after receiving this notice, defined as the seller’s Cure Period, to “take reasonable diligent efforts” to remove the defect. Assuming the seller is able to fix the defect within the Cure Period, the seller needs to notify the buyer in writing, along with proof of the cure acceptable to the buyer, and the parties should proceed to closing.
If the closing date has passed during the 30-day cure period, the closing is to take place “within 10 days after buyer’s receipt of seller’s notice.” In this example, there’s no need for the parties to sign an extension since the contract already addresses how the closing should proceed in the event of a title defect.
“Scenario 2 – The buyer and seller have an “As-Is” version of the FR/Bar contract. The buyer performs her inspection and decides she wants to ask the seller for repairs. The buyer’s agent emails the listing agent to ask about the seller’s willingness to make repairs. The seller verbally indicates he is willing to fix the some of the items the buyer is asking about – but not all. Is an addendum needed? In short, it probably is.
“It could be an addendum extending the inspection period so the parties can further negotiate the repairs, or it could be an addendum to address the agreed upon repairs. In either case, the parties should have something in writing. It’s not a good idea to rely on verbal representations about a party’s willingness to make repairs; and it’s not a good idea to think that simply inquiring about repairs provides more time or an automatic extension of the inspection period. The seller could refuse to honor the repairs later and the buyer likely would have little recourse.
“Additionally, there is no “pause button” on your inspection period clock. Even if the parties are negotiating repairs, the clock is still ticking. If the buyer can’t get an agreement in writing with the seller about the repairs or an extension for the inspection period, she will need to decide whether to cancel the contract before the inspection period ends or her deposit could be at risk.
“Scenario 3 – A hurricane sweeps across Florida. While the property isn’t damaged, power is out around the state and the title company doesn’t have any power to conduct a closing on the agreed-upon contract closing date. Do the parties need to get an addendum to extend the closing date? In short, no.
“Standard 18G addresses this scenario and states, in sum, that neither party will be required to perform any obligations under the contract when the non-performance is due to Force Majeure. All time periods will be extended “a reasonable time up to 7 days after” such Force Majeure no longer prevents performance. So, in this example, the parties should close within 7 days after the title company regains power and can process the closing. No addendum is necessary since the contract already addresses what happens when a defined Force Majeure event prevents performance.
“Note: It’s important to keep in mind that all contracts are different, and the above examples are specific to just one contract. In general, when in doubt over whether an addendum is necessary or not, look to the contract provision that covers the issue. Many times, these types of “what if” scenarios are considered by the contract terms and can save the agent from taking additional – and possibly unnecessary – steps.”
Sanibel & Captiva Multiple Listing Service Activity November 3-10, 2017
Sanibel
CONDOS
4 new listings: Coquina Beach #3C 2/2 $449K, Sundial West #G206 1/1 $509.5K, Sanibel Arms West #H2 2/2 $529K, Gulfside Place #323 2/2 $1.498M.
5 price changes: Loggerhead Cay #434 2/2 now $629K, Cottage Colony West #132 1/1 now $654.9K, Cottage Colony West #108 1/1 now $654.9K, Snug Harbor #312 3/2 now $672.5K, Shorewood #1C 3/2 now $875K.
3 new sales: Coquina Beach #5B 2/2 listed at $399K, Sundial West #H409 1/1 listed at $465K, Blind Pass #B207 2/2.5 listed at $499,997.
3 closed sales: Mariner Pointe #811 2/2 $420K, Sunset South #6D 2/2 $470K (our listing), Cottage Colony West #138 1/1 $570K (our sale).
HOMES
9 new listings: 1717 Atlanta Plaza Dr 2/2 $472K, 1057 Seahawk Ln 3/2.5 $699K, 700 Nerita St 3/2 $725K, 5430 Osprey Ct 3/3 $839K, 5280 Ladyfinger Lake Rd 3/2 $895K, 734 Anchor Dr 3/2 $999K (our listing), 2190 Starfish Ln 3/3 $1.3959M, 4992 Joewood Dr 3/3.5 $1.595M, 3757 West Gulf Dr 4/4 $7.595M.
Dock at 734 Anchor Dr
6 price changes: 9292 Kincaid Ct 3/2 now $499K; 1040 Sand Castle Rd 3/2 now $599K; 673 East Rocks 3/2 now $688,888; 563 Hideaway Ct 3/2 now $724K; 900 Almas Ct 3/3.5 now $1.199M; 2939 Wulfert Rd 5/5/2 now $1.445M.
1 new sale: 3869 West Gulf Dr 6/7/2 listed at $8.495M.
5 closed sales: 2489 Harbour Ln 3/2 $670K, 419 Lighthouse Way 4/3 $797.5K, 6081 Henderson Rd 3/2 $740K, 2628 Coconut Dr 3/2.5 $1.2245M, 5639 Baltusrol Ct 4/4.5 $1.695M.
LOTS
No new listings or price changes.
1 new sale: 461 Lake Murex Cir listed at $349K.
No closed sales.
Captiva
CONDOS
Nothing to report.
HOMES
2 new listings: 48 Oster Ct 2/2.5 $865K, 56 Sandpiper Ct 2/2.5 $889K.
1 price change: 11559 Laika Ln 2/2/2 now $5.995M.
1 new sale: 14865 Mango Ct 2/2 listed at $929K.
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.
Always Remember… Veterans… on Veterans Day & every day!
Susan Andrews aka SanibelSusan
No doubt about it this week, the rainy season has begun and we have the mosquitoes to prove it. With serious showers over much of the state this week, the rain has put the Caloosahatchee and the estuary in a good place and given water managers a bit of relief. Local papers are reporting that Sanibel’s Director of Natural Resources, James Evans said, “The near-term perspective is very good.”
In the meantime, locals are looking forward to tonight when evening flyovers by Lee County Mosquito Control are scheduled.
At the office, in addition to all of us playing post-season catch-up, Dave and I both have been working toward some new sales and checking off the boxes on some contracts that are in the pipeline. The activity posted in the Sanibel & Captiva Islands Multiple Listing Service since last Friday follows a few other news items below.
Though we had no local Association of Realtors® Caravan meeting yesterday, this week my Communications and Public Relations Committee got the arrangements worked out and Board approval for an Association-sponsored meal-packaging event – as part of our 2017 “Working Together To Make A Difference Campaign.”.
To be held at Sanibel’s Community House on July 28 from 3 to 5 p.m., island Realtors®, business partners, and their families will man the assembly lines where the direction, supplies, and equipment will be provided by Meals of Hope, who then will distribute the meals to local food pantries.
An article posted on “Daily Real Estate News” on line on Wed, offered some advice good for not just Realtors®, but the public too.
I had lunch Wednesday at Sundial Resort where the huge waves were crashing on the beach – a sight not often seen in the gulf. It certainly wasn’t good beach weather for sunbathers here on vacation, but a prelude to the continued reports of superb shelling this week. Some long-time island shell-aholics dropped in at the office yesterday and described Sanibel shelling over the last couple of days as “superb”.
There are five different photos this week in the “Island Sun” alone. Some of us have been looking decades for one of those shells. From Lighthouse Beach to Blind Pass to Clam Bayou, reports are there are more perfect empty shells of many varieties rolling in every day.
Tues, July 4 – 27th Annual Sanibel Independence Day Parade at 9:30 a.m. Now is the time for entries to sign up. 2017 Parade T-Shirts are available at Bank of the Islands.
