I was contacted yesterday by a correspondent who's preparing to write a segment on the current
Naples real estate
market. When she calls I always try to give her accurate, cutting edge
information only a few may have already realized. Here's what I told
her:
If last year's big
Naples real estate story was
dwindling inventories, this year's big story will probably be about the
turn towards a seller's market, smaller list price to sales price ratios
and higher pricing.
Naples Real Estate Buyers: Get Strategic! Up until now
it's been fairly easy to march into any Naples neighborhood and find
some sort of deal. Not so much anymore. Ideas of negotiating heavily
off list prices in all Naples areas like the
beachfront in Bay Colony and other locations throughout Naples are probably in the past.
As an example there are two properties currently listed in a neighborhood in
Tiburon. They are priced over 70% higher than the last two units sold. Statements from the listing agents equated to,
yes, those were pretty good deals...suggesting the seller may not be firm but clearly not interested in discounting to past levels.
The Good News For Buyers is you can still negotiate if
you're a little more strategic than you were in the past. If you find
yourself wanting a property in a Naples location that's experiencing a
high level of sales and you don't think you're going to have much
negotiating power, you might consider other options. While many of our
best locations are doing well...some still aren't and may welcome your
dollars a little more eagerly compared to other hot locations.
For example:
1.
Olde Naples homes
are doing quite well right now with only 8 months of inventory. It
might be better for you (depending on your budget) to consider a
location like
Aqualane Shores where there's 19 months of inventory on the market right now.
2.
Pelican Marsh has 10 months of inventory while
Tiburon has 28 months of inventory. Your negotiating strategy may be far more welcome in Tiburon than Pelican Marsh.
3.
Moorings mid-rise condos have only 9 months of inventory while
Vanderbilt Beach has a 27 month supply of inventory. I think you're seeing where I'm going with this...
So maybe you like your Naples location and you aren't willing to
necessarily consider an alternate neighborhood location. That can be ok
too depending on the situation.
For example:
There's opportunity in
Grey Oaks
right now because their single family inventory has with just over 20
months of inventory and their detached villa product has 24 months of
inventory BUT their low rise product is doing exceptionally well. So
maybe instead of doing a
Grey Oaks condo, you should consider an area like
Terra Verde where there's 5 on the market and none have sold during the past 12 months....(although one is now under contract).
The big thing here is just because you've stumbled into a location where
all the product is gone or negotiations have tightened doesn't mean
your opportunity is lost in Naples. Just contact a GREAT
Naples Realtor who can help you identify what you really want and help you negotiate a deal you can be happy about.
1. If at all possible. Get to Naples and get this done before October. NOW IS THE BEST TIME TO NEGOTIATE PERIOD.
2. The smartest buyers choose more than one property to negotiate. It's
the best way to keep the emotion out of it and land a deal just in
case that first guy is either unrealistic or unresponsive to your
offer.
If you're a Naples Seller ~ It's VITAL you have an
agent who knows the market and knows what they're doing. This is the
time when some sellers leave money on the table unknowingly because they
aren't in tune with a changing market and also a time when some sellers
fail at selling because they think their properties are worth more than
they are because of recent activity. If your agent will conduct their
business in an accommodating fashion while still having the appropriate
level of confidence for you to get your price you should do well
provided everybody stays realistic.
As an example:
I listed a
Pelican Bay
property last season a tad bit prematurely because the owner had just
negotiated a contract for another property but hadn't closed yet. They
were concerned about holding their old property for an undesirable
length of time but I knew they couldn't give possession of their old
unit before they could move into their new one. The end of our official
selling season was coming to an end but I felt exceptionally confident
we had a great condo at a great price and had no concern selling the
property for the price I had expected.
The day we closed on their new unit the seller's wife expressed her
grave concern about selling her old condo. I looked her straight in the
eye and told her we would get it done and told her she couldn't spend
five more minutes worrying about not selling. The following day I
presented two offers one of which they accepted. Happily, it came in
higher than my originally estimated price. It's this kind of pressure
that can make an inexperienced agent stumble or encourage a seller to
sell for less than a property is worth and why you should always list
your property with an experienced, proven professional.
For more answers regarding
Naples real estate,
please contact me direct. If you'd like to see property or review your
market value, please give me as much notice as possible so I can best
accommodate your schedule.
Best Regards,
Shannon Lefevre, PA
Your Naples Smart Girl
