Realtor Nancy Bristow reports, "The area is emerging as a more upscale market than ever before. The supply of homes for sale is increasing. Depending on the owners of waterfront lots, whether they will rebuild or sell the land is yet to be determined after the hurricanes. Either way, prices will be higher than ever when the waterfront properties are put up for sale. The months of August and September were soft but the market is bouncing back. The demand for relocation information is steady. Our prices are catching up to more expensive areas of the country. Our "Sleepy Paradise" still exists, but not the way those of us who have lived here for years remember it."

She continues, "Fortune Magazine notes that the entire state of Florida has been booming. But Gary Eldred, author of Investing in Real Estate, steers potential buyers to the relative affordability of the Florida Panhandle. Pensacola, in the Panhandles's northwest corner, is one of the cities that's on top when Michael Sklarz, sheaf valuation officer for Fidelity National Financial, crunches numbers looking for the best balance of value and growth around the country.'"

Realtors Harry and Meg Vogt note, "After Hurricane Ivan there was a great amount of speculation driving prices up significantly on waterfront properties. There was a buying frenzy of residential lots that were zoned multi-family for purposes of condo development. Gulf Beach is one of the few areas left on the intra-coastal water zoned for condominium development that has not been fully converted. For new development land cost, in many cases, has tripled and density has gone down from 25 to 20 units per acre. WCI, one of the largest resort development companies in Florida, has raised the bar and increased the pressure on this market. Some of the new projects under construction are Snug Harbour, Wyngate View, and Harbour Pointe to name a few. There are numerous other proposed developments in the works."

They add, "The Gulf Beach area offers an opportunity to own more affordable waterfront as compared to property on the beach. Many of these projects will be offering boat slips with convenient access to the Gulf via Pensacola Pass. It is interesting to note that Pensacola Association of Realtors posted no Condo Sales in September of 2004 and Condo Sales for September of 2005 shows sales in the median price range of $230,000."

Click here to view current Market Conditions in your location.

Published: November 7, 2005

Use of this article without permission is a violation of federal copyright laws.