Foreclosures are up and home values are down, but Cape Realty is expanding its operations.

The local real estate company is expanding its office space and adding more staff. The firm is hosting an open house to commemorate the occasion from 4-7 p.m. today at 1616 W. Cape Coral Parkway, located in the Camelot Isles Shopping Center on the corner of Chiquita Boulevard and Cape Coral Parkway.

“We just decided we had faith in the economy and we had faith in Cape Coral,” Patti Martin, co-owner of Cape Realty, said of the decision to expand.

Martin said there are positive signs in the market despite the housing crisis. Lower home values have led to a higher volume of sales.

“As the demand increases, then prices will stabilize, then start to increase,” Martin said.

Cape Realty is moving from its old office with 1,100 square feet of space to its new spot in the Camelot Isles Shopping Center with 1,800 square feet.

“This enabled us to add additional outside agents,” said office manager Vicki Hutto.

The firm has already hired four new agents, with more to come.

“Prior to that we had no room to even add a janitor,” Hutto said.

Good management during the housing boom in the middle of the decade allowed Cape Realty to expand after the bubble burst.

“We’ve been very prudent in everything we’ve done in the good times. Real estate goes in a cycle. We just believed in the future of Cape Coral,” Hutto said.

That belief was a major part of the decision to expand, which was made in June, before Martin began to see positive signs in the increase of sales.

“I think (the turnaround) is starting now and it will increase over the next year. At the time we decided to do this we didn’t know this. It was sort of a leap of faith on our part,” Martin said.

For information about Cape Realty, call 542-1998.