Locals react to drop in Beach property values
The drop of property values on Fort Myers Beach has left a few people hoping for a positive turn in the future in the overall economy. Two Beach Realtors remain upbeat despite the recorded numbers.
Last week, Lee County property values dropped 15.3 percent, according to estimated numbers released by property appraiser Ken Wilkinson. Fort Myers Beach’s property values fell 12.68 percent, ranking it fourth in terms of descent among the top five cities/towns in the county.
Although the 2011 numbers are less dramatic than 2010 when values decreased more than 25 percent, Wilkinson noted that between 2007 and now, Lee County lost 55 percent of its overall values.
Christian Loffreno, CRS, of Loffreno Real Estate at 2100 Estero Blvd. remains optimistic about the drop.
“When one looks at the overall big picture of appreciation, real estate values on the island over a 10-year cycle show a good appreciation even when you factor in the lowered assessed values during the economic downturn,” he said. “Over the long-term, Real Estate has a proven record to be one of the more stable spots to put your money and a place to call your home.”
Paula Kiker, broker/owner of Lahaina Realty at 6035 Estero Blvd. also sees the upside to a down time.
“In general, we see the prices stay consistent throughout season,” said Kiker. “This was not the case this year. We saw prices continue to fall throughout our peak winter months, and now our inventory is low. The under $200,000 property barely exists. This, in turn, has caused our market to stabilize. Prices will have to rise slowly as new listings that come on the market will be slightly higher than the last one sold because it will be the only one available.”
Fort Myers’ property values saw the highest reduction in Lee County with a 17.78 percent drop followed by Cape Coral, which fell 16.28 percent; Bonita Springs, with 15.47 percent; the Beach; and Sanibel, which recorded a 7.43 reduction in total taxable value.
Wilkinson believes the somewhat surprising fact that Fort Myers’ values fell further than Cape Coral is probably due to commercial real estate.
“The commercial took a big hit, but commercial is a higher percentage of their total tax roll,” Wilkinson said.
Property valuations are due to Tallahassee by July 1. Those numbers, which may be slightly higher or lower than the preliminary estimates, then are used by local governments to estimate property tax revenue.
According to Wilkinson, individual notices are due to homeowners in August. Homeowners will then have 25 days to appeal their values to Wilkinson’s office.
And, while residential property sales have increased, commercial property remains largely stagnant, says Wilkinson. The overall loss of value county wide was unprecedented.
“I’ve been here 30 years and I’ve never seen anything like this before,” Wilkinson said.
— Cape Coral Breeze writer Drew Winchester contributed to this report.
Beach Real and Personal property
Total Just: Final 2009 value was $3,476,865,550; Estimated for 2010 is
$2,969,348,000; Value change is -$507,517,550; making it a percentage change of -14.60 percent
Total Assessed: Final 2009 value was $3,123,234,810; Estimated for 2010 is $2,736,573,000; Value change is -$386,661,810; making it a percentage change of -12.38 percent
Total Taxable: Final 2009 value was $3,003,712,140; Estimated for 2010 is
$2,622,756,000; Value change is -$380,956,140; making it a percentage change of -12.68 percent
Total New Construction Just: Final 2009 value was $44,426,660; Estimated for 2010 is $1,970,070
New Construction Taxable: Final 2009 value was $43,701,790; Estimated for 2010 is $1,970,070