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...listings on all of Siesta Key under $400,000 and they weren't even on the water. On Bird Key, the cheapest canal home was $1.5 million. Even in little Venice, the least expensive waterfront listing was $761,000 for a small home built in 1964.
"Waterfront property has gone up pretty much across the board," says Jeff Zipper of the Florida Association of Realtors, looking back at the last three years. "It's nuts."
But if you're a bargain hunter set on living on the water in Southwest Florida, don't give up. Just 50 miles south in Charlotte County, waterfront lots can still be found for under $300,000. (Yes, for all you latecomers to the world of Florida real estates, that's cheap.) Get in line, though. Sleepy Charlotte County, with a population of 150,000 and the distinction of leading the nation in its percentage of folks over 65, has been discovered.
"Every area has its time and this is ours," says Don Atwell, a realtor for Five Star Realty in Punta Gorda.
Life was slow when Money Magazine named the Punta Gorda MSA (Charlotte County) as one of the top five places to live in the country for four years, starting in 1996. Then, in April 2001, Florida Trend ranked Punta Gorda as one of Florida's "Small Town Gems." About the same time, Forbes placed Puma Gorda on its "best small place for business and career" list in 2001 and 2002. The publicity had an effect.
"It put us on the radar screen," says Julie Mathis, executive director of the Charlotte County Chamber of Commerce.
It didn't take long for real estate buyers to react. The buyers, however, were not the typical Northern snowbirds. They were Floridians, folks hailing from Tampa down to Naples and along the East Coast, looking for a good deal and a setting where traffic lights were few and far between.
After Sept. 11 and the stock market collapse, groups of investors and speculators--often forming limited liability corporations and bringing their own out-of town realtors--pounced on what they viewed as the last place in Southwest Florida to get a great deal on the water. As a result, prices started to rise.
"Prices have doubled and tripled in the last three years," says Kathy Damewood of Re/Max Bayside Properties. Damewood, who bought a $250,000 home on the water in Cape Haze three years ago, says she could easily sell it for $500,000 now.
Atwell, who has lived in the...
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