Real Estate Investments.... The time to flip property as soon as it is purchased has passed but that does not mean that there are not great investments to be had here. Many of our condos are almost new and Sanibel and Captiva remain highly sought after resorts. A beachfront condo on Sanibel can now be bought starting in the $700000 area and for less if located a few feet away from the beach and even less if you don’t mind crossing one street. As of July 2007 one can buy a 2 bedroom condo across the street from the beach for under $400,000! Condos rent well during the season but also during the various off seasons. Our islands are visited year round. If you are able to buy the property for cash you may very well be able to cover all yearly expenses like taxes, condo fees, management fees and utilities from rental income from your condo or your single family home.                                          Sanibel and Captiva Islands Median Sales Prices  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008  Single Family  $740,000  $840,000  $900,000  $835,000  $745,000              Condominium  $580,000  $675,000  $782,500  $670,000  $623,750                         Condos on Sanibel are rented either weekly, bi-weekly or monthly. Generally condos more to the east rent on a weekly basis and west of Tarpon Bay Rd rent on a bi-weekly or monthly basis. Naturally there are exceptions. Some resorts like Sundial also rent by the day, as do some Inns on Sanibel. Single family homes are rented by the month on Sanibel and mostly rented by the season or longer. Yearly rental income varies from $25,000 to over $70,000. Condos and single family homes on Captiva can be rented by the week. When one drives down Wightman or Laika or Andy Rosse Lanes on Captiva, nearly every single family home has a for rent sign identifying it as an investment property that is being rented as a vacation rental throughout the year and sold every few years for a nice profit. Some of these homes have a gross rental income of over $100,000, sometimes more than $150,000! All of the single family homes on Captiva are close to the bay or the gulf because Captiva is a very narrow island. Absentee owners hire management companies to manage and find renters for their homes. These companies charge on average 20% for their services and take good care of your vacation home, even if not rented. Looking into the future the remaining waterfront property will become more valuable as it is being bought by investors. The refurbished condos and homes also make a great long term investment. Now that market has adjusted long term investments in other parts of Lee County have again become very attractive. Some investors are purchasing homes now that they plan to rent annually until they have made a large enough profit to sell, to move here permanently or to build a replacement home. The whole corridor around I75 from Tampa to the Everglades will be built up during the next 20 years making any home west of I75 and especially west of US41 and closer to the Caloosahatchee River and the Gulf of Mexico more valuable. With more than 160 golf courses in our area, boating and sunshine that stays in your heart and reflects on your face, this is a great place for a retirement home or investment property. The below interest rates chart dates back to 1949 and was published in December 2008. Please use the form to contact me with any questions you may have.