Approaching Half Time

There hasn't been much to report since my last post. Activity and sales remain slow. Prospective buyers hoping for a greater selection of listings in Cocoa Beach and Cape Canaveral will have to continue to deal with a meager number of possibilities. Residential inventory has been stuck in skinny water for several years now and doesn't appear to be changing anytime soon.

Condo inventory in the two cities stands at 233 existing units this morning with another 50 single family homes offered.

Sales have been slow with only four homes and forty condos closed so far in the month of June. Some of the oceanfront condo sales of note included:


A luxurious 10 year old 4th floor direct ocean 3/3 at Ocean Paradise in south Cocoa Beach with 2134 square feet and a one-car garage that closed for $685,000 or $321/sf. Furniture was marked as "optional/negotiable" in the listing and may have been included but we'll never know as the listing agent did not disclose that detail when closing the listing. I don't blame her as no agent in our market ever does but it would be nice to know for other agents and appraisers using the sale as a comp to value another property.

An updated 5th floor direct ocean Palmas Majorca 3/2 in downtown Cocoa Beach with 1801 square feet and a one car garage that closed for $550,000 or $305/sf. Again, furniture may have been included but...

A nicely remodeled 5th floor SE corner direct ocean 2/2 at 2100 Towers with 1600 sq.ft. and a one-car garage that closed for $530,000 or $331/sf. Again; furniture? Maybe.

A remodeled and fully furnished (confirmed-yes!) direct ocean 2nd floor Waters Edge 3/2 in south Cocoa Beach with 1753 sq.ft. and one garage spot that sold for $440,000 in 3 days. Only brought $250/sf probably because of the somewhat obstructed ocean view due to high dune vegetation there.

Three different Mystic Vistas 3/2 units with ocean views ranging from none to a peek, some with furniture, some undisclosed at prices from $167 to $210 a square foot.

An original condition, furnished 6th floor Canaveral Towers 2/2 with 1145 square feet and an expansive south ocean view and a carport that closed for $340,000 or $297 a foot. These weekly rental units bring a premium because of the income history and/or potential.

An updated and furnished ground floor direct ocean Windjammer 2/2 in Cape Canaveral with 1196 square feet and a one car garage that closed for $320,000 or $267/sf.

We've settled into our summer pattern of hot and humid with afternoon thunderstorms most days. The reliable sea breeze has been doing a good job of keeping temps in a pleasant range close to the beach. Conditions have made offshore fishing pleasant with mixed species being caught. Giant tarpon and monster jack crevalle are following schools of pogies just outside the surf zone up and down the beach. It's a catch of a lifetime with either for most anglers. While some big grouper are being caught in deep water, the American Red Snappers are so thick that it's hard to get a bait through to a grouper. We could have caught as many of these pictured below  as we wanted last weekend but unfortunately, they are off limits because of their "endangered" status.

“Oh, pour me another drink
And punch me in the face
You can call me Nancy” __Josh Tillman

Summertime 2018

I have been asked why I tend to focus more on condos than single family homes. It's circumstance, not choice. As with most coastal areas of Florida, condos in Cocoa Beach and Cape Canaveral outnumber homes by a wide margin. Typically there will be five or six condos for sale for every single family home listed.

Showing activity during May was slower than the preceding months which is normal in our area after the snowbirds leave and before the summer visitors begin arriving. Activity typically cranks back up in June as schools let out and summer vacation season kicks in.

The number of closed sales in the month remained strong as properties that were contracted during snowbird season closed. Nine single family homes and 70 condo and townhouse units closed in the month of May. Twenty of the condos and four of the single homes sold in the first week on the market. Half of the condos and a third of the homes sold for cash.

Six oceanfront condos brought over $300 a square foot with the top spot going to a gorgeous 7th floor SE corner Michelina overlooking the Pier with 3221 square feet selling for $1.1 MM or $341 per square foot. This particular unit has been off and on the market since 2009 when the asking price was $2.4 MM. That was an expensive and slow moving reality check. Other buildings with units bringing more than $300/sf included Coral Seas, Sand Dunes, 2100 Towers, Windward East and Canaveral Towers.

Note that except for weekly rental buildings like Canaveral Towers, units commanding over $300 a foot are typically either new or totally remodeled, fully furnished and have a garage. There are 43 units currently asking over $300 per foot, many of them in old buildings, in original condition and without garages. A few of them are worth close to the asking price but the overwhelming majority are worth nowhere near their delusional prices. A 40 year old unit in mainly original condition without a garage is going to have a hard time justifying $428 a foot despite the great view and location. Buyers should not be discouraged when a fair offer on an overpriced listing is rebuked especially if the listing is new. It's not reasonable to expect a seller asking an unreasonable price to come to his senses because you submitted a fair offer with supporting comps. If he was reasonable, he would have already determined fair value and would be asking a little above that, not 25% higher. As the Captain said, "Some men you just can't reach."

Inventory of condos and townhomes for sale remains tight with 231 existing units available in Cocoa Beach and Cape Canaveral with another 25 offered in yet-to-be-built buildings. Single family home inventory in the two cities stands at 54.  As mentioned above, a huge majority of current listings are overpriced, some ridiculously so.  It's possible to buy property in our area at a reasonable price but it doesn't happen by accident. Determining fair value isn't a science but any good buyer's agent can run comps and come up with a tight range of fair value for most properties. Whether a buyer is willing to stray outside that range depends on the property. Homework, people and good hunting.

The old Publix at Banana River Square that was torn down last year reopened this week. Everyone south of 520 is happy about that. We had about four days in the last month without rain but it appears that we are out of that trend now. The ocean has calmed down and summer rates are in effect at the Cocoa Beach golf course. It's uncrowded most days.

Who wants mullet when there are big gator trout to be had?



"All you have to do is not smile and they're like, 'She's a bitch.'" __Kacey Musgraves