Where have single-family home sales increased the most in recent years? Look to north Cape Coral.

The number of homes for sale there increased by 25 percent from 2001 to 2002, according to market analysis by Denny Grimes of VIP Realty. "The affordability factor combined with the extension of Veterans Parkway has made this the next bedroom community for Cape Coral, Fort Myers and even Charlotte County," he says.

Grimes, a presenter at this year's MarketWatch, a real estate forecast event in Fort Myers, says home values have quadrupled in the north Cape in the last several years. More than 500 Gulf access lots are currently for sale with prices up to $450,000. Grimes anticipates seeing those values level off while freshwater and non-water lot values will continue to rise.

The bull market has nearly doubled existing home sales in Lee County over the past five years, and oversupply is apparent in some price points. New and existing homes under $150,000 are in undersupply. Existing homes from $250,000 and up are experiencing extended time periods on the market. New homes from $400,000 and up are in oversupply, and homes from $250,000 to $400,000 are headed there. "The market is growing, but inventory is growing faster," Grimes says. "The pendulum has shifted to a buyer's market in price points above $300,000."

The overall outlook: There are more people (Charlotte, Collier and Lee are expected to hit 1.5 million residents by 2030), but more players and more product. These figures reflect where the residential and commercial markets are headed.

. Sales of existing single-family homes in Lee County were up 12.8 percent in 2002 and the condo/villa market was up 18.6 percent. Both were record numbers, Grimes says.

. Single-family permits totaled 6,683 and were up 7.9 percent. Permit dollar volume increased slightly by 1.7 percent to $984 million. Multi-family permits totaled 2,114-a 25 percent decrease. Multi-family permit dollar volume totaled $339 million for an eight percent increase. The average new home permit value was $150,388.

. The largest transaction is The Ginn Co.'s pending contract of 4,700 acres to build a community near Florida Gulf Coast University for $116 million, roughly $25,000 an acre. "This is an example of a developer dropping huge speculative money on land that only has a 50-50 chance of being developed in the near future because of zoning issues," says Randy Thibaut, president of Land Solutions.

Several major land deals have fallen through, and Thibaut predicts fewer deals in 2003. "There was a frenzy to buy land, and then deals did not close. All that land is back on the market," he says.

Thibaut expects that prices for single-family land, which has been selling for between $60,000 and $100,000 an acre and has tripled in the past 24 months, will level off. "Land sellers need to get a dose of reality," he says.

Oversupply also exists in the commercial market. Lee and Collier counties had a combined office vacancy rate of 16.9 percent in 2002. In that industry, subleasing is hot. "I've never seen so much subleasing on the market," says Frank D'Alessandro of Re/Max Commercial. "The problem is it is competing with new spaces."

The industrial vacancy rate is also high, at 16.8 percent. "We're seeing a lot of new and expensive industrial space coming on the market," he says. "Demand can't keep with up supply."

Market Update

Where have single-family home sales increased the most in recent years? Look to north Cape Coral.

The number of homes for sale there increased by 25 percent from 2001 to 2002, according to market analysis by Denny Grimes of VIP Realty. "The affordability factor combined with the extension of Veterans Parkway has made this the next bedroom community for Cape Coral, Fort Myers and even Charlotte County," he says.

Grimes, a presenter at this year's MarketWatch, a real estate forecast event in Fort Myers, says home values have quadrupled in the north Cape in the last several years. More than 500 Gulf access lots are currently for sale with prices up to $450,000. Grimes anticipates seeing those values level off while freshwater and non-water lot values will continue to rise.

The bull market has nearly doubled existing home sales in Lee County over the past five years, and oversupply is apparent in some price points. New and existing homes under $150,000 are in undersupply. Existing homes from $250,000 and up are experiencing extended time periods on the market. New homes from $400,000 and up are in oversupply, and homes from $250,000 to $400,000 are headed there. "The market is growing, but inventory is growing faster," Grimes says. "The pendulum has shifted to a buyer's market in price points above $300,000."

The overall outlook: There are more people (Charlotte, Collier and Lee are expected to hit 1.5 million residents by 2030), but more players and more product. These figures reflect where the residential and commercial markets are headed.

. Sales of existing single-family homes in Lee County were up 12.8 percent in 2002 and the condo/villa market was up 18.6 percent. Both were record numbers, Grimes says.

. Single-family permits totaled 6,683 and were up 7.9 percent. Permit dollar volume increased slightly by 1.7 percent to $984 million. Multi-family permits totaled 2,114-a 25 percent decrease. Multi-family permit dollar volume totaled $339 million for an eight percent increase. The average new home permit value was $150,388.

. The largest transaction is The Ginn Co.'s pending contract of 4,700 acres to build a community near Florida Gulf Coast University for $116 million, roughly $25,000 an acre. "This is an example of a developer dropping huge speculative money on land that only has a 50-50 chance of being developed in the near future because of zoning issues," says Randy Thibaut, president of Land Solutions.

Several major land deals have fallen through, and Thibaut predicts fewer deals in 2003. "There was a frenzy to buy land, and then deals did not close. All that land is back on the market," he says.

Thibaut expects that prices for single-family land, which has been selling for between $60,000 and $100,000 an acre and has tripled in the past 24 months, will level off. "Land sellers need to get a dose of reality," he says.

Oversupply also exists in the commercial market. Lee and Collier counties had a combined office vacancy rate of 16.9 percent in 2002. In that industry, subleasing is hot. "I've never seen so much subleasing on the market," says Frank D'Alessandro of Re/Max Commercial. "The problem is it is competing with new spaces."

The industrial vacancy rate is also high, at 16.8 percent. "We're seeing a lot of new and expensive industrial space coming on the market," he says. "Demand can't keep with up supply."

Market Update

Where have single-family home sales increased the most in recent years? Look to north Cape Coral.

The number of homes for sale there increased by 25 percent from 2001 to 2002, according to market analysis by Denny Grimes of VIP Realty. "The affordability factor combined with the extension of Veterans Parkway has made this the next bedroom community for Cape Coral, Fort Myers and even Charlotte County," he says.

Grimes, a presenter at this year's MarketWatch, a real estate forecast event in Fort Myers, says home values have quadrupled in the north Cape in the last several years. More than 500 Gulf access lots are currently for sale with prices up to $450,000. Grimes anticipates seeing those values level off while freshwater and non-water lot values will continue to rise.

The bull market has nearly doubled existing home sales in Lee County over the past five years, and oversupply is apparent in some price points. New and existing homes under $150,000 are in undersupply. Existing homes from $250,000 and up are experiencing extended time periods on the market. New homes from $400,000 and up are in oversupply, and homes from $250,000 to $400,000 are headed there. "The market is growing, but inventory is growing faster," Grimes says. "The pendulum has shifted to a buyer's market in price points above $300,000."

The overall outlook: There are more people (Charlotte, Collier and Lee are expected to hit 1.5 million residents by 2030), but more players and more product. These figures reflect where the residential and commercial markets are headed.

. Sales of existing single-family homes in Lee County were up 12.8 percent in 2002 and the condo/villa market was up 18.6 percent. Both were record numbers, Grimes says.

. Single-family permits totaled 6,683 and were up 7.9 percent. Permit dollar volume increased slightly by 1.7 percent to $984 million. Multi-family permits totaled 2,114-a 25 percent decrease. Multi-family permit dollar volume totaled $339 million for an eight percent increase. The average new home permit value was $150,388.

. The largest transaction is The Ginn Co.'s pending contract of 4,700 acres to build a community near Florida Gulf Coast University for $116 million, roughly $25,000 an acre. "This is an example of a developer dropping huge speculative money on land that only has a 50-50 chance of being developed in the near future because of zoning issues," says Randy Thibaut, president of Land Solutions.

Several major land deals have fallen through, and Thibaut predicts fewer deals in 2003. "There was a frenzy to buy land, and then deals did not close. All that land is back on the market," he says.

Thibaut expects that prices for single-family land, which has been selling for between $60,000 and $100,000 an acre and has tripled in the past 24 months, will level off. "Land sellers need to get a dose of reality," he says.

Oversupply also exists in the commercial market. Lee and Collier counties had a combined office vacancy rate of 16.9 percent in 2002. In that industry, subleasing is hot. "I've never seen so much subleasing on the market," says Frank D'Alessandro of Re/Max Commercial. "The problem is it is competing with new spaces."

The industrial vacancy rate is also high, at 16.8 percent. "We're seeing a lot of new and expensive industrial space coming on the market," he says. "Demand can't keep with up supply."