My New Blog

Hello, I am Dan Pearce, a Gay real estate broker serving Lee and Collier County. Thanks for reading my blog and I hope that you find this information useful and informative. The News-Press had an article regarding the foreclosure market and I hope you find it interesting.

Mounting foreclosures (www.floridarainbowrealty.com) have created a cottage industry in Lee County: the trash-out business. Here's how it works: When a lender takes back a home in foreclosure, or a landlord kicks out a recalcitrant tenant, the trash-out specialists (another name for a gay man's dream job) are called in to clean up their mess. When a real estate agent is retained by a lender to sell a house, typically within 48 hours the lock is changed and an estimate is made on what the house would sell for in 30 days marketing time or less. Then a trash-out company is hired to get rid of any leftover belongings and make the property presentable for sale. The field is a godsend for people who find them selves looking for work.

There are no statistics on how many trash-outs are being done, but with more than 2,000 foreclosure actions filed per month in the Lee County in recent months, people in the field say there's plenty of work. There are 2,644 residences seized by lenders and offered for resale on the Multiple Listing Service in Lee County. For many of those properties, the trash-out teams clean out everything in the house; put it in Dumpsters and haul it to the landfill.

What they find sometimes is heart breaking. Kids toys, photo albums, different types of collections are pretty common. Not all the unusual items found in homes are such grim reminders of the former resident's desperation. Sometimes the crews find money, even abandoned pets. Other items left behind are just strange. At one house, there were 200 one-gallon milk jugs in the garage, all in perfect rows. All empty, all capped, all 200 of them. Many people operating trash-out businesses say it is a financial stroke of luck at a time when jobs are scarce and the prospects look grim.

Cape Coral is the foreclosure capital of the world right now and this is the perfect place for this kind of business. Lehigh Acres has many foreclosures also. Traditional real estate companies are also getting more involved in the business. As an agent that deals with selling and listing lots of foreclosed properties in Lee and Collier counties, there' is definitely an increase and a lot of business now is taking care of houses in some form of the foreclosure process.

Sales of foreclosed houses are picking up all over the state. If you look at the listing on this website, www.floridarainbowrealty.com, you will see many of the homes listed there are either sold or are pending. Often, the houses have been stripped by vandals or by their former occupants. At one house I listed this week, someone has ripped the plants out of the ground and took them along with all the kitchen appliances.

Houses are moving here quickly and the bank appear to be aggressively pricing then to clear their inventory. If you are looking for a home, foreclosure or not, now is the time to buy in SW Florida. Home prices are lower than they were in 2001. Cape Coral, Lehigh Acres, Naples, Fort Myers, Estero and Bonita Springs are all great places to enjoy the beaches and the sun. Please let me know if I can help you with your listing or purchase of you piece of paradise.

Thanks for reading my website. If you or someone you know is planning on listing or buying a home in SW Florida, please have them contact me, Dan Pearce.  If you have any questions, you may reach me at 239-940-1747.

Last evening on the NBC national news, there was a report of the activity on Lee county and the housing market.  I am attaching that newscast so that you may see actively what is happening in the marketplace.

Foreclosures are really beginning to drive the market and this is good news as out inventory is beginning to shrink.  It is a great time to invest in the market.

Click on this link to see the newscast:

 "http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22425001/vp/27087106#27087106"

Please contact me if you have any questions.

Dan

House prices are at an all time low!
Permits for single-family homes in September tied a record low in unincorporated Lee County and set a new low in Cape Coral, according to figures released October 02, 2008. Meanwhile, 2,462 foreclosure actions were filed in the entire county — just five under the record high of 2,467 in July.

In Cape Coral there were seven permits issued, compared to 11 in August. The previous record low had been nine in December, 2007, according to a report by the city. In unincorporated Lee County, the number dropped to 32 in September, according to figures released by the county’s Community Development Office. The figure tied the record monthly low set in December 2007. Last month, 37 permits were pulled in the unincorporated county. A year ago, it was 49.

The city of Fort Myers issued 15 single-family permits in September, down from 16 in August. There were also 16 issued in September 2007.

No permits were issued in the city of Sanibel and numbers weren’t available for Bonita Springs and Fort Myers Beach.

Builders are finding it hard to keep going under current circumstances. According to local builders, they are basically in a state of hibernation. They haven’t closed down. They know they can’t compete with the prices of foreclosures. It would be impossible for you to build a new construction, compared to the price of a foreclosure.

There were permits issued for six multi-family units, all in duplexes, during September in the unincorporated county, compared to 32 the previous month and 18 in September 2007.

Permits were issued for seven new commercial buildings valued at $3.2 million in the unincorporated county, compared to $6.2 million the previous month. In September 2007, newly permitted commercial buildings were valued at $5.1 million.

Now is a great time to buy a home is SW FL. Prices are now back to the 2001 level!

I don't remember whose idea this was, but we were invited to go on a trip to the Little Manatee River State Park and meet our friends Jim and Jerry, Nando and Michael and Neil for an extended week-end.  We all arrived on Thursday afternoon and as usual, had dinner, too much to drink and a very restful night in a great Old Florida setting, lots of oak trees, palmettos and palms.

This State Park is located just north and west of Sarasota, so for Michael and I, it was only a short 100 miles from home.  With diesel fuel topping $4.39 a gallon in the Fort Myers area, that was about all that we could afford.  We have really been cutting back on our expenses, even buying cheaper wine as not to reduce quantity.  Sometimes, quantity is more important than quality.  This park is very wooded, has the Little Manatee River running through it, horseback trails and is overall a very nice facility.

Since the real estate market is really picking up here in SW FL, it was necessary for me to return on Friday morning to work.  I have been having such great success with this web site.  Thanks, everyone who visits!  I am working with two great women from Ohio who are looking for a house in Cape Coral as a second home.  The great news is that I found exactly what they were looking for; an open floor plan, great lanai space with pool, and on a wonderful fresh water canal - all for under $200,000.  They are a wonderful couple, fun, intelligent and quick.  It looks as if this is going to be a great friendship.  I returned to the campground and we had a wonderful dinner in Nando and Michael's coach.  I really think that we need, as a community, to redefine "camping".  For Nando and Michael, it is using place mats rather than linens for dinner.

Saturday brought on the dreaded hunt for fishing bait.  It has become an event that everyone finds humorous, except for me.  I spend $15 for fishing bait, sometimes 1.5 hours searching for it, 2-3 hours fishing and somehow never seem to catch any fish.  For me that still makes sense, for the others they think it is a waste of time.  I think it has something to do with my SW GA childhood - water, wood, camping, other boys, worms . . . need I go on??

Of course, Nando went with me on the search.  That man can sniff out a tack shop within 50 miles.  On the return from our acquisition of night crawlers and wild wigglers, we found the Parrish Hardware and Tack.  What an adventure.  How many fly strips does one need?  Nando continued to sniff the saddles, reins and saddle soap for at least 45 minutes.  He was raised in upstate NY and Connecticut with horses and really know a lot about them - and everything else.  He has amazing knowledge!

When we returned to the campground, Michael, Nando and I went fishing and returned with our usual bounty - and empty creel (webster: a wicker basket (as for carrying newly caught fish).  Not to be detered, we returned to the camping area and had appetizers and a cocktail with our friend Roger who had arrived from Fort Myers.

Roger and I met when Michael and I first arrived in Cape Coral.  At the time he was living on the river in the Cape and we met because his friend Winkler was in town and wanted to see houses.  Another friend referred me to Roger.  I have never known what Winkler's real name is??  When we first met, he was making mint julips for a Derby party and I had just finished making mine for my party.  Of course, he is from Wisconsin and has no idea how to make a "proper" mint julip.  Roger is a great guy and somewhat of a "rebelfile" (me: someone who likes things that are southern).  We became fast and immediate friends.

We were delighted to have Roger with us on his first real outing in the RV.  Roger has a cabin in North Carolina as well as a home is Fort Myers and has now been inducted into the Tarheel Fan Club, through "johnsy contact interaction" (me: constant contact with persons named John) - that meaning he has a new beau who is everything Southern and everything UNC.  What I am trying to tell you is that everthing the man wore - shirts, pants, socks and I sure underwear - had the UNC logo on it.  Every sentence started with "When I was at John's . . .!!  We discussed the "game".  What game?  What kind of game?  Which ball did they use in this game?  We never found out, but we do know that our beloved Tarheels got the whipping of a lifetime.  But most importantly, we still love Roger!!!  And we are learning to love John!!

Lots of rain, lots of rest and lots of fun ended our weekend.  Our next adventure is for the Rainbow RV Club Prom, which is going to be held April 25.  Check out the website at www.rainbowrv.com for more information.

Prices are low and the market has never had so much to choose from.  Come to SW FL and buy a home!!  Thanks for reading my Blog!! 

The Florida Chapter of the Rainbow Rally met in Panacea, FL on the 7th of February.  Panacea is located in the panhandle of the state and reminds me of old Florida.  When I was a kid, Panacea, St. Marks and Alligator Point were always the places that we went for quick trips to the beach.  Since I am from Cairo, GA - 30minutes north of Tallahassee - that was the closest place to go "to the coast."

Michael and I planned to make an extended week-end of our trip so we invited a few friends to go with us.  Michael and I in our coach, Pam and Rose in their coach, left Cape Coral on Tuesday around 10 am.  When we got to St. Pete, our friends Michael and Nando met us and we went up to Crystal River and stayed over.  Neil from Tampa joined us later that afternoon.  Driving more than 4 hours without a cocktail and food is unacceptable.  Afterall, it was a vacation.  The RV resort was having a Mardi Gras parade so we enjoyed the sights of everyone on their decorated golf carts, bicycles, car and trucks.  We also visited a new gay campground there in Crystal River.  The people were very nice, but it looks like it would be difficult for them to handle bigger RV's.

Part of the reason for the trip was to include my great Aunt Rosa in our plans.  She is one of the wisest people that I know, is always in a great mood, has her own opinions (which I usually agree with) and most importantly, is fun to be around.  By the way, she is 87 and owns here own motor home.  So, we got her rig ready, got my 80 year old mother, Helen, ready, my cousin Voncile who is 76 and cousin Nora Ruth (pronounced Noruth) who is 75, all set to go on their first gay camping event!!  What were we thinking??

On Thursday, we all caravanned down to Panacea to meet the rest of the club for our own Mardi Gras party.  As usual, the other people were ready to have a great time.  Sean and Eddie, the planners for this event, did a great job.  We had way too much food, a little too much to drink, and never too much fun.  It was cold so we had the campfire roaring at all times. 

Three of my cousins made an appearance: Lewis, Donnice and Gayle.  It was great seeing them and watching them interact with the group.  I also ran into a past high school class mate.  He wanted to know what all the rainbow stuff was all about.  Maybe we enlightened another south Georgia redneck??

On Sunday, we took the women back to Georgia and made our way back to SW Florida.  A bit tired and ready to see home!

If you are thinking about getting into camping, look at www.rainbowrv.com.  It does not matter what type of equipment you have, tent, trailer, pop-up or motor home, you can be guartanteed a great time.  And by the way, not every event is my personal family reunion.

It is a great time to buy a house in SW FL.  Prices have never been this low!!

Thanks for reading our little blog!

Dan and Michael