Florida Trend | Florida's Business Authority

Real estate's popularity as investment tumbles to 5-year low

Real estate’s popularity as investment tumbles to 5-year low

Real estate is again a top investment choice, at least according to an annual poll of typical Americans. But its popularity has tumbled to a five-year low. In a Gallup poll of 1,013 U.S. adults, 34% of respondents in April said property is the best place for their money when asked to choose between real estate, stocks, bonds, golds and savings accounts. It’s nothing new. This poll has ranked real estate No. 1 for 11 consecutive years in a survey dating to 2011. [Source: South Florida Sun-Sentinel]

Florida ranks 1st in the U.S. in key commercial real estate segment

There are now more self-storage facilities in the U.S. than there are McDonald's restaurants. The industry hovers in the $40 billion range and often is a reflection of how we live. Nationally, the total self-storage sales volume surpassed $10 billion in 2022. Florida came in first with transactions totaling $1.6 billion for more than 11.7 million square feet purchased in 174 deals. [Source: Islander News]

Statewide median single-family home prices rises

The statewide median sales price for a single-family home in March was $405,000, up 2.1% from March 2022, according to data from Florida Realtors Research Department in partnership with local Realtor boards and associations. In March, the statewide median price for condominiums and town homes was $320,000, up 3.9% compared with the same time last year. March represents the latest numbers provided by the Orlando-based Florida Realtors issued April 21. [Source: Jacksonville Daily Record]

Realtors say Lake Nona will be fine without new Disney campus

Cows are currently grazing on a plot of land in Lake Nona where Disney had planned to build a 1.8 million-square-foot regional campus. The company announced it was canceling those plans Thursday, but whether or not Disney decides to build there now, or let someone else do it, Lake Nona Realtors say they expect residential real estate in the area to continue to boom. [Source: Spectrum News]

Strategy shift pays off for Florida-based homebuilder

An emphasis on solid, steady, organic growth has helped Fort Myers-based Christopher Alan Homes compete with large, national homebuilders that have traditionally dominated Southwest Florida. The company, like so many others in its industry, has been dealing with rising material costs and interest rates. “This industry is not for the risk averse,” CEO Ian Schmoyer says. [Source: Business Observer]

STAT OF THE WEEK
$9.9 million
Water buffalo, mountain goats and antelopes — oh my! These are just some of the animals found at Ross Hammock Ranch in Florida, a spread located two hours northwest of Orlando and 5 miles from the sprawling saltwater flats of the Gulf of Mexico. It’s now listed for sale, asking $9.9 million. [Source: New York Post]

ALSO TRENDING:

› Miami-Dade sets home price record, yet sales tumble. Broward reports similar housing trend
Home prices hit a record in Miami-Dade County last month, despite 12 consecutive months of double-digit declines in sales activity. The figures point to a wildly imbalanced residential real estate market, experts said, one in which many local buyers still can’t afford to buy homes. The median price for single-family houses in Miami-Dade reached $600,000 in April, up from $565,000 a year ago and surpassed the former record median of $579,000 in June 2022.

› Tampa Bay needs affordable housing. Why do luxury condos dominate?
As longtime residents struggle to find affordable housing, some have criticized the proliferation of luxury condos and apartments in St. Petersburg and Tampa. They fear that these projects are driving up housing costs for the entire community. Others say our cities need more growth, not less, to solve the housing shortage and bring prices down.

› Orlando apartment rents climb higher this year, while other Florida metros see decrease
Asking rents in Central Florida rose slightly from the previous year, while falling in the Sunshine State's three other major metros, according to a recent national report from Realtor.com. The median listed rent for studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments in the Orlando-Kissimmee metro region was $1,810 a month in April, up by 0.9% from the previous year.

› $15 million spec office building opening in Pasco fills up fast
A Pasco County office building built, in part, with money from a local sales tax program is set to open next week. The 60,000-square-foot building, 54 Crossings, is the first of two that developer Rizzetta Real Estate is putting up on the property off State Road 54 just east of the Suncoast Parkway. The building is opening with two tenants already on board and discussions underway with a third.