True or False? What is greater Ft. Myers like? Be my judge... (Cape Coral: short sale)

[denemante]

Hey all,

After reading and researching, I don’t know what to think about the greater Ft. Myers area. It could go either way. So I’ve painted 2 pictures below – my “picture perfect” scenario – and a picture I’ve painted based on what othe’s have posted here.

I’d love your input – which of my below scenarios is closer to true? (Also, if anyone knows of a place anywhere in FL that looks like my “picture perfect”, let me know!)

Scenario #1: Picture-Perfect
Nice home, gated community, Given the economy in SoFla, it looks like we could get a nice single-family home inside of $275K. We’d meet other families within the community who we befriend. We’d do a lot of socializing within the subdivision. My wife is a stay-at-home mom, so she’d meet others like her. She’d venture with her new-mom-friends outside the subdivision to local events or things well-suited for young kids. Arts and crafts, gymnastics, mommy groups, walks at the park, playgrounds, etc.

We love and enjoy people of from all cultures – interacting with bright people who can give us fresh perspective is welcome...but we hope to encounter lots of people just like us.

Weekends, we’d head to the beach, or drop the boat in the water somewhere for some fishing. On the trip to-and-from these outings, we’d pass nice establishments. We’d feel safe, and take in the beauty of the landscape. There are newer restaurants well-suited for families along the way.

When we’d need milk, we’d drive down the palm-lined streets to Publix (or some grocery store), and perhaps it’s in a new strip-mall. We stop and get gas, and it’s a bright, safe-feeling place. Overall, the area is a wholesome, wonderful place. The landscape, both figuratively and literally, is beautiful. Life is good.

Scneario #2: I’m worried that this would be our reality:
Our home is nice, and the community is gated. But every 4th house has 1-foot tall grass in the front yard with foreclosure signs. There are no families, or none quite like us, in the community. Either they are flaky weirdos, we don’t speak their language, or there is just no group we might gravitate towards. It’s a melting pot. There is one house 8-doors-down with some country’s flags and cardboard being used interchangeable as window coverings. The house next door to that one, by coincidence, is a beautiful property with 2 Mercedes parked in the driveway. Maybe doctors. Next to that one, there are 13 ramshackle cars parked nearby – all residents of that one home.

We head out to the beautiful local park for a walk, but encounter trash and scary-looking people with too many tattoos. We head to buy milk at the grocery store- and have to wait 5 minutes to find a parking spot under a lamppost – then hide everything of value under the seats.

We go to get gas, and the cars filling up have rims are worth more than the car itself. Someone is lurking behind the tinted windows wearing a bandana, and the bass-thump from the rap music is so loud our car shakes.

We head to the beach, but along the way, encounter more of the same. The landscape jumps between beautiful and awful. We run red lights to get out of some areas then slow down to gaze at the beautiful landscaping of the next block. Poor and rich are mixed, and we're in the middle.

In closing:
I know every area has its ups and downs. If I had a GPS tracker on me, and you tracked all of our family’s movements where we live now (Roswell GA north of Atlanta), for whatever reason, we’d be in the “green zone” of niceness 99% of the time. Darkness may exist just outside that zone, but we simply wouldn’t naturally tread there. I don’t even know if it’s really there. I’m particular worried that in FL, we wouldn’t be able to go 500yds without encountering a creeping car full of weirdos or gang members.. OK, that’s over the top, but you get the idea. We don’t want to worry about having to avoid anything. We just want to live wholesomely without worry, like we do now – just with an ocean closer.


So which of my scenarios is more true? And if you are currently living a lifestyle in FL and your life naturally keeps you in "the green zone" - I'd love to know where you'd recommend.


Thanks in advance for your feedback!

[yachtcare]

Hmmm, I'm not so sure that scenario #1 exists anywhere, other than in a hollywood production. Naples is probably as close as it gets to that in SW Florida.

Fort Myers/Cape Coral you are probably somewhere between the two extremes, and like anyplace else, you need to learn the "green zones" from the areas you dont want to tread in.

As for the $275K price guideline....I'll stick to my usual stand. Prices have perhaps artificially edged upward in the past few months, fueled by investor types buying up large packages of homes for pennies on the dollar. Much of the future will ride on what happens in this "season" just getting underway here now.

My advice would be to rent for a year here first. I truly believe there is another collapse of housing prices coming in the spring of 2010 here(and probably everywhere). Your best deals will come next summer.

[Samiamnh]

There are good deals in the gated communities but they kill you with condo fees.Id try SE Cape Coral,east of Delprado.You should be able to find a nice home with a pool and canal for you boat for 275K.We found a great place last year .It was a forclosure,but in a nice neighborhood we walked the area for ten blocks and it was real "Mr Rogers" people working outside .kids on bikes,some retired,some working families,all age groups and seem friendly.Almost every house has a boat out back.Many of those streets are dead end seem very safe.
If you want a nice condo,try the Iona area.Gated and safe....mostly retired though,and you sound like younger people.

[nhkev]

I agree with most of yachtcare's assessment. It is somewhere in between scenario #1 and #2. Some area's closer to each. your price range is a tricky spot to call on the real estate market.. Clearly the lower priced homes will be more expensive next year, but just as clearly the higher end homes will be less expensive. I am seeing very little inventory of the 2000 sq ft, 3 car garage, gulf access, pool home under 10 yrs old for under $325k I did a search for myself in cape coral and only 12 came back 1/2 already pending and all but one was a short sale. Make a list of all the things you are looking for and track the inventory levels and selling prices of those homes. There will be no opinion better than your own research.

[JBMallory]

Aside from 3 foot high grass in a gated community, and your issue with tattoos. I'm not sure you have ever been to Fort Myers.

Most gated communities have lawn companies that keep the grass, whether the home is empty or lived in. I noticed this while I was doing foreclosure maintenance a few months back.

What's wrong with tattoos? Guess it makes you a bad person, better tell all those Jews that Hitler was right. -maybe you'll catch my sarcasm


I think you can find a VERY NICE home in a gated community for less than 150k. That being said, don't expect any real security from the gates. The only real reason to consider a gated community is to have a community pool, regulations on animals and house colors (which helps control the population). You would be just as well off in a deed restricted area like Talullah falls off of bayshore, or in that area.

[justNancy]

Originally Posted by JBMallory

What's wrong with tattoos? Guess it makes you a bad person, better tell all those Jews that Hitler was right. -maybe you'll catch my sarcasm

Sarcastic or not - that was in very bad taste. What the heck is it these days with all the references to Adolf Hitler? This isn't the political forum, so I won't elaborate, but the Jews didn't have any choice. So I don't get yelled at by a moderator, I'll stop, but I'm guessing every person who brings up these very horrific images, whether for political or personal reasons, isn't Jewish.

[justNancy]

There is no perfect home. Have you ever seen the summer homes along 10 mile drive in Newport RI or been to the Hamptons in New York? Lots of pain & misery in those huge, elaborate mansions, including divorce, drugs & suicide. (although if you're going to be miserable anyway, I'd rather be rich & miserable..just give me the opportunity. LOL)

If you want, I can send a link with a list of every gated community in the Greater Fort Myers area. I'm not a real estate agent, but it will save you google time and give you an idea of what's on the market now.

Only you can decide what's most important to you. If living in a city that's very clean, relatively safe and has a lot of nice shops & restaurants are your priorities, I'd suggest looking in Naples, although I think Naples is way overpriced. It's also a popular area for retirees and the average age is around 62. I'm not saying you won't meet some other families with children, but you need to keep that in mind. You will also get a smaller house in Naples and the monthly HOA will be steep, but you might just be able to take that fantasy drive to the park if you plan your route well. Just set your GPS for "manicured lawns, no trash."

Go to Naples Area Board of Realtors - Find a Home and Find a Realtor in Naples Florida which is the local Board of Realtors. Look at listings in your price range. I recommend Saturnia Lakes, although there are rarely houses available for $275K. However, I'd rather live in the smallest house in a community with $500K+ houses than live in a big, fancy house in a lower priced neighborhood.

If you don't mind living 9 miles east of I-75, which means a longer drive to the beach & downtown, a nice family community in Naples is Waterways. Most of the homes are listed between $220K and $350K.

[compelled to reply]

Originally Posted by denemante

Hey all,

After reading and researching, I don’t know what to think about the greater Ft. Myers area. It could go either way. So I’ve painted 2 pictures below – my “picture perfect” scenario – and a picture I’ve painted based on what othe’s have posted here.

I’d love your input – which of my below scenarios is closer to true? (Also, if anyone knows of a place anywhere in FL that looks like my “picture perfect”, let me know!)

Scenario #1: Picture-Perfect
Nice home, gated community, Given the economy in SoFla, it looks like we could get a nice single-family home inside of $275K. We’d meet other families within the community who we befriend. We’d do a lot of socializing within the subdivision. My wife is a stay-at-home mom, so she’d meet others like her. She’d venture with her new-mom-friends outside the subdivision to local events or things well-suited for young kids. Arts and crafts, gymnastics, mommy groups, walks at the park, playgrounds, etc.

We love and enjoy people of from all cultures – interacting with bright people who can give us fresh perspective is welcome...but we hope to encounter lots of people just like us.

Weekends, we’d head to the beach, or drop the boat in the water somewhere for some fishing. On the trip to-and-from these outings, we’d pass nice establishments. We’d feel safe, and take in the beauty of the landscape. There are newer restaurants well-suited for families along the way.

When we’d need milk, we’d drive down the palm-lined streets to Publix (or some grocery store), and perhaps it’s in a new strip-mall. We stop and get gas, and it’s a bright, safe-feeling place. Overall, the area is a wholesome, wonderful place. The landscape, both figuratively and literally, is beautiful. Life is good.

This sounds eerily like Weston, on the east coast.


Scneario #2: I’m worried that this would be our reality:
Our home is nice, and the community is gated. But every 4th house has 1-foot tall grass in the front yard with foreclosure signs. There are no families, or none quite like us, in the community. Either they are flaky weirdos, we don’t speak their language, or there is just no group we might gravitate towards. It’s a melting pot. There is one house 8-doors-down with some country’s flags and cardboard being used interchangeable as window coverings. The house next door to that one, by coincidence, is a beautiful property with 2 Mercedes parked in the driveway. Maybe doctors. Next to that one, there are 13 ramshackle cars parked nearby – all residents of that one home.

We head out to the beautiful local park for a walk, but encounter trash and scary-looking people with too many tattoos. We head to buy milk at the grocery store- and have to wait 5 minutes to find a parking spot under a lamppost – then hide everything of value under the seats.

We go to get gas, and the cars filling up have rims are worth more than the car itself. Someone is lurking behind the tinted windows wearing a bandana, and the bass-thump from the rap music is so loud our car shakes.

We head to the beach, but along the way, encounter more of the same. The landscape jumps between beautiful and awful. We run red lights to get out of some areas then slow down to gaze at the beautiful landscaping of the next block. Poor and rich are mixed, and we're in the middle.

This sounds like Fort Myers.

I'd love to know where you'd recommend.

I recommend Weston, Florida

Thanks in advance for your feedback!

Hope this helps.