Cape Haze West/Placida for boaters (real estate, rentals, insurance)

[logybogy]

I've been looking at listings in Cape Haze West that say gulf access in minutes. If I understand correctly, no bridges in this older established neighborhood. For boaters interested in the gulf, this area is vastly superior than SGC, no? Minutes vs. 90 minutes + for gulf access?

Drawbacks seem to be older homes that may require renovation, much higher prices, and more hurricane risk/flood risk? Anyone familiar with this area that can comment on the neighborhood?

One of the listings included access to a private beach at Don Pedro Island. Is this deeded access part of the original development?

[mr&mrssunshine]

If you are talking about the west side of Gasparilla Rd then yes high costs... Low lying land = stilt or 2 story homes, some may even be in V or VE (stands for Very expensive !! :-) zones,......budget needs to be substantial for either new or older with lower elevations.

I didn't know there was a private beach at Don pedro, you can only get there by boat for sure.

[Harbor Hopper]

If you're referring to streets west of Placida Rd (Capstan, Spaniards, Green Dolphin, Spyglass Alley, etc...) then yes, ICW access in minutes, Gulf Access in 10-15mins. VERY nice neighborhood, but pricey. That neighborhood has both AE and VE flood zones. Yes, there is a private dock on Don Pedro for residents only, but honestly, it's a quicker and shorter walk if you go to the public docks (room for 12 boats).
Yes, this area is VASTLY superior to SGC. Apples & oranges. This neighborhood is on "pretty" water, with VERY quick boating access, neither of which SGC has. We live nearby & boat this area weekly. Bring the questions.

[logybogy]

This is one of the properties that caught my eye. I'm not in the $1+ Million range. But below $700K and this property valuation looks interesting for the location.

I suppose the market for the square footage and maintenance hassles is not there? Is there a possibility of making this a duplex for income?

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/6...43565407_zpid/

[mr&mrssunshine]

It is in a 13AE zone but appears built up and may be close to that so you may not get hammered on insurance

Zoned for single family though

[logybogy]

Thank you, that is good information. It appears to need some cosmetic updates but doesn't look too bad. I saw another listing with a similar price and location at 1300 Square feet! I can't get past the square footages. 5700 is so massive. The maintenance and cleaning and electric bills, ay yi yi. Only possible way it could work would be to rent a portion of it out for income. Does Charlotte County have regulations on airbnb?

[sware2cod]

Originally Posted by logybogy

Thank you, that is good information. It appears to need some cosmetic updates but doesn't look too bad. I saw another listing with a similar price and location at 1300 Square feet! I can't get past the square footages. 5700 is so massive. The maintenance and cleaning and electric bills, ay yi yi. Only possible way it could work would be to rent a portion of it out for income. Does Charlotte County have regulations on airbnb?

Be careful if the bottom floor is being sold as finished area. It appears to be an elevated home which probably means the lower floor might have originally been designed as non-living (non finished). This means the county considers it unfinished. This means, when sold, the lower area should NOT be priced (per sq ft) the same as real legal finished area upstairs.

Insurance might have issues with it too. Could possibly cause issues with getting an elevation certificate because they measure lowest elevation for living area which could make the house below BFE.

All above is 'what if'. Buyer beware. Check county records for the house to see if sq footage of living area is what is advertised.

Update: Charlotte county shows that house as 2232 living area (under air). It appears that the "living space" being advertised on the lower floor is illegal. Not non-conforming, but illegal. Non-conforming means it was legal when built but the flood maps later changed. Illegal means they finished an area under BFE(Base Flood Elevation) when it's not supposed to be finished because it's in a flood zone and supposed to be waterproof. Now, maybe they finished it waterproof and put all electrical sockets and plumbing fixtures above BFE and no drywall, cabinets or non-PT wood under BFE. Also all doors and door jambs under BFE should be waterproof materials plus all floor coverings. Doubt they did that.

Be careful. Maybe real estate professionals can give advice. Maybe there is some loophole that I am unaware of.

https://www.ccappraiser.com/Show_par...=T&lnd=T&leg=T

[logybogy]

Now that makes sense. Thank you. The thing that immediately stood out to me was the square footage and price was so out of whack with the market given that particular location. If this extra square footage is below BFE it would explain the price.

I wonder if they were renting out this finished lower floor or what the story is. It is not that unsual in the keys which has similar flood zoning to have rentals on the first floor under BFE whether non-conforming or otherwise.

[Harbor Hopper]

The community has deed restrictions and an HOA. They may have rules against rentals. Ask your agent for the deed restriction docs. Insurance out here is not cheap. The cost of our waterfront paradise...