http://napleshomesbyrich.com/blog/archive_202508/sort_entrydatetime-desc/ Greetings and welcome to this month's Market Report!  I hope all is well with you and thanks again for your referrals.  It's the highest compliment I can receive!Before we review last month's data, each month I like to share interesting facts about our local real estate market. First I'd like like to pass along a consumer warning regarding solar panel programs to reduce electric bills. I and my client just had an eye opening experience in our effort to purchase a near new $1.3M home with solar panels.  Independent from whether solar panels even make sense in one's net electric bill, my buyers were going to be required to sign a 38 page, 25 year lease secured by the property.  In short, the house cannot be sold/transferred without the panels.  Upon further investigation, we discovered the company had a horrendous customer service record with numerous law suits underway.  Last but not least, our lender advised they will not lend on solar panel leased homes because the lease does not subordinate behind the home mortgage.  In summary, think twice before buying a home with solar panels or adding them to your current property.  What could appear to be an home improvement, could be a resale liability and dramatically impact your ability to sell your home!Attention all Florida Landlords!  Did you hear about the Flood Disclosure Requirement just released?  Florida property managers and landlords must prepare for a significant new disclosure requirement. Senate Bill 948 (2025), which creates Florida Statute 83.512, mandates that landlords provide flood history disclosures to prospective tenants before signing residential lease agreements. This is a new legal requirement. Starting October 1, 2025.  This applies to any residential rental agreement for a term of one year or longer. This disclosure must be a separate document - not buried within the lease terms.  If you need assistance on this, please reach out. I'm always here to help!OK...off we go to review of the July 2025 market stats and news.Broker analysts reviewing the July 2025 Market Report agreed that the desire to own property in paradise is a major factor in the Naples housing market’s continued stability. Pending sales (homes under contract) in July increased 19.9 percent to 807 pending sales from 673 pending sales in July 2024. And even with evidence that sellers are negotiating on price (94% of list price received) and adjusting list prices to stay competitive (1,296 price decreases recorded in July), home values remain stable.Historic Perspectives Cindy Carroll of Carroll & Carroll Appraisers, one of my most trusted resources for market value and trends, said, “If we were in the midst of a market correction, prices would be near $325,000, or where they were before the pandemic in 2019. The fact that our market was able to sustain prices over the last four years [after record-breaking demand during the pandemic drove prices up], tells me that our market is consistently doing well.” “This is new territory. Twenty years ago our eyes were fixed on activity happening west of U.S. 41, but there are so many submarkets throughout Naples now. The growth and diversity within the market is helping real estate in Naples stay desirable and stable.” Pending sales are at pre-pandemic levels.  We have a lot of cash buyers [48 percent in July], so mortgage rates have a limited impact on our sales. With discussions about interest rates going down, that is helping sales because buyers realize that if/when rates go down, prices will likely go up. Even buyers who need financing know that locking into a rate today doesn’t prevent them from refinancing should rates drop in the future. Confidence Sparked More evidence that Naples’ desirability and consumer confidence are positively influencing the Naples housing market can be witnessed in the number of homes sold resulting in the gradual decrease in inventory over the past few months. While up 11.4 percent to 5,224 properties from 4,691 properties in July 2024, overall inventory has been slowly decreasing since it peaked in March with 7,483 properties.  The average days on market has been climbing since April, but months supply of inventory is going down.   New listings in July decreased 7.2 percent to 804 new listings from 866 in July 2024. But closed sales, which are connected to pending sales, increased 2 percent in July to 624 closed sales from 612 closed sales in July 2024. Single-family closed sales in July increased 12.7 percent to 354 closed sales from 314 closed sales. Interestingly, and a trend is emerging, pending sales in the single-family home market have been increasing each month since the beginning of the year; for July, pending sales of single-family homes rose 30.4 percent! I am seeing increased energy with listings. Sellers who are taking their REALTOR®’s advice and pricing according to the market are getting more showings and offers this summer.  If we can avoid a significant storm this year, sales in 2025 will easily outpace sales last year.   The NABOR® July 2025 Market Report provides comparisons of single-family home and condominium sales (via the Southwest Florida MLS), price ranges, and geographic segmentation and includes an overall market summary. NABOR® sales statistics are presented in chart format, including these overall (single-family and condominium) findings for 2025:Equity Friendly Naples The median closed price of condominiums fell 10.1 percent in July to $422,500 from $470,000 in July 2024. But this is a far cry from the median closed price of condominiums in July 2019, which was $240,000. The same holds true for the single-family home market: July’s median closed price, which decreased 6 percent to $670,000, still provides significant equity compared to a median closed price of $409,500 in July 2019. The July Market Report showed Naples desirability contributed to increased sales in all geographic regions tracked by NABOR®. But the standout was in closed sales of single-family homes in the Naples Beach area (34102, 34103, 34108), which increased 81.8 percent in July. Increased sales of single-family homes near the beach are reducing this geographic area’s months supply, which was 14.9 months in July 2024, but because of an increase in summer sales activity, dropped to 12.3 months supply in July 2025.As always, please don't hesitate to call with any questions around the world of SWFL real estate. I am here when you need me! Kind regards... Rich Townsend"Your Realtor for Life"Richard Townsend LLCDowning-Frye Realty, Inc.cell: 239-289-8530rich@napleshomesbyrich.comwww.napleshomesbyrich.com http://napleshomesbyrich.com/blog/18/rich's-market-report:-think-twice-about-solar-panels!/ Fri, 29 Aug 2025 07:35:22 -0500