Marker Lake The gated community of Marker Lake is located between Vanderbilt Beach Rd and Airport Rd, just west of the Stonewood shopping center (click here for a map of Marker Lake). Home prices start in the low $300s, making Marker Lake an affordable opportunity to enjoy a newer construction home close to the beach, shopping, restaurants, and schools. Lake views and a private community atmosphere of only 36 homes offer tranquility to residents who are looking for a peaceful setting to call home.     To view listings in Marker Lake click here.To search Marker Lake listings on ActiveRain / Localism click here.Community Amenities: Community Pool Recreational Facilities Lawn Maintenance Security Gated For more information on Naples / Bonita Springs real estate, community information, curr... 08/05/2007

                                         There was a big buzz in Naples when Greg Norman decided to team up with Pete Frye to design the Tuscany Reserve Golf Course In Naples, South West Florida. Naples is still buzzing. He had already by then acquired a reputation as one of the premier designers of golf courses in the world. He was the number one player oin the world for over 6 years.The Shark must know something about golf courses.I had to take a look.What stands out is the vision.Greg Norman's philosophy in designing these courses is to incorporate the golf courses with what the sites and nature offer. It is after all a Reserve.                                                                       The Tuscany Reserve and its gated community is over 466 acres.The course is 7,025 yards... 08/05/2007

This is the best tool for local REALTORS to post open houses in southwest Florida to assist us in selling Naples, Florida real estate.  Listings can be included through MLS; the tool is free, allowing you to expose your open houses to the world.Here are the great features offered to the consumer:Search by PriceSearch by BedroomsSearch by BathroomsSearch by minimum square feetGreat mapping toolCool tour featureDon't forget to include your open houses!!!There are 68 advertised open houses on Sunday listed already!    08/04/2007

Key Royal IS SELLING!!! These affordable condos are an excellent opportunity to buy a 2 bedroom unit for under $170k in a central location off Immokalee Rd in North Naples, only minutes to the beach! Here are some of the closed sales for Key Royal since May 2007: Sales Price      Address                                        *My Personal Transactions       $158,000       8214 Key Royal Cir #122       *Selling agent $158,650       8254 Key Royal Cir #722       *Listing agent $162,000       8297 Key Royal Cir #332       *Listing agent / Selling agent $165,000       8274 Key Royal Cir #1025 $168,000       8294 Key Royal Cir #1633 Click here for more information on Key Royal. For more information on Key Royal listings or closed sales, Naples / Bonita Springs real estate, community informat... 07/31/2007

Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary is a National Audubon Society sanctuary located in southwest Florida, north of Naples, Florida and east of Bonita Springs.  A 2.25-mile raised boardwalk takes visitors through four distinct environments: A pine uplandA wet prairieA cypress forestA marshSigns along the boardwalk describe the wildlife, plants and ecosystem.  There is a field guide and Children's Activity Book available at the admissions desk.  Benches and rain shelters are along the trail. For those who do not wish to walk the full 2.25 miles, an optional trail shortens the walk to one mile. The Corkscrew Swamp Boardwalk tour takes from 1-3 hours.The entire boardwalk is handicap accessible.  Both wheelchairs and strollers are available without charge for use while on the boardwalk. Wildlife sight... 07/31/2007

FIDDLER' CREEK MARKET UPDATE OF RESALE PROPERTIESAs Of July 5, 2007With being half way through 2007 it looks as if our number of units sold is in line with the 2004 number, but our average sale price is much higher. Year# of   Units Active# of  Units Pending# of   Units SoldAverage List Price ActiveAverage List Price PendingAverage List Price of SoldAverage Sold PriceActive Average DOMPending DOMSold DOM     2007335430$773,298$740,711$733,767$655,366178192215Fiddler's Creek2006  38  $694,842$651,901  141 2005  151  $530,765$515,944  115  2004  67  $358,686$352,178  213 Please visit my website at http://www.eliteonefinepropertis.com/ for more information on the Naples, Marco Island Area Real Estate Market.  I am always available to answer your questions, feel free to call me at (239)393-... 07/24/2007

 The current Real Estate market in the Naples/Bonita/Estero area continue it's depreciating market trend. I continously monitor the local real estate statistics to keep my clients informed and ahead of the real estate trends.  Below you will find all Naples/Bonita/Estero statistic for the months of June 2007Number of Homes on the market:  14038Number of homes entering escrow:363Number of homes closing escrow:  494Avg Days on market:                         163Sold/List price ratio:                           91%Market advantage: BuyersPrice Trend:          DepreciatingTo find the value of your home with a FREE, over the net home evaluation visit: http://www.raycabralnaples.com/  If you would like a free list of homes for sale in your area/neighborhood, would like more information about N... 07/22/2007

With so much controversy the Town of Ave Maria, Florida has had its first residents move in and is now opening it's doors to the public with TownFest Open House on Saturday, July 21st.  Visitors can view the first stage of the town center, model homes and the university.The town of Ave Maria, with the nation's first major Catholic university in four decades, was the dream of Domino's Pizza founder, Tom Monaghan and with the partnership of the Barron Collier Companies his dream has come true.  The town will not only consist of the university but also will incorporate retail, commercial space, housing and public schools.Ave Maria, Florida is located 30 miles east of Naples, Florida with an expected population of around 30,000 people within this 5,000 acre, master planned community.   Appr... 07/19/2007

We have all experienced it!  "The So Called Home Inspector" who is not licensed or insured.  I congratulate the State of Florida legislators for signing a bill that requires home inspectors and mold specialists to be regulated by the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation effective July 1, 2010.  Home inspectors will be required to attend 120 hours of pre-license education and 14 hours of continuing education every two years and to carry errors and ommissions insurance.  July 2010 can not come soon enough for me. 07/18/2007

I live in Fiddler's Creek and enjoy the lifestyle of this gated golf community.  Nature abounds you when you live at this internationally renowed resort of Fiddler's Creek with its shimmering lakes and lush landscaping.  It is not unusual to see the wonderful tropical flora and rare animal life of the Everglades during your walks or just from your lanai.  The community boasts the luxurious tropical aura you would expect at a five star Caribbean resort.  Fiddler's Creek is situated perfectly between the World Famous 5th Avenue of Naples and the tropical beaches of Marco Island, Florida.Fiddler's Creek is a community of single family homes and condo villages.  Currently, as of this date, there are 338 active resale properties for sale with prices ranging from $4,500,000 to $274,900, 33 cl... 07/14/2007

Let me be clear. I've looked at the data for single family homes sold in Naples, FL month-by-month, for the past twelve months and the dollar amount that homes are selling for, on average, are going up. Here's the summary:$821,965 was the average selling price for a home in July of 2006.The lowest average selling price occurred the following month in August and it was $661,669 - big drop, 19.5%!In July of 2007, however, the average selling price for a home was $1,215,408.A straight trend line on the data indicates, approximately, a whopping 50%+ increase!But how many units sold, you ask? July, August, and September were pretty consistent with about 165 units per month; October through February of 2007 represented about 130 per month; and with the exception of a spike in April with 312 u... 07/10/2007

NAPLES FLORIDA REAL ESTATEWe here at coldwell Banker/Raymond Cabral continously monitor the local real esate statistics to keep my clients informed and ahead of the real estate market trends.  Below you will find Naples Florida real estate stastistic for the month of June 2007.  There are 10,966 active listing in the naples area.New home on the market, June ## 1487Number of homes entering escrow, June##375Number of homes closing escrow (sold) June##410Number of home expiring  June ## 1175To Find the value of your home with a FREE over the net home evaluation, please visit: raycabralnaples.com to get a free report on buyers/sellers most commmon mistakes.   If you would like a free list of home for sales in this  area /neighborhood, would like more information about Naples florida  or wou... 07/09/2007

Collier County's Clerk of Courts office during the month of June recorded a couple hundred residential Naples real estate foreclosures. It was interesting to note where the majority of the foreclosure actions are taking place, as well as, the age of the lien. More details are found on Naples Florida real estate blog. 07/09/2007

It is nice to see that the home inventory in Naples has begun to drop.  As we head into the fall I am optimistic that the trend will continue.  While I don't expect buyers to appear in droves until after Christmas, I do think an upturn in buying by locals in recent weeks, combined with low, low prices will bring out more of them little by little.  Showings on my listing are active (I have an inventory of 15 or so) and getting better. I recieved some information by email last week from an associate, that total inventory was down to about 10,800 units from a high of over 12,000, a significant drop.  This is due to both increased sales and frustrated sellers taking properties off the market.  A smaller inventory will lead the way back to normal. Interest rates seem to have come down some o... 07/06/2007

Little did anyone know that I've been working on something.  I was born with a genetic defect that renders me useless on a golf course.  There, I said it.  I suck at golf.  I made up my mind to overcome my disabilityOddly, I won a round of golf at a local course.  Tiburon - The Ritz Carlton, Naples.  This isn't the Ritz on the Gulf, it's the Ritz - WCI Communities Development with the golf course designed by Greg Norman.  By the way, Tiburon is Spanish for Shark.  Get it?At any rate I decided to take the bull by the horns and learn to golf.  I was lucky enough to have a volunteer help me with my first game.   Marc Blasi was kind enough to join me - likely for the free golf and all of the free laughs he could stand.  I don't have to go into detail about who won this round, I think we all... 07/01/2007

The US Census Population released today that the Naples - Marco Island is one of the 10 fastest growing metro areas in the Unites States.Collier's population increased 25.2 percent between July 1, 2000, and July 1, 2006, from 251,377 to 314,649 residents.Collier's population grew slower than Lee County's one not only because Lee County is larger but also because the cost of living and housing in Collier county is more expensive.What will be the figures for both counties between July 2006 and July 2007? Probably at a slower pace...Whatever, these figures show that the Naples - Marco Island area is always a prime location for people moving in Florida. This is not a surprise: With hundreds of golf courses, miles of pristine beaches, first-class shopping and dining and a boater's paradise, ... 06/28/2007

I recently had the opportunity to speak with a distributor of Freon Locking Caps.  These simple, inexpensive caps lock down your freon lines to prevent two things:  One, keeps freon from leaking out of the fitting and two keeps kids/adults from stealing your freon.  Stealing freon is not new either is "Huffing" freon to get high.  After the death of a friend's son from inhaling freon from a neighbors A/C unit, I decided to use my influence as a real estate professional.  What I do is recommend is this:  You have a ticking time bomb in the open, on your property.  You are liable for any accident that occurs on your property and should take reasonable care and lock up your freon lines.  The small caps are very inexpensive and must be installed by an A/C company in most states.  I had thre... 06/11/2007

Head South on Tamiami Trail, just a stones throw from Bonita Springs and visit Sushi Thai of Naples in Naples Park, Florida.  Click HERE for the map.The restaurant is cozy and unique.  Seating is offered at tables, booths or at the sushi bar.  There is easy access to the building and no stairs.Besides sushi, Sushi Thai offers a wide variety of dishes, soups, stir fry and specialty dishes.  Take a look at the Sushi Thai Menu.A recent convert to LOVING sushi, it wasn't until I experienced the cuisine at Sushi Thai that I was able to appreciate the delicacies of sushi prepared correctly, with the freshest ingredients and by the best sushi chef's in South Florida.  I'd nominate myself as one of the pickier eater's in American and I've always had the best dinners at Sushi Thai.Last week, min... 06/09/2007

Hammock Bay Golf & Country Club The gated waterfront luxury tower of Lesina in Hammock Bay is situated on a peninsula overlooking the Gulf of Mexico, the Ten Thousand Islands, Marco Island, and McIlvane Bay in Naples, Florida (map of Hammock Bay Golf & Country Club). Priced from the $900s, Hammock Bay offers world-class golf, concierge service, and the ultimate in luxury living. Some residences available for immediate purchase--contact Ken Fish at (239) 860-6521 for more information. Hammock Bay Links  Hammock Bay virtual tour by WCI CommunitiesResidences of Lesina--Hammock Bay luxury towerHammock Bay Community Website Hammock Bay Community Amenities 18-Hole Championship Golf Course*  Sports Club  Lagoon Swimming Pool with Tiki Bar Fitness Center 3 Har-Tru® Tennis Courts Concierge Servi... 05/31/2007

Naples Area Residential Single-family Homes NEW LISTINGS TrendsThe statistics show the number of new residential listings of single-family homes in Naples to have dropped off by over 10% below the average trend line for the month of April. Historically, as the inventory of real estate on the market decreases, the stability of sales prices strengthens. We will continue to watch the number of new listings as a factor for evaluating market recovery. May statistics should be in shortly. Check back soon!The accuracy of this information is not warranted or guaranteed. This information should be independently verified if any person intends to engage in a transaction based upon it. Based on information from the Naples Area Board of REALTORS and Association of Real Estate Professionals, inc. for... 05/31/2007