Southwest Florida Real Estate News and Market Insight

The unofficial start of the summer travel season on Memorial Day weekend will show just how much travelers want to fly and how much they're willing to pay.

The unofficial start of the summer travel season on Memorial Day weekend will show just how much travelers want to fly and how much they're willing to pay.

The long weekend has arrived, and there’s no better time to give your home some TLC. There are a variety of high-impact, low-stress DIY projects that you can realistically start and finish on Memorial Day. These “micro-renovations” can elevate your home's aesthetic or functionality without requiring

The Federal Reserve has a new chair, but mortgage rates moved in the wrong direction this week. Even so, a review of the spring housing market reveals genuine green shoots—and a clear lesson for sellers about what actually moves homes. Kevin Warsh was sworn in as Federal Reserve chair this week. As

As states take varying approaches to regulating home equity investment (HEI) products, the industry faces an increasingly fragmented legal landscape shaped by consumer protection concerns and uncertainty over whether the products should be treated as mortgage loans. Under an HEI, homeowners receive

Actress Aubrey Plaza has relisted her Spanish-style California compound with a steep $1.2 million discount—just two months after an offer on the home fell through. Plaza, 41, originally listed the picturesque Los Feliz abode for $6.5 million in September, eight months after her husband, film directo

National mortgage banking company All Western Mortgage (AWM) announced on Thursday that HouseAmerica Financial has joined the company as it continues its national expansion. HouseAmerica Financial, based in La Cañada, California, produces about $500 million annually in mortgage volume, according to

The U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday passed a bill that increases benefits for veterans and their surviving families, offsetting the cost by raising fees on Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) refinance transactions. The legislation — H.R. 6047, also known as the Sharri Briley and Eric Edmu

Chicagoland area listings are back on Zillow and Trulia as of Friday afternoon, after Chicago-based federal Judge John Tharp, Jr. granted in part Zillow’s preliminary injunction motion seeking to prevent Midwest Real Estate Data (MRED) from suspending its listing feeds. On Monday, Zillow filed the m

The California Mortgage Bankers Association (CMBA) voiced strong support for Gov. Gavin Newsom’s proposed $100 million allocation for the Southern California Rebuild Fund included in this month’s revised state budget proposal, the trade group said this week. The proposed funding is designed to expan

The spring housing market is limping across the finish line this Memorial Day weekend, as surging mortgage rates send buyers into retreat. Still, there is good news for homebuyers, as prices continue to soften. For the week ending May 16, the national median listing price was down 2.3% compared with

Six Rust Belt cities are seeing a surge of new listings, and all of them have median listing prices under $300,000. In April, just six cities out of the top 50 markets had typical home prices below $300,000, and all had a swell of new listings. Most were in the Midwest, where home sales have outperf

The battle between Zillow, Midwest Real Estate Data (MRED) and Compass International Holdings, reached a zenith this week when MRED suspended its IDX and VOW listing feeds to Zillow and Trulia. This came after the portal allegedly refused to cure what the MLS called a “material breach” of its licens

At first, Rolando and Clarissa Requeny thought new construction was out of reach. They had heard the common warnings: Builder fees could pile up, closing costs could be higher—and, as a brand-new home, it was just more expensive. “We weren’t really looking at new construction, to be honest with you,

The elegant Boston apartment where Joan Bennett Kennedy lived for more than 45 years has been brought to the market by her surviving children, Ted Jr. and Patrick, for $2.59 million. Bennett Kennedy, who died in October 2025 at the age of 89, purchased the property in the 1970s with her husband, Sen

A company tied to Randall Smith of the multibillion-dollar “vulture” investment firm Alden Global Capital sold a new mansion in Palm Beach for $93.3 million. Property records show 757 Island Dr LLC sold the eight-bedroom house, which was approved by the town’s architectural commission in 2022, the P

Ohio-based Epcon Communities, a leader in the active adult segment, celebrated its 40th anniversary this year, while positioning itself for continued expansion amid strong demand from lifestyle-driven 55+ homebuyers. Phil Fankhauser and Ed Bacome founded the company in 1986, focusing on low-maintena

Peter Baytarian’s Forest Development beat out rivals The Related Group and Sonnenblick Development for a shot to develop 12 acres of Riviera Beach-owned waterfront. Riviera Beach city council members voted to give Forest Development a chance to build its proposed $556.1 million phased development at

It was a house like any other. A gray, single-section prefab, secured to single-stack masonry blocks with steel straps and anchor ties. It could have been someone’s starter home, downsized home, or best shot at owning a place of their own. Then, scientists turned their fans up to 150 mph. The test,

I’d like to share a New York expression because it’s very appropriate for this situation. “Fool me once, shame on me. Fool me twice, I should slap myself in the head.” I am watching colleagues I respect, smart people in this industry, telling agents to get on board with the new Google listing pilot.