Senior living sales skyrocket

Karen Borden considered moving to senior housing but didn’t take the plunge until she recently saw the strong housing market and knew the time was right. The widow quickly sold her home in Whiskey Creek, Fort Myers and moved to Gulf Coast Village, a retirement home in Cape Coral.

“The first day my house was listed, I had a cash offer,” said Bordon. “My agent said wait a little because it was early. I waited a few more days and had five offers, four of which were cash and two of them were above the offer price. Everything happened very quickly for me. I definitely chose the right time. “

Senior living facilities across southwest Florida are seeing this trend. Seniors are realizing they can sell their homes for more than they imagined and take the money with them to live an easier life in an independent shared apartment.

Andrea Sieradzk, Area Sales and Marketing Manager at Gulf Coast Village, underscores this trend.

“So we see people who are really considering this move now because of property prices,” she began. “People on the threshold or on the precipice decide that now is the time. So we are seeing a real rise in interest rates. People suddenly open their eyes and think this is a great option for me. “

The same thing can be seen everywhere in southwest Florida.

“We absolutely see this,” said Rachel Henderson, director of community relations for The Terraces in Bonita Springs. “There is a lot of catching up to do. Our customers sell their homes faster. That secures their future. Some even sell without a broker. “

Henderson said new residents are finding this timing is also other than the right time.

“They have been waiting for the vaccine and through Covid and politics so the demand is certain now,” she continued.

Sieradzk agrees that the pandemic is another factor.

“Because of Covid, people are rethinking their plan and making decisions about their future,” she said. “How many people have been in their homes unable to interact with people trying to find toilet paper? They want services. We want a community in which we can interact with people. “

Roni Icso, vice president of sales and marketing at Shell Point Retirement Community, said record numbers of people are coming to the Fort Myers senior housing facility.

“That was a wonderful time for us,” she said. “We’re seeing people moving from another state, and recently we’ve had 8-10 people on our waiting list every week. What is new is that people from other states are pouring into the region. We find that because of this, people are moving earlier than they originally planned. “

In Naples, all of the Moorings Park facilities see the parade of people moving in.

“We are definitely seeing the market is incredibly hot,” said Tom Mann, vice president of sales and marketing. “Really, the sales in all three of our churches have been incredible. People can sell their houses very quickly to move in here. We hear from people that they put their houses on the market and then get three or four offers and they go over the asking price. Sales have been insanely good because of this market. We sell them as fast as we can build. “

Seniors are surprised at the speed of sales. Marvin and Barbara Easton put their Port Royal home on the market when they bought a penthouse in the new Moorings Park Grande Lake. They knew the penthouse wouldn’t be ready until September, but they thought it would take a while to sell their house. But it sold quickly and they closed the deal on June 17th. Fortunately, in their Goodlette facility, the Moorings had room for the Easton’s to live until their penthouse is ready.

“It went a lot faster than we expected,” said Easton. “We had hoped and expected to stay in the house for another year until our Moorings Park Grande Lake was available. It turned out that we were the first to do something like this, to stay at the Goodlette Frank for a year until our unit was available. “

Easton said it was not just the economy that sparked the move, but the timing as well.

“We got a little older and felt that maybe if we took care of everything it would make our lives a little easier,” he said. “We’re becoming seniors and wanted to be part of everything Moorings has to offer.”

Real estate agent Denny Grimes is an expert at tracking real estate trends.

“It was brought up on a market watch program a few weeks ago. The message to the public is that it is time for seniors and baby boomers to start thinking about selling, ”he began. “They should because the market is super hot right now. It’s the best I’ve seen in my 40 years. “

Other brokers agree.

“The trend is for my sellers to advertise their homes and be under contract with multiple bids and offers above the asking price within two days,” said Corri Van Slyke, a local realtor with the Remax Realty team.

Grimes added that seniors who are not ready for an independent shared apartment may still consider a sale.

“People build rental communities so they (seniors) can pay out money and get rent and not have to worry about home ownership,” he said. “The timing couldn’t be better than now.”

Another option suggested by Grimes is renting back.

“Because the demand is so great, there is a golden buyer for every seller,” he said. “We have buyers who let the seller stay there for up to three years.”

Back in the Gulf Coast Village, residents continue to move in at record speed.

Laura Nonemaker sold her home on the Cape Coral Canal and moved there eight weeks ago.

“My house was sold in just two days,” she said. “It was definitely a factor in doing it at the time.”

Now they and others are enjoying the simpler lifestyle.

“I take part in some of the activities,” said Nonemaker. “It’s about having camaraderie and fellowship. There isn’t as much to juggle as when you have a home. You have more time to relax. “

“I’ve had a few health issues over the past few months and decided it was time not to be alone,” said Bordon. “I’ve been here for a month and it worked for me. I am really happy to make the choice. It was a nice change in lifestyle for me. “

Sieradzk said the barrage of the new residents was going on.

“We have at least doubled the number of immigrants at all our levels compared to last year,” she explained. “Our on-site and off-site events are fully booked. People tend to pull their feet thinking they are not ready for it. Given that our property market is so amazing now, we hear more and more people saying that they are ready to do it now. ”