A sign of recovery: bidding wars for houses [South Florida]
After a recession-driven hibernation, competitive bidding for homes is back in Southwest Florida.
But before anyone cracks open the bubbly, take note: The phenomenon — by far — remains the exception, not the rule.
Still, experts take the news as a sign that the region’s long-suffering real estate market might have found some footing, loosening the grip that buyers have enjoyed and perhaps heralding better days ahead.
Because real estate is such a big part of Southwest Florida’s economy, the return of home bidding could also be a sign that the recession — which started earlier here than nationally and reached more deeply — could be running its course.