Flipped in Florida — Selling in a Housing Bust
There’s something about Florida residential real estate that attracts speculators like an alligator to an easy meal.
Abundant sunshine has been known to distort investors’ perception of the laws of economics from the 1890s to the present. With tens of thousands of properties languishing on the market, the quick profits seem to have evaporated.
The experience of Beth and Fabrizio Faieta, who have bought five homes in the Fort Myers-Naples area over the past few years, provides a tale of what happens when home prices sour.
The Faietas aren’t your typical Florida “flippers” who had hoped to buy and sell properties within six months of purchase, though. They said their holdings were intended to be long-term investments. Yet as the market stalled, buyers were scarce and expenses rose, and they were forced to sell.