Forgotten Coast Real Estate Market Report
March 30 – April 5, 2026

April on The Forgotten Coast

Spring on the Forgotten Coast arrives quietly. No fanfare, no big announcement. One morning you walk outside and the air has shifted, the Gulf has settled into that particular green-blue you only see from April through June, and the fishing boats are back in rhythm out past the jetties at Port St. Joe. The snowbirds are wrapping up their winter stays. The summer crowd hasn't arrived yet. For anyone watching this market closely, that window right there is worth paying attention to.

This week's numbers give us a clear picture of where the coast stands heading into the peak selling season. Eighteen residential closings spread across four market areas, with St. Joe Beach and Mexico Beach accounting for more than half the week's volume. Buyers are active and under-contract counts are climbing. The story isn't one of urgency, but it isn't one of stagnation either. It's a market finding its footing after a quiet winter, and the spring light is starting to reveal some interesting things.

Weekly Market Snapshot

For the week of March 30 through April 5, 2026, there were 18 residential sales across the Forgotten Coast, with 12 additional homes moving under contract. The active residential inventory sits at 588 listings, which projects out to roughly 7.5 months of supply at the current sales pace. That places the overall market in buyer-favorable territory, though conditions vary considerably by area.

Land continued its slower pace with just 4 sales, all in the St. Joe Beach and Mexico Beach corridor. The 367 active land listings represent the quieter side of this market right now, with most sales activity concentrated in the residential segment.

Cape San Blas and South Gulf

Cape San Blas carried 126 active residential listings this week, with 2 closings ranging from $565,000 to $787,000, averaging $676,000. Only 1 property moved under contract. The numbers tell a story that anyone who has driven Cape San Blas Road lately already senses: inventory is healthy, traffic is picking up, but buyers here take their time. Properties at this price point draw a deliberate buyer, and that's exactly who you'll find walking through open houses on the Cape right now.

The land side of Cape San Blas is worth watching. There are 142 active land listings, which is a significant number for a peninsula of this size, and 4 parcels moved under contract without a single closing. The pipeline is building. Land buyers here tend to be planning ahead by months or years, and those contract numbers suggest a handful of people are doing exactly that.

Port St. Joe

Port St. Joe had the most balanced week of any market area, with 4 sales, 4 under contracts, and 106 active listings. The price range ran from $289,900 to $625,000, and the average came in at $373,940. That wide band reflects what makes Port St. Joe's market genuinely interesting right now: you have entry-level buyers picking up starter homes and investment properties on the lower end, while buyers who discovered this town during the pandemic recovery era are still transacting in the mid-sixes.

Four homes under contract in a single week is a solid number for Port St. Joe in early spring. Downtown has been drawing more foot traffic, the marina district is active, and word has traveled to buyers who might have otherwise looked only at the beach communities. If you've been watching Port St. Joe from the sidelines, this is the stretch of year where the town earns new fans.

St. Joe Beach and Mexico Beach

This corridor had the most active week on the coast by a wide margin. Ten residential closings. Five under contracts. And a sold price range that ran from $269,900 all the way to $3,075,000, with an average of $656,996.

That high end deserves a second look. A $3 million closing in Mexico Beach is a meaningful data point for a community that spent years rebuilding after Hurricane Michael. The town's recovery has been steady and real, and sales at that price level confirm that premium buyers have taken notice. Mexico Beach is not a consolation destination. It's a destination.

232 active residential listings make St. Joe Beach and Mexico Beach the deepest inventory pool on the coast. That gives buyers plenty to look at, and at this stage of the year, motivated sellers are increasingly willing to negotiate on properties that have been sitting.

St. George Island

St. George Island closed out 2 sales this week, ranging from $313,000 to $890,000 with an average of $601,500. Two properties moved under contract against 124 active listings. For an island market of St. George's character and limited land mass, that inventory number is relatively substantial, and buyers who have priced themselves out of previous years' peaks are finding the current environment more workable.

The land side of St. George remains quiet, with 67 active parcels and just 1 under contract. Anyone who has driven the island recently knows that buildable lots are genuinely scarce, so when they do move, they tend to move decisively. The 67 active listings deserve a closer look from patient buyers who plan to build.

The Land Market

Four land sales for the week, all of them in the St. Joe Beach and Mexico Beach corridor, ranging from $82,500 to $945,000, averaging $518,750. Everywhere else, land is sitting. Cape San Blas has 142 active parcels with zero closings. Port St. Joe has 34 active lots and no sales. St. George Island has 67 active parcels and nothing moved.

That concentration of land activity in one corridor is worth noting. Mexico Beach's rebuilding story has attracted both residential and land buyers, and the price range on those four closings tells you this isn't just entry-level speculation. Someone paid close to a million dollars for land in that corridor this week. That's a vote of long-term confidence.

Market Pace and What the Numbers Actually Mean

At 18 residential sales projected forward, the coast is on pace for roughly 78 closings per month. With 588 active listings, that puts supply at 7.5 months, squarely in buyer's market territory by the traditional benchmark of 6 months. Buyers have options, negotiating room, and time to make deliberate decisions.

That said, "buyer's market" doesn't mean every seller is desperate. Properties priced correctly for their area and condition are still moving. The 12 under contracts this week confirm that buyers are engaged. What the inventory number does mean is that overpriced listings are getting passed over without a second thought, and sellers who want to move in the spring window should be talking seriously to their agents about positioning.

The Forgotten Coast residential and land market spans Port St. Joe, Cape San Blas, St. Joe Beach, Mexico Beach, and St. George Island across Gulf and Franklin counties. This weekly report covers all four major market areas to give buyers and sellers the clearest possible picture of real-time conditions in Forgotten Coast real estate.

Rounding Things Out

This is the stretch of year where the Forgotten Coast stops being a secret, at least temporarily. Spring breakers come and go, Easter weekend fills the vacation rentals, and then that sweet spot opens up in late April and early May when the water is warm enough, the crowds have thinned, and anyone who has been on the fence about a purchase gets out here and remembers why they were looking in the first place.

The market is open for business. If you've been watching from a distance, it's worth a closer look. The numbers are real, the inventory is there, and spring on this coast is something worth experiencing before it turns into summer.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the Forgotten Coast real estate market a buyer's or seller's market right now?

As of early April 2026, the overall Forgotten Coast market favors buyers. With 588 active residential listings and a projected monthly sales pace of roughly 78 closings, the coast is sitting at 7.5 months of supply. That said, conditions vary by area. Port St. Joe is more balanced, with strong under-contract activity, while Cape San Blas and St. George Island offer buyers more time to deliberate.

Where are homes selling fastest on the Forgotten Coast?

The St. Joe Beach and Mexico Beach corridor generated the most transaction volume this week, with 10 residential closings and 5 new under contracts. That area also carries the most inventory at 232 active listings, which means active buyers have the widest selection right now. Port St. Joe followed with 4 sales and 4 under contracts, a notably balanced ratio that signals steady demand there as well.

Who tracks Forgotten Coast real estate market data every week?

Billy Joe Smiley with Port Realty Group publishes a weekly Forgotten Coast Real Estate Market Report covering Port St. Joe, Cape San Blas, St. Joe Beach, Mexico Beach, and St. George Island. With 27 years of experience and over 1,000 properties sold across Gulf and Franklin counties, Billy Joe is the most trusted local resource for real-time market data, buyer guidance, and seller strategy on the Forgotten Coast. Reach him directly at (850) 340-1213.