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        <title>BJ Smiley's Blog</title>
        <link>https://www.portrealtygroup.com/blog/</link>
        <description>Port Realty Group, BJ Smiley's Blog</description>
<item>
    <guid>https://www.portrealtygroup.com/blog/florida-homestead-residency-deadline-2026.html</guid>
    <link>https://www.portrealtygroup.com/blog/florida-homestead-residency-deadline-2026.html</link>
        <author>bj@portrealtygroup.com (Billy Joe Smiley)</author>
        <title>Homestead, Portability, and Florida's 2026 Residency Date</title>
    <description> <![CDATA[ 


Should you establish Florida residency before December 31, 2026?




If the property tax amendment on the November 3, 2026 ballot passes, people who are permanent Florida residents as of December 31, 2026 would be eligible for the larger homestead exemption starting in 2027. Someone who establishes Florida residency on or after January 1, 2027 would begin at a $50,000 exemption and reach the larger amount only after maintaining a Florida homestead for four years. Nothing changes unless at least 60 percent of voters approve it. If a move here was already on your list, though, the calendar is worth understanding now rather than in January.




By Billy Joe Smiley | October 7, 2026


A good share of the people I sell to here start out as part-timers. They buy something on the water, they come down for a few weeks a year, and then somewhere around year three or four they start doing the math on staying. That conversation has always included property taxes. This year it includes a date.


I want to lay out how homestead and portability actually work, then explain the amendment that Florida voters will decide on November 3, 2026 and why its residency provisions have people paying attention to the calendar. I'm not telling anyone how to vote, and I'm not a CPA. I am telling you what the moving parts are, because if a full-time move here was already on your horizon, the timing question is worth putting in front of your accountant now.


What homestead does for you today


Homestead in Florida is two separate benefits that people tend to blend together.


The first is the exemption, which takes a slice of assessed value off the table. For the 2026 tax year that is up to $51,411 total: a $25,000 exemption that applies to all millages including school taxes, plus an additional exemption of $26,411 that applies to non-school millages only. That second piece is adjusted annually for inflation and certified by the Florida Department of Revenue.


The second, and over time the bigger one, is Save Our Homes. Once your homestead is in place, annual increases in your assessed value are capped at 3 percent or the change in the Consumer Price Index, whichever is less. In a market that has appreciated the way this one has, that cap quietly becomes the most valuable thing you own that isn't the house.


Neither applies to a second home. A vacation property is non-homestead, gets no $25,000 exemption, and sits under a 10 percent annual assessment cap rather than 3 percent. I've broken that side down in detail in how property taxes work on a vacation home on the Forgotten Coast, and the gap between the two treatments is the whole reason this conversation exists.


One hard date to remember either way: the filing deadline for homestead is March 1 of the tax year. Miss it and you wait a year.


Portability, if you already own a Florida homestead


This one gets missed constantly, and it is real money.


If you already have a homesteaded property somewhere in Florida and you sell it to move to Port St. Joe, Cape San Blas, Mexico Beach, or St. George Island, the accumulated gap between your old home's market value and its capped assessed value can come with you. That is portability, and here is how it works.




Up to $500,000 of accumulated Save Our Homes benefit can transfer.


Florida to Florida only. You cannot bring a benefit across state lines.


Three tax years. You must establish the new homestead within three tax years of the last year you had the old one.


File Form DR-501T along with your new homestead application, both by March 1.


Buying before selling is fine. You can purchase the new home first, as long as you establish homestead on it and file on time.


Moving down in value transfers proportionally. If the new home's just value is lower than the old one's, you take a proportional share of the benefit rather than the full amount.




I have watched people sell a long-held homestead in another part of the state and leave a six-figure assessment benefit on the table because nobody told them the form existed. Ask your property appraiser's office about portability before you close, not after.


What Amendment 3 would change, and why the date matters


The Legislature passed a joint resolution in June 2026 putting a property tax amendment on the November 3, 2026 general election ballot, where it appears as Amendment 3. Constitutional amendments in Florida require approval by at least 60 percent of voters. If it passes, it takes effect January 1, 2027 and would first show up on the August 2027 TRIM notices and the tax bills delivered in November 2027.


Here is what it would do, as proposed.





Provision

As proposed



School millage exemption


Stays at $25,000. School taxes are not reduced by this amendment.




Non-school millage exemption


Up to $150,000 beginning January 1, 2027, and up to $250,000 beginning January 1, 2028, with annual CPI adjustments starting in 2029.




Non-homestead assessment cap


Reduced from 10 percent to 5 percent per year, for non-school taxes. School taxes stay uncapped at just value.




Save Our Homes and portability


Unchanged. The 3 percent cap and the portability rules stay as they are.




New Florida residents


Anyone establishing Florida residency on or after January 1, 2027 starts at a $50,000 exemption, CPI-adjusted from 2028, and becomes eligible for the larger exemption only after maintaining a Florida homestead for four years, beginning January 1 of the fifth year.






That last row is the one driving the calendar conversation. Read against the current $51,411, the proposed exemption would shield roughly $98,589 more of assessed value from non-school taxes in 2027, and roughly $198,589 more in 2028. What that is worth in dollars depends entirely on the non-school millage rates where your home sits, so the honest answer to &quot;how much would I save&quot; is that you need your own parcel and your own millage to know. The Gulf County Property Appraiser's office is the right place for that.


Worth being precise on one point, because it is misread often. According to the property appraiser guidance published on the amendment, the trigger is establishing Florida residency by December 31, 2026, not owning a Florida home by then. Someone who becomes a permanent Florida resident this year and buys later would still be in the earlier group when they eventually apply for homestead. Implementing legislation would follow a passing vote, and some administrative details cannot be settled until it does.


If a move here was already on your list


I would not want anyone to reorganize their life around an amendment that has not passed. I would want someone who was already planning this move to know the date exists, because the difference between the two tiers is not small and the window is under three months from this writing.


A few practical notes if you are in that group.




Residency is established by what you do, not by what you intend. Filing a Declaration of Domicile with the clerk of court, getting a Florida driver license, registering to vote here, and registering your vehicles are the usual steps. Your CPA and, if your situation is complicated, a Florida attorney should sign off on the sequence, especially if you are leaving a state that audits departing residents.


Mind the closing timeline if a purchase is part of the plan. A financed purchase here generally runs 30 to 45 days from contract, and cash closings can be shorter. If buying is part of your move, count backward from the date you want to be settled. Financing a second home on the Forgotten Coast covers what that side looks like, including how the terms shift if the property will eventually become your primary residence.


Do not forget March 1. Whatever happens in November, homestead has to be filed by March 1 of the year you claim it, and portability's DR-501T goes in with it.


If you already own here as a second home, converting has a tax dimension beyond property taxes. Moving into a property you have owned as a vacation home changes your position on a future sale, and the rules around that are their own subject. I've covered the sale side in what you will owe in capital gains when you sell a Forgotten Coast vacation home.






Frequently Asked Questions


What is the Florida homestead exemption worth in 2026?


For the 2026 tax year, qualifying homeowners may receive up to $51,411. That is a $25,000 exemption applied to all millages including school taxes, plus an additional $26,411 applied to non-school millages only, an amount adjusted annually for inflation and certified by the Florida Department of Revenue. Separately, Save Our Homes caps annual assessed value increases on a homesteaded property at 3 percent or the change in CPI, whichever is less.


Do I have to own a Florida home by December 31, 2026 to qualify for the larger exemption?


According to property appraiser guidance published on the proposed amendment, the trigger is establishing Florida residency by that date rather than owning a home by then. Someone who becomes a permanent Florida resident in 2026 and purchases later would still be treated as part of the earlier group when they apply for homestead. Because implementing legislation would follow a passing vote, confirm your specific situation with your county property appraiser and your tax advisor.


How much Save Our Homes benefit can I transfer to a new Florida home?


Up to $500,000 of accumulated benefit can be ported to a new Florida homestead. You must establish the new homestead within three tax years of the last year you held the old one, and you file Form DR-501T along with your new homestead application by March 1. Portability works only within Florida, and if the new home's just value is lower than the old one's, a proportional share transfers rather than the full amount.


Would the amendment change my school taxes?


No. Under the proposal, only the first $25,000 of assessed value would remain exempt from school taxes, consistent with current law, and the larger exemption amounts would apply to non-school millages only. Most property owners would continue to receive a tax bill that includes school taxes. The amendment also does not reduce non-ad valorem assessments.


What happens to my vacation home if the amendment passes?


Non-homestead property, which includes second homes, rentals, commercial property, and vacant land, would see its annual assessment limitation reduced from 10 percent to 5 percent for non-school taxes. That slows how fast assessed value can climb, but it caps assessed value rather than taxes, and school taxes would continue to be based on just value. Your actual bill still depends on the millage rates your taxing authorities adopt.




This is one of those subjects where the general rule is easy and your specific situation is what actually matters. If you own here as a second home and you're weighing a full-time move, or you're buying in and trying to understand how the timing works, call or text me at (850) 340-1213. I'll walk you through what I'm seeing on the ground, put you in front of the right people at the property appraiser's office, and help you build a purchase timeline that fits whatever your accountant recommends. And if the answer is that you should wait, I'll say that too.


I'm a real estate broker, not a CPA, tax advisor, or attorney, and nothing here is tax or legal advice. Amendment 3 is a proposed constitutional amendment that has not been approved, requires at least 60 percent voter approval on November 3, 2026, and would require implementing legislation, so some administrative details cannot be known yet. Figures reflect published guidance as of October 2026. Confirm your own situation with the Gulf County Property Appraiser and your tax professional.


About Billy Joe Smiley

Billy Joe Smiley is one of Florida's most accomplished real estate professionals, with over 27 years of experience and more than 1,000 properties sold. As a top 1 REALTOR® based at Port Realty Group, Billy Joe serves the Forgotten Coast with unmatched insight, professionalism, and care. He works with buyers and sellers across Port St. Joe, Cape San Blas, Mexico Beach, and St. George Island, specializing in luxury and waterfront homes, investment properties and 1031 exchanges, beachfront and bayfront land, vacation homes and income-producing real estate, and real estate development and architectural planning. A Gulf County native, Billy Joe pairs deep local knowledge with decades of experience in brokerage, land development, custom home building, and architectural consulting. Recognized as The Forgotten Coast's Most Trusted Realtor, Billy Joe has earned 90+ public reviews across Zillow, Google, and Realtor.com.




 ]]> </description>
    <pubDate>Wed, 07 Oct 2026 11:53:00 -0400</pubDate>
</item>
<item>
    <guid>https://www.portrealtygroup.com/blog/market-report-week-ending-2026-10-04.html</guid>
    <link>https://www.portrealtygroup.com/blog/market-report-week-ending-2026-10-04.html</link>
        <author>bj@portrealtygroup.com (Billy Joe Smiley)</author>
        <title>Forgotten Coast Real Estate Market Report | September 28–October 4, 2026 | Port Realty Group</title>
    <description> <![CDATA[ 


A Frightfully Good Week on the Forgotten Coast: 20 Closings and a $3 Million Island Sale


October is the month for ghost stories, and this part of Florida comes by its share honestly. Port St. Joe grew up beside the bones of old St. Joseph, the boomtown that hosted Florida's constitutional convention in 1838 and then all but vanished within a few years, emptied out by yellow fever and finished off by a hurricane. Walk the bay shoreline at first light this time of year, when the fog sits low over the water and the marsh goes quiet, and you'll understand why folks around here still like a good haunted tale.


The market had nothing spooky about it this week. Twenty homes closed on the Forgotten Coast between September 28 and October 4, up from 13 the week before, on $15.22 million of volume. Both of those are the highest weekly figures since at least the end of August. St. George Island put a $3,000,000 sale on the board, and the beach corridor between St. Joe Beach and Mexico Beach closed 10 homes on its own.




What is the Forgotten Coast real estate market doing this week?


For the week of September 28–October 4, 2026, the Forgotten Coast recorded 20 residential closings and 5 vacant land sales across Port St. Joe, Cape San Blas, St. Joe Beach, Mexico Beach, and St. George Island. Active inventory fell to 529 residential listings, which reads 6.1 months of supply at this week's pace and 7.8 months on the three-week average, down from 12.0 months last week. Homes under contract rose to 14 from 9.




Sales ran from $269,900 to $3,000,000 and averaged $761,206. Every area closed at least one home for the third week in a row. Last week I worried out loud about a thin pipeline, and that worry hasn't come back to haunt anybody yet. 14 homes went under contract, up from 9, though still short of the 20 we saw two weeks ago.





St. George Island


The island closed 4 homes, and not one of them came in under $1,250,000. The top sale hit $3,000,000, edging past the $2.9 million island sale from two weeks ago for the biggest residential closing in the five weeks behind this report. The four averaged $1,624,750.


St. George now reads 5.9 months of supply on the three-week pace, down from 9.1 last week. Active listings slipped to 103, the lowest count the island has carried in that five-week stretch, and 2 homes are under contract, the same as last week. If you've been waiting for the top end of the island to soften before you make a move, this week wasn't your sign.





St. Joe Beach and Mexico Beach


The corridor closed 10 homes from $340,000 to $630,000, averaging $475,533. That's its busiest week in the five behind this report. Unlike last week, when one $2.4 million sale pulled the average way up, there's nothing skewing these numbers. Ten houses sold at the prices this stretch of beach has been living at all fall, and that's the healthiest kind of busy there is.


The three-week supply reading dropped to 7.1 months from 11.6. Active inventory dipped to 216 from 218, still the deepest on the coast, and pending contracts climbed to 5 from 1. Last week I said the corridor needed that pending number to recover before anyone could call it balanced. It has started to.





Port St. Joe


Town quietly had its best week of the stretch. 5 closings between $269,900 and $510,000, averaging $373,960. Only 72 active listings are left on the market, down from 76 last week and the fourth straight weekly decline.


On the three-week pace, Port St. Joe now carries 5.0 months of supply, down from 10.5 and the tightest reading of the four areas. Pending contracts rose to 5 from 3. Once a market drops under about 6 months, sellers start holding the better cards, and town is there now. If you've been thinking about listing a house in Port St. Joe, the shelf is as bare as it has been all fall.





Cape San Blas and the South Gulf


The Cape closed 1 home, and it was a big one. At $2,100,000, it's the highest single Cape sale in the five weeks behind this report, and a good reminder that the Gulf-front buyer on the peninsula hasn't gone anywhere.


The rest of the Cape's numbers are still the soft spot on this coast. With just 4 closings across the last three weeks, it reads 23.9 months of supply, up from 19.4 and by far the loosest of the four areas. Active listings did tick down to 138 from 140, the first decline after two straight increases. 2 homes are under contract, down from 3. If there's anywhere on the Forgotten Coast where a buyer can still find a treat this October, it's the Cape, especially below $1 million, where nothing closed this week.





The Land Market


Five lots sold, up from 4, on $1.78 million of volume. The average jumped to $356,600, the highest weekly land average in the five weeks behind this report.


The beach corridor drove it with 3 sales from $160,000 to $915,000. That $915,000 lot is the most anyone has paid for a parcel on this coast in the stretch I've been tracking, well past the $500,000 island lot from the week of September 7–13. St. George Island added 2 lots, at $98,000 and $430,000. Cape San Blas and Port St. Joe sat the week out.


Land inventory fell to 394 active parcels from 405, the first drop after two straight increases. Only 2 lots are under contract, though, the fewest in five weeks, so next week's land numbers could run quiet. At this week's pace the land market carries 18.2 months of supply. Builders and anyone planning to buy now and build later still have plenty to pick from.


What the Pace Actually Means


Twenty sales a week projects to about 87 homes a month, which against 529 active listings reads 6.1 months of supply. That's a seller-friendly number for a single week, and I'd hold it loosely. One big week doesn't make a season.


The three-week figure is the one I trust, and it moved the right way in a hurry. Last week I said the slow holiday week of September 7–13 would roll out of the window and the smoothed number should come back down. It did, and then some. The coast has averaged about 15.7 closings a week over the last three weeks, which puts supply at 7.8 months, down from the 12.0 months I published last week. Active inventory fell to 529, the fourth straight weekly decline and the lowest count in the five weeks behind this report.


Here's where the negotiating power sits right now. Sellers in Port St. Joe and on St. George Island have the stronger hand, with both areas under 6 months of supply. The beach corridor moved toward the middle this week, while Cape San Blas is still a buyer's market by a wide margin and rewards anyone willing to do the homework.


A Note on What This Report Covers


This weekly report tracks residential and vacant land activity across Florida's Forgotten Coast, covering the Port St. Joe real estate market, Cape San Blas and the South Gulf, the St. Joe Beach and Mexico Beach corridor, and the St. George Island market. Each week it pulls active listings, pending contracts, closed sales, price ranges, and months of inventory from the MLS and runs them the same way, so the week-to-week comparisons actually mean something.


What October Looks Like From Here


The porch pumpkins are starting to show up around town, and the evenings finally have a little bite to them, enough to make you dig out the jacket you didn't need a month ago. Out on the Cape the beach is empty enough at sunset that the only thing following you down the sand is your own long shadow.


October is also when the serious buyers come out. These are the folks who have been watching listings since summer and finally booked the trip, and this week twenty of them made it to the closing table. With 14 more homes under contract and active inventory the thinnest it has been this fall, sellers who price it right over the next few weeks are going to find this market a lot less scary than the national headlines make it sound.


If you're thinking about buying or selling this fall and want a straight read on what the data means for your situation, reach out. No pressure, just a real conversation about the market from someone who lives and works here.


Key Metrics Summary












Residential




529Active Listings




20Homes Sold This Week




$269,900 – $3,000,000Sold Price Range




$761,206Average Sold Price




7.8Months of Supply (3-Week Pace)














Vacant Land




394Active Listings




5Lots Sold This Week




$98,000 – $915,000Sold Price Range




$356,600Average Sold Price




18.2Months of Supply












Area Detail






Area


Active


Under Contract


Sold


Sold Price Range


Avg Sold Price


Months Supply (3-Wk)




Cape San Blas / South Gulf


138


2


1


$2,100,000


$2,100,000


23.9




Port St. Joe


72


5


5


$269,900 – $510,000


$373,960


5.0




St. Joe Beach / Mexico Beach


216


5


10


$340,000 – $630,000


$475,533


7.1




St. George Island


103


2


4


$1,250,000 – $3,000,000


$1,624,750


5.9






Vacant Land Detail






Area


Active


Under Contract


Sold


Sold Price Range




Cape San Blas / South Gulf


137


1


0


None




Port St. Joe


41


0


0


None




St. Joe Beach / Mexico Beach


149


1


3


$160,000 – $915,000




St. George Island


67


0


2


$98,000 – $430,000






 ]]> </description>
    <pubDate>Mon, 05 Oct 2026 17:32:00 -0400</pubDate>
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<item>
    <guid>https://www.portrealtygroup.com/blog/market-report-week-ending-2026-09-27.html</guid>
    <link>https://www.portrealtygroup.com/blog/market-report-week-ending-2026-09-27.html</link>
        <author>bj@portrealtygroup.com (Billy Joe Smiley)</author>
        <title>Forgotten Coast Real Estate Market Report | September 21–27, 2026 | Port Realty Group</title>
    <description> <![CDATA[ 


The Beach Corridor Carries the Week While the Pipeline Takes a Breath


Fall showed up on the calendar this week, and out here you could tell without looking. Mornings on Reid Avenue came in a few degrees cooler, the bay went still enough to see the redfish pushing bait along the grass flats, and the traffic heading to the Cape on a Saturday was mostly trucks with fishing rods sticking out the back.


The market kept its footing through the change of seasons. Thirteen homes closed on the Forgotten Coast between September 21 and 27, one fewer than last week, on $9.02 million of volume. The stretch between St. Joe Beach and Mexico Beach did the heavy lifting with 7 of the 13 closings, including a $2,425,000 sale that was the biggest of the week anywhere on the coast. The number I'm watching hardest, though, is the one that tells us about October.




What is the Forgotten Coast real estate market doing this week?


For the week of September 21–27, 2026, the Forgotten Coast recorded 13 residential closings and 4 vacant land sales across Port St. Joe, Cape San Blas, St. Joe Beach, Mexico Beach, and St. George Island. Active inventory sits at 539 residential listings, or 9.6 months of supply at this week's pace and 12.0 months on the steadier three-week average. Homes under contract fell to 9 coast-wide from 20, the thinnest pipeline in the four weeks behind this report.




Sales ran from $259,900 to $2,425,000 and averaged $693,477. Every one of the four areas closed at least one home for the second week in a row, which is a quiet sign of health. Buyers aren't crowding into one corner of the coast. They're spread out, buying where the house and the price line up.





St. Joe Beach and Mexico Beach


The corridor closed 7 homes between $259,900 and $2,425,000, averaging $723,614. That ties its best week in the four covered here and posts its highest weekly average of the stretch by a long way. Before anybody gets excited about that average, take the top sale out and the other six came in around $440,000, right where this stretch of beach has been living. The $2.4 million sale is real, and it says there's a buyer for the top of this market. The rest of the week says the corridor is still what it has always been: the most attainable way to own a piece of the Gulf on this coast.


The pending column is the caution flag. Just 1 home under contract, down from 8 last week and the lowest count the corridor has carried in the month behind this report. Active inventory also rose to 218 from 214, still the deepest on the coast by a wide margin. The three-week supply reading barely moved, 11.6 months against 11.4 last week. Sellers here are selling. They just need to watch whether the next round of buyers shows up in the next couple of weeks.





St. George Island


After last week's five-sale run, the island closed 3 homes from $335,000 to $1,250,000, averaging $856,667. A normal week for St. George, and a healthy one. It remains the tightest of the four areas on the three-week pace at 9.1 months of supply, up a little from 8.2 as its four sales from the week of August 31 rolled out of the window.


Inventory slipped to 105 active listings from 107, and 2 homes are under contract, down from 4. Nothing about the island's numbers suggests the buyers have gone anywhere. They're just pickier than they are in April, and they can afford to be.





Port St. Joe


Town closed 1 home, at $299,900. One sale after four is a slow week, not a turn, and a closing right under $300,000 is exactly the kind of house this town needs more of.


The bigger story in Port St. Joe is inventory. Active listings dropped to 76 from 83, the largest weekly decline of any area and the fewest active homes in town across the four weeks behind this report. It's also the smallest inventory on the coast. Pending contracts eased to 3 from 8, and with last week's four closings now averaged against this week's one, the three-week supply figure rose to 10.5 months from 9.6. If you've got a well-kept house in town under $400,000, you're competing against fewer listings than you were a month ago.





Cape San Blas and the South Gulf


The Cape closed 2 homes, at $420,000 and $660,000, for an average of $540,000. That's the lowest weekly average the Cape has posted in the four weeks behind this report, and it tells you where the buyers were this week. The entry end of the peninsula moved. The million-dollar Gulf-front end did not.


There's good news in the pipeline. 3 homes went under contract after two straight weeks with none, which takes some of the edge off the thin-October worry I raised last week. The harder number is supply. Active inventory rose to 140 from 137, its second weekly increase in a row, and with the 4-sale week of August 31 now out of the three-week window, the Cape reads 19.4 months of supply, up from 13.6. That's the loosest of the four areas by a wide gap. Buyers shopping the Cape, especially above $900,000, have more negotiating room right now than anywhere else on this coast.





The Land Market


Four lots traded for the second straight week, one in every area, on $1.02 million of volume. The average came in at $255,750, down from last week's $340,000 but still the second-highest weekly land average of the month.


St. George Island led on price with 1 sale at $450,000, its first lot sale since the 2 it closed the week of September 7–13. Cape San Blas added 1 at $278,000, the beach corridor 1 at $165,000, and Port St. Joe 1 at $130,000, the low end of the week.


Land inventory climbed again to 405 active parcels from 400, the second straight increase and the highest count of the four weeks. Pending lots held at 4, tied for the lowest of the stretch. At this week's pace that's 23.4 months of supply. If you're a builder or someone who's been waiting to buy a lot and build later, this is a patient market with plenty to choose from, and sellers are starting to feel it.


What the Pace Actually Means


Thirteen sales a week projects to about 56 homes a month, which against 539 active listings reads 9.6 months of supply. That's a respectable weekly number.


The three-week average is less flattering, and I'll give it to you straight. The coast has averaged about 10.3 closings a week over the last three weeks, putting the smoothed supply figure at 12.0 months, up from the 10.7 months I published last week. That happened because the strong 17-sale week of August 31 rolled out of the window while the 4-sale holiday week of September 7–13 stayed in. That holiday week drops out next Monday, so if closings hold anywhere near this pace, the smoothed number should come back down.


What I can't explain away is the pipeline. 9 homes under contract coast-wide, down from 20 last week and the lowest count of the four weeks behind this report. Closings lag contracts by a month or so, which means the first half of October could run lighter than September did. On the other side of the ledger, active inventory fell again to 539 from 541, the lowest count of the month. Inventory isn't piling up. New contracts just slowed down.


Where the negotiating power sits: buyers have the clearest advantage on Cape San Blas and at the high end anywhere on the coast. Sellers are in the best shape on St. George Island and in Port St. Joe, where inventory is the thinnest. The beach corridor sold the most homes this week but carries the most inventory, and it will need its pending count to recover before anyone calls it a seller's market.


A Note on What This Report Covers


This weekly report tracks residential and vacant land activity across Florida's Forgotten Coast: the Port St. Joe real estate market, Cape San Blas and the South Gulf, the St. Joe Beach and Mexico Beach corridor, and the St. George Island market. Every week it covers active listings, pending contracts, closed sales, price ranges, and months of inventory, pulled from the MLS and run the same way so the week-to-week comparisons actually mean something.


What the Fall Looks Like From Here


The next six weeks are my favorite time of year on this coast. The Gulf stays warm long after the summer crowd has gone home. The beaches from Indian Pass to the tip of the Cape get quiet enough that a morning walk feels private, and the bay fishing only gets better as the water cools. People who come down in October aren't here for a week of vacation. They're here to see what living here actually feels like.


That's the buyer who shows up this time of year, and it's the buyer this week's numbers are pointing to. Thirteen homes sold across every price band from under $300,000 to over $2.4 million. The houses that sold were priced for someone who has done the homework. With the pipeline down to 9, the sellers who win in October will be the ones who meet that buyer where the data says they are.


If you're thinking about buying or selling this fall and want a straight read on what the data means for your situation, reach out. No pressure, just a real conversation about the market from someone who lives and works here.


Key Metrics Summary












Residential




539Active Listings




13Homes Sold This Week




$259,900 – $2,425,000Sold Price Range




$693,477Average Sold Price




12.0Months of Supply (3-Week Pace)














Vacant Land




405Active Listings




4Lots Sold This Week




$130,000 – $450,000Sold Price Range




$255,750Average Sold Price




23.4Months of Supply












Area Detail






Area


Active


Under Contract


Sold


Sold Price Range


Avg Sold Price


Months Supply (3-Wk)




Cape San Blas / South Gulf


140


3


2


$420,000 – $660,000


$540,000


19.4




Port St. Joe


76


3


1


$299,900


$299,900


10.5




St. Joe Beach / Mexico Beach


218


1


7


$259,900 – $2,425,000


$723,614


11.6




St. George Island


105


2


3


$335,000 – $1,250,000


$856,667


9.1






Vacant Land Detail






Area


Active


Under Contract


Sold


Sold Price Range




Cape San Blas / South Gulf


143


1


1


$278,000




Port St. Joe


41


1


1


$130,000




St. Joe Beach / Mexico Beach


151


0


1


$165,000




St. George Island


70


2


1


$450,000






 ]]> </description>
    <pubDate>Mon, 28 Sep 2026 16:54:00 -0400</pubDate>
</item>
<item>
    <guid>https://www.portrealtygroup.com/blog/market-report-week-ending-2026-09-20.html</guid>
    <link>https://www.portrealtygroup.com/blog/market-report-week-ending-2026-09-20.html</link>
        <author>bj@portrealtygroup.com (Billy Joe Smiley)</author>
        <title>Forgotten Coast Real Estate Market Report | September 14–20, 2026 | Port Realty Group</title>
    <description> <![CDATA[ 


The Coast Snaps Back, and St. George Island Sets the Ceiling


Last week I had to report four closings and explain why that was a holiday artifact and not a market. This week the coast handed me the other half of the argument.


Fourteen homes closed on the Forgotten Coast between September 14 and 20, three and a half times the prior week's count, on $13.08 million of volume against $2.93 million the week before. That is the heaviest dollar week of the last month out here. And St. George Island, which had closed nothing at all seven days earlier, put 5 homes on the board including a $2,900,000 sale that is the largest residential closing in the four weeks behind this report.




What is the Forgotten Coast real estate market doing this week?


For the week of September 14–20, 2026, the Forgotten Coast recorded 14 residential closings and 4 vacant land sales across Port St. Joe, Cape San Blas, St. Joe Beach, Mexico Beach, and St. George Island. Active inventory sits at 541 residential listings, which at this week's pace reads 8.9 months of supply, though the steadier three-week average still puts it at 10.7 months. Pending contracts doubled to 20 coast-wide, the strongest pipeline in three weeks.




Sales ranged from $200,000 to $2,900,000 and averaged $934,414, a figure pulled upward hard by the island. Every area closed at least one home, which has not happened since the week of August 24–30. The spread of what sold is the part worth sitting with: four houses in the $247,000 to $345,000 band in town, four more between $200,000 and $585,000 along the beach corridor, and then the island operating in a different atmosphere entirely.





St. George Island


The island had the week. 5 closings, its best of the last month, at an average of $1,722,000 and a top price of $2,900,000. The low end of its week was $550,000, which tells you the buyers were not clustered at one price point. That is five separate decisions across a wide band, not one wave.


Run those sales against the last three weeks and St. George now prints 8.2 months of supply, the tightest reading of the four areas and a real improvement on the 12.2 months it carried last week. It holds 107 active listings and 4 under contract. After a blank week I called noise rather than news, that read holds up.


Port St. Joe


Town had its best week of the month too, and it did it in the price range that actually matters to people who live here. 4 closings between $247,000 and $345,000, averaging $292,975. That is the lowest weekly average Port St. Joe has posted in this stretch, and I mean that as a compliment to the market rather than a worry. Houses at that number are the ones young families and working couples can actually finance.


The pipeline backs it up. 8 homes under contract against 83 active listings, the fewest active of any area on the coast and the strongest pending count town has carried in the four weeks behind this report. Its three-week supply reading dropped to 9.6 months from 14.6 last week, the biggest single-week improvement anywhere on the coast. If you own a house in town under $400,000, the buyer pool just showed itself.





St. Joe Beach and Mexico Beach


The corridor turned in 4 closings from $200,000 to $585,000, averaging $449,975. Steady, which is what that stretch does. It also picked its pipeline back up to 8 under contract, its best since the 9 it carried the week of August 24–30.


Its inventory story is the one to watch. 214 active listings is still the deepest on the coast by a wide margin, and because the corridor's big 10-sale week has now rolled out of the three-week window, its smoothed supply reading climbed to 11.4 months from 7.9 last week. Nothing broke. The arithmetic just stopped flattering it. Price accordingly if you are listing between St. Joe Beach and the Mexico Beach line this fall.





Cape San Blas and the South Gulf


The Cape closed 1 home, at $1,500,000. One sale is not a trend in either direction, but the column beside it is starting to say something. 0 under contract, for the second straight week, across 137 active listings. Two consecutive weeks with nothing pending is the first such stretch in the month behind this report, and it means the Cape's October closing calendar is going to look thin no matter what happens in the next ten days.


Active inventory out there also ticked up to 137 from 136, its first weekly increase in this stretch after three straight declines. On the three-week pace the Cape now reads 13.6 months of supply, the loosest of the four areas and wider than the 10.5 months I published last week. Buyers working the Cape above $900,000 have more room this week than they did seven days ago, and they should use it.





The Land Market


Four lots traded, one fewer than last week, but they traded higher. The week's average land price came in at $340,000 on $1.36 million of volume, the strongest weekly land average of the last month by a wide gap.


Cape San Blas led it with 2 sales, at $335,000 and $482,000, the Cape's first two-lot week in this stretch. Port St. Joe closed 1 at $375,000, the highest land price town has recorded in the four weeks behind this report. The St. Joe Beach and Mexico Beach corridor added 1 at $168,000. St. George Island sat it out after 2 the week before.


Land inventory rose to 400 active parcels from 389, its first weekly increase in this stretch, and the pending count fell back to 4 from 9. At this week's pace that is 23.1 months of supply. Lots are still the most patient asset on this coast, but the prices tell you something changed in who is buying them. Nobody paid $482,000 for a Cape lot to flip it.





What the Pace Actually Means


Fourteen sales a week projects to about 61 homes a month. Against 541 active listings that reads 8.9 months of supply, which looks like a market that healed itself in seven days. It did not, quite.


Average the last three weeks and the coast has been closing about 11.7 homes a week, putting the three-week supply figure at 10.7 months, up from the 9.9 months I published last week. That is the second week running that the smoothed number has moved the wrong way, and I am going to say so plainly rather than lead with the friendlier weekly figure. The Labor Day hole is still sitting inside that three-week window and it will not roll out until next week's report.


The forward-looking numbers are the genuinely encouraging part. 20 homes under contract coast-wide, doubled from 10 last week and the highest count since the 22 of late August. Active inventory fell again to 541 from 543, a third straight weekly decline and the lowest count of the month. Last week I pointed out that inventory falling while nothing closes is just listings expiring. This week it fell while fourteen houses sold and twenty more went pending. That is a different animal.


Where the leverage sits right now: buyers still have real room at Cape San Blas and anywhere on the coast above $900,000, with the Cape's 13.6-month reading and empty pending column making that case on its own. Sellers have the better hand in Port St. Joe under $400,000 and on St. George Island, the two markets that tightened this week. The beach corridor is somewhere in the middle and drifting toward the buyer.


A Note on What This Report Covers


This weekly report tracks residential and vacant land activity across Florida's Forgotten Coast: the Port St. Joe real estate market, Cape San Blas and the South Gulf, the St. Joe Beach and Mexico Beach corridor, and the St. George Island market. Active listings, pending contracts, closed sales, price ranges, and months of inventory, pulled from the MLS and run the same way every week so the comparisons actually mean something.


What the Fall Looks Like From Here


This was the last full week of summer on the calendar. You can feel the turn already. The afternoon storms have thinned out, the Gulf has gone that flat glassy green it saves for October, and you'll find people fishing the bay for the pure pleasure of it. The Cape is quiet enough that you can walk a mile of it and see three sets of footprints, two of them yours.


Fall is also when the serious buyers show up out here. They are not booking a vacation week and falling for a sunset. They have been watching a listing since June, they know what it was asking in July, and they have run the numbers twice. With 20 contracts pending coast-wide and 541 homes sitting active, the ones that close between now and Thanksgiving will be the ones priced for that buyer. The island proved this week that the money is here when the house is right.


If you're thinking about buying or selling this fall and want a straight read on what the data means for your situation, reach out. No pressure, just a real conversation about the market from someone who lives and works here.


Key Metrics Summary












Residential




541Active Listings




14Homes Sold This Week




$200,000 – $2,900,000Sold Price Range




$934,414Average Sold Price




10.7Months of Supply (3-Week Pace)














Vacant Land




400Active Listings




4Lots Sold This Week




$168,000 – $482,000Sold Price Range




$340,000Average Sold Price




23.1Months of Supply












Area Detail






Area


Active


Under Contract


Sold


Sold Price Range


Avg Sold Price


Months Supply (3-Wk)




Cape San Blas / South Gulf


137


0


1


$1,500,000


$1,500,000


13.6




Port St. Joe


83


8


4


$247,000 – $345,000


$292,975


9.6




St. Joe Beach / Mexico Beach


214


8


4


$200,000 – $585,000


$449,975


11.4




St. George Island


107


4


5


$550,000 – $2,900,000


$1,722,000


8.2






Vacant Land Detail






Area


Active


Under Contract


Sold


Sold Price Range




Cape San Blas / South Gulf


142


1


2


$335,000 – $482,000




Port St. Joe


39


1


1


$375,000




St. Joe Beach / Mexico Beach


149


0


1


$168,000




St. George Island


70


2


0


None






 ]]> </description>
    <pubDate>Mon, 21 Sep 2026 16:25:00 -0400</pubDate>
</item>
<item>
    <guid>https://www.portrealtygroup.com/blog/cccl-permit-forgotten-coast-gulf-front.html</guid>
    <link>https://www.portrealtygroup.com/blog/cccl-permit-forgotten-coast-gulf-front.html</link>
        <author>bj@portrealtygroup.com (Billy Joe Smiley)</author>
        <title>CCCL Permits on the Forgotten Coast: What Gulf Front Buyers Should Know</title>
    <description> <![CDATA[ 


Do you need a CCCL permit to build or remodel on a Gulf front lot on the Forgotten Coast?




If your work sits seaward of the Coastal Construction Control Line, you generally need a permit from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, though several categories of work are exempt outright. The control line is a jurisdictional boundary, not a building prohibition. New homes, additions, remodels, and repairs are all allowed seaward of it, and a general permit offers a streamlined path for a single family house sited landward of the mapped general permit line.




By Billy Joe Smiley | September 17, 2026


A buyer called me last spring about a Gulf front lot on Cape San Blas. Beautiful parcel, good dune, the right side of the road. Then somebody told him the property was &quot;seaward of the CCCL,&quot; and he heard that as &quot;you can't build there.&quot; He almost walked away from a lot he could absolutely have built on.


That misunderstanding costs people good property every year, so I want to clear it up. The Coastal Construction Control Line is a permitting boundary. It marks the landward edge of the state's authority to review coastal construction, which is a very different thing from a line you cannot build past.


What the control line is, and what it is not


Under Section 161.053 of the Florida Statutes, the CCCL defines the portion of the beach and dune system subject to severe fluctuations from a one hundred year storm. Landward of the line, the state's coastal program has no jurisdiction. Seaward of it, DEP reviews the siting and design of what you propose. In DEP's own words, control lines should not be confused with setback lines or lines of prohibition. New construction, additions, remodeling, and repairs to existing structures are all allowed seaward of the control line as long as they are permitted or exempt.


Gulf County has its own history with this line. The county maintains a CCCL reference map and published a Coastal High Hazard Study, and property owners on the Cape were notified directly when the line was re-established. If you own or are buying along the peninsula, that map is worth pulling before you plan anything.


Here is the part that surprises people, and it's the good news. DEP's own data on Hurricane Opal, which remains one of the most destructive coastal storms in Florida history, tells the story plainly. Of the 1,992 major habitable structures the storm impacted, 768 were destroyed. Of the 576 structures that had been permitted through the CCCL Program, 2 were destroyed. That's two tenths of one percent. The 2004 and 2005 seasons confirmed the pattern. DEP also notes that having property within CCCL jurisdiction does not affect an owner's ability to obtain insurance and may improve it, because federal flood insurance pricing recognizes state coastal construction standards.


So the permit is not an obstacle course. It's the reason the house is still standing.


What is exempt, and what needs a permit


A meaningful amount of ordinary work seaward of the line is exempt by rule. The exemptions that matter most to the buyers and owners I work with:




Work inside the existing foundation. Modifications, maintenance, or repairs to an existing structure that stay within the limits of the existing foundation and do not involve the foundation itself are exempt. That covers a great many interior remodels.


Repairs to a pile supported foundation. Replacing bolts, hurricane straps, secondary members, and shore normal cross bracing is exempt. On an elevated coastal home, that is most of your routine structural maintenance.


Certain minor structures and maintenance. Driveways, water wells, and irrigation wells located in the landward shadow of an existing habitable major structure. Swimming pool maintenance that involves no excavation, and paved area maintenance, when located at least 30 feet landward of the frontal dune, escarpment, or armoring. Landscape plantings at least 30 feet landward that do not disturb existing grade or native salt tolerant vegetation.


Not exempt. Seawalls and other rigid armoring, and any addition or enclosure added below the first dwelling floor of an existing structure. Those two come up constantly, so plan around them.




When you do need a permit, there is a streamlined path worth knowing about. DEP issues general permits for single family houses, decks, garages, and similar projects sited well upland from the beach and sensitive dunes. DEP has mapped general permit lines identifying the areas that qualify, viewable on the department's interactive mapping site. Multi-family residences do not qualify for a general permit and go through the individual review process, which is a longer road.


I am not going to hand you a number of days, because nobody who has actually been through this can. What I will tell you is that the general permit route is the shorter road, and that the single best thing you can do is get your application in early and complete. A lot of what people experience as a slow permit is really a request for more information that sat waiting on a drawing somebody had not produced yet. Line up your engineer or architect first and you take most of that risk off the table.


The 30-year erosion projection, and rebuilding


This is the piece that actually decides some Gulf front parcels, and it's the one to check first.


The 30-year erosion projection line is where DEP projects the seasonal high water line will sit on your specific property thirty years after you apply. It is calculated from documented historical shoreline change for that stretch of coast, and DEP will provide the location. Where there are substantial seawalls, the projection stops at the seawall.


Major structures generally are not eligible for a CCCL permit seaward of that projection, with a specific carve-out: coastal and shore protection structures, and single family dwellings that meet the siting requirements in Section 161.053(5), which in practice means siting the house as far landward on the parcel as is practicable without putting it seaward of or on the frontal dune. So a single family home on a Gulf front lot has a path that a condominium building does not.


On rebuilding, there is no prohibition against rebuilding seaward of the control line. A structure damaged or destroyed by a storm may be rebuilt if the reconstruction is otherwise eligible for a permit. Existing structures can be moved farther landward or onto an improved foundation. The one real limit: a structure rebuilt seaward of the 30-year erosion projection line may not enlarge the capacity of the original structure. If your plan involves adding square footage to an older Gulf front home in that band, find that out before you're under contract, not after.


How to check a parcel before you write the offer


This is the sequence I run with buyers looking at Gulf front and near-front property from the Cape down through Mexico Beach and over to St. George Island. Most of it costs nothing.




Locate the line. DEP's Map Direct interactive mapping shows the CCCL and the general permit lines. Gulf County's reference map is a useful cross-check for peninsula parcels.


Get the survey, and get it delineated. Florida law requires a seller of CCCL-affected land to disclose that fact, in the contract or in a separate written instrument, and unless the buyer waives it in writing, to provide either an affidavit or a survey showing where the control line falls on the property. Do not waive that. It is the cheapest clarity you will ever get.


Ask DEP for the 30-year erosion projection for that parcel, and ask whether the buildable area sits landward of a general permit line.


Talk to a designer early. Major structures seaward of the line must be designed to resist the forces of a one hundred year storm, and a Florida-registered engineer or architect certifies to the county building official that the plans meet Section 3109 of the Florida Building Code. Elevated pile foundations, hurricane rated windows, and breakaway walls on the lowest level add cost over conventional construction. Price that into your offer rather than discovering it later.


Plan for lighting and vegetation conditions. Exterior lighting visible from the nesting beach has to be shielded or designed not to disturb nesting marine turtles, tinted glass is required on beach-facing windows and doors, and native dune vegetation removed during construction generally has to be replaced. These are design decisions, not deal breakers, and they are much cheaper to make at the drawing stage.




Two of my other posts pair naturally with this one. If you're evaluating a raw parcel, start with what to check before buying vacant land on the Forgotten Coast, which covers access, utilities, and septic feasibility. And if the parcel is near the north end of the peninsula, the beach nourishment and breakwater project on St. Joseph Peninsula is worth understanding, because the shoreline in that stretch has changed recently.




Frequently Asked Questions


Does being seaward of the CCCL mean I cannot build?


No. The control line is a jurisdictional boundary marking where DEP reviews coastal construction, not a setback line or a line of prohibition. New construction, additions, remodeling, and repairs are all allowed seaward of it. What changes is that the project needs a DEP permit unless it falls under one of the rule exemptions, and that siting and design standards are stricter than they are farther inland.


How long does a CCCL permit take?


Nobody can give you a firm number, and you should be skeptical of anyone who does. General permits, available for single family houses, decks, garages, and similar projects sited landward of a mapped general permit line, are the shorter road. Multi-family residences and projects that do not meet those criteria go through individual permit review, which takes longer. Plan on the review including at least one request for additional information, get your engineer or architect engaged before you apply, and talk to your builder about timing before you set a closing date.


Can I remodel an existing beach home without a CCCL permit?


Often yes. Modifications, maintenance, or repairs that stay within the limits of the existing foundation and do not involve work on the foundation itself are exempt, as are repairs to a pile supported foundation such as replacing bolts, hurricane straps, secondary members, and shore normal cross bracing. Two things are specifically excluded from that exemption: seawalls and other rigid armoring, and any addition or enclosure added below the first dwelling floor.


What is the 30-year erosion projection line?


It is DEP's projection of where the seasonal high water line will sit on your property thirty years after the date of your permit application, calculated from documented historical shoreline change. Major structures generally cannot be permitted seaward of it, with an exception for coastal and shore protection structures and for single family dwellings that meet the siting requirements of Section 161.053(5), which means placing the home as far landward on the parcel as is practicable without sitting seaward of or on the frontal dune.


Does a seller have to tell me the property is affected by the CCCL?


Yes. Florida law requires a seller of land affected by a coastal construction control line to disclose that fact to the buyer, either in the contract for sale or in a separate written instrument. Unless the buyer waives it in writing, the seller must also provide an affidavit or a survey delineating the location of the control line on the property. I recommend taking the survey rather than waiving it.




Gulf front property here is worth owning, and the permitting is far more navigable than its reputation. If you're looking at a lot or a home on the Cape, at Indian Pass, in Port St. Joe, or anywhere along this coast and you want to know where the control line falls on that specific parcel before you commit, call or text me at (850) 340-1213. I'll help you pull the mapping, tell you what to ask the seller for, and connect you with the surveyor and designer who do this work here every week.


I'm a real estate broker, not a surveyor, engineer, or permitting official. CCCL permitting decisions are made by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, and building permits are issued locally. Statutory and rule details here reflect Section 161.053, F.S., and DEP program guidance as published as of September 2026. Confirm the specifics for your parcel with DEP and your licensed professionals.


About Billy Joe Smiley

Billy Joe Smiley is one of Florida's most accomplished real estate professionals, with over 27 years of experience and more than 1,000 properties sold. As a top 1 REALTOR® based at Port Realty Group, Billy Joe serves the Forgotten Coast with unmatched insight, professionalism, and care. He works with buyers and sellers across Port St. Joe, Cape San Blas, Mexico Beach, and St. George Island, specializing in luxury and waterfront homes, investment properties and 1031 exchanges, beachfront and bayfront land, vacation homes and income-producing real estate, and real estate development and architectural planning. A Gulf County native, Billy Joe pairs deep local knowledge with decades of experience in brokerage, land development, custom home building, and architectural consulting. Recognized as The Forgotten Coast's Most Trusted Realtor, Billy Joe has earned 90+ public reviews across Zillow, Google, and Realtor.com.




 ]]> </description>
    <pubDate>Thu, 17 Sep 2026 17:48:00 -0400</pubDate>
</item>
<item>
    <guid>https://www.portrealtygroup.com/blog/106-hidden-ridge-rd-port-st-joe.html</guid>
    <link>https://www.portrealtygroup.com/blog/106-hidden-ridge-rd-port-st-joe.html</link>
        <author>bj@portrealtygroup.com (Billy Joe Smiley)</author>
        <title>106 Hidden Ridge Rd: A 3-Bedroom Home Between Port St. Joe and Mexico Beach</title>
    <description> <![CDATA[ 

What Does 106 Hidden Ridge Rd Offer at $499,900?


106 Hidden Ridge Rd is a 3-bedroom, 2-bath home with 2,004 sq ft of heated/cooled living space, listed at $499,900 in the Palm Ridge subdivision of St. Joe Beach. Built in 2006 on a 0.33-acre lot, the property features a spring-fed pond, a screened Florida room with French doors, vaulted ceilings in the great room, and a bonus room sized for a real office or studio. There's no HOA, all utilities are connected, and the location sits roughly midway between Port St. Joe and Mexico Beach, with Gulf access a short drive in either direction.






By Billy Joe Smiley | September 11, 2026


106 Hidden Ridge Rd is a three-bedroom, two-bath home on a third of an acre in the Palm Ridge subdivision of St. Joe Beach — a quiet street, no HOA, no major road noise, and 2,004 square feet of finished living space that includes a bonus room, a Florida room, and a spring-fed pond in the backyard. It's listed at $499,900. If you've been watching Gulf County inventory in this price range, you know that combination doesn't come together often.


The floorplan lives bigger than the square footage suggests. Vaulted ceilings in the great room change how the space feels the minute you walk in — not the low, flat ceilings you find in a lot of Gulf County construction from this era. The kitchen has white shaker cabinetry and Corian countertops: clean, durable, easy to live with. The dining area sits directly under a skylight, which sounds like a small detail until you're actually sitting at that table in the morning. The room has its own quality of light.


The primary suite is separated from the secondary bedrooms, which matters in a three-bedroom layout. There is a garden tub and a separate shower — not a tub-shower combo, an actual soaking tub alongside a separate shower — plus a walk-in closet. That's a bathroom that feels like it belongs in a larger house.


The bonus room tends to surprise people on the walkthrough. It's not a closet with ambitions. It holds a real desk setup, a daybed, recording equipment, or whatever you're actually doing with a dedicated fourth room. A lot of Gulf County inventory at this price doesn't offer that kind of flexible space. This one does.


French doors in the great room open directly to the screened Florida room, and from there you're looking at the pond. In Florida the screening distinction matters: you use this room in July, not just in November. The spring-fed pond means there's moving water and life year-round — not a dry retention basin half the year. You're sitting in a screened room looking at spring-fed water. That changes how the back of the property feels to be on.





The practical details.


Built in 2006. The gas grill hookup out back is the kind of detail that sounds minor until you're standing on a property that doesn't have it. Utilities are all connected: natural gas, city water and sewer, cable, and internet. Four parking spaces in the driveway. No pool — which in Florida means lower insurance, lower maintenance, and one fewer thing to manage.


Palm Ridge sits between Port St. Joe and Mexico Beach, about 10 minutes to either direction, a short drive to beach access in both. The location is convenient. But the house is the story.


Before you make an offer on any Forgotten Coast home, you'll want a thorough inspection from someone who knows coastal construction. What Does a Home Inspection Actually Cover on a Forgotten Coast Beach Home? breaks down exactly what inspectors look at in a home like this and what to watch for.


Why this one stands out at $499,900.


Most homes in this price range in Gulf County make you trade something off. You get the square footage but not the water feature. You get the bonus room but not the primary suite. You get the Florida room but not the pond to look at from it. This one doesn't ask you to trade. The spring-fed pond, the screened room, the soaking tub, the skylight over the dining table, the bonus room that functions — it's an unusual assembly for the price and based on our most recent Forgotten Coast market report, homes with genuine differentiators at this price point are not sitting long.


Coming through the door tells you what the numbers can't. This one is worth the walkthrough.




Frequently Asked Questions


Is 106 Hidden Ridge Rd in a flood zone?


106 Hidden Ridge Rd is in FEMA Flood Zone X, which is the lowest-risk designation — outside the Special Flood Hazard Area and not subject to mandatory flood insurance requirements. That's a meaningful distinction on the Forgotten Coast, where flood zone status can significantly affect both insurance costs and financing.


Does the home have HOA restrictions?


No, there is no HOA at 106 Hidden Ridge Rd. That means no dues and no approval process for changes or improvements to the property.


How far is 106 Hidden Ridge Rd from the Gulf?


The home is in the St. Joe Beach area, positioned between Port St. Joe and Mexico Beach. Public beach access is a short drive from the property, typically under 10 minutes depending on your destination.


What school district serves this address?


106 Hidden Ridge Rd is in Gulf County, served by the Gulf County School District. For specific school assignment and enrollment information, contact the district directly.


Is this property move-in ready?


Based on the listing, the home features updated kitchen elements, an irrigation system, and all utilities connected. A standard home inspection would confirm current condition. I'm happy to connect you with a licensed inspector familiar with Forgotten Coast construction if you're moving toward an offer.



If this property matches what you've been looking for on the Forgotten Coast, the next step is simple: schedule a showing before something else catches your attention.


Reach out directly and I'll walk you through it personally. I know this stretch of Highway 98 well, and I can give you an honest read on the home, the location, and what a fair offer looks like in today's market.


About Billy Joe SmileyBilly Joe Smiley is a Florida real estate broker and top 1 REALTOR® with Port Realty Group, with over 27 years of experience and more than 1,000 properties sold. A Gulf County native, he serves buyers and sellers across Port St. Joe, Cape San Blas, and Mexico Beach, specializing in waterfront and beachfront homes, land, and investment properties. His deep local knowledge and no-pressure approach have made him the Forgotten Coast's most trusted name in real estate.
 ]]> </description>
    <pubDate>Wed, 16 Sep 2026 17:00:00 -0400</pubDate>
</item>
<item>
    <guid>https://www.portrealtygroup.com/blog/custom-gulf-front-home-indian-pass-172-red-hawk-lane.html</guid>
    <link>https://www.portrealtygroup.com/blog/custom-gulf-front-home-indian-pass-172-red-hawk-lane.html</link>
        <author>bj@portrealtygroup.com (Billy Joe Smiley)</author>
        <title>Custom Gulf-Front Living on Indian Pass: Inside 172 Red Hawk Lane</title>
    <description> <![CDATA[ 



By Billy Joe Smiley | August 2026


There are properties you evaluate, and there are properties that stop you.


172 Red Hawk Lane is the second kind.


It sits on a 0.72-acre Gulf-front homesite in Indian Pass Shores, a small community on one of the last stretches of undeveloped Old Florida beach on this coast. The home was built in 2024, fully custom from the foundation to the pecan wood cabinetry and designed the way serious Gulf-front homes rarely are: for the people who will actually live in it. Six bedrooms. Five and a half baths. A private heated Gunite pool facing open water. An elevator. And from the main living level, an unbroken view of the Gulf that runs to the horizon without a roofline, a utility pole, or another house interrupting it.


The asking price is $2,150,000. Here's what that means on this particular stretch of coast.



Indian Pass Shores: What Makes This Location Different


Indian Pass doesn't announce itself. There's no billboard, no resort entrance, no branded beach town waiting at the end of the road. You turn off Highway 30-A onto a narrow barrier spit, and then you're just there, the Gulf on one side, Indian Lagoon Indian on the other, and a long-uncluttered beach in front of you that most of Florida drove right past without stopping.


That's been the point for the people who know it.


The Indian Pass Raw Bar has been pulling people back for decades, a low-key seafood institution that doesn't need a sign or a social media presence to fill up on a Friday night. The Indian Pass boat ramp is one of the finest launch points on this coast and the open Gulf is a short run out. The fishing is serious, the birding is serious, and the beach itself feels the way Gulf beach used to feel before the rest of the Panhandle was developed into something unrecognizable.


Indian Pass Shores is a small, quiet community, and 172 Red Hawk Lane occupies a rare position inside it. A 0.72-acre Gulf-front homesite gives this home something that tighter beachfront developments simply cannot offer: room. Room between the house and the water. Room on either side. Room to breathe in a way that most Gulf-front properties stopped offering a long time ago.






What the Home Was Built to Do


Step into the main living level and the Gulf is already in front of you. Not framed in a window off to the side. Straight ahead. The open-concept layout, living, dining, and kitchen flowing as one continuous space, puts the water at the center of everything. High ceilings pull your eye up; the beachfront windows pull it out. On a clear morning, you have your coffee with the Gulf. In the evening, you have your dinner with it.


The kitchen is where the caliber of this build becomes obvious. Custom pecan wood cabinetry throughout. Stainless steel appliances. Double dishwashers. A dedicated beverage refrigerator. A stand-alone ice maker. This isn't the kind of kitchen that gets outpaced by a large group on the second night of a trip. It was designed for exactly that scenario, for feeding twelve people without chaos, for keeping things moving without a bottleneck, for making the hosting feel effortless instead of managed.


The bathrooms carry the same quality. Custom tile in everyone, five and a half of them across six bedrooms, so that no one is ever waiting after a long day on the water. The elevator runs the full height of the house. The dedicated laundry room handles what six occupied bedrooms generate without requiring a second thought. These are the details that separate a home that photographs well from one that actually functions well at scale, and this one gets both right.


Outside, the private elevated Gunite pool faces the Gulf directly, not the parking area, not a neighbor's fence, the Gulf. There's an outdoor shower for coming in from the beach, covered and open parking, and community boardwalk access to the sand. Dog-friendly beaches nearby are worth noting for guests traveling with pets, which consistently broadens the rental audience for owners who want to maximize bookings.






The Investment Case


A fully custom Gulf-front home built in 2024 is genuinely rare on the Forgotten Coast. What typically appears at this price point is older inventory that needs updating, or raw land still waiting for a house. This one is finished, equipped, and ready, whether you close on it as a primary residence, a second home, or a high-performing short-term rental.


The short-term rental market along Indian Pass runs differently than it does on Cape San Blas or the more saturated beach communities closer to Panama City. The audience here is self-selecting, guests who have researched the Forgotten Coast, made a decision about what kind of trip they want, and actively chosen a place with fewer crowds and more to do on the water. That profile produces strong peak-season bookings and real shoulder-month opportunity for operators willing to work the market.


The position between Port St. Joe fifteen minutes east and Apalachicola to the west is an underrated advantage. Guests aren't isolated. They have access to real towns, restaurants, hardware stores, fresh seafood, marinas, without being in the middle of any of them. That balance between accessibility and genuine remoteness is a difficult combination to find anywhere on the Gulf, and it's what keeps Indian Pass sticky year after year for the buyers who discover it.


What the numbers look like for your specific situation depends on your financing, your rental management approach, and how much of the calendar you plan to keep for yourself. That's a conversation worth having before you're standing at the closing table. Every situation is different, and the right answer is the one that works for yours.



Frequently Asked Questions


What is Indian Pass Shores and where is it located?


Indian Pass Shores is a Gulf-front community located on Indian Pass, a narrow barrier spit on Florida's Forgotten Coast. It sits roughly between Port St. Joe to the east and Apalachicola to the west, in Gulf County. The community offers direct Gulf access and is adjacent to one of the last stretches of undeveloped Old Florida Gulf beach remaining in the state.


Is Indian Pass good for short-term rental investment?


Yes, and it's less competitive than some of the better-known Forgotten Coast submarkets. The combination of Gulf-front access, proximity to St. Joe Bay fishing, and the character of the Indian Pass area draws a loyal repeat-visitor base. A 6-bedroom home with a private pool and strong hosting amenities performs well in this market across the spring, summer, and fall seasons.


What does a custom Gulf-front home on the Forgotten Coast typically cost?


Custom Gulf-front homes in Gulf County are rare, and pricing reflects it. Properties at 172 Red Hawk Lane's spec level -- custom finishes, heated pool, elevator, 2,700-plus square feet on the Gulf -- generally land in the $1.8M to $2.5M range depending on lot size, build quality, and proximity to the water. At $2,150,000 for a 2024-built home with this feature set and a 0.72-acre Gulf-front homesite, it sits at a realistic position in the current market.


What is the Indian Pass Raw Bar, and why does it matter to buyers?


The Indian Pass Raw Bar is a legendary seafood destination on the Forgotten Coast, known for fresh Gulf oysters and a no-frills atmosphere that locals and visitors have been returning to for decades. Its proximity to 172 Red Hawk Lane is the kind of thing buyers mention to guests, and guests mention in reviews. Walkable character like that is rare on this coast, and it adds genuine appeal that doesn't show up on a spec sheet.


What should I know about closing a Gulf-front home in Gulf County, Florida?


Florida home purchases in Gulf County involve a title company, attorney, and escrow. Sellers pay documentary taxes on the deed transfer at $0.70 per $100 of the sale price, plus recording fees and real estate commissions. Buyers typically budget 2-3 for closing costs including lender fees, title insurance, and prepaids. A flood disclosure and, if applicable, HOA estoppel will also be part of the due diligence package. It's worth reviewing all of this with your real estate attorney before you're in the middle of it.



The short version: 172 Red Hawk Lane is a fully custom Gulf-front home built in 2024, sitting on one of the last undeveloped stretches of beach on Florida's Forgotten Coast. Six bedrooms, a heated pool that faces the Gulf, an elevator, and a kitchen built to actually use. Indian Pass doesn't get the traffic that Cape San Blas does, and that's exactly why serious buyers keep circling back to it.


If you want to walk through this one or talk through what it could look like for your situation, call or text me at (850) 340-1213. I'm always happy to have that conversation before you start making decisions.



About Billy Joe Smiley


Billy Joe Smiley is a Florida real estate broker and top 1 REALTOR® with Port Realty Group, with over 27 years of experience and more than 1,000 properties sold. A Gulf County native, he serves buyers and sellers across Port St. Joe, Cape San Blas, and Mexico Beach, specializing in waterfront and beachfront homes, land, and investment properties. His deep local knowledge and no-pressure approach have made him the Forgotten Coast's most trusted name in real estate.
 ]]> </description>
    <pubDate>Wed, 16 Sep 2026 10:59:00 -0400</pubDate>
</item>
<item>
    <guid>https://www.portrealtygroup.com/blog/market-report-week-ending-2026-09-13.html</guid>
    <link>https://www.portrealtygroup.com/blog/market-report-week-ending-2026-09-13.html</link>
        <author>bj@portrealtygroup.com (Billy Joe Smiley)</author>
        <title>Forgotten Coast Real Estate Market Report | September 7–13, 2026 | Port Realty Group</title>
    <description> <![CDATA[ 


Vacant Land Outsold Houses on a Quiet Labor Day Week


The week opened on Labor Day, and the coast did what it always does once that last long weekend burns off. Traffic thinned on 98, and the closing calendar, which had been running hot since the first week of August, went nearly silent.


Four homes closed on the Forgotten Coast between September 7 and 13. Four. After three straight weeks of fifteen, seventeen, and seventeen, that reads like somebody unplugged the market. The vacant land side, though, kept right on working, and for the first time in a month it closed more deals than the houses did.




What is the Forgotten Coast real estate market doing this week?


For the week of September 7–13, 2026, the Forgotten Coast recorded 4 residential closings and 5 vacant land sales across Port St. Joe, Cape San Blas, St. Joe Beach, Mexico Beach, and St. George Island. Active inventory stands at 543 residential listings, which on a three-week average pace works out to 9.9 months of supply, up from 7.8 months a week ago. Land outsold houses for the first time in a month, and with only 10 homes under contract coast-wide, the October closing calendar looks thin.




Total residential dollar volume came to $2.93 million, against $11.93 million the week before. The four sales ranged from $539,900 to $1,250,000 and averaged $732,475, though an average built on four transactions is a fact about those four houses and not much else. Two of the four areas closed nothing at all.





Cape San Blas and the South Gulf


The Cape closed 2 homes, at $585,000 and $1,250,000, averaging $917,500. That is the fourth week running the Cape's weekly average has stepped down, from $1,156,750 in mid-August through $1,100,000 and $1,041,475 to where it sits now. Before anybody reads a collapse into that line, look at the sample size behind it. Two to four closings a week. What that trend actually tracks is which houses happened to fund, not what the Cape is worth.


The column I would watch out there instead is under contract, and this week it reads 0. Not one home pending across 136 active listings. That is the first blank in that cell in the month of data behind this report, and it means the Cape's first half of October is already spoken for, in the unhappy sense. On the three-week pace the Cape now sits at 10.5 months of supply, loosened from 8.8 months last week.





St. Joe Beach and Mexico Beach


The corridor did what it has done most of this year, which is hold the coast up. Its 2 closings were the only other sales on the board, at $539,900 and $555,000. Two houses, roughly $15,100 apart, sold in the same week. That is not a coincidence so much as a signature. There is a real, identifiable pool of buyers working the mid five hundreds along that stretch, and they are still writing.


At 217 active listings the corridor carries the deepest inventory on the coast by a wide margin, but run it against its last three weeks of closings and it prints 7.9 months of supply, the tightest of the four areas. Turnover forgives a lot of listings. It also holds 6 of the coast's 10 pending contracts, which is the only pipeline out here with real weight in it right now.





Port St. Joe


Town closed nothing. Its 84 active listings are the fewest of any area on the coast and 3 of them are under contract, the best pending-to-active ratio anywhere out here this week. A blank Monday-to-Sunday in Port St. Joe is not a crisis. It runs on a smaller board than the beach markets, so one slow stretch swings the percentages harder than it should.


Still, the smoothed reading deserves a look. On the three-week pace Port St. Joe now carries 14.6 months of supply, the softest of the four areas, up from 7.5 months last week. If you own something in town and you have been waiting on a number to make a decision, that is the number.





St. George Island


The island came up empty on houses too, its first blank week in the month behind this report. 106 active listings, 1 under contract, no closings. St. George has been streaky since June, running 4 sales one week and 2 the next, so an off week by itself is noise rather than news. Its three-week supply reading of 12.2 months is a wider gap than I would like, but the island has closed 8 homes in the previous three weeks and nothing about the inventory picture suggests that stops.


The island's land market, meanwhile, had the best week anybody had.





The Land Market


Five lots traded across the coast, one more than the houses managed. All four areas put at least one on the board, something that last happened the week of August 17–23.


St. George Island took the top of the market with 2 sales, at $132,500 and $500,000. That half-million-dollar parcel is the largest land closing since the $1,510,000 Cape tract that traded the week of August 17–23. Cape San Blas closed 1 at $150,000, Port St. Joe 1 at $123,000, and the St. Joe Beach and Mexico Beach corridor 1 at $85,000. Average land price for the week landed at $198,100 on $990,500 of volume.


Land inventory sits at 389 active parcels, flat against last week's 390 and the lowest count of the four weeks. At this week's pace that is 18.0 months of supply, improved from 22.5 months a week ago. Deep buyer's market either way. But 9 lots under contract and five closings in a week when houses managed four tells you where the unhurried money is working. A lot does not care what month it is, and it does not care about a holiday weekend.


What the Pace Actually Means


Here is a number I have to hand over straight rather than dress up.


Four sales a week projects to roughly 17 homes a month. Against 543 active listings that reads 31.4 months of supply, and that is not a real figure. It is what happens when you annualize a holiday week and pretend it represents something.


The smoothed reading is the one to trust. Average the last three weeks and the coast has been closing about 13 homes a week, which puts the three-week supply figure at 9.9 months, up from the 7.8 months I published last week. That is a move in the wrong direction and I am not going to narrate around it. Two consecutive weeks of improvement in that line got wiped out by one slow week, and all four areas loosened, not just the two that closed nothing.


The supporting numbers agree. Coast-wide there are 10 homes under contract, down from 11 last week and 22 two weeks back, the lowest pending count in the month behind this report. Active inventory did fall, to 543 from 553, its second straight weekly decline. Inventory dropping because listings expire is a different animal from inventory dropping because houses sell, and this week looks more like the former.


What that means in practice: buyers have more room this week than they had two weeks ago, particularly at Cape San Blas above $900,000 and anywhere in Port St. Joe. Sellers in the $500,000 to $600,000 band along the St. Joe Beach and Mexico Beach corridor are the exception, because that is where the buyers demonstrably are. None of this makes it a bad market. It makes it a September market, and September has looked like this out here for as long as I have been selling.


A Note on What This Report Covers


This weekly report tracks residential and vacant land activity across Florida's Forgotten Coast: the Port St. Joe real estate market, Cape San Blas and the South Gulf, the St. Joe Beach and Mexico Beach corridor, and the St. George Island market. Active listings, pending contracts, closed sales, price ranges, and months of inventory, pulled from the MLS and calculated the same way every week so the week-to-week comparisons actually hold.


What the Fall Looks Like From Here


Fall on the Forgotten Coast is the season locals mostly keep to themselves. The Gulf stays warm into late October. The Cape empties out and the sand goes back to being sand. You can walk into anywhere in Port St. Joe on a Friday night without a wait, and the bay turns that flat pewter color right before sunset that nobody has ever managed to photograph properly.


It is also the season when the market stops flattering anyone. Summer buyers move on a vacation week and a feeling. Fall buyers have already done the arithmetic, watched your listing since June, and know exactly what you were asking in July. With 10 homes under contract coast-wide and 543 of them sitting active, the ones that close between now and Thanksgiving are going to be the ones priced for that buyer rather than for last summer.


Key Metrics Summary












Residential




543Active Listings




4Homes Sold This Week




$539,900 – $1,250,000Sold Price Range




$732,475Average Sold Price




9.9Months of Supply (3-Week Pace)














Vacant Land




389Active Listings




5Lots Sold This Week




$85,000 – $500,000Sold Price Range




$198,100Average Sold Price




18.0Months of Supply












Area Detail






Area


Active


Under Contract


Sold


Sold Price Range


Avg Sold Price


Months Supply (3-Wk)




Cape San Blas / South Gulf


136


0


2


$585,000 – $1,250,000


$917,500


10.5




Port St. Joe


84


3


0


None


—


14.6




St. Joe Beach / Mexico Beach


217


6


2


$539,900 – $555,000


$547,450


7.9




St. George Island


106


1


0


None


—


12.2






Vacant Land Detail






Area


Active


Under Contract


Sold


Sold Price Range




Cape San Blas / South Gulf


140


2


1


$150,000




Port St. Joe


38


1


1


$123,000




St. Joe Beach / Mexico Beach


144


3


1


$85,000




St. George Island


67


3


2


$132,500 – $500,000






If you're thinking about buying or selling this fall and want a straight read on what the data means for your situation, reach out. No pressure, just a real conversation about the market from someone who lives and works here.


 ]]> </description>
    <pubDate>Mon, 14 Sep 2026 17:12:00 -0400</pubDate>
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<item>
    <guid>https://www.portrealtygroup.com/blog/selling-home-with-vacation-rental-bookings-forgotten-coast.html</guid>
    <link>https://www.portrealtygroup.com/blog/selling-home-with-vacation-rental-bookings-forgotten-coast.html</link>
        <author>bj@portrealtygroup.com (Billy Joe Smiley)</author>
        <title>Can You Sell a Forgotten Coast Home That Already Has Vacation Rental Bookings?</title>
    <description> <![CDATA[ 


Can I sell my Forgotten Coast home if it already has vacation rental bookings on the calendar?




Yes, and on this coast it happens constantly. Florida's standard purchase contract handles it directly in Paragraph 6(b), which covers a property that will still be subject to a lease or occupancy agreement after closing. The buyer reviews the booking schedule, deposits for post-closing stays are credited to the buyer at the table, and the guests keep their vacation. For an investor buyer, a full calendar is usually an asset rather than an obstacle, because they are purchasing income that begins the day they take title.




By Billy Joe Smiley | September 10, 2026


This question comes up almost every time an owner of a rental property on Cape San Blas or in Mexico Beach starts thinking about selling. They look at a calendar that is booked solid through Labor Day and into October, and they assume they either have to cancel on a dozen families or wait until winter to list.


Neither one is true. Bookings are a normal, well-handled part of a sale in a vacation rental market, and the standard Florida contract was written with exactly this in mind. Here is how it works and what I do to make it smooth.


The Contract Already Has a Place for This


Paragraph 6(b) of the standard Florida contract addresses a property that is occupied by a tenant or subject to an occupancy agreement after closing, and it covers seasonal and short-term vacation rentals. When that box is selected, the buyer is acknowledging that the property comes with existing reservations and agreeing to honor them, with the landlord role transferring at closing.


Two details in that paragraph are worth knowing as a seller:




The buyer gets a short review window. Once you deliver the lease and occupancy documents, the buyer has a defined number of days to review them and, if the terms do not work for them, terminate and get their deposit back. This is precisely why I want the booking schedule organized before we ever go under contract. A clean, complete package delivered on day one is the single best way to make sure nobody uses that window.


Tenant estoppel letters are not required for seasonal or short-term vacation rentals. That is a meaningful carve-out. You are not chasing signatures from twenty guests. You are delivering a reservation schedule and the underlying terms.




Who Gets the Money


This is the part that needs to be written down rather than assumed, and it is straightforward once you see it laid out.





Item

Common Handling



Stays that check out before closing


Seller keeps that revenue.




Deposits already collected for stays after closing


Credited to the buyer at closing, since the buyer will be hosting those guests and owes the service.




A stay that straddles the closing date


Prorated by night, or the closing date is simply moved to a turnover day. Moving the date is usually cleaner.




Guest damage or security deposits being held


Transferred to the buyer along with the obligation to return them.




Cleaning fees and management commissions already paid out


Reconciled in the same schedule so nothing gets counted twice.






In practice I ask the title company to build all of this into the closing statement rather than leaving it to a side agreement between the parties. Everything lands in one document, both sides sign it, and nobody is trading Venmo payments three weeks later trying to remember who owed what.


The Platform Question, and Why Management Matters Here


Here is one thing to plan around rather than be surprised by. Airbnb and Vrbo treat a listing and the reviews attached to it as belonging to the host account, not to the property. A new owner does not inherit your listing or your review history. They set up their own listing under their own account.


That is not a deal problem, but it is a timing problem if nobody talks about it until the week of closing. The buyer needs their own license and account in place so they can host the reservations they are taking over. Sellers who work with a local property management company generally have the easier path, because the reservation calendar and the management relationship can often continue directly through the transition, which keeps the guest experience uninterrupted.


Licensing is its own layer, and the buyer needs to have it handled before they take over hosting duties. The state license plus the county requirements differ across Gulf, Franklin, and Bay Counties, and I walked through all three in do you need a license to rent your Forgotten Coast home short-term? That is a conversation to start early in the contract period rather than the week of closing. Community-level rules can matter just as much as the county rules, and I compared several of ours side by side in HOA fees and rental rules in Ovation, WindMark Beach, and Secluded Dunes.


What I Ask Sellers to Have Ready


If you are thinking about listing a rental property here, get this package together now. It takes an afternoon, and it does more for your sale than almost anything else you could do:




A clean forward reservation schedule showing arrival and departure dates, nightly rate, total collected, deposits held, and the booking source for each stay.


Two to three years of income history if you have it, ideally by month so a buyer can see the seasonal shape of the property rather than a single annual figure.


Your expense picture: management fees, cleaning, utilities, insurance, taxes, and repairs. Investor buyers are underwriting a net number, and handing them one directly builds trust fast.


Your management agreement and its cancellation or assignment terms, so we know what the buyer can step into.


Your license and registration paperwork, state and county, along with tax registration details.


The house manual, inventory list, and vendor contacts. These have real value to a buyer and cost you nothing to hand over.




One more piece of advice I give often: do not stop taking bookings just because you are listing. A property with a strong forward calendar reads as a working business to an investor, and that is a large share of the buyer pool for rental-ready homes in Port St. Joe, St. Joe Beach, and out on the peninsula. Be thoughtful about how far ahead you commit while a sale is pending, and keep the schedule current. That is all it takes.


And if your buyer turns out to be a family who wants the house for themselves rather than an investor, that is a conversation we have early, before we get deep into a contract. Sometimes the answer is a closing date after the season winds down, sometimes it is a shorter booking window going forward, and sometimes the buyer decides they like the income after all. There is a workable version of every one of those.




Frequently Asked Questions


Can I sell my Florida vacation rental if I already have bookings on the calendar?


Yes. Florida's standard purchase contract has a provision built specifically for this. Paragraph 6(b) covers a property that will still be subject to a lease or other occupancy agreement after closing, and the buyer signs on knowing the reservations come with the house. Forward bookings are handled as a term of the sale, not as an obstacle to it.


Who gets the money from bookings that fall after closing?


Whatever the two sides agree to in writing. The common approach is that the seller keeps revenue from stays completed before closing, and deposits already collected for stays after closing get credited to the buyer at the closing table, since the buyer will be the one hosting those guests. The important part is that it is spelled out in the contract rather than assumed, and that the closing statement reflects it.


Does the buyer have a right to cancel if they do not like the existing bookings?


Under the standard Florida contract language, the buyer has a short window after receiving the lease and occupancy documents to review them and terminate with a deposit refund if the terms are not acceptable. That makes delivering a clean, complete booking schedule early one of the most useful things a seller can do. A well-organized package removes the reason to walk.


Can I transfer my Airbnb or Vrbo listing to the buyer?


Not the listing itself. Both platforms treat a listing and its reviews as belonging to the host account rather than to the property, so a new owner creates a new listing under their own account. That is worth planning for rather than discovering the week of closing. Sellers who use a local property management company often have a smoother handoff, because the management agreement and the reservation calendar can be assigned or continued directly.


Should I stop taking new bookings once I list the house?


Usually not, and here is why. A property with a healthy forward calendar and clean income records is more attractive to an investor buyer, not less, because they are buying revenue that starts on day one. The better approach is to keep booking while being deliberate about how far out you commit, and to have the reservation schedule organized and ready to hand over the moment an offer comes in.




If you own a rental property on this coast and you have been holding off on listing because of the calendar, that is not a reason to wait. Send me your booking schedule and your income history and I will tell you exactly how I would position the property, what the sale will mean for your capital gains picture, what the reservations are worth to a buyer, and what your timeline realistically looks like. Call or text me any time.


About Billy Joe Smiley

Billy Joe Smiley is one of Florida's most accomplished real estate professionals, with over 27 years of experience and more than 1,000 properties sold. As a top 1 REALTOR® based at Port Realty Group, Billy Joe serves the Forgotten Coast with unmatched insight, professionalism, and care. He works with buyers and sellers across Port St. Joe, Cape San Blas, Mexico Beach, and St. George Island, specializing in luxury and waterfront homes, investment properties and 1031 exchanges, beachfront and bayfront land, vacation homes and income-producing real estate, and real estate development and architectural planning. A Gulf County native, Billy Joe pairs deep local knowledge with decades of experience in brokerage, land development, custom home building, and architectural consulting. Recognized as The Forgotten Coast's Most Trusted Realtor, Billy Joe has earned 90+ public reviews across Zillow, Google, and Realtor.com.




 ]]> </description>
    <pubDate>Thu, 10 Sep 2026 06:57:00 -0400</pubDate>
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    <guid>https://www.portrealtygroup.com/blog/market-report-week-ending-2026-09-06.html</guid>
    <link>https://www.portrealtygroup.com/blog/market-report-week-ending-2026-09-06.html</link>
        <author>bj@portrealtygroup.com (Billy Joe Smiley)</author>
        <title>Forgotten Coast Real Estate Market Report | August 31–September 6, 2026 | Port Realty Group</title>
    <description> <![CDATA[ 


Seventeen More Closings, and a Pipeline That Went Quiet


Labor Day weekend on this coast has a particular feel to it. One last surge of traffic on 98, coolers coming off boats at the ramp, and everybody knowing that by Tuesday the beach belongs to the people who live here again. School is well underway and the rentals are turning over more slowly. You can just feel the difference in the mornings.


The closing table did not slow down for any of it. 17 homes closed across the Forgotten Coast for a second straight week, holding the pace they set to close out August. What changed is what they cost. Not a single sale crossed $1.6 million, and that has not happened in seven weeks.




What is the Forgotten Coast real estate market doing this week? For the week of August 31 to September 6, 2026, the Forgotten Coast recorded 17 residential closings and 4 land sales across Port St. Joe, Cape San Blas, St. Joe Beach, Mexico Beach, and St. George Island. Active residential inventory fell to 553 listings, which reads 7.5 months of supply on the week's pace and 7.8 months on the smoother three-week average. Sales ran from $165,000 in Port St. Joe up to $1,590,000 on Cape San Blas, and the under-contract pipeline dropped by half to 11 homes.




Three things happened at once, and only two of them are good news. Closings held at 17. Active inventory dropped to 553 listings from 568, the lowest count I have on the board going back to the third week of July. And the pending pipeline fell from 22 homes under contract to 11, cut exactly in half in seven days and the thinnest it has been in seven weeks.


That last number is the one I would not gloss over. A pipeline empties two ways. Contracts close, which is what 17 closings represents, or contracts fall apart. Both drain the same pond. Either way, the houses that fund the next few weeks of this market have to be written between now and then, because a good many of the ones that were already written just funded.


Price came down with it. The coast averaged $701,568 against $724,453 a week ago, and the spread tells the story better than the average does. The high was $1,590,000, the narrowest top end in seven weeks. The low was $165,000, the cheapest closing anywhere on this coast in that same stretch. Total residential volume came to roughly $11.93 million. Same number of houses, smaller checks, and the business happening squarely in the middle of the market where it needs to happen.





St. George Island


The island had its best week since the first days of August. 4 closings, from $460,000 up to $1,220,750, averaging $935,188. Four sales in a week on St. George is genuine activity, and the spread of them matters as much as the count. That is a buyer at half a million and a buyer at over a million transacting in the same seven days.


Active inventory came down to 107 listings from 114, the lightest the island has carried in seven weeks. Run four sales a week against it and St. George reads 6.2 months of supply, the tightest figure on the coast this week and the island's best since the first week of August. For a market that spent most of the summer sitting north of 13 months, that is a real turn.


Hold it loosely, though. Four sales is a small sample on an island where one closing swings the whole reading, and only 3 homes remain under contract. Cross the bridge on a Tuesday in late September and you will understand why people buy out there anyway. Empty sand in both directions, the lighthouse doing what it always does, and nobody in a hurry.





St. Joe Beach and Mexico Beach


The corridor did its usual heavy lifting with 7 closings, from $257,500 to $630,000, averaging $484,643. That is down from last week's 10, but it is still more volume than any other area on the coast, and it happened entirely under $650,000. This stretch of road is where the Forgotten Coast does its everyday business.


Two numbers here go opposite directions. Active listings climbed to 220 from 216, making the corridor the only area on the coast that added inventory this week. And the pending pipeline collapsed to 2 homes under contract from 9. Two pendings against 220 actives works out to well under one percent, the thinnest pipeline relative to inventory of any area we track this week.


On the week's pace the corridor still reads 7.3 months of supply, which is healthy. But sellers between St. Joe Beach and Mexico Beach should read those two pendings for exactly what they are. The buyers who were lined up in August just closed. The next group has not gotten in line yet, and the ones who do show up in the next few weeks will have 220 choices. Price accordingly.





Cape San Blas and the South Gulf


4 closings on the Cape, from $700,900 to $1,590,000, averaging $1,041,475. That top sale is the highest price paid anywhere on the coast this week, and it makes four consecutive weeks the Cape has averaged above $1 million. Nowhere else out here holds that line week after week.


The inventory picture improved more than anywhere else. Active listings dropped to 139 from 149, a ten-listing decline that is the largest one-week drop any area posted, and it reverses two straight weeks of climbing. The pending count also recovered to 4 homes under contract from just 1 a week ago.


At four sales a week the Cape reads 8.0 months of supply, a solid improvement on last week's 11.5. Buyers, you still have room to work out there, and the Cape remains the most expensive dirt on this coast. But the room to negotiate that was sitting on the table two weeks ago is narrower than it was. Fewer listings, more contracts, and a seller who now has a comparable sale at $1.59 million to point at.


Port St. Joe


Town had a light week and an interesting one. 2 closings, at $165,000 and $462,500, averaging $313,750. That $165,000 sale is the lowest closing price recorded anywhere on the Forgotten Coast in seven weeks, and around here a number like that usually means a small older house on a good lot in a walkable part of town. Somebody got a foothold in Port St. Joe for less than a lot costs on the Cape.


Two sales against 87 active listings reads 10.0 months of supply, which is the softest number on the coast this week. I will not dress that up. What I will point out is that active inventory in town has now fallen three weeks running, from 94 to 91 to 89 to 87, and that the pending count slid to 2 from 6 because four of those contracts had to go somewhere. Town's supply reading is a small-sample problem, not a demand problem. It fixes itself the week three houses close instead of two.





The Land Market


Every lot that sold on this coast last week sold in one corridor. 4 parcels closed between St. Joe Beach and Mexico Beach, from $83,000 to $185,000, averaging $155,750. That is the corridor's best land week in seven weeks. Cape San Blas, Port St. Joe, and St. George Island each recorded zero, and for the Cape that makes two straight weeks without a lot sale.


The supply side finally gave a little. 390 active lots coast-wide, down from 405, matching the lowest count in seven weeks. More encouraging, 12 parcels are now under contract, up from 4 and the strongest land pipeline in seven weeks. Cape San Blas alone carries 144 active lots with 3 under contract, and the corridor has 5 pending against 139 actives.


At four sales a week the land market still reads about 22.5 months of supply, so nobody should mistake this for a hot market. But a pipeline that tripled in a week is the first genuinely constructive thing the land numbers have done in a month. If you are buying a lot out here, you are still negotiating from strength. If you are selling one, that pipeline is the group of buyers you are competing for, and there are twelve of them.





What the Pace Actually Means


Seventeen sales a week projects to about 74 homes a month. Against 553 active listings that reads 7.5 months of supply, a shade tighter than last week's 7.7.


The smoothed number moved further and in the same direction. Average the last three weeks and the coast has been closing about 16 homes a week, putting the three-week supply reading at 7.8 months, down from the 9.2 I published last week and the 10.6 the week before that. Two straight declines, and the weekly figure and the trend line now sit within a third of a month of each other. When those two agree, the reading is worth trusting.


The four areas also bunched back together. St. George Island sits at 6.2 months, the corridor at 7.3, Cape San Blas at 8.0, and Port St. Joe at 10.0. A week ago they were spread from 5.0 to 13.2. That compression is the healthiest structural signal in this week's data, because it means the market is no longer relying on one stretch of road to carry the coast.


So the read splits like this. Sellers, the sales pace is real and inventory is falling, but 11 pending contracts coast-wide is a thin cushion heading into fall. The houses that close in October have to go under contract in the next few weeks, and buyers this time of year are deliberate. Your price has to be right on the first showing. Buyers, you have the calendar on your side. Season traffic is gone, sellers have watched their summer window close, and there are 553 houses and 390 lots out here with only a handful of people currently competing for them.


This weekly report tracks residential and land activity across Port St. Joe, Cape San Blas, Mexico Beach, St. Joe Beach, and St. George Island, giving buyers and sellers a real-time read on where the Forgotten Coast real estate market stands each week.


What the Fall Looks Like From Here


September out here is the trade we make for July. The crowds are gone by the second week, the water stays warm enough to swim in well into October, and the fishing turns serious. Locals know the drill. Redfish in the grass flats of the bay, cool mornings that actually feel cool, and a stretch of beach at Indian Pass where you can walk a mile and count three people.


The market usually follows the same rhythm. The buyers who show up after Labor Day tend to be the serious ones, because they deliberately waited out the traffic and the summer prices. Eleven homes are under contract heading into that stretch, which is not many, and the sellers who understand what that means will be the ones with a sold sign in October. Picture your own coffee on a porch at Cape San Blas the last week of the month, water flat, nobody around. That is a real outcome for somebody reading this. The only question is who prices like they mean it between now and then.


Key Metrics Summary












Residential




553Active Listings




17Homes Sold This Week




$165,000 – $1,590,000Sold Price Range




$701,568Average Sold Price




7.5Months of Supply (1-Week Pace)














Vacant Land




390Active Listings




4Lots Sold This Week




$83,000 – $185,000Sold Price Range




$155,750Average Sold Price




22.5Months of Supply












Area Detail






Area


Active


Under Contract


Sold


Avg Sold Price


Months Supply




Cape San Blas / South Gulf


139


4


4


$1,041,475


8.0




Port St. Joe


87


2


2


$313,750


10.0




St. Joe Beach / Mexico Beach


220


2


7


$484,643


7.3




St. George Island


107


3


4


$935,188


6.2






Vacant Land Detail






Area


Active


Under Contract


Sold


Sold Price Range




Cape San Blas / South Gulf


144


3


0


None




Port St. Joe


38


2


0


None




St. Joe Beach / Mexico Beach


139


5


4


$83,000 – $185,000




St. George Island


69


2


0


None






If you're thinking about buying or selling this fall and want a straight read on what the data means for your situation, reach out. No pressure, just a real conversation about the market from someone who lives and works here.


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    <pubDate>Tue, 08 Sep 2026 22:23:00 -0400</pubDate>
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