Forgotten Coast Real Estate Market Report | August 3–9, 2026 | Port Realty Group

Twelve Miles of Highway 98 Did Most of the Coast's Business Last Week

Eleven closings. That is the whole Forgotten Coast for the first full week of August, down from 22 seven days earlier. Cut clean in half.

August runs on its own clock out here. The shrimp boats work the flats in the early light while everybody else sleeps in, and by four in the afternoon the storms have stacked up over the mainland and the beach empties in about ten minutes. A slow week in August surprises nobody.

What should get your attention is what inventory did while sales were cooling. Active residential listings fell to 571, down from 582 a week ago and well off the June peak of 620. Supply has now shrunk two weeks running, in the quietest stretch of the season.

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Negotiating Repairs After a Home Inspection on the Forgotten Coast

Your inspection found issues. Can you get the seller to fix them or pay you for it?

Yes, and in today's Forgotten Coast market you have more room to work with than buyers have had in years. Florida's standard AS IS contract does not require a seller to make repairs, but it gives you a defined inspection period, typically 10 to 15 days, to use your findings as leverage for a closing credit, a price reduction, or repairs before closing. With inventory rising across Cape San Blas and the surrounding coast, sellers are saying yes to reasonable requests more often than they were even a year ago.

By Billy Joe Smiley | August 6, 2026

The inspection report just landed in your inbox and it's longer than you expected. Maybe the roof is pushing 17…

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HOA Fees and Rental Rules in Ovation, WindMark Beach, and Secluded Dunes: What to Check Before You Offer

Do HOA fees and rental rules differ between Ovation, WindMark Beach, and Secluded Dunes?

Yes, significantly. Ovation enforces strict signage rules and tiered dues penalties, WindMark Beach charges roughly $490 to $600 per quarter with rental policies that vary by neighborhood, and Secluded Dunes has recorded covenants but no active HOA collecting dues or enforcing them day to day. I always pull the actual documents for the specific lot before a buyer writes an offer, because the rules can differ even within the same community.

By Billy Joe Smiley | August 4, 2026

I love this question, and I get it often, because it means a buyer is thinking ahead instead of getting surprised later. Cape San Blas and Port St. Joe have some of the best…

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Forgotten Coast Real Estate Market Report | July 27 – August 2, 2026 | Port Realty Group

St. George Island Finally Shows Up, and the Coast Closes Out July at Full Speed

August arrived the way it always does out here. Heavy, bright, and loud with cicadas by nine in the morning. Turtle nest markers still stake out the dunes past Cape Palms. The bay lies flat and glassy until the storms stack up over the mainland around four, and by supper the whole coast smells like rain on hot asphalt. It's officially the dog days of summer.

Underneath all that, the market turned in its cleanest week of the summer. 22 homes closed across the coast, and active inventory fell by 33 listings in seven days. Sales up and inventory down in the same week is not something that happens often out here so it's worth attention.

What is the Forgotten…

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Does "Beach Access" on a Listing Actually Mean You Have a Legal Right to the Beach?

Does "beach access" on a listing actually mean you have a legal right to the beach?

Sometimes, and it is worth confirming exactly which kind before you write an offer. Deeded access is a recorded easement in the property's chain of title, spelling out a specific path to the water that transfers with the home. Public access is a government-maintained crossover open to everyone, reached from a public right of way rather than through a recorded right tied to your parcel. A title search during your due diligence period settles the question in writing, so you know precisely what you are buying rather than assuming it from the listing photos.

By Billy Joe Smiley | July 30, 2026

I get some version of this question every time a buyer falls for a…

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Can I Build a Dock or Boat Lift on My Forgotten Coast Property?

Can I build a dock or boat lift on my Forgotten Coast waterfront property?

In most cases, yes, but the answer depends on where the lot sits and what's under the water in front of it. Bay-front and canal-front lots on the Forgotten Coast typically qualify for a straightforward state exemption or a simple general permit, while lots on St. Joseph Bay near protected seagrass beds may need extra design steps and a submerged land lease from the state. None of this should scare you off a waterfront purchase. It just means dock rights are a due-diligence item to confirm before you write an offer, not something to assume.

By Billy Joe Smiley | Published July 28, 2026

I get this question more than almost any other from buyers looking at bay-front…

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Forgotten Coast Real Estate Market Report | July 20–26, 2026 | Port Realty Group

Nine Closings in the Mexico Beach Corridor, and a $5.3 Million Sale on the Cape

Late July settles into a rhythm out here. Storms build over the water most afternoons, roll through around four, and leave everything rinsed and steaming by six. The rentals are full. Parking at Beacon Hill is gone by ten. And underneath all that summer noise, the market put together its second solid week in a row.

Nineteen homes closed across the coast, two more than last week and the strongest weekly count we have logged in at least five weeks. What changed was where they closed. The Cape carried the headlines a week ago; this time the run of highway between St. Joe Beach and Mexico Beach did the heavy lifting.

What is the Forgotten Coast real estate market…

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Buying New Construction on the Forgotten Coast: What Florida's New 1-Year Warranty Actually Covers

What does Florida's new builder warranty actually cover if I buy new construction on the Forgotten Coast?

Since July 1, 2025, Florida law requires builders to provide a one-year warranty on every newly built single-family home, covering construction defects that create a material violation of the Florida Building Code. It doesn't cover normal wear, settling, storm damage, or appliances under their own manufacturer warranty, and it runs from the date you take title or move in, whichever comes first. Combined with a solid final walkthrough and your own agent at the table, it gives buyers on Cape San Blas, in Ovation, at WindMark Beach, and across the rest of the Forgotten Coast real protection they didn't automatically have before.

By Billy…

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2.2-Acre Parcels for Sale in Indian Pass, Florida

Wooded 2.2-Acre Parcels for Sale in Indian Pass, Florida

Private Gulf County acreage near Indian Lagoon, the Indian Pass Public Boat Launch, Port St. Joe, and Apalachicola

Buyers searching for acreage near the coast without the congestion of a traditional beach community should take a closer look at these approximately 2.2-acre wooded parcels on County Road 30-A in Indian Pass, Florida.

Carved from a larger wooded tract, each parcel offers privacy, natural surroundings, and the flexibility to create a homesite that fits your vision. Keep the mature pine and oak trees for added seclusion, selectively clear an area for a future residence, or preserve much of the land in its current, largely undisturbed condition.

Additional adjoining acreage…

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Forgotten Coast Real Estate Market Report | July 13–19, 2026 | Port Realty Group

Cape San Blas Catches Fire as Closings Nearly Triple on the Forgotten Coast

Something shifted this week. After a stretch of slow, patient trading, the coast came alive, and Cape San Blas led the charge. The state park was booming, boats lined the boat ramps at first light, and buyers who had been circling for months finally wrote offers. It felt less like the dog days of July and more like the market waking up early for fall.

Seventeen homes closed across the coast this week, more than double last week's count, and inventory got a real dent put in it for the first time in a while.

What is the Forgotten Coast real estate market doing this week?
For the week of July 13–19, 2026, the Forgotten Coast recorded 17 residential closings and 8 land…

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