Home Value in the Sunshine State

It's no secret that home value prices are struggling nationwide. If they haven't necessarily fallen in all areas, they are at least staying relatively static. The median home value nationwide from 2005-2006 stayed at about $222,000 with no gain whatsoever. Of course, it's hard to get accurate results on a nationwide study, only because parts of the nation vary so drastically. Even as some areas have a spike in home value prices (such as Florida) that spike will only last as long as sellers are willing to hold out – in a market where the buyer currently has more power, sellers are having to lower their listing prices just to hook a buyer.

Florida has always had a more unique real estate market then many states because it is a state of rapid development and usually rising home value rates. According to their economic and demographic research office, Florida gains 1,000 new residents a day. In the early parts of the decade, job opportunities surged in Florida and, predicting a surge in demand for housing, real estate developers grabbed up land left and right in hopes of selling at high home value thanks to the demand for residency in Florida.

Besides the fact that Florida has a high rate of economic growth, there are several other factors that lead to the high home value average in the sunshine state. First and foremost, Florida is one of the most in demand spots for retirees. Once retired, many folks nationwide decide to move to Florida. Florida also has a large seasonal population or “snowbirds” who are people spending their winter months as residents of Florida. The fact that Florida is such a popular state to get to has a lot to do with their normally high home value rates

Of course, Florida is home to some of the biggest tourist spots in the United States, which gives the state a steady source of income and keeps people coming back. Number one on the list of attractions is, of course Disney World, Universal Studios and Sea World, all centering around the Orlando area. Florida has hundreds of beaches, being a peninsula, both on the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. Beach front property of course has notoriously high home value rates across the US, not just Florida.

Florida has several hot cultural and spring break spots, including Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, Panama City and the Keys, all of which have home value estimates on the high end of the spectrum. All in all, Florida has a ton of opportunities and attraction for any one looking to relocate, or to invest in real estate. Though home value averages may be slumping right now, it's only a matter of time before things even out again and people flocking to Florida, either to live full time or seasonally.

The one drawback that may hurt the flow of movers into Florida and therefore have an effect on the average home value is property taxes. Many seasonal residents, or snowbirds, of Florida are paying much higher property taxes because of Florida having an unusual dual-bracket tax system. This allows Florida to set different property tax requirements for permanent residents as opposed to seasonal. The seasonal residents do tend to wind up paying more in taxes, even if their home value and features are the same as a permanent resident.
Whether this will continue or not has yet to be seen, as residents gather at county commissioners office all over Florida to express their dissatisfaction of the way Florida's property tax is set up. One thing is certain though, this conflict is bound to have an effect on Florida's average home value if the property tax discrepancies keep more and more homeowners from relocating to the sunshine state.

Find out your own home value and other valuable homeowner information at GetMyHomesValue.com

Ashley Lichty is a webmaster and the resident SEO of Web Xtreme, Inc. She has a background in real estate and marketing with an emphasis in writing.