Notes from Charlotte County, Florida

How real is Realtytrac's recent press release that lists our area (Charlotte County, Florida) as one of the top foreclosure areas in the nation? The Web site has the statement that one in 212 households in Charlotte County are in foreclosure. Is this an accurate depiction of our area? Well, I think it depends.

It depends on how Realtytrac makes its calculation. To find out, several months ago I contacted Realtytrac at the company's Irvine, Calif., base and posed this question:

Our county has more than 100,000 platted vacant lots. This is a unique characteristic of our area, not shared by many counties in the nation. Additionally, many of those vacant lots were purchased by speculators during the past several years. And now many of those vacant lots are in foreclosure. Does your foreclosure numbers include vacant land that is in the foreclosure process? If it is, I believe Charlotte County's household foreclosure rate is distorted.

After four days, I received the following response from Realtytrac:

"The answer to your question is: Yes, when we collect our foreclosure data, it includes many types of properties, including vacant land. So your conclusion may be a valid one for your area. Hope this helps. Sorry for the delay in getting back to you."

I appreciated Realtytrac's prompt response, and it confirmed my suspicions that it is highly unlikely that one out of 212 Charlotte County households is truly in foreclosure. We are not in the dire straits they portray us!

Another interesting view of our community is the new affordability of our housing. The current median home value is reportedly $97,700. This makes us far more affordable when compared with Sarasota or Lee counties, at $172,700 and $106,100, respectively.

In conclusion, a perspective of our Charlotte County residential real estate market is that data doesn't always reflect reality. If you or someone you know is interested in buying a piece of paradise, know that our foreclosure situation is NOT as dire as indicated by Realtytrac. Our housing is more affordable than nearby coastal counties.

Maryann Mize, CCIM, is senior vice president/senior credit officer at Charlotte State Bank. She can be reached at 941-624-5400 or mmize@charlottestatebank.com.