Naples FL Blog

It is fall already?  Where did the summer go?  It certainly flew by for me.  I was Costco shopping about two weeks ago and I heard Christmas music being played in the store!  "Christmas!" I thought to myself. "It is only September!"

In the last week I personally have seen 6 car carriers.  If you are not a full time Florida resident, you might not understand the significance of car carriers.  Florida's snowbirds are people escaping the cold from up North to winter in Florida.  A large number of our snowbirds contract with car carriers to transport their vehicle so they can use their cars while staying in Florida. These snowbirds then fly down to Florida.

Some full time residents might grouse about the increase in traffic and the waits in restaurants but this full time resident says, "WELCOME BACK!"  While I might not look forward to waits in restaurants, I am thrilled for the restaurant owners in Naples who had made it through a tough summer.  I sincerely hope that this season will be a good one for them and the other merchants in Naples.

Speaking of restaurants, my Chicago hot dog and Italian beef loving husband Don, photographed below enjoying a hot dog at one of his favorite Chicago hot dog joints, Gene & Jude's, is still wearing a black arm band for the loss of Cooker's restaurant.  Cooker's made great Chicago Italian beef sandwiches according to Don.  They closed this past May.

There are a couple of places in Naples that make decent Italian beef sandwiches in Naples according to Don.  His Highness is turning 60. On October 24th I'm throwing him a party.  What would Don Wilber love to have me serve at the party..............Italian beef sandwiches.

Ordering the beef should be a piece of cake I thought.  Up in Chicago land, I would have called up a beef place ordered a couple of trays of beef, some extra juice, Giardiniera peppers and Turano rolls.  Imagine my surprise when I found no one did this in Naples and if they did it for me, it would cost me about the same amount of money if I flew the order in from Chicago! Mr. Wilber will be please to know that he is getting authentic Italian beef flown into Naples by Serrelli Street.  I'll let you know how the party and the food turned out in my next blog entry.

Looking for a home in Naples?  Search here, once at the search page, you can search by development or map area, save your search and new listing updates will be e-mailed to you.

Should you be thinking of selling your home in Naples and would like a candid assessment of what it would take to sell your home in today's market, I would be happy to provide you with a free market evaluation.  Feel free to give me a call at 239-594-2780 or e-mail me at Lynn@NaplesBuys.com.

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About the author:

Lynn Wilber is a Real Estate Professional who lives in Naples.  Her 31 years of real estate experience and her area expertise have been valuable resources for Naples Sellers and Buyers.  For more information, please contact Lynn Wilber or call 239-594-2780.

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Isn't this a lovely sunset? 

In the 13 years I have lived in Naples, I never tire of the sunsets.  It is a great stress release to go down to the beach after work and witness a gorgeous sunset.

Fall has arrived to Naples today! This past Friday evening I was swimming in 91 degree Gulf water with my husband Don.  Today I put a jacket on while I read the Sunday paper on my lanai.  Our high was 73 degrees.  After a brutally hot October, 73 degrees seemed pretty cold to me.  I guess I have turned into a true Floridian.

Car carriers have been seen all over the area lately as even more snowbirds return to Naples.  I noticed a surge in showing activity on my listings over the Columbus Day weekend holiday.

The Naples Board of Realtors released statistics for the 3rd quarter of 2009 and September of 2009.  Not surprisingly the overall market for the 3rd quarter of 2009 showed a 126% increase in pending sales under $300,000.00 in comparision to the 3rd quarter of 2008.  If you have been waiting to purchase a place in Naples under $300,000.00 you are going to be facing some pretty stiff competition.

The median sales price for the overall Naples market decreased 30% to $176,000.00 in the 3rd quarter of 2009 from $250,000.00 in the 3rd quarter of 2008.  While prices may still fall a tad in higher price ranges, the under $300,000.00 is on fire.