ABC7's ZIP code real estate analysis


Reported by Len Jennings




FORT MYERS - Buying a home can be a great investment or it can suck you dry. So ABC7 went to work for you to find out which areas in Southwest Florida are prime real estate markets.

All of Southwest Florida is booming - but which zip codes are really booming?

For nearly two decades, the REMAX Ellis Team has been selling houses. As one of the top agencies in Southwest Florida, the family-run business witnessed a major boom.

"I remember the days when we told people about Cape Coral and Lehigh and people said, 'Oh my God, I don't want to live clear out there,'" said Brett Ellis.

ABC7 asked Ellis to find information on home sales that you can't find anywhere else. After a couple weeks and late nights on the computer, he did it.

"This is probably the most scrutinized data that's ever been done in the Lee, Collier, and Charlotte county markets," Ellis said.

He used multiple sources to break down information on Southwest Florida ZIP codes. We're able to determine where homes had the biggest jump in price or which ZIP saw the most homes sold.

All of the data compares this year to last year at this time - information that you can use.

"It doesn't do much good in an area where the homes just don't turnover and could be hard to sell later. So you can go to an area where there's a lot of activity," Ellis said.

Here is what we found out:

Three of the top five ZIP codes that saw the biggest jump in price are in the Marco Island area -34145, 34114, and 34113.

ZIP code 34145 is Marco Island and homes appreciated nearly 50 percent. The average price for a home on Marco this year is more than $650,000 - but this zip isn't tops in price change.

For that, we head north, east of I-75 to ZIP code 33920.

The Caloosahatchee River runs right through ZIP 33920. The area is still remote, but last year homes averaged just more than a $150,000. This year, that's up to $225,000 - nearly a 50-percent increase.

The top ZIP that experienced the biggest jump in sales was 33993 in Cape Coral. In 2003, 395 homes were sold in that ZIP. This year, nearly 2,500 changed hands - an increase of more than 500-percent.

For the ZIP that has sold the most homes this year, we go just down the street to 33914 in southwest Cape Coral. More homes have sold here compared to any other ZIP code - more than 2,600.

Two other categories of interest are turnover and appreciation. The top three ZIPs in those areas are:

Turnover
1. 33993
2. 33909
3. 33991

Appreciation
1. 33920
2. 34145
3. 34223

Another special item the research found for Lee and Collier counties - something you can't find anywhere else - is list price versus sales price. There are actually some ZIP codes where sellers got more than the asking price of their home. Top three ZIPs for that phenomenon are:

1. 34142
2. 33907
3. 33971

"When you put all the factors together and lay it on the table, there were some surprising ZIP codes," Ellis said.