The following stats compare January 2025 to January 2026

Gerry Rosenblum

Total number of properties sold:

Homes in 2025 - 24

Homes in 2026 - 22 DOWN 8%

Condos in 2025 - 35

Condos in 2026 - 25 DOWN 29%

Lots in 2025 - 1

Lots in 2026 - 3 UP 200%

Total Sales Volume:

Homes in 2025 $45M

Homes in 2026 $36M DOWN 20%

Condos in 2025 $32M

Condos in 2026 $20M DOWN 37.5%

Lots in 2025 $829K

Lots in 2026 $2.1M UP 153%

Average Sale Price:

Homes in 2025 $1.9M

Homes in 2026 $1.6M DOWN 16%

Condos in 2025 $810K

Condos in 2026 $909K UP 12%

Lots in 2025 $829K

Lots in 2026 $691K DOWN 17%

Inventory:
201 Single-Family homes
317 Condominiums
66 Single Family Vacant Lots
584 Total Homes, Condos, and Vacant Lots for sale. 

Years ago, I told everyone to buy up the vacant lots. I was right, and those who listened to me owe me dinner.  G-d stopped making waterfront lots years ago, but he's still building golf courses up in Naples. 

Summary:

Although the numbers above show significant losses, things are not as bad as they seem. Plain and simple: inventory is dwindling, and with that comes fewer opportunities to purchase properties. While beggars can’t be choosers, they can be finicky like a cat, passing on options until the right property comes along.

The average combined days on market for all property types is now about 160 days, roughly six months. A year ago, that number was closer to 105 days. I believe that as the “busy season” progresses, sales will pick up, especially if more properties come onto the market.

Think of it like going to a car dealership and not finding the model in the color you want with the options you prefer. What do you do, compromise? Usually not. You leave and drive old Bessie home, waiting for the supply to improve. I drive a car with a manual transmission, and I assure you, I had to wait for that baby to come along.

Two of my favorite customers, Mr. and Mrs. Corridor, owned a Chevy dealership out in the woods of Michigan. They could sell the bejusus out of pickup trucks all day long, but they couldn’t give away the Corvettes. So what did they do? They traded with another dealer who was “left on the highway, but right on the price.” That dealer had the opposite problem and was happy to swap two pickups for one Corvette. Now, they all still had problems, but pickups and Corvettes just ain't one of them anymore. 

Now, in real estate, unfortunalely we can't do that, so you're just going to have to be patient and wait for what you want to come along, or you can go move to Cape Coral or Bonita, where they have tons of pickups.   

Gerry's Fable:

I had lots of questions from readers of the Big Year End Review regarding my tattoos, and here is the backstory.  For those that don't know, like all good Realtors, I drink every night of the year (and most days too) except New Year's Eve, that way, if anybody ever asks me about drinking, I can always say, "Ah, I quit last year".  Well, on one particular New Year's Day, I was in Miami with my boys.  After the traditional breakfast of corned beef hash and poached eggs, dry wheat toast with strawberry jam, home fries, and a cup, not a mug, of coffee at the 11th Street Diner, the boys and I went for a walk (having returned the scooter from the day before).  As we meandered down Washington Ave. in South Beach, we looked in the window of a tattoo shop and saw 3 "artists" sitting around holding their heads.  We went in to see what's up and found out the 3 were totally hungover, but they had to staff the shop because Jan 1st is apparently a busy and bad day in the tattoo world. (Note to self: never go to a tattoo shop on Jan 1st again). I imagine the artists must have looked at my Adonis-like body and thought, "What a great canvas he would make."  Anyway, the one artist said, "Are you interested in getting a tattoo, or are you just here to look sexy?"  I said, "Just sexy today, sir, but now that you mention it, I want to get my boys' whole names tattooed on my pinky toes".  The artist said,  "And what are their names?" I said, "This here redheaded boy is named Andrew John Jacob Wisenheimer Rosenblum.  The other boy here's name is William Wolfeschlegelsteinhausenbergerdorff Redivider Racecar (foreshadowing) Rosenblum." I then kicked off my Nikes and socks, the artist looked at the size of my toes and said, "You've got room there for Bo and Jo..... maybe".  I said, "How about just Andy and Willy?"  The artist pondered this for a moment and said, "I'll tell you what, normally I'd charge $200 for Bo and Jo, but today we are doing a hangover special.  You can have your boys  Andy and Willy tattoo their own names on those stubs you call toes for $27.44."  I said, "deal".  They got the gun ready, and the boys really went to town, unfortunately the dyslexic kid got a bit overconfident and now my one toe says "Ylliw". (If you look at it in a mirror, it's not bad). The other kid is a literal Wisenheimer, and after 10 minutes of me screaming, feeling burning, itching, and pain, I came out of the bathroom to have my second pinky done. I then endured buzzing, more burning, smoke, blood, terror and was begging Andy to stop. After 17 agonizing minutes he proudly looked up with his evil grin and said, "Wallah!", proud as a peacock. I looked down and there plain as could be in 20-point, double-bold Sans Serif font, for all the world to see was my new tattoo....... "Barb".  Over the years, the tattoos have faded and are now practically worn off, but the memories and hepatitis C from the dirty needle remain.  And that, my 7.6 faithful readers, is the story of the Pinky Inky.

Now, what does Pinky Inky have to do with real estate?  Permanency, or the lack thereof, that's what it has to do with.  Now, like tattoos, marriage and home ownership, some folks get one tattoo, one spouse, or one home, and they hang on to that thing forever. Heck, they even die with that tattoo, spouse, or in that house that had a mouse and a grouse. As time goes by, some get that old tattoo enhanced, or that middle-aged spouse gets plastic surgery work, and the house gets an addition, but underneath all these things are the originals (OG), and you love them no matter what.  THEN, there are those that have their tattoos removed with lasers, those who get divorced, and there are those who sell that home and get a new one. The choice is yours; you can either stick with what you have or you make a change and try something new.  Nothing, and I mean nothing, has to be permanent. That is where I come in; I have experience with tattoos, spouses, and houses. Call me, text me, email me, or better yet, take me to dinner, and let me share my advice on these subjects, keeping in mind that only the advice I give on Real Estate is worth taking.  And if you have no tattoos, have never been married, and rent, for you, I got nuffin, but you can still feed me.  And lastly, when it comes to tattooing, matchmaking, or buying or selling real estate, use a professional, don't do it yourself. 

The Highs and Lows for the month:

For homes, the highest sale was 130 Hollyhock Court, which sold for $ 4.1M by one of my favorite Realtors, Brittany Stoller. Just because her initials are BS, don't believe she is full of it.  This was a home built and lived in by legendary local home builder John Slocum, and it has everything.  It sold for $803 per sq.ft. The bargain home sold was 356 3rd Ave, which was a 4-bedroom home that went for $470,000 at $212 per sq.ft. It was a fixer-upper. 

The high condo sale goes to Tampico 506 at $2.4 million. On the beach and totally remodeled at $888 per sq.ft. The condo deal was Marco Inn Villas unit C-22 for $248K or $526 per sq.ft.  

Lots only had 3 sales, but the high was 1540 Kingston at $815,000 for indirect water access. 748 Seagrape was an inland lot that went for $625,000. I kinda like the water lot deal here. 

As always, I won't be out-thought or out-fought. 

Gerry Rosenblum

Broker Associate

Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Florida Realty

2024  #1 Berkshire Hathaway agent in the State of Florida

2013, 2012 & 2007 President Marco Island Area Association of 

Realtors

2008 Realtor of The Year - Marco Island 

239-450-4770 (cell)
1-800-237-8817 (toll-free)
To View the Entire Marco MLS go to: www.viewmarco.com

Marco Island Real Estate Stats and Commentary BIG 2025 Year End Review

 

Total Value of All Property Sold on Marco Island UP 1.1% 2025 $1.128 Billion 2024 $1.116 Billion  Total Number of Sales on Marco Island (All Property Types) DOWN .4% 2025 - 769 2024 - 772 Number of Sold Single Family Homes UP 5%  2025 - 431 2024 - 411 Number of Sold Condominiums DOWN 5.8%  2025 - 355 2024 - 377 Number of Sold Single Family Vacant Lots DOWN 5% 2025 - 40 2024 - 42 Average Sale Price of a Single Family Homes Sold UP 2.5% 2025 - $2,004,000  2024 - $1,952,000 Average Sale Price of a Condominium Sold was DOWN 5.4%  2025 - $946,000 2024 -  $1,000,000 Average Sale Price of a Single Family Vacant Lot was UP 37% 2025 - $1,287,000 2024 - $941,000 The overall List to sell Ratio was 91%. This means that on average properties sold within 9% of their asking price. Put another way, the average sale price was negotiated down 9% from the asking price.   Current Inventory of Single-Family Homes is 204 Current Inventory of Condominiums is 321 Current Inventory of Vacant Single-Family Lots is 62 State Of The Real Estate Market Address: 2025 was once again an excellent year for Marco Island real estate, with over $1 billion in total sales. As I predicted last year in this highly accurate newsletter, the condo market experienced a temporary downswing. This was largely driven by rising condo fees across the board due to increased insurance costs and new Florida laws enacted this past July. These laws require condominiums to fully fund their reserves and to complete structural integrity studies for all buildings three habitable stories or taller. As a result, some associations were forced to levy special assessments to meet their financial obligations. In most cases, those assessments have now been paid by existing owners. Looking ahead to 2026, I expect the condo market to regain momentum, as these major financial hurdles are largely behind us. The single-family home market, particularly at the high end, is experiencing unprecedented growth. Vacant land remains a highly sought-after commodity, and as I have stated many times in the past, if you’re looking for a place to park some money, buying a vacant lot and land-banking it continues to be a smart long-term strategy. Overall, interest rates are slowly trending downward, and the stock market is hitting record highs as I write this, both of which are absolutely fantastic for real estate. I remain very bullish, optimistic, and excited about the Marco Island market. I truly believe this is a great time to buy, as we may soon see another rush of buyers eager to secure their own piece of paradise. Now, for the fun part: So, I spent New Year's Eve in South Beach, Miami, as usual.  The next morning I had my traditional meal of scrambled eggs, corned beef hash, home fries, and dry rye with strawberry jam at the 11th Street Diner. As my faithful 7.6 readers know, I don't, or should I say can't drink coffee because I'm naturally wired and it has a bad effect on me, making me nastier than my normal nasty self. But, on this fateful morning, I downed two cups for fun. After breakfast I rented a little electric scooter and went for a ride to see the sites. Around noon I passed by Club Deuce on 14th street, which is a little dive bar that I have been to once or thrice. On this New Years day,  there were about 50 Harley Davidson motorcycles out front and I figured I'd go in and see what's up.  I elbowed up to the bar, ordered up a Crown Royal Manhattan, and thought I'd make friends with my fellow Bikers.  It turns out that Mongo, the guy next to me, was the recruitment officer for this nice group of fellows.  I forget the name of the club, but it was Devil's Angels, Charlie's Angels, or something with Angels in it. Anyways, I tell Mongo I could be interested in joining, he laughs and tells me there are a few requirements to join their club.  I said "What's the first one"?  He said "You have to have at least two tattoos.  I replied, "Done".  I then kicked off my flip flops, put my feet in the air and showed him the two huge tattoos I have on my pinky toes with my boys’ names, (a story for another newsletter), and he said "Hmm, interesting, why your pinky toes?"  I told him "The most painful place to get a tattoo is on the side of your pinky toe and only people tough as nails get them there, that's why".  Mongo then called out to the other club members and said "Anybody got a pinky toe tattoo in here?".  Not one person said yes and I'm guesstimating there were 17,844 total tattoos in that room. Mongo said "Fine, you pass that test, now you have to pass the scar test".  I said "which is?".  Mongo said you have to have at least two scars 2' long at a minimum.  Again, I said "Done". So, I pulled down my shorts and pulled up my shirt and showed him my scar from my hernia operation and my right colectomy.  Mongo looked them over and said, "They don't count, it's got to be from a fight or something".  I felt the air going out of me, then Mongo said "Hey, what's that other scar on your stomach? I said "Oh, that's from the time a bullet ricocheted and hit me there, but it's not 2" per the club requirements".  He said "Hold on" and yelled out, "Anybody got a gunshot scar on their stomach?".  A few of the members stepped up and showed the ones on their arms, legs, faces, backs, butts, but no stomachs.  Those members and I then kidded about the mistake of bringing a knife to a gunfight, but that too, is a story for another day.  Mongo then huddled up with a few of the other members named Dog, Ace, Killer, Porky, Tiny, and Doug. After a brief conference Mongo said "Ok, the boys and I agree that we will make an exception and say your scar passes the test, now if you can meet the third and most important requirement you're in".  I said, "And that is?", he said " You need to ride a bike". I said, "Can you be a bit more specific?".  Mongo said, "Most of us ride Harleys, a few ride Indians, but no matter what, it has to be a bike with two wheels, no trikes either". I said "May I invite you gentlemen outside then"?  With that, the entire club walked outside and I proceeded to fire up my electric scooter.  I first did a few bunny hops on the road to loosen up, then I tried to pull off a 360, but only nailed a 180; math isn't their strong suit, so nobody even calculated the mistake.  I then popped a wheelie and rode it about 22' and then came zooming back topping out at 18 MPH and did a cool skid in front of everyone, Napoleon Dynamite style.  Mongo and the rest of the guys were standing there, some were laughing, some had their mouths agape with drool, (which I later learned was normal for them), and some were just turning around and going back to the bar (highly impressed I imagined).  Mongo put his arm around me and said "Kid, we all like your tenacity and ignorance, if you can come in and hold your own drinking with us, you're in the club". I said, "This way to the bar gentlemen". At that moment Mongo said "I see you like Manhattans, you know the old saying Manhattans are like boobs, one's not enough, two is just right and three is too many"? I said, "Why yes Mr. Mongo sir, I have heard that old wives tale". Mongo then said, "If we were to let you join, you will need a nickname. We all have one, well except for Doug, what do your friends call you". I replied, "Well, I don't have any friends, I'm a lone wolf, but when I was younger, people called me Rosie". Mongo said, "That doesn't sound tough enough". I said, "My nickname came from Rosie Grier, one of the toughest football players that ever lived (I think his real name was Phil and he had a side piece Lisa as I recall), and besides, nobody messes with a guy named Rosie, because, after all, who would want to lose a fight to guy named Rosie?" Doug then chimed in and said "Rosie sounds pretty tough to me", and Mongo capitulated. Moving on, after Mongo and the boys started passing out after their third Manhattan, I just kept drinking until the sun started to rise over the Atlantic Ocean. At 5:00 AM, I turned to the barkeep and said, "Where I grew up, we used to say "Manhattans are like eggs, 11 isn't enough, 12 is just right, and you get 13 if the bartender moonlights as a Baker". The Bartender smiled, made my 13th Manhattan of the marathon and said, "It's on me, and by the way, my name is Roosevelt Baker".  All my years of training paid off, and I casually fired back number 13.  Sadly, I had to return my scooter by 7 AM while Mongo and the boys were all still passed out, so I never found out if I was in the gang or not.  Regardless, I'm typing this at the 11th street diner, and today I'm going with the soft poached eggs, because that's what us tough tatted up lone wolves eat... Now the faithful 7.6 readers know this has something to do with Real Estate, what with all the drinking, gangs, scars, tattoos and such.  And here is the puzzle put together.  When you move to a new town, neighborhood, and most definitely a condominium, you are joining a new group of people that most certainly have things that bind them together. Marco as a community has bikers, (both motorcycles and bicycles), drinkers, golfers, tennis and pickleball players, tanners, boaters (motor, sail, pedal, and paddle), shoppers, diners, swimmers, swingers (so I’ve heard), readers, puzzlers (at the library). Did I mention drinkers?  Pretty much anything you can think of, there is a group doing it on Marco and you can join their "gang" and be a part of the action.  Heck, there are people that do any and all combinations of the above and you just have to watch out for the ones that combine the drinking with a few of the others or join them for that matter. If you are more of a stay-at-home passive aggressive type, you can even be a keyboard warrior and join one of the Marco Island Facebook pages and express your opinions on a myriad of important topics, such as what restaurant has the best pizza. Then you can argue with whoever doesn't agree with your choice for best pizza, as you are an expert being that you are from New York, New Jersey, Connecticut or Chicago. However, if the topic turns to wings, nobody argues with the Buffalo Bills mafia.  Now, regarding the condos here, they are the toughest bunch of roughians Marco has to offer, and many of the condos have "Condo Commandos" who make sure rules are followed. Nobody pees in the pool (I do sneak one in once in a while and the water never turns blue), nobody skinny dips, nobody plays loud music, dogs are measured and weighed, cars are ticketed, but ultimately, no matter what, you get in line, or you pay the fine.  Why, I myself live in a condo, we have an owner whose name is "Rocky". Do you think anybody is going to argue with him, or his wife Adrian? No way, they have carte blanche. I spent a little time on a state paid vacation way back when, and towards the end of my stay I went before a "board" and told them what a good person I have become, and those board members had ice in their hearts and coal for eyes.  Turns out, those are two prerequisites to serve on a condo board as well.  Now, I may be exaggerating just a weeeeee bit here, but, as a Realtor, I say condo life doesn't work for everyone. You need to ponder some things about your behavior, drinking capabilities/constitution, and ability to play nicely in the sandbox with everyone before you put on the denim or leather jacket with the patches and condo name on the back. Here is the #1 rule to survive living in a condo, remember that the rules apply to everyone BUT you. Remember that, and you will have no problem adjusting to condo living.  The Highs and Lows of 2025: The most expensive home sale was 1451 Salvadore Court at $13,301,4140, and that is a real number folks which came out to a whopping $2,051 per sq. ft. of home.  The least expensive home was 458 Quail Drive at $5000,000, which was $274 per sq. ft, now that's a smart buyer.  Condos 1000 Royal Marco Way Cottage #5 led the way at $8,000,000 as the top dog, and Southwinds A2 was the bargain at $155,00, a nice 1 bedroom.  For vacant lots we have 992 ROYAL MARCO WAY at $6,550,000, and yes, this is a BEACH FRONT lot.  And for the least expensive lot we have 2011 Sheffield Ave closing at $185,000.  Listen to me and you'll get rich. Old nasty newsletters can be read at: https://viewmarco.blogspot.com/ Gerry Rosenblum Broker Associate Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Florida Realty 2024  #1 Berkshire Hathaway agent in the State of Florida 2013, 2012 & 2007 President Marco Island Area Association of  Realtors 2008 Realtor of The Year - Marco Island  239-450-4770 (cell) 1-800-237-8817 (toll-free) To View the Entire Marco MLS go to: www.viewmarco.com