Glass Half Full

With 2008 at last in the rearview mirror, some of us might fancy jamming the pedal to the metal to push it faster and further out of sight. We daresay it was no one’s all-time favorite year, at least from a financial perspective. So good riddance; but many thanks for the valuable lessons learned.

Now of course we’re full throttle into 2009, for which the economic prognosis is—at best—decidedly unclear this early in the countdown. Of course, depending on which pundit or prognosticator you listen to, the New Year has already been sized up as a glass half-full; or a glass half-empty.

Not that we’ve ever been anything but completely bullish on the future of real estate in Southwest Florida, but the national weather map on Christmas Day made being optimistic about its long-term viability even more of a “no-brainer.” With much of the country virtually whited-out (or blacked-out electrically) by wave after wave of snow, sleet, ice, freezing rain and frigid temperatures, we—who blissfully take each glorious winter day for granted—couldn’t help but notice how absolutely splendid our holiday weather was; and how perfectly timed it was for our seasonal guests. How often have you casually remarked to a friend or neighbor how wonderful our winter weather is, only to hear “That’s why we live here” as the reflex response?

This Zen-like awareness of why we live here, why most of us came here; and why so many others buyers from around the world so eagerly want to join us is exactly why we are never tempted to look on the dark side when we ponder our community’s long-term economic future. What always attracted people here in the past will always keep them coming in the future—dependable sunshine, mild winters and the rather unique proposition of living an outdoor-centric, culture-laden lifestyle.No snow shovels. No ice scrapers. No cabin fever. No way.

Ironically, it was this same fabulous climate that apparently made thousands of otherwise sane people believe that Florida was a safe place to invest money they didn’t have in properties they couldn’t afford. The boom, they reasoned, would never cease so long as ice-bound Northerners craved winter warmth and sunshine. Prices would continue to escalate and the opportunity to flip properties for a fast buck would linger on indefinitely. What they didn’t count on, it seems, is that nice weather loses its appeal when insane prices dominate the forecast and dampen buyer resolve. We have absolutely no clue what was going on up on Wall Street or in the twisted world of Bernard Madoff.

Hardened economic conditions will no doubt persist through much of 2009; but when it comes to seeing a stubborn recession to its inevitable conclusion, we’ve done it before and we’ll do it again. This recession being more tenacious than most, those of us who “have” must do as much as possible to support the needy of our community in this time of expanding needs and contracting budgets; to help the not-for-profits work miracles on a shoestring; and to support the many visual and performing arts organizations without which we would be just another Florida beach town.

There’s no doubt in anyone’s mind, even among the most hardened pessimists, that as the barriers to buying a home in Southwest Florida fall one by one—some born of the boom; others by the more recent credit crisis—the influx of qualified buyers will gather steam again. Already, the number one and two barriers—ridiculously high prices driven by artificial demand for a limited supply of homes—have vanished; replaced by price tags reminiscent of pre-boom affordability on plenty of well-priced homes in every price range.

HThe thornier issues of preventing new foreclosures, restoring credit to qualified and responsible borrowers and offering other progressive solutions to the complex housing problem—are expected to begin resolving themselves once the new government is seated in Washington. How they plan to address these challenges are matters of open debate in business, social and political circles as we get closer to swearing-in day; but all parties are unanimous in their belief that the economy will not prosper anew until housing is back on its feet. That alone would be a monumental stimulus to our local economy and all the business and services that feed off a healthy market for real estate and residential construction.

New Year’s resolutions are shaky propositions at best; with many such oaths long forgotten by Super Bowl Sunday. So we won’t offer anything new so much as resolve to continue doing what we’ve done for the past 33 years. We vow to put every available resource, each of our core values and the brightest professionals in the business behind the timely success of every property transaction. In doing so, we resolve to spearhead our market’s recovery—as we have in the past—and bring it back to life one satisfied customer at a time. Our glass is better than half-full. It’s overflowing.

Meanwhile from everyone at Michael Saunders & Company we wish you a happy, healthy and fiscally prosperous New Year.