August Closings: 8 Homes Sold Across Southwest Florida
Eight properties. Eight very different seller stories. One customized strategy for every home.
August was a strong month for The Gottesman Group | eXp Luxury. We closed eight homes across Southwest Florida, from Gateway and Fort Myers to Estero and North Fort Myers, in a market where a lot of listings sat and expired.
The homes had almost nothing in common. Expired listings in Silverlakes at Gateway, Stoneybrook at Estero and Crane Landing in North Fort Myers. Professionally staged condos in Royal Greens at Gateway. Seller relocations out of Marina Bay and Timber Ridge. Different price points, different conditions, different timelines.
What they shared was the launch.
The August Closings
11532 Stonecreek Circle — Marina Bay, Fort Myers — 24 days on market
12874 Timber Ridge Drive — Gateway, Fort Myers — 29 days on market
11141 Lakeland Circle — Silverlakes at Gateway — 19 days on market, expired listing relaunch
21596 Berwhich Run — Stoneybrook at Estero — 89 days on market, expired listing relaunch
11334 Lakeland Circle — Silverlakes at Gateway — 45 days on market
17561 Monte Isola Way — Crane Landing, North Fort Myers — 14 days on market, expired listing relaunch
11510 Villa Grand #421 — Royal Greens at Gateway — 65 days on market
11520 Villa Grand #1021 — Royal Greens at Gateway — 6 days on market
What We Did Differently
Our approach went well beyond placing a home in the MLS. For these eight sellers we used:
Professional home staging at no upfront cost
Home redesign and pre-listing preparation
Strategic pricing built on current, hyperlocal data
Pre-listing 4-Point Inspections
Insurance planning ahead of buyer questions
Pay-at-closing vendor partners for repairs and updates
Targeted Southwest Florida real estate marketing across search, social and video
Every one of those steps exists to do the same thing: remove buyer objections before a buyer ever raises them. When the objections are gone, the home does not need a price reduction to sell. It needs the right launch.
The Data Behind the Strategy
The most common worry we hear from sellers is that pricing strong will scare buyers away. Measured against all 44 closings in the Gateway area last month, our numbers say the opposite.
$214.40 final list price per square foot against $204.71 for the market, a premium of $9.69 per square foot
36 average days on market against 78 for the market, 53% fewer days
29 median days on market against 49 for the market
62.5% of our listings, 5 of 8, sold in under 30 days against 33% of the market
1 in 9 Gateway area closings in August were ours
Source: MLS data comparing The Gottesman Group's August closings to all 44 Gateway area closings for the month.
Higher pricing did not slow these homes down. Better preparation and better marketing moved them faster.
If Your Listing Expired, That Is Not the End of the Story
An expired listing is rarely a property problem. Three of our August closings were homes that had already been on the market with someone else and did not sell. Two of them went under contract in 19 and 14 days on the relaunch. The third took 89 days, and it was a hard sale by any measure, but it closed.
Same house. Different launch. Different result.
It is never the market. Always the launch.
Thinking About Selling Anywhere in Southwest Florida?
August's closings were in Fort Myers, Gateway, Estero and North Fort Myers, but our sellers are spread across the region. The Gottesman Group works throughout Southwest Florida, including Fort Myers, Gateway, Cape Coral, Estero, Bonita Springs, Naples and the surrounding communities.
Whether your home is vacant, needs repairs, or previously expired, we can build a relaunch strategy around your property and your goals.
Reach out for a no obligation strategy session, or run your numbers on our expired listing calculator at gottesmangroupfl.com/expired-listings.
Frequently Asked Questions About Selling in Southwest Florida
What areas does The Gottesman Group serve?
The Gottesman Group works across Southwest Florida, including Fort Myers, Gateway, Cape Coral, Estero, Bonita Springs, Naples and the surrounding communities. Lisa Gottesman has lived in Gateway for 20 years and has closed roughly 1,000 transactions in the region.
How many homes did The Gottesman Group sell in August?
The Gottesman Group closed eight homes in August across Fort Myers, Gateway, Estero and North Fort Myers. That was 1 in 9 of all 44 closings in the Gateway area for the month. Three of the eight were expired listings relaunched after they failed to sell with another agent.
Does pricing a home higher make it sit longer on the market?
Not when the home is prepared properly. In August our sellers held a final list price of $214.40 per square foot against a market average of $204.71, and still sold in 36 average days against the market's 78. Preparation and marketing, not a lower price, are what shorten days on market.
What should I do if my listing expired in Fort Myers?
An expired listing usually points to the launch, not the property. A relaunch starts with a fresh pricing analysis, pre-listing preparation and staging, a 4-Point Inspection to clear insurance questions early, and new photography and marketing. Two of our three August expired relaunches went under contract within 19 days.
How long does it take to sell a home in Gateway, Fort Myers?
The Gateway area averaged 78 days on market in August with a median of 49 days. Our listings averaged 36 days with a median of 29, and 5 of our 8 closings went under contract in under 30 days compared with 33% of the market.
Does staging help a home sell faster in Southwest Florida?
Yes. Staging removes the guesswork for buyers who cannot picture scale or furniture placement in a vacant home, and it photographs far better online, where nearly every buyer sees the home first. The Gottesman Group stages listings with no upfront cost to the seller.
Why does a pre-listing 4-Point Inspection matter in Florida?
Florida insurers look at the roof, electrical, plumbing and HVAC before writing a policy. Running that inspection before listing means insurance questions get answered upfront instead of surfacing during a buyer's due diligence, which is where deals in Southwest Florida most often fall apart.
The Gottesman Group | eXp Luxury — Extraordinary Service ✦ Extraordinary Results
