Well, summer of 2024 came and went like a bullet train speeding by at a high speed.  In northeast Florida, despite elevated outdoor temperatures alongside periods of sporadic and often times heavy rain, beachgoers and vacationers alike have headed back to school and work schedules have filled up once again.  A tee time at the fabulous Amelia River Golf Club on Amelia Island is now once again possible on the weekends with same-day notice.  Jacksonville airport expansion is now underway as travel demand continues, and yes, it is now officially football season.

Demand for housing is still around and home builders are continuing to seek out land for development and construction throughout the state.  East/southeast Jacksonville remains a popular location, not just for living and housing, but also for commercial development.  Whereas some other southern sun belt states have seen an increase in agricultural and recreational land transactions over the summer, many parts of Florida have experienced a little slower transaction velocity, yet many believe the land market is still very favorable for sellers.

From all of the economic data sources I have seen, the Fed is all but certainly going to lower its target interest rate at the meeting this week, starting a possible slow trend of interest rate reductions over time.  Despite the negative trend in the labor market, the Fed seems to believe that inflation is somewhat reigned in and under control for the time being, despite the real truth that grocery goods and food prices have been up beyond where they were several years prior.

As a I drive around Duval, Clay, Nassau, and St. John’s counties, showing land properties as an occasional buyer representative and discovering tracts that are available as well as those that are unavailable, I cannot help but notice all of the for-sale signs.  Both land and commercial wise, in northeast Florida there seems to be quite a bit on the market.  Or at very least a lot of brokerages have left their signs up after a sale.  A quick pass through the MLS and you can see how there seems to be some expired land as well.  Perhaps with interest rates slowly coming down in the months ahead, soon could be a great time to buy land.  Is that time already now?  That will depend on the unique circumstances and position of the buyer or acquisition group.