THE HAMMOCK
Observer YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.
WELCOME HOME, CALEB! PAGE 6
VOLUME 6, NO. 8
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MARCH 2022
PALM COAST: NO. 1 CITY TO RETIRE IN THE UNITED STATES Palm Coast has been named the “Best City to Retire in 2022,” according to Retirement Living. Finding the best city for retirement requires research and thoroughly weighing personal and financial priorities. Retirement Living explored all cities with a population greater than 80,000 residents to find the 10 best cities to retire to in 2022. Cities were rated for safety, activities, attractions and affordability for those on a fixed income. Palm Coast topped the list at No. 1. Average mortgage, sales tax rate, and cost of senior care were also strong metrics for Palm Coast. According to Retirement Living, “Palm Coast’s population growth is riding on the back of a very healthy local economy. Retail properties range from budget-friendly to upscale stores. Upward trends in residential and commercial properties serve a population with 28% over the age of 65. Aside from shopping and great restaurants, Palm Coast offers golf resorts, fishing, formal garden tours and more.”
YOUR TOWN FLAGLER COUNTY LAUNCHES ‘COAST TO COUNTRY’ DIGITAL MAGAZINE Flagler County has launched a new digital magazine, Coast to Country, to keep residents and visitors informed about the programs, projects and services that elected officials provide countywide. County Administrator Heidi Petito has been imagining and implementing ways to better communicate with the public since being named to her post. “We wanted something that would be dynamic,” she said. “It’s important for all our elected officials to have a voice in one forum to reach our residents.” The magazine is available at https://www.flaglercounty.gov/ departments/administration/ communications-office/coast-tocountry-digital-magazine. The first issue addresses strategic planning and beach renourishment.
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Inventory of homes for sale in Volusia and Flagler counties has plummeted. Let’s look at the ripple effect throughout the industry. How does it impact you? Agents? Builders?
“Buying a home right now is extremely competitive. It’s really like going on your first date and asking the prom queen for a date.” BILL NAVARRA
JONATHAN SIMMONS AND JARLEENE ALMENAS
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cross the residential building and real estate industries, professionals repeatedly use one word to describe current market conditions: “crazy.” “There are so many metrics today that are out of phase with anything we’ve seen before,” said Flagler County real estate expert Toby Tobin, publisher of www.gotoby. com and host of “Real Estate Matters” on Flagler Broadcasting. In Flagler County, for every one home listed on the MLS system, there are three more homes that are under contract, he said. “And that’s just upside down,” Tobin said. “Normally the homes listed is at least two times, maybe three times, the homes that are under contract.” There are about 150 existing homes for sale on the MLS in Flagler, he said, while perhaps another 50 are under construction. “If you divide 150 by the 46,000 homes, roughly, that exist, it’s like
3/10 of 1% of our housing stock is available for sale,” Tobin said. “This is just crazy numbers.” The same pattern is occurring in Volusia County. HOW LOW IS INVENTORY?
Bill Navarra, owner and broker of Realty Pros Assured, said inventory is at the lowest level he’s seen in his 23 years of experience. As of Tuesday, March 1, there were 282 homes for sale on the MLS in Volusia County. “Buying a home right now is extremely competitive,” Navarra said. “It’s really like going on your first date and asking the prom queen for a date. You need to make your offers as strong as possible. You need to make them very limited on contingencies. … A lot of our offers have been cash, which has made it really hard for our buyers in this market, especially the affordability.” Over the last 15 years, Ryan Adams, a real estate agent with Adams Cameron and Co Realtors, typically could count on having about 50 listings in his personal inventory. Now, at any
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given time, he usually has about five. “There was a time not too long ago when there were plenty of listings and everyone in my business was searching for a buyer, and buyers were golden,” Adams said. “And now, buyers are plentiful and listings are golden.” WHY IS INVENTORY LOW?
Investors largely aren’t responsible for local increases in home prices and a shortage of inventory, Tobin said. These homes are being bought by end users, either as primary residences or as second homes, or sometimes to rent out. Nor, unlike 15 or 17 years ago, is rampant speculation and easy credit responsible for large numbers of people seeking to buy homes. In fact, Tobin said, underwriting standards are relatively strict. “Today, you’ve got to actually show documented proof that you’re able to repay the loan, and there are higher downpayment requirements,” Tobin said. SEE REAL ESTATE PAGE 3
A daily run, every day, for 40 years “I weighed 205 pounds and not living a real good lifestyle. The next four months I dropped down to 170, and I felt healthy. The healthier I got, the more I enjoyed running.” JOHN TILLMAN, on starting his running streak 40 years ago
BRENT WORONOFF STAFF WRITER
When John Tillman decided to run 40 years ago, he didn’t plan on breaking any records or establishing any streaks. He just said, “I’m going to run every day.” And 14,614 days later, he is still running. On March 4, the Palm Coast resident celebrated 40 years of running at least a mile without missing a day. Tillman’s streak ranks 33rd in the nation and 35th internationally by Streak Runners International/United States Running Streak Association. His wife, Kathryn, invited neigh-
bors to help Tillman celebrate the milestone. She had a sign made up that says, “Run Everyday 40 Years,” with smaller signs that read, “# 35 in the world” and “# 33 in the USA.” She also had a T-shirt made for him that reads, “Legend,” referring to the category he is listed under on the “Active Streak List” on the SRI/ USRSA website. He began the streak on March 5, 1982, when he was 33 years old. “I weighed 205 pounds and not living a real good lifestyle,” he said. “The next four months I dropped down to 170, and I felt healthy. The healthier I got, the more I enjoyed running.”
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The state of real estate in Flagler and Volusia counties
Courtesy photo
John Tillman’s wife, Kathryn, had signs and a T-shirt made up to celebrate his 40-year running streak.
He never decided he would run every day for 40 years, he said. His only goal was to not miss a day. He said he has run in over 20 countries and a majority of the U.S. states. “I used to travel a lot,” said Tillman, a former sales engineer, corporate executive and business owner. Now 73, Tillman usually runs three or four miles a day. The motto of the streak runners’ organization is, “Through weather, injury, illness and life events, we run every day.” Tillman said he has run through “just about everything you can imagine.” He has run when he’s had the flu. He’s run at 1 or 2 a.m. when he’s had a flight that leaves at 5 in the morning. When it rains, he sometimes runs in a covered parking lot. COVID-19 couldn’t stop him. He underwent monoclonal antibody treatment in January and felt better immediately. But he wound up back in the emergency room at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville with cellulitis, a skin infection, in his nose. “They worried about it being so close to the brain. They wanted to admit me overnight,” he said. “I told them about my streak. They gave me a choice, run and come back or they’d release me. I came home that evening to (continue) my streak.” Tillman is currently undergoing treatment for multiple myeloma, a cancer of the plasma cells. He says it affects his performance but not his incentive. “The first thing I want to do every morning, as soon as my feet hit the ground, is I want to run,” he said.