Lawn care:  About $125 per month which includes weed wacking

Pool:  About $125 per month for a weekly visit four times per month.  Chemical balance each visit and scrub pool twice in a month.

Tree trim:  Depends on what needs to be done but often includes pruning palm trees.  I know who to call for inexpensive tree service.

Pest Control:  In general, it’s a quarterly service but expect around $300 per year.  Important to  know is the service provider will come out on a days notice if you have an issue without charge.

Power washing:  This is an annual service to anticipate which will cover your house, lanai, pool cage, roof, etc.  The cost varies by size of home.

Boat lift:  Often over-looked but it will bite you in the butt if you don’t keep it maintained and that is the voice of experience!  There are only a handful of companies doing this and will depend on type of boat lift and condition.  Call me for boat lift companies that have treated me fairly over the years.

Piling Wrap:  Many homes already have their pilings wrapped below the water line and that is a good thing.  If your homes has not had the pilings wrapped then you should consider doing it.  This is a one time expense.  The piling wrap is a heavy synthetic material that protects the pilings underwater from worms and sea creatures eating the pilings and damaging them.  Its much cheaper to take preventative action than to install pilings down the road.  Again, a one time service and cost is dependent on the number of pilings and condition.  Good to know that existing pilings that have problems can be saved at a much lower cost than a new piling.

Garbage/trash service:  There is no specific additional cost with this in Punta Gorda Isles or Burnt Store Isles.  The service also includes bulk pick-up at no additional cost.  Tree trimings, lawn debri pick up is also included in the service.

Water:  The cost of water in SW Florida is considerabley more expensive than other areas.  Of course, it is a function of usage.  For a family of two with heavy usage, including multiple boat washings in a week, laundry every day, etc. and you can anticipate $100-$130 per month.  If you have lawn irrigation this cost will go up significantly.

The post What Is The Cost Of Ownership Of A Waterfront Home in Punta Gorda Isles and Burnt Store Isles?  Part 3 ADDITIONAL COSTS OF OWNERSHIP appeared first on Sailboat Home Listings.

Punta Gorda Canals, in the City of Punta Gorda

Stagnant water:  The canal systems in the city of Punta Gorda have excellent water flow with generally 4 tides a day.  The tidal height is normally around 2 feet from high to low.  It can go over 3 feet tide swing with certain wind directions and moon phase.  As such there is No Smell and No Stagnant water anywhere in the canal systems.

End of Canal Concerns:  Many people come here with fears that if they buy a house at the dead end of a canal that it will become a scum patch of floating weeds, debri, etc that stinks and causes problems.  First, the dead end of the canal lot has an excellent view shooting right down the canal.  But to the point, I have sold many end of canal homes and my customers love the views and never have a problem.  Does an occasional coconut float to the end, yes.  Do I have to worry about smell and decomposing seaweed, dead fish- No!  I can tell you if you consider the Florida Keys for a canal home they do have serious problems at the end of their canals.

Alligators in the Canals:  No, you can take this off your list of worries.  Alligators live in freshwater and the canals are salt water.  I would be remis to say I have never seen an alligator in the canals but only a couple of times over 18 years.  This was in the summer months with lots of rain and the alligator apparently got confused coming down the Peace River and into the canal.  The alligators have no place to rest in the canals and cannot get onto the properties.  Nothing to have any worries about.

Boat ride times are too long in Punta Gorda canals:  The typical boat ride time to open water to put up sail or put down the throttle is 10-25 minutes.  There is a section in Punta Gorda Isles known as the “Bird Section” that “had” some homes with an hour ride out.  A new exit route has been built and will open in April 2020.  These homes will now have about a 30 minute ride out.  So with that said, pretty much any location will have less than that boat ride out.  Burnt Store Isles does have locations that exceed the 30 minutes and we can talk about this specifically.  Don’t rule out Burnt Store Isles on hearsay!  There is a lot inaccurate information about this neighborhood out there.

Water depth concerns in the canals:  You have no worries about water depths in the canal systems.  They generally average 8 to 15 feet with plenty of canals with deeper water.

Water depth concerns at my dock:  Most homes have plenty of water off their docks from 6 to 8 feet and more on low tide.  It is extremely rare to see a vessel listing on its keel because of low water.  On occasion it is less however.  If you have a deep draft sailboat, trawler, sportfish or yacht you may need a private dredge.  Easy to do and low cost, normally under $3,000.  The marine contractor dredges for you and takes the spoils and deposits in extra deep spots in the canal systems.  No biggie.

Water depth concerns in the exit passage ways:  The City of Punta Gorda maintains the Ponce de Leon Inlet to 6 feet mean low water and periodically addresses trouble areas when they develop.  The Army Corp of Engineers maintains Alligator Creek (exit for Burnt Store Isles) to 6 feet mean low water and they too occasionally do maintenance dredges.

Fish and wildlife in the canals:  I will end this topic with something you might not have expected.  The canals are full of fish, crabs and other sea life!  Some of the best eating fish can be caught from your dock including redfish, snapper, flounder, sheepshead, snook, speckled trout and mackeral.  The canal systems also have blue claw crabs, easy to catch and delicious!  You can expect to see manatees and dolphins swim past your dock as well.  Schools of huge black drum over 50 pounds live in the canals as does tarpon and jack crevalle.  Add to that a variety of shore birds, you will always have something interesting going on at waters edge.

The post Dispelling Myths About Punta Gorda Canal Systems and Waterways appeared first on Sailboat Home Listings.

I often introduce both neighborhoods to my customers as they begin exploring the area and find some prefer one over the other.  He are the primary differences between PGI and BSI.

• Let’s start with the distance to the heart of town.  Yes, Punta Gorda has a center of town that is the focal point of all who live here.  It’s a bit of an old fashioned kind of feel to this town and we love having a town that is easily recognizable where many fun things take place.  I bring this up because that is one feature of Punta Gorda that people focus on and some choose Punta Gorda Isles over Burnt Store Isles because PGI is a couple of miles closer to the town center.  In fact, I have many customers that bike ride from PGI to town which allows them to attend many cool functions, music concerts, flower festivals, sailing regatta’s, etc. and then bike ride back to home.  Especially nice after a few adult beverages!  However, not all of PGI is really close enough for a bike ride to town.  So, PGI gets the edge over BSI on this consideration.
• Age and appearance of the neighborhoods is different in some ways. Burnt Store Isles was largely built in the 90’s and 2000’s and has a newer, fresher appearance overall than Punta Gorda Isles.  This visual appeal tips the scales for some folks to desire BSI over PGI.  However, PGI has a variety of appearances within the same overall neighborhood.  First, let me explain that Punta Gorda Isles is a very large area.  Within it, are sections that were constructed at different points in time.  There is a lot of coverage on these sections elsewhere on my website with extensive detail, if interested.  For instance, the oldest area is the original or old sailboat section with homes from the 60’s to current.  The older construction architecture is obvious but these homes are still beautiful.  The power boat section (see my blog  on the power boat section for more detail) has a vast number of homes from the late 60’s and 70’s with newer ones mixed in. The area known as the “Bird Section” looks very similar to Burnt Store Isles because it was largely developed in the same time frame from 90’s to current and boasts the newer curb appeal.  Other areas with in PGI also resemble BSI as well but don’t have a specific definition or name to identify but I could certainly tell you the streets.  One example, is the area off of Suzi Street, very beautiful!
• Water Frontage, Canals, Boat Ride Times To Harbor and Other Considerations. I will try to keep this short as my website has a huge amount of specific information regarding this.  The comparison of PGI to BSI in regards to boat ride times to open water is a very important consideration to the mariner!  PGI has boat ride times that range from 5 minutes to 40 minutes to open water, now with the opening of Buckley’s Pass (see my blog on this).  BSI has boat ride times that range from 17 minutes to one hour.  However, I would say the average boat time ride out of PGI is well less than 30 minutes and largely the same can be said with BSI.  Burnt Store Isles pathway to open water is through Alligator Creek versus PGI canals exit out of Ponce de Leon Park, Buckley’s pass to Alligator Creek and the original sailboat section exits into the Peace River.  Exiting into Alligator Creek puts you significantly further south on the harbor which is the direction most boaters go (towards the gulf and islands).  With that consideration a 10 minute boat ride to Ponce Park and a 20 minute boat ride to the mouth of Alligator Creek will land you both there relatively about the same time.
• Exposure to street noise and other extraneous unnatural sounds. Basically, both neigborhoods are very quiet and peaceful.  An occasional plane may pass over but not an issue.  Road noise is generally not a factor in a home buying decision.
• Proximity to shopping is great at both locations. Generally, you will be less than 10 minutes to most anything you can thing of!
• Golf courses. Both have their own course.  Andrews South is the course in PGI and Twin Isles Country Club is the course in BSI.  Both are very popular.  BSI has a more extensive facility, with more amenities and thought to be a more challenging course.  Both have social memberships and combinations of golf and social as well.

The post Punta Gorda Isles Versus Burnt Store Isles- Which One Is Better? appeared first on Sailboat Home Listings.

After nearly 17 years in southwest Florida I have experienced some of the worst storms ever recorded in history.  The biggest named hurricane was Charlie and Charlie was the real deal.  A category 4 with wind gusts exceeding a five.

Prior to this event, there is nothing in history to compare this storm to in southwest Florida.  The general thinking prior to August 13, 2005 is that our geographic location does not lend itself to hurricanes and that the line of barrier islands in the gulf would shield us if one actually came our way and at least reduce the impact.  Storms normally come from the south and go north.  This is still sound logic in my book to this day and my belief is that we in southwest Florida are in one of the safest places for hurricanes.

Hurricane Charlie was devastating but of course, not nearly as bad as television conveyed.  The typical modular home parks you see knocked down anywhere there is a tornedo or hurricane was largely what was depicted.  The great many of us waterfront home owners suffered minimal to moderate damage or nearly none at all.  Most block homes on the waterfront faired very well and even the frame built homes held up better than I expected.

To cut to the chase as my head line of why not to worry:  First, hurricanes have become the media sensation around the U.S. and the spaghetti models should you where it is likely to land.  These are reasonably accurate.  With that in mind, when you are watching on the television and a hurricane appears to be eminent somewhere in the state you can do the following to make the event relatively stress free.  First step:  Secure reservations online to 3 hotels where you think the hurricane is least likely to hit.  If it turns out, the storm is headed towards our area than you probably have plenty of time to get your travel plans in order and head that way.  Cancel the other reservations, go to the hotel and enjoy best you can a mini-vacation.  The odds of your home getting destroyed are really very small despite the TV hype.  Of course, you will watching the TV during the event.  BTW, hotels will allow you to bring your pets if you are running from a storm.  A very comforting thought for us pet owners!

The second step:  Be sure your house is secure, locked up and stuff removed from the outside.  If you have hurricane shutters you can put them up.  An interesting side note from my experience with Hurricane Charlie:  This hurricane made an unusual right hand turn into Charlotte Harbor, something hurricanes never do (never say never, right?!).  My neighborhood was named on CNN news as taking a direct hit with a 20 foot surge of water.  As in all other hurricanes in the state, the media hypes things out of proportion but none-the-less bad news.  In 2004 MOST homes did not have hurricane shutters……….thats most homes!  Of course, things are different now and maybe 60% have hurricane protection.  So, my home of course had no protection and with the hurricane coming our way I had to get creative.  I pulled off the cheap luan hollow doors from all the bedrooms and baths inside (I bought an old fixer upper) and screwed and nailed them across the southern facing lanai sliders.  The wind was coming in from the south.  Amazingly, I saved my windows and doors and no water or wind entered the house through the sliders!  Imagine cheap hollow doors protected my house but they did disappear never to be found!

The final position I take with the possibility of a hurricane is that I have insurance.  Both flood and homeowners.  If you decide to leave your house, take the things that are irreplaceable like photos and the like and head up the road to the hotel and make the best of it.  There is never any reason to stay if the storm is getting close.

Hurricane Irma was an interesting event that spared most of Florida but certainly south of us took a beating in selective locations.  Again, a little advance planning getting some hotel reservations, making sure your insurance is up to date, your vehicle is gassed up and leave with the likelihood that your home will not likely have any major damage.  This is my take on hurricanes and we all have our own tolerance but what I learned in Hurricane Charlie tempered my angst.

The post Punta Gorda-Port Charlotte Waterfront: Hurricanes and Why Not To Worry! appeared first on Sailboat Home Listings.

We have lots of local festivals that are fun.  They are held in 2-3 different locations and go from rock concerts to flower festivals to wine/cheese/jazz festivals, fishing tournaments, sailing regatta’s and this is the short list.  This town celebrates just about holiday you can think of and involves people of all ages.  For instance, Halloween is a big deal in our town.  They have bands playing for the adults to enjoy and kid stuff and haunted houses set up for the kids.  There is almost something to do every weekend and some weekdays too.

How about the Thursday nights in the park on the Peace River.  Free, live music just pull up a chair, bring a cooler and hang out.  Its fun and free.

We also have Farmers Markets every week at two locations.

In town, there are bars/restaurants, night spots for music and lots of choices.  You can walk and feel safe in the dark and go to different night spots to enjoy the atmosphere, music and food.

Not too many chain restaurants here, most are family run and of course the food is awesome.  There is something for everyone depending on your interests.  This is a diverse community and people with all types of interest will find others easily.  There are art groups, car clubs, music groups, songwriter clubs, exercise groups, dance, horticulture groups, hiking clubs, kayaking clubs, fishing clubs…..there is no shortage of fun stuff.  Over 20 golf courses within a short drive, a local airport with rental planes (lots of pilots live here), sports stuff too and a sports complex for kids that is mind boggling.  We have our own baseball team and stadium.

How about a race track?  Yes, we have one of those too for race fans!

Another thing to know is that we are a short drive to Sarasota to the north and Ft. Myers to the south.  You can live in paradise but do day trips to these bigger cities to find other fun stuff to do.  Add to that you can be in the Florida Keys in 3.5 hours!  Wow, you can have an incredible get away with a short drive.  Miami, Ft. Lauderdale on the east coast is 2.5 hours away.

To finish, there is no shortage of places to go via boat!  From restaurants, to isolated beaches to beach parties and raft ups.  Many times there will be music on the water brought in by barge and you pull up and spend the day on the boat and in the water.  This is not a dream but sounds like one.  Come on down and let me show you around.

The post What Is There To Do In Punta Gorda- Besides Boating, Sailing, Fishing? appeared first on Sailboat Home Listings.