A group of investors from Florida’s east coast recently paid $9 million for about 600 acres of agricultural land in southern Charlotte County, continuing a trend of growing interest in large land acquisitions in the county.
The property at 16901 N. Tamiami Trail has long operated as a working farm. Under the terms of the sale, the buyers are allowing the sellers to continue farming the acreage south of Zemel Road, as the new owners have no immediate plans to develop the land, said Hunter Ward of Fort Myers-based LSI Companies Inc.
Ward, who brokered the transaction along with Billy Rollins, said the parcel includes roughly a mile of frontage along U.S. 41 and sits south of Zemel Road near the Lee County line.
The buyers are a group of business partners who built their wealth through land investments, Ward said. The purchase was completed using 1031 exchange funds, which allow investors to defer capital gains taxes by reinvesting proceeds from a sale into a like-kind replacement property.
The land was acquired through two limited liability companies, 1897 Del Prado Blvd. LLC and New Investment Bank Building LLC. The sellers transferred the property through their entities Five H. Family LLC, Florida Land & Properties LLC and Hathis Wadi LLC.
Ward said the investors were drawn to Southwest Florida, and Charlotte County in particular, because of the amount of preserved green space compared with more densely developed coastal counties elsewhere in the state. The buyers expressed interest in holding land in the region as a long-term investment.
Interest in large tracts of land in Charlotte County has been increasing, Ward said, and more sizable parcels are expected to come on the market in the coming months as owners assess opportunities to sell.
That activity contrasts with conditions in the residential housing market, where sales have slowed, particularly in planned developments. Realtors reported in December that while demand remains for higher-priced properties, including luxury homes and large land holdings, buyer activity has cooled for new construction in many subdivisions.
To attract buyers, builders have been offering incentives, such as price reductions, upgraded kitchens and other design features. Over the past decade, developers have acquired significant amounts of land throughout Charlotte County, fueling a wave of new construction. As a result, housing inventory has climbed for both newly built homes and existing properties.
Recent hurricanes and rising insurance costs have also affected buyer sentiment. Realtors said those factors have caused some prospective buyers to pause or look elsewhere, adding to inventory levels across the market.
Home builders have acknowledged that profit margins have narrowed amid increased competition and higher inventory. In response, some builders have advertised incentives including discounts of up to $25,000 on new homes.
Sellers of existing homes are facing similar pressure. In some cases, older homes are being repriced to compete with new construction, particularly when newly built properties are listed at comparable or lower prices.
Despite the slowdown in residential sales, Ward said interest in land acquisitions remains strong, especially among investors seeking long-term opportunities in Southwest Florida. He said Charlotte County’s available acreage, location and development potential continue to make it attractive to buyers looking beyond short-term market fluctuations.