Florida town tops list for second homes
Online index ranks most searched U.S. destinations
Thursday, May 26, 2005
 A beach in Naples, Fla. |
Naples, Fla., maintained its position as the number one most searched town for second homes during April, EscapeHomes.com announced this week.
EscapeHomes.com, which offers real estate tools and listings for consumers seeking second homes, created the Second Home Market Index to provided information on trends and consumer interest while cluing consumers to some potential markets for real estate investment.
South Padre Island, Texas, ranked second in the April index, followed by Orlando, Fla.; Myrtle Beach, S.C.; Park City, Utah; Destin, Fla.; St. Augustine, Fla.; Murphy, N.C.; Santa Barbara, Calif.; and Napa, Calif. The results are based on more than 200,000 property searches made on EscapeHomes.com in March.
Naples and South Padre Island remained the two most searched locations in April, as they were in March. Orlando moved up two positions while Destin dropped two positions. New to this month's index are Murphy, Santa Barbara and St. Augustine. The most noticeable shift in the April index was Park City, which moved up five spots on the index.
"Park City is an active and growing four-season resort community only 30 minutes from Salt Lake City and the Salt Lake City International Airport. Along with three world-class ski resorts, we offer five golf courses, fishing, boating, and seemingly endless miles of mountain biking and hiking trails," said Dennis Hanlon with Lewis, Wolcott & Dornbush.
Investors comprised 38 percent of the Park City home seekers, while 26 percent are looking for a retirement home, 22 percent are searching for a vacation property, and 14 percent are planning to relocate.