Finding Value in Florida's Shifting Real Estate Market: Insights from Todd Siegrist

Written by:

Steve Marcinuk

Date:

17 Jun 2025

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“We’re experiencing a strong buyer’s market with abundant inventory. There’s an imbalance—many sellers, fewer buyers,” explains Todd Siegrist, a seasoned Realtor with LPT Realty serving Florida’s Emerald Coast.

This market shift presents both challenges and opportunities, particularly in the condo sector where competition among sellers has reached remarkable levels. In one Destin resort, Siegrist’s two-bedroom listing competes with 45 identical units in the same complex, a microcosm of the broader market conditions reshaping Florida’s coastal real estate landscape.

From Finance to Real Estate: Finding the Perfect Fit

After more than two decades in high-level sales, finance, and negotiation across various industries, Siegrist discovered real estate wasn’t just another career but the perfect application of his skillset.

“Real estate is the vehicle that allows me to operate my own business on my terms while earning substantial income,” he shares. “It wasn’t that I looked at real estate and thought it seemed interesting. It was 20 years of honing specific skills and suddenly realizing real estate fits that skillset perfectly.”

Today, Siegrist serves the entire Florida Panhandle from Pensacola to Panama City Beach, with Destin as his central hub. His on-the-ground perspective offers valuable insights into a market that national headlines often mischaracterize.

Market Conditions: Understanding the Buyer’s Advantage

The Emerald Coast real estate landscape transformed dramatically over the past year. After a significant slowdown during the election period and holiday season, the market has begun showing signs of typical spring activity—but with a decidedly different character than recent years.

“Residential properties in the $300,000 to $700,000 range are picking up,” Siegrist notes. “But the condo market is completely stagnant for sellers.”

His assessment is direct: “This is not a good time to own a condo in Florida unless you genuinely want to own a condo. Otherwise, you’ll either hold it longer than anticipated or sell at a modest loss.”

Who’s Selling and Why?

Despite challenging conditions, Siegrist isn’t seeing distressed sales driven by financial hardship. “I’m not seeing any urgency to sell in the sense of mortgage failures or income issues,” he observes.

Instead, sellers are motivated by typical life changes—particularly military relocations, given the significant presence of three major military bases in the area, including Eglin Air Force Base, which Siegrist notes is “the largest by land area in the whole United States.”

Many condo owners use their properties for just a few weeks annually while renting them the remainder of the year. While these properties generally cash flow positively, especially considering long-term appreciation, owners often reach a breaking point. “Once they’re done with it, they’re done with it,” Siegrist says. “They grow tired of the HOA fees and recurring inconveniences associated with ownership.”

The Special Assessment Challenge

Florida’s condo market faces an additional complication following the tragic Surfside collapse in Miami. That disaster prompted new requirements for structural integrity inspections, leading to special assessments across many condo associations.

“That’s really the number one question if you’re in the condo market right now in Florida: Have your structural integrity inspections been completed? If so, what’s the special assessment? And who’s responsible for paying it?”

These unexpected costs have created another motivation for some sellers to exit the market. However, Siegrist is clear about buyer expectations: “If I’m a buyer for a condo right now, and someone mentions anything about a special assessment, no, that’s the seller’s responsibility. The condo should be priced according to its current value, and any outstanding obligations belong to the seller.”

Seller Expectations vs. Market Reality

Sellers on the Emerald Coast are struggling to adjust their price expectations to current market conditions. When asked if sellers remain anchored to peak prices, Siegrist doesn’t hesitate: “Yes, that’s a question with an obvious answer. Sellers remain firmly anchored to previous valuations.”

His approach with sellers is to focus on their underlying motivations rather than fixating on price. “If financial gain isn’t your primary motivation, which it usually isn’t, I suggest ignoring the monetary aspect entirely,” he explains. “Decide, as a seller, whether you genuinely want to sell or not.”

For sellers who truly need or want to move on, Siegrist is direct: “When you want to sell your house, you sell it for what it’s worth now, not what it was worth two years ago. When a professional advises that it’s not worth what it was worth two years ago, and you insist on that previous valuation, that’s your prerogative. But if you actually want to sell, it won’t move at that price.”

Buyer Behavior in a Changing Commission Landscape

The recent changes to real estate commission structures following the National Association of Realtors settlement have added another layer of complexity to the market. Buyers now must explicitly agree to pay their agent’s commission, though in practice, sellers are still covering these costs in most transactions.

Siegrist frames the situation candidly: “The previous system was straightforward for buyer’s agents. Many agents dislike the new arrangement because they must now demonstrate their value. Previously, they could simply say, ‘My services are free to you.'”

He explains to clients that they have options, they could work directly with listing agents to potentially negotiate lower prices, or they can work with a buyer’s agent who provides value through expertise, convenience, and negotiation skills.

“You can do anything on your own. You can fix your car yourself, but you don’t. You take it to a mechanic. You could go to a courtroom yourself, but you don’t, because it’s risky. It’s the same with buying a house, you’re better off with an agent. Do you want to call eight different listing agents and arrange all the showing times? Just get an agent. Let them handle everything for you.”

Lifestyle Decisions Driving Purchases Despite Higher Rates

Despite higher interest rates, Siegrist sees continued buyer activity driven by necessity and lifestyle choices rather than pure financial calculations.

“If you need a house and want a house, the rate is what it is. You can always refinance later,” he points out. “And to offset the rate, you have a buyer’s market with more favorable prices.”

He’s even seeing buyers willing to trade their 3% mortgages for 7% loans on new properties. “Why? Because the payment works, the property will continue to appreciate, their family desires it, and it meets their requirements. It’s a lifestyle decision, not purely financial.”

Siegrist draws a parallel to other consumer behaviors: “When gas prices are high, do you drive less? Probably not, you have to drive where you have to drive. It’s the same with interest rates. Just because we saw 3% five years ago doesn’t mean that 6% or 7% is that bad. If you need a house, you need a house.”

Investment Opportunities on the Emerald Coast

For investors looking at the Emerald Coast, Siegrist sees particular opportunity in the currently depressed condo market for those focused on cash flow. Additionally, he points to the luxury home segment in the $2-3 million range as offering strong potential returns.

“I have a couple of $3 million listings,” he notes, highlighting one property in particular: “319 Ellis Road in Miramar Beach—that is an exceptional house. It’s two and a half million dollars, but it’s projected to generate $300,000 annually with some investment of time and effort over the next two or three years.”

With that kind of income-to-price ratio, Siegrist sees compelling value for investors willing to look beyond current market uncertainty.

The Local Perspective Matters

Throughout his market analysis, Siegrist emphasizes the importance of understanding local conditions rather than relying on national narratives. “Discussing the real estate market as a whole, whether nationwide or statewide, is ineffective,” he insists. “Every market operates independently from others.”

This perspective underscores why on-the-ground expertise remains invaluable in real estate, even as the industry undergoes significant structural changes. For buyers, sellers, and investors navigating Florida’s Emerald Coast, understanding these local dynamics is the key to making informed decisions in a market that continues to evolve.