Military Moves and Market Resilience: Inside Florida's Emerald Coast Real Estate

Written by:

Steve Marcinuk

Date:

10 Jun 2025

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Florida’s real estate market may be slowing in some regions, but on the Emerald Coast, agents are seeing a different story. Christina Hartley, a real estate agent with Dream Team Realty of NW Florida, has a clear message for those claiming the market is struggling.

“You might want to soul search a little bit. Maybe you’re the problem, because the rest of us are quite busy,” she says.

While many Florida markets face significant headwinds, the Emerald Coast benefits from a unique stabilizing force. Surrounded by major military installations, the region enjoys a steady stream of buyers that shields it from the volatility seen elsewhere in the state.

Military Presence: The Market’s Secret Weapon

“That is the benefit of being right smack in the middle of every single military base,” Hartley explains. “We represent everything for Marines and the Army. We’ve got Air Force with the Navy base in Pensacola, and we have Eglin and Hurlburt. We are literally surrounded by every military entity.”

This concentration of military facilities ensures a steady stream of both buyers and renters as personnel rotate through assignments. The result? A market that continues to see multiple offers and quick sales despite higher interest rates nationwide.

Hot Price Points Defying National Trends

Despite financing challenges affecting markets across the country, Hartley reports remarkable activity in specific price segments:

“The segment moving quickest right now is properties priced between $350,000 and $450,000, which represents our largest buyer pool,” she notes. Even more impressive: “For anything under that $300,000 mark, we’re seeing multiple offers,” with several offers often coming within 48 hours of listing.

This activity stands in stark contrast to the slowdowns reported in other Florida markets, where the “lock-in effect” of homeowners with low interest rates has significantly reduced inventory.

Creative Solutions to Interest Rate Challenges

The Emerald Coast market has developed unique workarounds to address higher interest rates. The region’s high concentration of VA loans offers a particularly valuable solution:

“There are assumable options because of our military presence. The VA loan is very appealing to assume, allowing buyers to take advantage of lower interest rates,” Hartley explains.

This arrangement allows military personnel to release their VA eligibility for future purchases while enabling buyers to benefit from better rates. Sellers are also getting creative with incentives, including paying closing costs or offering rate buydowns.

“You need to tap into creativity in some of these scenarios,” Hartley says. “But where there’s a will, there’s a way.”

A Community-Centered Approach

Hartley’s own journey into real estate began unexpectedly over Mexican food when a friend offered her a position managing their family’s real estate office. From there, she worked her way up from office manager to real estate assistant to property manager before obtaining her license in 2008.

Born and raised in the area, she credits her success to deep community connections. “I have been blessed to be 100% referral-based throughout my career,” Hartley explains. “I love service work, and with all of the work I do through the association, through religious entities, with our church and local organizations, real estate enables me to remain deeply involved within our community.”

Strong Investment Opportunities

For investors, the Emerald Coast offers compelling opportunities, particularly in the rental market. Hartley’s firm manages between 100-200 rental properties at any given time, serving military personnel, traveling nurses, and other temporary residents.

“With the influx of military coming and going, we have numerous rental properties,” she explains. “Many military personnel and traveling medical professionals will be here for short periods, whether it’s three months, six months, or up to two years.”

This creates a reliable tenant base for investors. Hartley recounts working with one investor who used a 1031 exchange to purchase 13 properties in a single month, transitioning from high-value Chicago properties to multiple rental units in the Emerald Coast.

“We had to dig deep and find that many properties because we had $4 million to spend that month,” she recalls, highlighting the scale of investment interest in the region.

Navigating Insurance Challenges

Like other Florida markets, the Emerald Coast faces challenges with insurance costs, particularly for condominiums. However, Hartley notes that local stakeholders are actively working on solutions.

“We have local leaders engaged in addressing this issue,” she explains. The insurance issue is particularly critical for the region’s tourism economy, as excessive costs could price out potential condo buyers or make vacation rentals unaffordable.

Transparency in a Changing Industry

As the real estate industry adapts to the NAR settlement and other changes, Hartley emphasizes the importance of transparency with clients.

Her definition of transparency goes beyond simply answering questions honestly: “It’s about addressing questions that people don’t know to ask. I ensure clients receive all relevant information, not to sway them one way or another, but so they never have to ask, ‘Why didn’t you tell me?'”

Looking Ahead

While many Florida markets continue to adjust to post-COVID realities, higher interest rates, and insurance challenges, the Emerald Coast’s unique combination of military presence, tourism appeal, and geographic diversity positions it well for continued resilience.

For buyers, sellers, and investors alike, Hartley offers practical advice: “You can always change your interest rate through refinancing, but you can’t change what you pay for your house.”

This pragmatic approach, combined with the region’s strong fundamentals, suggests that while the Emerald Coast isn’t immune to broader market forces, it remains a distinctive bright spot in Florida’s real estate landscape, one where creativity, community connections, and a steady stream of military-related transactions continue to drive activity despite national headwinds.