The End of High End or an Opportunity to Steal? > South Padre Island Real Estate - Alice Donahue

Home

Real Estate

MLS Listings (All)

MLS Area Map

New Construction Projects

Map of New Construction Projects

MLS Recent Price Changes

MLS Newest Listings

MLS Featured Listings

MLS En Espanol

Island Land Tracts

Isla Grand Beach Resort

Sapphire South Padre Island

La Isla South Padre

The Shores

Kirana South Padre Highrise

FSBO

Investment Opportunities

Read more on TexasGulfCoastOnline.com

What do you all think?
We are still selling condos, homes and lots on South Padre, and our company is on track to have a record year in sales.
So what is selling? Great deals, owner financing, foreclosures and communities which are of enduring value.

With the rare and remarkable tropical paradise of Texas called South Padre Island, it's a "shore thing" we'll see a strong recovery soon. With Baby Boomers and Mexican Nationals just waiting to jump back in.

Comments

Condo Looker @ Saturday, May 15, 2010 9:05 AM

It looks like CONDO SALES on South Padre have recently fallen off a cliff. MLS is reporting that only 7 SPI condos sold in the entire month of April, compared with 22 sales in the previous month. It also looks like inventory has crept up roughly 10% over the same short period. (Ouch!) Why the sudden plunge in sales, when there is normally a large pickup in seasonal demand? Is the situation in Mexico mostly responsible for causing this sudden plunge? Are we now THAT dependent upon Mexicans to keep the island real estate market afloat? You realtors would know, so please share your insights with the rest of us about the makeup of your current buyers.

Not all the news is bad....

Fortunately the oil experts are predicting that the evolving financial crisis in Europe will cause gas prices in the USA to fall this summer, which should help island tourism and drive more sales. That big growing oil slick in the northern Gulf is also nowhere near south padre, so I'm cautiously optimistic about this summer. Some bad tropical weather, red tide, or an increase in the magnitude of the oil slick could derail us, but risks like that always confront us.

Yes, an anticipated wave of foreclosures will further drive down prices, but not necessarily hurt the market. (depending on your point of view) I suspect the foreclosure sale will be a fairly quick event. Assuming the banks offer typical discounts of 15 - 20%, that foreclosure inventory will probably sell fast. It could be a good event, marking the bottom of the market, and getting the overall market moving again.

With regards to the Mexican crisis, I seriously doubt if it can last indefinitely. The drug cartels are in business to make money, and fighting a war hurts profits. I think eventually they'll all reach an uneasy truce, and life for normal Mexicans will slowly get back to normal, as it has been for decades. Another thing I've noticed is that the initial shock and awe of this crisis is starting to wear off. Yes, there are still horrible incidents still occurring all too frequently, but the normal Mexicans seem to be adjusting to it, "quietly stepping over all the dead bodies on their way to work". Most people are still very apprehensive about travel, but out of economic necessity many have started to return to their normal routines. They simply can't stay completely paralyzed forever. Life goes on. The peace and tranquility of this little island could be just what the doctor ordered for our friends south of the border.

Good Luck to all!

Sally B. @ Sunday, May 16, 2010 6:09 PM

With regards to the Shores, I have trouble swallowing the line: "...there are also many cases of success even in the recession, which is a testimony in itself of their value." Or the one: "... there are also many cases of success even in the recession, which is a testimony in itself of their value."

I fully agree that the developers who are building with their own money are in the best fiscal shape. That's a good point, and makes good sense. However, I seriously question the "value" of property in the Shores. That development is out there on the buggy and smelly edge of town, on the edge of civilization. In my opinion that development was never designed to attract tourists, but instead to attract permanent residents, or at least part year residents. That puts it in a class apart from the south end of the island, where the tourists flock. In my opinion the Shores would be best compared to Laguna Vista, or some other type of retirement community.

From what I can see, the Laugna Vista market is holding up fairly well in the face of the current recession, arguably doing a little better than last year. It's a relatively small market, but it does seem to be steady. The stable demand for retirement property could help explain any comparable success the Shores may be enjoying. That's just a theory I have, all other opinions are welcome.

I also really enjoyed the line: "When you join the Shores, you become part of the family." And the reference to the developers: "... who have strong local ties". Now what in the world would cause a broker to publicly proclaim such a fishy sounding relationship, when there are so many other developers begging for their clients? Statements like that from "the family" almost make it sound like the Franke brothers are some kind of island mafia!

OK, I apologize, I'm sure it's not that bad. But seriously, I think there's a possibility that the Franke brothers have better overall marketing than some of the other developers on the island. I can't put my finger on it, but good relationships with the local agents are key in this business, and the Frankes seem to be quite successful in this regard. Really, I have no clue as to what they're doing to achieve success, but it kind of makes me wonder sometimes. (Or perhaps something almost innocent like a steak dinner to any agent that shows their property? )

Or perhaps a better explanation for the Franke's success is that some of the other developers on this island have been so bad to the agents that ANY developer with a decent reputation is going to to attract the best agents on the island. Really, I don't have a clue as to what goes on behind the scenes, so don't ask me. I am however quite intrigued at the Franke Brother's unique ability to attract the island's best agents. (i.e., Alice and gang!)

Inex Fields @ Sunday, May 16, 2010 8:02 PM

Apparently "Birds of a feather still flock together". Maybe that's why the best agents want to do business with the best developers.

Beach Walker @ Tuesday, May 18, 2010 5:32 PM

The morning storms seem to have washed an unusually large amount of seaweed up onto the beaches. It's hard to deal in island property when the beach looks as bad as it does today. I can understand the island's current budget problems, and all the ecological arguments for not cleaning up the seaweed, but I think the fact remains that most tourists (and potential property owners) don't like seaweed on the beach.

In the interest of fairness, here is the counter argument:

http://www.spislandbreeze.com/articles/sea-9866-life-seaweed.html

@ Tuesday, May 18, 2010 6:58 PM

Spanish translator @ Thursday, May 20, 2010 6:16 AM

If you're interested in South Padre real estate, this article is sure to grab your attention:

http://www.oem.com.mx/elsoldetampico/notas/n1640715.htm

The key quote in that article:

"es probable que durante la temporada de huracanes -que inicia a partir del primero de junio, las corrientes comiencen a cambiar y ese derrame invada las costas mexicanas y, desde luego, el litoral tamaulipeco", sostuvo el director de Protección Civil en Madero, Roberto Chávez Ortega.

Here is how I translate that to English (let me know if anybody disagrees with my translation):

"It is probable that during the hurricane season, which starts June 1st, the (gulf) currents will start to change and the (oil) spillage will invade the Mexican coasts, and of course the coast of Tamaulipas", stated the director of Civil Protection in Beam, Roberto Chávez Ortega.

I'm really wondering why they would be making a statement like that. Is their prediction really based on solid science, or maybe they're just trying to divert attention from their current domestic problems? "Gringo Bashing" is also a common sport down there, but that's just my opinion.

However, if this Mexican Director of Civil Protection is correct in his prediction, one can only assume that will also have serious consequences for South Padre. Regardless of where that oil eventually ends up, let's hope they get that well capped soon!

economist @ Tuesday, May 25, 2010 11:21 PM

When trying to figure out which way the island real estate market is likely to move in the near future, we must consider the so called "wealth effect". In short, a standard rule-of-thumb among economists is that a one dollar increase in wealth leads to a permanent increase in consumption of between three and five cents. Unfortunately, the reverse situation also applies, as consumers are less likely to spend on discretionary items when their nest egg has been seriously damaged by the recent dramatic declines in the stock market.

It's clear that the island has relatively few full-time residents, which strongly suggests the island was built with mostly discretionary spending. If you've got extra cash and you want a fun investment, then you buy a south padre condo, and enjoy it, year after year. But, if you've been clobbered in the stock market, then you probably don't feel as at ease about spending serious money on such unnecessary luxuries as beachfront vacation condos.

I'm not sure of the exact statistic today, but the overall stock market is roughly 30% off its highs of less than two years ago, and about a third of that decline has occurred during the last month. Surely this large market decline must be negatively impacting the local island economy, but it's hard to say exactly how much.

Combined this "reverse wealth effect" with the Mexican drug war, and the island looks like it will get hit with a double-whammy this summer. The big oil spill is another wild card that is likely to keep a lot of buyers on the sidelines until there is some certainty that it will not impact the Texas coast. Investors hate uncertainty.

My guess is that island real estate prices will fall further, probably through at least this summer, maybe another 5 or 10%. The only positive trends I can see out there that would contradict that prediction is falling gas prices (which brings more traffic to the island), and a slowly improving domestic economy. My list of of negative factors impacting the market is however almost endless (i.e., don't forget the foreclosure mess), leading me to the conclusion that real estate prices on South Padre haven't hit bottom yet.

Fortunately capitalism is self-balancing. At some point island real estate prices will get so low that buyers will jump back in, and things will get back to normal. It's just a question of "when", not "if".

oil spill watcher @ Thursday, May 27, 2010 7:12 PM

Oh lookee, according to the latest NOAA map, that big oil spill may be making a gradual turn westward toward Texas:

http://response.restoration.noaa.gov/book_shelf/2074_SOFM72-2010-05-26-1800.pdf

NOAA is also now predicting an unusually busy hurricane season:

http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2010/20100527_hurricaneoutlook.html

So if we do have a few hurricanes in the Gulf this year, is that going to mix up all the oil and spread it further? Toward SPI? Hard to say, but a lot of people are rightfully scared. With all the uncertainty it's going to be extra hard to find new buyers for SPI property this year.

BP has already stated they will pay all "legitimate" claims associated with the oil spill, so maybe it's time for all you island real estate agents to get into the lawsuit queue. (Behind us investors!) Who knows, the federal government may even support your claims. Keep a good paper trail, documenting the falloff in business. It's worth a try.

Island Watcher @ Friday, May 28, 2010 5:20 AM

So where is our hero "Lawyer Larry" when we need him most? Hey Larry, just think, you could win the favor of Alice's Gorgeous Babes for suing the crap out of BP for the slowdown in the island real estate business.

http://scarboro.info/images/musclebeach.jpg

Photo Caption: "Larry, Larry, He's Our Man!"

I smell a big multi-million dollar class action lawsuit against BP with no advertising required - just your type of case, right Larry?

If some hurricane comes along and that oil really starts to threaten south padre then you can quickly buy up all that cheap beachfront property on the north end of the island REAL CHEAP, wait for the first tar ball to wash up, then sue BP for 3X what you paid for the property. (don't forget to add in your hourly legal fees) Wow, what a business opportunity for you! Wish I was a lawyer, and had all the babes crawling all over me for my services.....

business guy @ Sunday, May 30, 2010 11:02 AM

This morning I was reading about a huge new 800 person denim factory going up in Edinburg. That's big news for the valley, and signifies a 180 degree turnaround from just seven years ago when Fruit of the Loom shut down a 2000 worker sized factory in Harlingen and moved to Mexico. It's an amazing story, when you realize that business conditions in Mexico have become so horrible that it's actually makes better business sense to make labor intensive blue jeans NORTH of the border.

On the flip side, this is not good news for Mexico, which seems to be losing significant amounts of business and wealth, presumably due to all the recent violence. Unfortunately we depend on Mexican wealth to help support the South Padre real estate market. If the wealth of rich Mexicans is really evaporating, there is going to be a lot of empty condos on South Padre.

Bill @ Monday, June 07, 2010 6:41 AM

HOUSTON – An auction for a high rise condominium development in Galveston drew more than 600 people Sunday to the Omni Houston Hotel.

The developers of the Palisade Palms chose to auction 27 units and allow the buyers – not the sellers – to determine market value. Some units originally priced at $1.3 million were sold for less than $800,000.

The starting bids ranged from $125,000 to $375,000.

The condos are on Galveston’s East Beach, the same beach ravaged by Hurricane Ike and hammered by rising insurance costs.

"The market's slowed quite a bit,” said Rhett Winchell, the president of Kennedy Wilson Auction Group. “What the auction will do is focus the attention on your product. In this case, Palisade Palms."

The winning bidders considered their purchase an investment in the area’s rebirth.

"We think that it's a good buy, it's a beautiful property and Galveston is going to turn around,” said buyer Franklin Roth. He and his wife bought a higher-story condo for roughly $100,000 less than the original list price.

"We've been married 48 years, so it's very emotional," said Evelyn Roth, adding that they planned to share the second home with family.

Fence Sitter @ Thursday, June 17, 2010 6:38 AM

An investor told me the other day that he believed some of the properties on south padre are currently selling below their construction costs. Does anybody have an opinion on that? I have no doubt that many properties are selling at a loss (depending on when they were purchased), but the suggestion that you can't even build for what some of these properties are selling for has some serious implications for builders, or anybody who wants to build.

The term 'below cost" can be confusing, and needs some serious qualification. Just because a developer is selling at a price below what it cost him to build, does not necessarily mean that somebody else cannot build the same thing for less money in today's market. consider that land, material, and labor costs have come down considerably from the boom times of just a few years ago.

Another strange happening on south padre is small investors who buy a condo, then immediately put it on the market for higher price, hoping they'll get lucky. Some of these properties sit on the market for YEARS, because the sellers want above market prices. In the meantime they try to rent the properties to help pay the bills, and learn the hard way that seldom does rental income pay a fully leveraged property.

That leaves some serious buyers wondering what the heck is wrong with the sellers on this island, given that so many are not really interested in selling at market prices. In the meantime some realtors look through their rose colored glasses and interpret this as meaning that South padre has done well during this economic downturn, as "prices are holding up for the majority of properties on the market". But the actual SALES numbers paint a different picture, suggesting that property values have actually fallen considerably. It must be hard to be a realtor, dealing with sellers who have completely unrealistic expectations, and catering to a shrinking pool of buyers who who get lost in the huge maze and can't figure out if they're going to get a deal or actually catch a falling knife. I think the truth is that nobody will know for sure when the market has bottomed, until after it has already done so.

To me, it looks like this whole concept of putting property on the market at unrealistic prices, hoping to get lucky, contributes the the island's property glut. That doesn't help anybody. I think the greedy sellers figure "I'll just hang onto my beachfront condo until I can make a good profit". But that day never seems to comes, and a lot of these little guys lose their shirt in the process, trying to pay the bills until the market turns up.

So it looks like the island has two kinds of sellers: those that are motivated, and an unusually large pool of those who are not. I guess that's another good reason to use an experienced realtor, because they instinctively know a deal when they see it.

Gayle Hood, Realtor @ Thursday, June 17, 2010 2:24 PM

Dear Fence Sitter,

You are so right when you say "you can buy below cost" is a confusing comment. What was the cost of building 2 years ago is no longer the cost today simply because property values have dropped. It is true that sellers are taking losses but in most of those cases, they paid more in the beginning. If they were able to buy at today's prices for vacant lots they would be much better off.

The other consideration is the builder. He can make a world of difference in the total amount invested in your new construction.

You are also right about the two kinds of sellers. There are some that refuse to take that loss. They want to just put their home out there in hopes that someone just can't live without it at their price. They are all so sure that theirs is so unique. That does happen but not very often. There are too many choices out there today for buyers. If someone wants to just hang on until the market comes back one day, it would be best to keep it off the market until then. It makes their home look bad if they have been on the market for so many days. It also inflates our inventory. If there weren't so many choices, there might actually be a sense of urgency to buy so that someone else doesn't get that "good" deal. Then everyone's prices would level out when there is less to choose from on the market.

Being a Realtor is a rewarding job when you can help someone find their dream home and you are able to help them in ways they never knew existed. As far as the market goes, it is either a buyer's market or a seller's market but it is a "market." To a Realtor, you work the market for what it is at the time. You just try to provide the best service possible and stay abreast of all of the latest changes in the laws. Thank you for your confidence in Realtors.

Fence Sitter @ Friday, June 18, 2010 9:40 AM

Dear Gayle,

I laughed at your comment regarding sellers who think their property is so unique that it's worth holding out for an offer that never comes. I also agree that this kind of seller hurts his own prospects by helping to flood the market with overpriced properties. And a lot of realtors will probably take the listing, given that you can't get a home run if you don't get to bat, and they need the money.

On the other hand I can sort of rationalize such wishful sellers. The island IS a special place, no doubt about it. The vast majority of property owners believe this is their special place, and many think their property is worth more than it really is.

Another consideration is that a lot of buyers follow the market closely BEFORE they buy, but after they buy they don't spend as much time watching the market, and prefer to spend their time on the beach. So when it comes time to sell, a lot of these little guys really don't know what their property is worth, and selling at any price becomes more of an emotional issue. The sellers do however remember very well what they originally paid, and there is a natural human tendency not to take a loss (and want to make a profit)

Again, I would suggest potential buyers and sellers take the advice of an active and honest agent, given their objective opinion and experience. (The problem is that every agent seems to claim honesty and integrity, but you really don't know until after you've personally gone through a few closings with them, which takes time.)

I got a hypothetical question for you, and would appreciate an honest answer. Suppose an investor gave you a blank check for a million dollars to buy any island property, or combination of, that you think you could flip for a profit. It could be anything, an empty lot, townhouse, luxury condo, whatever. The only expectation is that after ALL expenses, you make the investor a clear profit of 1% for every month the money is locked up in the property. (When I say ALL expenses, I mean condo fees, taxes, insurance, sales commissions, utilities, maintenance, fix-up fees, special assessments, etc.)

Do you think you could do it? If you could profitably flip a few properties over a couple years you could have a good business, given the stock market returns in recent years. After suffering such a savage beating I bet there are a lot of stock market investors out there that would love to make an annual profit of somewhere in the area of 12%/year, with a solid property backing it.

So now let's say that you're up to the challenge, and the investor really believes you're not going to sell him an overpriced property and then head for the hills when it's time to sell it. What type of properties would you focus on? Foreclosures? Some other type of deeply distressed property? North tract swamp? I know you don't want to give away your secrets, but I would be curious as to where you would start the hunt. Successful flipping in today's market must be difficult.

I saw your investor's "buyer's club" mentioned on your web site, but few if any details (and no track record) to tempt serious investors.

Dealer Jack @ Tuesday, June 22, 2010 8:24 AM

Who's making decent money in the island real estate business, and exactly how are they doing it????? The self funded developers? SOMEBODY out there must have a good recipe.

I would LOVE to hear some good stories about how island investors are making money in this market. Somebody please inspire me...

Chris Palmeri @ Wednesday, June 23, 2010 3:38 PM

Interesting article from Business Week regarding current vacation property market:

http://www.businessweek.com/the_thread/hotproperty/archives/2009/05/a_look_at_the_v.html

some interesting quotes from the article:

" ...vacation-home sales dropped 30.8 percent to 512,000 last year from 740,000 in 2007."

" The median price of a vacation home was $150,000 in 2008, down 23.1 percent from $195,000 in 2007"

"Despite weakening second home purchases in 2008, the long-term demand looks favorable. "

Shelley K. Schwartz @ Thursday, June 24, 2010 6:12 AM

Here is a more current article, discussing the sea-side vacation home market in New Jersey. It's amazing how much this reminds me of the South Padre market:

http://www.builderonline.com/home-prices/vacation-home-market-priced-for-a-new-wave-of-sales.aspx

"In interviews, real estate agents gave a range of 10 percent to 20 percent when asked how much prices have declined from the market peak around 2006."

"Nationally, the sale of vacation homes plummeted during the recession. About 553,000 vacation homes were sold nationwide in 2009, up 7.9 percent from a year earlier -- but still far below the 1-million-plus sales of 2005 and 2006, according to the National Association of Realtors."

"...the properties that have held their value best are those closest to the water, and those closest to the big population centers of North Jersey and New York City. "

"I think people are still taking a wait-and-see attitude, hoping that prices will come down more"

"...many sellers still don't accept the reality that values have softened. "

.........................................................

Here is another dated, but fascinating article to help gain some perspective on the concept of the vacation home market:

http://www.cnbc.com/id/29553813/Vacation_Home_Still_Works_For_Some

Interesting quotes from the article:

"If your long-term financial plan includes the purchase of a second home, or vacation property, now may be the time to make your move."

"Those who buy vacation homes overwhelmingly do so for personal enjoyment, rather than investment potential."

"The long-term underlying demand is favorable for vacation homes because of the large number of middle-age, middle income Americans [who are the primary buyers of such properties],” says Molony. “In recent years, this market has been driven by the baby boomers, but there are two even larger population groups coming up right behind them. Those younger segments will continue to fuel this market for the next 10 years.”

.............................................

Are there any South Padre real estate agents out there that can relate well to the above statements? (I bet there are!)

My own conclusion is that if you're a short term investor hoping to make a fast buck, this probably isn't a good time to get into the market. However, if you've got a long term perspective and would like to enjoy your island property while the world slowly crawls out of this recession, now could be a VERY good time to buy.

It's hard to accurately characterize the overall health of the island property market, because there are so many overpriced "dead" properties on the market. MLS says there are now 650 island properties on the market, a number which has been increasing in recent months. Last month, during a usually busy summer sales season, only 21 island properties sold, suggesting a 2.6 year supply. But that's not really correct, given that the supply of properties "priced to sell" is actually considerably smaller. The glut of overpriced properties on the market really distorts the true picture, and frustrates serious market participants.

cell phone Angel @ Sunday, July 11, 2010 10:12 PM

Has anybody seen many potential buyers de Monterrey since the hurricane hit their city? That city was hit very hard, destroying a lot of roads. I don't see any good news on the horizon to help this property market. I do however believe that the market has been beaten down so far that just having a lack of bad news (at some point in the future) will be all it takes for us to see things quickly improve. It will happen fast, with no warning, but who knows when. Investors haven't made any money in the stock market for the last ten years, so what other choice do they have?

Maria @ Monday, July 26, 2010 2:51 PM

-ORACIÓN POR MONTERREY
Hagamos una cadena de oración todos los días

a las diez de la noche cuando ya todo está tranquilo,
al menos en la casa, pidamos por la misericordia de Dios a esta ciudad.
Señor Padre misericordioso, Amoroso Padre celestial,
danos una ciudad llena de paz, esa paz que solo tú puedes darnos,

esa paz que sobrepasa todo entendimiento.
Cambia Señor los corazones de toda esa gente que nos ha quitado nuestra tranquilidad,
dales Señor la paz que necesitan.
Señor danos una ciudad llena de amor, llena de alegría,

declaramos Señor que tus promesas no son en vano,
que creemos en ti y en todo lo que te pedimos en nombre de tu hijo amado Jesucristo nos será concedido.
Líbranos Señor de estar en el lugar equivocado cuando algo malo suceda,
que nuestras familias estén perfectamente resguardadas bajo tu santísima protección.
Padre Santo escucha nuestras súplicas, somos tus hijos y tú eres nuestro padre amoroso,
Señor declaramos que Monterrey y todo México será libre de toda esta gente que nos ha venido a quitar nuestra paz,

porque Tú, Señor, les darás nuevos horizontes para tu eterna honra y gloria.

Te lo pedimos en el nombre de tu siempre amado hijo Jesucristo.
Amén

PEDRO G. @ Sunday, August 01, 2010 12:49 PM

It's sad to see that all the violence in Mexico is convincing a lot of Mexicans to move north of the border, at least temporarily. It's even more interesting to see where in the USA they are deciding to relocate:

http://www.themonitor.com/articles/north-41360-crime-official.html

So why are so many Mexicans settling in places like the nice Sharyland area around Mission, instead of the much more beautiful town of South Padre? I noticed the article above mentioned a lot of renters, suggesting that a lot of displaced Mexicans are hoping to move back to Mexico when the violence eventually subsides.

Through the eyes of many outsiders South Padre looks more like a tourist resort, instead of a good place to live. Let's face it, the nearest school is in Port Isabel, and the nearest hospitals are are in Brownsville and Harlingen. The vast majority of condos on the island also have inadequate closet space for anything more than a week's vacation. I think Mexicans are also very social people by nature, and aside from the snowbirds there are not enough fellow Mexicans here during the off season (which is most of the year) for them to feel comfortable about living here.

As islanders, should we focus on doing whatever it takes to turn this island into a place that more people would consider living year round? Or should we continue to cater to the short and profitable tourist season and enjoy the peace and quiet when the crowds start to leave in late August? It's a very personal question, with no clear answers.

A couple weeks ago I was talking to a older native Texan that refuses to visit the island anymore because most of the beachfront property he used to enjoy has been monopolized by big high rises catering to affluent second homeowners. Gone are the days when you could "easily" access the better sections of the beach, and the whole island was a lot more inviting. (Or so he believes.) Nowadays it's hard for visitors to even park near a beach access on a busy weekend without getting a ticket. The island simply has too many vacant condos (owned by out-of-towners) which clutter the island and discourage future property owners from visiting. The public beaches are also thoroughly abused by local valley residents, making the uninviting situation even worse. If you really desire a short, clean and comfortable visit to the island you'll probably have to pay for an expensive beachfront hotel, or commit to a 3 night minimum beachfront condo rental. The days of a quiet picnic visit to the beach are gone, unless you care to brave one of the public parks. Personally I think they should have prohibited all development on the east side of Gulf Blvd., but the damage has already been done. All we can do now is focus on improving what we already have. (no, I'm not running for political office)

I often wonder what it would take to turn the island into a "nice year-round place to live", beyond the current status as a "great place to visit". Any transformation would be slow at best, and require a great deal of planning, vision, and determination. Catering more to the retirement crowd might be a place to start, convincing the snowbirds that South Padre has a lot more to offer than just a place to hide from the frigid northern winters. I don't however see how you can do that without a nearby hospital, and I don't see how you can build a hospital without many more full time residents. It's one of those "chicken or the egg first" scenarios. If we could somehow find the money to build a small hospital in Port Isabel, I bet property values in the entire area would rise rather quickly. Building a hospital is however a tough proposition anywhere in the valley, given the crowds of unprofitable medicaid patients that flood all valley hospitals. The island is in such close proximity to one of the poorest areas of the country (the lower valley), that there always be serious challenges to enhancing economic prosperity for islanders. It's WONDERFUL to see some $500K + condos being built, but most of these are not occupied by the type of full time residents needed to lure more basic services to the area. The University of Texas has a major medical branch on Galveston, Aransas Pass has their own hospital, Corpus has plenty of hospitals - but if you acquire a medical condition any more serious than sunburn on South Padre you're out of luck. (And heaven help you if you have a heart attack!)

A lot of realtors would prefer us all to focus on the relatively low property prices on South Padre, but the truth is there are darn good reasons for these low prices. I think another reason for all the property bargains is that we're literally "at the end of the road", in a rather inconvenient location in the corner of the state. You could argue that peace and serenity are what makes the island such a nice vacation get-away, but without more basic (and necessary) services there is a limit to how much the island can prosper.

To me this looks like a serious challenge for our politicians. If one of you guys could figure out how to build a hospital in Port Isabel with a 24 hour emergency room, we'll happily name the hospital after you AND put a bronze statue of you in front of it!

Alligator hater @ Thursday, August 12, 2010 4:00 PM

I definitely DON'T want to become part of the Franke brothers family. I very much admire their many past development successes on the island, but I simply don't trust them. "The Shores" is one of the most creative developments I have ever seen. I'm not sure, but I think they carved the section west of the highway out of swamp land. Sometimes that general area doesn't smell very good when you drive by. Just to the south you've got that swamp by the convention center with a couple of free roaming ALLIGATORS. The island sewage plant is not far away (yukk!), and an electrical plant that crackles with that moist seawater air. I'm not sure, but it looks like much of the Shores "marina" was unnaturally dredged, like the Frankes were trying to cheaply create some expensive waterfront property. (I wonder how deep? Who pays for periodic dredging?) But they cheaped out. Instead of connecting those islands with over-water bridges, the Frankes used land bridges which contribute to making the inland water stagnant. (last time I looked) Also, one problem with building in a swamp is it tends to severely flood during tropical weather incidents. But oh, the Frankes have that one all figured out. For a while they were openly advertising state of the art "break-away" walls, so the rest of the house could be salvaged after hurricane! Gee, what a neat feature for my next vacation home! Break away walls instead of building on stilts - what a concept! The Frankes seem to want total control over this development. They ask for almost a million bucks for a 55 foot waterfront lot, but even that price doesn't entitle you to build whatever you want, you have to use THEIR plans and THEIR builders. Then they twist your arm into using THEIR financing, on some lots that are only 35 foot wide. Developing the beach east of the highway was probably marketing genius, but trying to turn the other side into some kind of resort by paving the swamp with red bricks is probably beyond even the Franke brother's ability.

I've seen some overly aggressive, poorly designed projects like this fail before. In the end the developer caves in to financial pressure, building restrictions are voided to liquidate unsold lots, and the whole development loses its intended character - screwing the first property owners to build there. In truth nobody really knows what will happen to The Shores, but in my opinion, this place doesn't look like it can stay above water for very long- especially in this economy.

If I were the Frankes I would immediately slash prices, and liquidate all remaining lots ASAP, while there is still a chance.

You must be logged in to post a comment. You can login here