Entries by Toby Tobin

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Flagler County Residential Development Map

September 8, 2025 – PALM COAST, Fla. – Flagler County is experiencing significant residential development, and understanding where growth is occurring is essential for residents and potential homebuyers. Questions often arise, such as the location of new communities like Veranda Bay, the number of homes in established neighborhoods such as Grand Haven, and where apartments […]

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Does Growth Pay for Itself? Rethinking the Question

Understanding the Cost of Growth September 5, 2025 – PALM COAST, Fla. – The question “Does growth pay for itself?” is often asked as communities expand. Providing more public services for a growing population brings significant expenses. Yet, even in the absence of growth, the costs to maintain infrastructure—roads, utilities, parks, fire and police departments, […]

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August 2024 Housing Market Wrap-up for Flagler/Palm Coast

PALM COAST, Fla. – September 11, 2024 – The August 2024 housing market wrap-up for Flagler/Palm Coast is here. It is a year-over-year comparison of housing market statistics for August and YTD. The interactive map shows the location, sale date, selling price, price per square foot, and living square feet for all August single-family Flagler […]

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Why Do People Bitch about Florida Property Taxes?

PALM COAST, Fla. – August 16, 2024 – People bitch about Florida property taxes during the public comment period of city council meetings or county commission meetings. They bitch about Florida property taxes when commenting on articles found on local online media outlets. They bitch about Florida property taxes at happy hour. And they bitch […]

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The Case for Florida’s Growth Is Incontrovertible

The argument supporting continuing growth in Florida is incontrovertible. The longer a person resides in Florida, the more their fair share of the cost of government is borne by their newly arrived neighbors. Florida’s Homestead Exemption and accompanying Save Our Homes cap on assessed property value increases are, by far, the most effective method of […]

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The New Go-To State. Florida is the New California

PALM COAST, FL – July 25, 2023 – In the second half of the last century, the population of California more than tripled from 10 million to 34 million people. Its population is now declining. After Covid shutdowns, George Floyd riots, and increasing crime and homelessness elsewhere, Florida is the new California in terms of […]

June 2023 Real Estate Update – Flagler and Palm Coast

PALM COAST, FL – July 12, 2023 – The June 2023 real estate update shows robust home sales. Median prices remain in the narrow band between $360,000 and $377,000. This range has held for the entire first half of 2023.  307 single-family homes were reported sold via the Flagler County MLS, up from 260 in […]