Local housing market may be making turn around

Lee County - The housing market. It's been a dirty word in Southwest Florida as the insatiable appetite for real estate hits starvation mode. But new information looks like our hunger maybe starting to re-emerge.
"It's always on your mind. Is it going to sell and when is it going to sell?" said Rache'l Hilsmann.
They're questions that Hilsmann hopes to soon get answers to. She and her husband bought a condo as an investment more than two years ago. $30,000 in upgrades later, still no luck with selling it.
"We originally started at about $315,000 and this is the 3rd time we've had it in the market and we're now at $199,900," said Hilsmann.
New real estate data is now giving Hilsmann more hope. Numbers from the Realtor Association show that the percent of sold to active listings in the greater Fort Myers area, has nearly doubled in the past 12 weeks. And buyers are getting some pretty good deals.
"A couple years ago, It was up to $200 a square foot. I just saw something today that was $63 a square foot," said realtor, Jen Buffington.
Some agents also say they're seeing three bedroom, two bath houses under $200,000.
And while Hilsmann doesn't want to drop her price any more, she's hopeful that buyers will keep right on buying.
"We're seeing a lot more activity. We've had 3 showings this week, which is encouraging," said Hilsmann.
Experts say could still take a while before the market completely recovers, but it does look like a step in the right direction.