Destin & South Walton Real Estate Blog

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For over 33 years Ocean Reef has represented private vacation rental properties including beachfront mansions, cozy cottages and luxury gulf front condominiums along the Emerald Coast. Many Ocean Reef guests fall in love with our special piece of paradise and often decide to purchase real estate here in this part of Northwest Florida. Considering buying property?  Here are 5 Vacation Home Buying Tips that will help you when you decide to “take the plunge!”


Tip 1. Location, Location, Location

You’ve heard this before since it always applies to the purchase of a primary residence- but did you know it also applies to vacation homes? A majority of those who purchase a vacation home plan to utilize it primarily for their own personal use. The first…

For over thirty three years Ocean Reef Resorts has represented private vacation rental properties in Destin and all along the Emerald Coast of Northwest Florida. Many Ocean Reef guests fall in love with this area and desire to purchase property here so we offer professional Real Estate Consulting Services. This dove tails seamlessly with the rental operations side of the business since many buyers are interested in rental investment properties. In a new nationwide poll published this week on floridarealtors.org, eight out of every ten buyers in Florida factor potential income into their decision to buy property. Such income helps offset mortgage payments, property taxes, insurance cost, maintenance and HOA fees. Ocean Reef has decades of vacation rental…

Located at 140 Charles Street, this regal residence known as “Aspri Villa” and is priced at $7,950,000, which currently makes it the most expensive home for sale in all of South Walton. There are justifiable good reasons for this, which includes its splendid premier location off Scenic 30A, its unique design and the fact that it looks like the kind of place that is featured on the latest cover of Architectural Digest. The Northwest Florida estate is located in one of America’s most prestigious residential beach communities, Alys Beach. This carefully crafted development is reminiscent of bright white sun splashed villages you might see in Greece along the Mediterranean, however here it sits beside the jewel toned waters of the glistening Gulf of Mexico.…

An exciting new Destin development is underway at what will soon become a very prestigious address at 1900 98. That’s Scenic Highway 98 by the way which is located at the original route’s Emerald Coast Parkway turnoff just west of Henderson Beach State Park in Destin. This awesome location sits beachfront on the sparkling crystal white sand overlooking the emerald hued waters for which Northwest Florida has become famous. Privileged residents will find themselves only minutes away from popular beachfront restaurants, Harborwalk Village, the Destin Marina, Destin Commons and several award winning championship golf courses.

1900 98 Destin

1900 98 is a residential condominium community that will offer only sixteen units, making it highly exclusive. Two of these…

The historic Clary Mansion is located on a gentle bluff overlooking the water in the prestigious established Destin neighborhood of Indian Bayou. The estate is available for the first time and being offered for sale from the original family. This stately southern home has five bedrooms and five baths and is meticulously styled with a beautifully classic antebellum look. The gated estate encompasses true gracious elegance and sits in serene privacy on over three acres of landscaped grounds. Comprising 7,613 square feet this home actually has 8,500 square feet under roof since it has columned covered porches and an indoor swimming pool. The Clary Mansion is located with 300 linear feet of frontage on Joe’s Bayou with a long dock that leads out to a covered…

As far as residential real estate in Destin is concerned, the crème de la crème is always right on the beach. These stunning homes are in the very best neighborhoods and are usually quite large. Located at 3476 Scenic Highway 98 is a nearly complete magnificent Tuscan styled villa that scores on all three. This beachfront estate is appropriately named “Rendezvous” since it was designed to accommodate up to twenty fortunate guests with nearly 7,000 square feet of space, 7 bedrooms and 8 baths. Being this home also comes with multiple large balconies there is actually 8,799 square feet of space under roof. This brand new three story beachfront home is located in the highly prestigious and sought after exclusive neighborhood of Destiny Shores overlooking the…

Seacrest Beach North, often refered to simply as Seacrest Beach, is a fairly new residential community located on the far eastern side of South Walton’s Scenic 30A. Development began in 1996 with an eye toward laid-back coastal living at its best. In the center of Seacrest, the road is lined with palms and lifeguard towers at each end bids welcome to visitors with a sign reading “Seacrest Beach”. The glistening gulf which it borders can be seen easily since this town sits on the crest of a dune. The architecture varies between charming Old Florida styled designs with warp around porches and breezy balconies as well as European styles, Mediterranean and modern contemporary condominiums. A jungle of palm trees and other tropical plantings accentuate the…

If you are searching for a spacious wonderful family townhome on the beach that may also be used as a great investment rental property then you should definitely take a tour of this property for sale. Seawinds 4 (1577 Scenic Gulf Dr #4) is a completely furnished charming three story Destin townhome with four bedrooms and three full bathrooms and sits beachfront with sunny views of the glistening emerald hued gulf. These beach views may be seen from each of three levels from an open partially covered deck with a porch swing and outdoor dining tables on the first floor along with additional balconies above.

1577 Scenic Gulf Dr

On the first floor of Seawinds 4 there are two large bedrooms with comfortable king sized beds and one of these rooms also comes with a nice…

Welcome to your opportunity to own a spacious spectacular three bedroom luxury condominium in one of the towers of Harbor Landing on Holiday Isle in Destin! Harbor Landing is one of the newest high-rise towers constructed on this awesome property that is located in one of the most prestigious neighborhoods along the gulf. The regal complex itself has its own boat docks, a full state of the art fitness center and views of the gulf, the bustling Destin Marina as well as East Pass. The spectacular architecture of the buildings gives Harbor Landing a decidedly upscale presentation. A tropical oasis beside the towers is centered by a long sparkling swimming pool that is flanked on each side by big bubbling hot tubs to help sooth your cares away. Trickling…

According to a recent article published in The Wall Street Journal the trend toward bigger and bigger homes seems to have leveled off, although home sizes are still near an all-time peak at 2,491 square feet. In 2003 the average size of a home built in the United States was a little over 2,000 square feet in size. The national trend is expected to decrease in size as a large amount of first time home buyers enter the market for the first time in years. Many factors have limited buyers of this type of real estate from the market but now that things are turning around and there is quite a bit of pent up demand. House size is expected to decrease in the amount of square footage offered since affordability is a concern and a reality for most first time home…