ST Rental in FL...sell or hold? Names of sites w projected RE growth in areas?

[Dawn B.]

Hi all, 

I am looking for advice from those of you with more experience than myself.

Does anyone have recommendations for websites that show predicted real estate prices over the next year or so? I've been getting conflicting information. I'm able to find it for some cities on Realtor.com but not others.

I have a ST Rental on Siesta Key in Florida.  The lanai was blown off during the hurricane. It will likely be 6-9 months before I can get the lanai replaced, or I can pay a company that is price gouging (per my insurance agent) and get it done in about 3 months. It will cost me about 8 K after insurance payout, about 4K more than other companies. I will likely move forward since it will likely rent better/more often with the lanai. Any thoughts on that are welcome!

Some repeat renters are asking for discounted rates of 20-25% due to the lack of a lanai and # of rentals are down from last year but I was told it is that way across the board now that Covid has settled down.

My insurance agent insurance said rates will go up quite a bit this year.  Right now I am paying almost 9k/year for a 1/1 at a community on the beach side. Usually the place makes a decent profit. This year, I MAY lose money due to fewer rentals, insurance increases and the lanai replacement. The expected property values over the next year are going up per some sites and down per others. I would love some recommendations for sites to check to determine if prices are expected to go up or down over the next year or two. 

I am considering selling and purchasing a property in CO or WI to do MTR or LTR but with rates so high, I'm not sure that makes sense. The areas I am looking are highly competitive per Redfin. Perhaps it would make sense to hold it until the lanai is replaced and values go up a bit. It is showing that it is a strong buyers vs sellers market in Siesta Key per Rocket Homes & Realtor.com. That makes me think I should consider holding onto it until it is more of an equal or seller's market.

I've looked at a few sites and one says values will go down 10% and others say they will grow by 8%. Realtor.com says that Siesta Key is in a "buyers market" right now and that prices are trending down -8.6% year-over-year. For that reason, should I hold off selling if I can afford to take a loss for a year?

I am considering selling in order to purchase a different property without sky high insurance costs. I can also manage a medium term or LT rental myself without the fees...assuming I can find one. The areas I am looking are highly competitive. When I look at less competitive areas, it looks like prices are stagnant and properties are much older which has its own set of issues.

What would some of you more seasoned investors consider or recommend and why?

Thanks for your consideration!