Gulf Coast mines advantage from downturn

Tourism officials in four Gulf Coast cities, ones especially slammed by the recession, can finally put the housing downturn to good use.

The cities — Fort Myers, Naples, Sarasota and Venice — are four of 10 towns on a nationwide list of the best retirement places published by
www.topretirements.com, a popular seniors blog. Each city was specifically praised for its home prices.

Even Naples, costly by comparison, received a shout out. States the report: “Home prices are higher than the national average (at about $250,000), although they cost about half what they did five years ago.”

The report used 12 criteria points to score the cities, from climate and crime rates to housing prices and wow factor. It ranked Sarasota No. 1 in the country. After home prices, it referred retirees to Sarasota's “low property taxes,” a byproduct of the housing downturn. It also cited the city's cultural offerings.

Naples was ranked third, while Fort Myers was eighth and Venice was ninth. Just like Sarasota, the arts, culture and proximity to the beach are a big piece of the allure factor for those cities, according to the website.