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Floridians selling gutted homes after storm damage from Hurricanes Helene, Miltoon

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Published  October 31, 2024 9:18pm EDT
Pinellas County
FOX 13 News

Rebuilding after the hurricanes

Evyn Moon reports

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Homeowners are listing their storm-damaged properties before renovating, dodging a painful rebuild, but losing hundreds of thousands in value.

Ken Sulewski has lived in Redington Beach for 27 years and saw more than four feet of storm surge into his home during Helene. Now, he’s selling it gutted. 

"We've never flooded before, but don’t want it to happen again. I don’t want to go through the expense of building up on my own, so I figured let’s get out and start fresh and new," said Sulewski. 

READ: St. Pete Beach slowly returns to normal after back-to-back hurricanes

He said he listed his home for "$375,000 less" than its pre-storm value. He hopes, despite the work it needs now, they will find a buyer that will love the location, and elevate it. 

"I think the view is a selling point for the house," Sulewski said as he pointed to his pool on the water. 

His neighbor is also selling her flooded home "as is" – no repairs. 

"I’m alone, and I’m 80 [years old], and it's a hard road to navigate, with the insurance, the contractors, who’s legal, who’s not and now with FEMA, and everyone telling us what we can’t do and can do… it will take years," said Charlotte Martin in Redington Beach. 

MORE: Meet the bus drivers who shuttled people to safety before storms

She said she's getting out of Florida after experiencing damage from the hurricanes.

"I'm leaving Florida. I don’t want to, because I don’t like winters, but you can't have everything. I had 50 good years of sunshine and beaches, but I'm done with the flooding," Martin said. 

A Redington Beach realtor has seen dozens of homes listed this way and is trying to help her clients get what it’s still worth. 

"People are nervous about what their properties are worth, but believe it or not, their lot value is worth a lot of money, so take that into consideration before selling it at a moment’s notice… the property is worth a lot and the structure is worth money as well," said Connie Redman, a realtor with Coastal Property Group, who is selling Ken Sulewski's home.

She recommended people get a licensed realtor to help, so that what was once someone’s slice of paradise can be transformed into another person’s dream home and location. 

"I love all the people selling, they’re all great, but everybody has to do what they’ve got to do," Redman said. 

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