Large law enforcement presence in Charlotte CountyU.S. 41 northbound bridge into Port Charlotte closed
Large law enforcement presence in Charlotte County There is a large law enforcement presence in Charlotte County on Sunday afternoon.
U.S. 41 northbound bridge into Port Charlotte closed According to the Punta Gorda Police Department, the northbound bridge of U.S. 41 into Port Charlotte is closed.
FORT MYERS Crash on Daniels Parkway leaves 1 injured, FHP investigating The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating a crash involving two vehicles that has left at least one person injured in Fort Myers.
FORT MYERS Reckless driver arrested twice in 10 days in Fort Myers A Fort Myers man with a revoked license was arrested twice within 10 days for driving violations.
WINK Neighborhood Watch: Deadly shooter, home invasion and drug trafficking This week’s segment of WINK Neighborhood Watch features deadly shootings, home invasions and drug trafficking.
FORT MYERS Pedestrian dead after crash on McGregor Boulevard The Fort Myers Police Department is investigating a crash that left at least one person dead Saturday night.
Sunday brings sun and clouds with chance for a stray shower The Weather Authority forecasts another seasonal day across Southwest Florida, with temperatures reaching the upper 70s to low 80s this afternoon.
Family of Eagles: FGCU volleyball star graduates with Master’s Degree Saturday marked a special day for Florida Gulf Coast University as more than 1,800 students graduated. For one student-athlete, graduating from FGCU runs in the family.
lehigh acres LCSO: Man shot by car owner protecting property The Lee County Sheriff’s Office responded to a shooting in Lehigh Acres early Saturday morning.
NORTH FORT MYERS Lee County residents wait hours for D-SNAP assistance The supplemental nutrition assistance program (SNAP) is at the Lee Civic Center all weekend, ready to help southwest Florida.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA First eaglet hatches in famous SWFL eagle nest Welcome E24! The third eaglet from the nest of M15 and F23 has hatched according to the Southwest Florida eagle camera.
Rock for Equality: SWFL non-profit hosts benefit concert for Palestine A Southwest Florida non-profit hosted a benefit concert on Friday night to help with humanitarian aid in Palestine.
Warm, breezy Saturday with a few showers possible The Weather Authority is forecasting a breezy, warm weekend in store across Southwest Florida, with the chance of a few showers, particularly on Saturday.
CAPE CORAL Active investigation underway in South Cape Coral Cape Coral police are investigating at a home on Southwest 49th Terrace in South Cape Coral early Saturday morning.
16 transported after 2 airboats crash in Collier County According to the Collier County Sheriff’s Office, two airboats crashed south of U.S. 41 east between mile markers 74 and 75, leaving well over a dozen people injured.
Large law enforcement presence in Charlotte County There is a large law enforcement presence in Charlotte County on Sunday afternoon.
U.S. 41 northbound bridge into Port Charlotte closed According to the Punta Gorda Police Department, the northbound bridge of U.S. 41 into Port Charlotte is closed.
FORT MYERS Crash on Daniels Parkway leaves 1 injured, FHP investigating The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating a crash involving two vehicles that has left at least one person injured in Fort Myers.
FORT MYERS Reckless driver arrested twice in 10 days in Fort Myers A Fort Myers man with a revoked license was arrested twice within 10 days for driving violations.
WINK Neighborhood Watch: Deadly shooter, home invasion and drug trafficking This week’s segment of WINK Neighborhood Watch features deadly shootings, home invasions and drug trafficking.
FORT MYERS Pedestrian dead after crash on McGregor Boulevard The Fort Myers Police Department is investigating a crash that left at least one person dead Saturday night.
Sunday brings sun and clouds with chance for a stray shower The Weather Authority forecasts another seasonal day across Southwest Florida, with temperatures reaching the upper 70s to low 80s this afternoon.
Family of Eagles: FGCU volleyball star graduates with Master’s Degree Saturday marked a special day for Florida Gulf Coast University as more than 1,800 students graduated. For one student-athlete, graduating from FGCU runs in the family.
lehigh acres LCSO: Man shot by car owner protecting property The Lee County Sheriff’s Office responded to a shooting in Lehigh Acres early Saturday morning.
NORTH FORT MYERS Lee County residents wait hours for D-SNAP assistance The supplemental nutrition assistance program (SNAP) is at the Lee Civic Center all weekend, ready to help southwest Florida.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA First eaglet hatches in famous SWFL eagle nest Welcome E24! The third eaglet from the nest of M15 and F23 has hatched according to the Southwest Florida eagle camera.
Rock for Equality: SWFL non-profit hosts benefit concert for Palestine A Southwest Florida non-profit hosted a benefit concert on Friday night to help with humanitarian aid in Palestine.
Warm, breezy Saturday with a few showers possible The Weather Authority is forecasting a breezy, warm weekend in store across Southwest Florida, with the chance of a few showers, particularly on Saturday.
CAPE CORAL Active investigation underway in South Cape Coral Cape Coral police are investigating at a home on Southwest 49th Terrace in South Cape Coral early Saturday morning.
16 transported after 2 airboats crash in Collier County According to the Collier County Sheriff’s Office, two airboats crashed south of U.S. 41 east between mile markers 74 and 75, leaving well over a dozen people injured.
Federal Reserve raises interest rates. Photo via WINK News. The Federal Reserve’s decision to increase interest rates will hit a lot of the ways you borrow money, including mortgages. In fact, mortgages are already at the highest rate since 2009. When you combine soaring housing prices with high mortgages and an increased interest rate, homes get even more expensive. When the rates increase on a federal level, it affects interest rates on any type of loan. In Florida’s hot market, buyers battle the power of inflation on food, gas and the price tag on homes. “I’m talking to people a lot about separating their needs versus their wants, and being very, very careful about what goes on the needs list,” said Scott DiGregorio, producing branch manager with NEO Home Loans Team DiGregorio. DiGregorio said buyers will have to make more room for an increased mortgage rate. The Federal Reserve raised the federal funds rate by half a percentage point. The highest in 22 years. While that means lower costs in some areas, it also equates to higher interest rates for home loans. The 30-year fixed mortgage rate averaged 5.27% in the week ending May 5. That is up from 5.10%, the week before, what difference does that make? “That’s about $50 a month on average home price here. So that’s not too big of a deal. The bigger piece of that, in my opinion, is that in the last 60 or 75 days, interest rates have gone up to full percentage points. And that’s hundreds and hundreds of dollars per month. And that is a definite factor into people’s budgets,” said DiGregorio. Laura Ray, the CFO of Liberty Mortgage Lending Group said the impact goes beyond that. “The employment the income has not really met yet, with inflation, it hasn’t really met yet with rental prices. So this is a very precarious position for a lot of people locally in lee county. I don’t know where they’re going,” said Ray. “Every time we were in a massive period of inflation, the fed’s actions to curb the inflation every single time put us into a recession,” DiGregorio said. Lender Freddie Mac predicts house prices will continue to grow for now but will lower in the coming months. 2.96% was the average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage at this time last year. It has nearly doubled this year.