Katie Ragland, REAL Broker LLC

Katie Ragland, REAL Broker LLC 🏖 AL & FL Gulf Coast Realtor | Real Broker, LLC
🔑 First Time Homebuyers | Military Relocation
đź’› Buy & Sell with care, trust & heart

Four Gulf Coast moments worth showing up for this month.Venture Out at Gulf State Park is the one I'm most excited about...
05/13/2026

Four Gulf Coast moments worth showing up for this month.

Venture Out at Gulf State Park is the one I'm most excited about — three days of bike rides, nature walks, and a BioBlitz on the iNaturalist app (same energy as the Merlin bird app, if you remember that one). First time the park has ever done this. May 15–17.

Pickles & Wings in Pensacola on the 16th — a reminder for the calendar.

And one quieter one — Explore and Observe the Preserve at Graham Creek in Foley, also on the 16th. Free, every third Saturday, nature-themed story at 9 AM followed by a hands-on activity in the outdoor classroom. The kind of recurring program locals find out about by word of mouth and then realize has been running for years.

S'mores on the Shore on the 21st is the kind of free, low-stakes evening that locals already know is the best version of a weeknight on the coast.

Swipe through, save it, share it with the friend who never picks the something.

Katie Ragland | REAL Broker, LLC

05/13/2026

Most people move to the Alabama Gulf Coast for the Gulf. White sand. Green water. Sunsets you feel in your soul.

And then they get here, and they find out about the rest of it.

The Gulf — still the reason most people come.

Little Lagoon — protected, glassy, the kind of water you put a kid in a kayak on for the first time.

The Bays — Wolf Bay, Perdido Bay, Mobile Bay, Weeks Bay, Bon Secour Bay. Wide open, breezy, built for sunsets.

The Bayous — Cotton Bayou and Bayou St. John, where the dolphins cruise in summer and the herons fish at first light.

The Rivers and Creeks — Magnolia, Perdido, Fish, Bon Secour, Wolf, Sandy, and a dozen more. Tea-colored from cypress tannins, shaded, quiet, the version of the coast that doesn’t show up on a postcard.

That’s five distinct kinds of water. Many within 30 minutes of each other. All from one front door.

You don’t have to pick one. That’s the beauty of living here!

Save this for the person who keeps saying “someday.” Their someday might be wider than they think.

Katie Ragland | Real Broker, LLC
linktr.ee/katieraglandrealtor

Real estate fraud just hit a record. The FBI's most recent report tracked $275 million stolen from over 12,000 victims i...
05/07/2026

Real estate fraud just hit a record. The FBI's most recent report tracked $275 million stolen from over 12,000 victims in 2025 alone — up from $173M the year before.

The most common target isn't the buyer or the agent. It's the property owner who lives elsewhere. Vacant land. Absentee-owned second homes. Properties that don't get checked on regularly.

Scammers impersonate the real owner. They contact agents claiming to want a quick cash sale. They forge documents. Wire instructions get spoofed. The owner finds out months later — sometimes after the property has technically changed hands.

If you own Gulf Coast property and live somewhere else, save this. Five practical steps to protect yourself in the slides above.

This isn't fearmongering — it's awareness. The market is good. The fraudsters are getting better. Both can be true.

Save this — and send to anyone you know who owns Gulf Coast property, especially if they live somewhere else.

Katie Ragland | Real Broker, LLC

05/06/2026

A $350 million Margaritaville resort is being built across from The Wharf in Orange Beach — and it just got bigger.

The project is called The Wharf Landing. It spans more than 80 acres along the Intracoastal Waterway, directly across from The Wharf retail and entertainment district. Phase one is already under construction — a condo complex and bungalows. The latest filing seeks rezoning for 142 new residential lots with houses ranging from 2 to 5 bedrooms.

When complete by end of 2027:
• ~300 units (condos, resort cottages, waterfront villas)
• 7 restaurants — including Nautical Wheeler and Frankie & Lola's Pizza
• 7-acre amenity deck with lazy rivers, water slides, multiple pools, swim-up bar
• 43-slip marina with the 5 O'Clock Somewhere waterfront bar
• Ferry connecting directly to The Wharf

A second project is also in front of Orange Beach — a Pirate Voyage Dinner Theater on 24 acres along Hwy 161, proposed by the same group behind Dolly Parton's Stampede in Pigeon Forge. Some residents have raised concerns about traffic on Orange Beach Blvd. The city scheduled a town hall for May 6 at the Performing Arts Center to hear questions before the planning commission takes it up. I’m curious to hear how residents feel about this, but I also want to urge people with questions or concerns to show up for these town hall meetings and speak out. That’s how change happens….in either direction.

If you own property nearby, vacation here, or are watching from somewhere else — these are two of the biggest decisions on the Orange Beach calendar right now.

Save this — and read the full breakdown on my blog. Link in my Linktree.

Katie Ragland | Real Broker, LLC
linktr.ee/katieraglandrealtor

05/05/2026

I figured out where the love bugs go when they're not flying.

Have you ever thought about it? They have to go somewhere. They don't fly all day. They don't fly at night. They have to be resting somewhere.

Turns out they're on the underside of the catalpa leaves in my yard. Hundreds at a time. Tucked up under, packed together, completely invisible unless you flip a leaf and look.

So I did a little research. Catalpa trees are basically a lovebug hotel. The leaves give them shade and cover. The ground underneath has the partially decayed leaf litter their larvae need. The flowers (which catalpa trees produce in big showy clusters every spring) feed the adults. One tree, the whole life cycle.

Two practical notes if you’re new here: One — They'll be gone in about two weeks. Then back in September. Two — Get them off your car before they sit too long. They're acidic and they'll damage the paint. Don't run the wipers with fluid first — that just smears. Water and a microfiber, that’s what you want.

We don't exactly love them. But now you know where they live.

Send this to the most curious mind you know. ;)

Katie Ragland | Real Broker, LLC
linktr.ee/katieraglandrealtor

05/04/2026

Gulf Coast doesn’t just mean beaches.

This is Fish River. We launched at Bohemian Park, just east of Fairhope on County Road 48. Quiet water, cypress and live oaks, nobody else out here on a regular weekday afternoon.

This is the part that doesn’t show up in the brochure. Downtown Fairhope is less than 15 minutes away. The beach is less than an hour. But you’d never know it when you’re on the river.

When people ask me what Gulf Coast life actually looks like, this is part of the answer. Rivers. Creeks. Back bays. Places where you don’t have to share the view.

If you’ve been thinking about a move down here, this is what your weekends can look like. Not the highlight reel. Just a regular afternoon.

DM me “MOVE” if you want to talk about what life actually looks like down here.

Katie Ragland | Real Broker, LLC
linktr.ee/katieraglandrealtor

05/03/2026

Foley just made the list of America's 15 fastest-growing cities — and the spillover is heading to the town next door.

NOLA and The Advocate ran a major piece two weeks ago. The numbers: Foley's population up from
~20,300 in 2020 to over 31,400 today. 12% annual growth. Median family income from $43K to $66K in
five years. 16th-fastest-growing metro in the country per U-Haul.

But the part that caught my attention as someone who lives in Elberta — the article specifically called
out our town as the spillover. People who want Foley's access without Foley's pace. A little more open space. That's where I am.

Foley is having its moment out loud. Elberta is having its quieter one. The growth is real, the data backs
it up, and the infrastructure is following — a new sports tourism complex breaking ground, and 5 new
direct flights into Gulf Shores starting May 21. (Quick admission — I'm flying one of them out of Huntsville myself this summer. Excited to test it.)

I wrote a full breakdown of what's happening and what it means if you live here, want to live here, or own property nearby.

Save this for the next time someone asks you what's actually happening in Baldwin County.

Katie Ragland | Real Broker, LLC

Your Gulf Coast May calendar. 👀🌶 Cinco de Mayo Festival - May 3 | Seville Quarter, Pensacola.🦞 Fort Morgan Seafood Festi...
05/03/2026

Your Gulf Coast May calendar. đź‘€

🌶 Cinco de Mayo Festival - May 3 | Seville Quarter, Pensacola.

🦞 Fort Morgan Seafood Festival - May 9-10 | Fort Morgan Marina. Mother's Day weekend. Fresh Gulf seafood, retail + craft vendors, kids' activities, and educational booths from Alabama Coastal Foundation, Mobile Baykeeper, and Share the Beach. Proceeds support the Fort Morgan Volunteer Fire Department.

🍷 Pensacola Beach Art & Wine Festival - May 9 | Pensacola Beach Boardwalk + Gulfside Pavilion, 11am-4pm. 60+ artist, tasting, and retail tents this year, with two stages of live music.

🥒 Pensacola Pickles & Wings Festival - May 16 | Seville Square, downtown Pensacola, 10am-8pm. Free admission.

Save this carousel - your May just got a whole lot busier.

Katie Ragland | Real Broker, LLC

05/02/2026

There's a mail boat in Alabama that most people don't know exists.

The Magnolia Springs Post Office operates the only year-round river-route mail delivery left in the United States. Every day except Sunday, the mail boat travels the Magnolia River delivering to homes and docks that can only be reached by water. It's been running since the early 1900s. Same route, same purpose — if you live by the water, the mail comes by water.

Magnolia Springs is ten minutes from Foley. You can watch the mail boat from the public dock or waterfront restaurants. One of those Gulf Coast things locals know and visitors discover by accident. The kind of place that makes you realize there are still corners of the world that work exactly like they always have.

Katie Ragland | Real Broker, LLC

Save this hidden Gulf Coast gem — and tag someone who needs to see a mail boat in action!

The 22nd Annual Gulf Coast Hot Air Balloon Festival lands at OWA Parks & Resort in Foley, Alabama this weekend — April 3...
05/01/2026

The 22nd Annual Gulf Coast Hot Air Balloon Festival lands at OWA Parks & Resort in Foley, Alabama this weekend — April 30 through May 2, 2026.

Free admission. Approximately 50 hot air balloons from across the country, balloon glows nightly at 7:30pm (weather permitting), and a brand-new
choreographed drone show Friday and Saturday nights at 9:15pm — first time the festival has added
drones.

Friday includes Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo animal meet-and-greets and tethered balloon rides.
Saturday is the full day starting at 10am with K9 Frisbee dog shows, hot air balloon pilot meet-and-greet, and headliner The Molly Ringwalds at 7pm. Limited-time Tropic Falls Theme Park admission of $19.99 Friday evening and all day Saturday.

One of the biggest free spring events in Baldwin County. Visit foley.realestate for more Gulf Coast events and Baldwin County happenings.

Katie Ragland | Real Broker, LLC

04/29/2026

The recent bird banding event down at Fort Morgan got me thinking about the wildlife in our own backyards. I went to one of these banding events, and it completely changed how I listen to my mornings.
So I opened the Merlin bird app and let it listen for five minutes. Northern Cardinals, Carolina Wrens, Blue Jays, Great Crested Flycatchers — all right here.

This is a random Tuesday in Baldwin County during spring migration. Not at a nature preserve. Just my backyard with feeders and an app that knows what to listen for.

Download Merlin (it’s free), sit outside for five minutes, and come back to tell me what birds you heard in your own yard. You’ll be surprised at what’s been singing around you this whole time.

Open Merlin and tell me what birds you hear in your own yard — I bet you’ll be surprised!

Katie Ragland | Real Broker, LLC

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