Sarasota prices surge 13% in the last quarter!

Posted by admin in Uncategorized on November 2nd, 2009 |  No Comments »

September 2009 Statistics and press release from the Sarasota Association of Realtors: 

 

September sales skyrocket as market approaches equilibrium

Real estate expert Barbara Corcoran listed Sarasota as the number one place in the nation

to buy a property in her latest “hot market” prognostication. She cited the lower property

prices - 30 percent below last year at this time - combined with a recent price surge of 13

percent in the last quarter, plus Sarasota’s unique “metropolitan” cultural appeal for

boosting this area to the top spot.

On the Oct. 6th Today Show, Corcoran said Sarasota was the top place to buy real estate

in the nation today, an opinion shared by SAR and most area real estate professionals.

As a confirmation of Corcoran’s report, home and condo sales jumped by 35 percent in

September 2009, compared to the same month last year, and 9.7 percent from the August

2009 stats in the Sarasota market. Total sales stood at 554 in September, compared to 409

total sales in September 2008. The breakdown was 399 single family homes and 155

condos sold last month.

Sales in September 2009, traditionally a slow month at the end of the summer, were

unexpectedly higher than in August 2009, perhaps signaling an early end for the

traditional slower season as we head into a hoped for robust fall and winter.

The median sale prices continued to be held down by the high number of bank-owned

property sales and short sales, which accounted for half of the single-family home sales

and a third of the condo sales. But the “discount rack” is beginning to thin out, and once

the bargains are gone, there is the potential for price appreciation on a stronger scale. The

median sale price for single family homes was $165,000 last month, up slightly from the

previous month, but down 21.8 percent from a year ago. The condo median sale price

was $162,500, down significantly from September 2008’s $190,000 figure.

The future price trend might well be upwards, as about half of the single family sales and

one third of the condo sales involved short sales and foreclosures. Once these distressed

properties are off the market, the normal, arm’s length sales should bring the median

prices to higher, true value levels.

“We certainly agree with Barbara Corcoran, and her conclusions are what we’ve been

saying for many months,” said Bill Geller, 2009 SAR President. “This is an amazing time

to buy Sarasota properties at prices not seen since the early 2000s, or even earlier. But the

public needs to understand – these prices won’t last. Once the market reaches

equilibrium, and we’ve exhausted the distressed property pool, we will start to see more

and more multiple offers on choice homes.”

The $8,000 first-time homebuyer tax credit was one of the factors in the recent market

resurgence, which produced sales in September that nearly topped the 600 level for the

second time in 2009. In addition, investors seem to have returned to take advantage of the

price drops. Pending sales in September have also continued to show strong levels – very

near the 800 mark - as the real estate market recovers after a two-year recession.

Pending sales have now exceeded the 800 level for seven out of nine months in 2009,

after lingering in the 400 to 500 per month range for much of the previous two years. The

statistic is a strong indicator for the next two or three months of sales, when many of

these pendings will become closed sales. Pending sales are sales where an offer has been

accepted during the month, but the sale has not yet closed. Even though some pending

sales never close, pending sales are an indicator of current buyer activity.

Most of the statistics continue to point to a market in the initial stages of recovery.

Inventory levels continued to decline and are now at the lowest point since the boom

ended – a good sign for a market in recovery. There are now only 3,915 active single

family listings and 2,337 active condo listings, figures not seen since August 2005 and

earlier when the boom first started.

The “months of inventory” – the number of months it would take to sell all the available

properties at the current sales rate – was down for both single family and condos. The

figure is 9.8 months for single family and 15.1 months for condos. A figure of 6 months

is considered to be a market in equilibrium between buyers and sellers.

Sarasota #1 Market to purchase!

Posted by admin in Uncategorized on October 6th, 2009 |  No Comments »

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/26184891/vp/33191501#33191501

August property sales almost 20 percent higher than last year

Posted by admin in Uncategorized on September 15th, 2009 |  No Comments »

August property sales almost 20 percent higher than last year

August 2009 saw an almost 20 percent increase in local property sales than reported in
August 2008, most likely fueled by the $8,000 first-time homebuyer tax credit, an
economy in the midst of recovery after a two-year recession, and continuing low interest
rates.

Total sales nearly reached the 500 level again, with 496 properties changing hands. The
total included 382 homes and 114 condos. This compares to 329 homes and 86 condos
sold in August 2008, for a 19.5 percent increase from last year at this time. The total was
an expected drop from the July 2009 overall sales of 595, due to the traditional slower
summer season. But the fact that sales did not dip as low as last year brought a sigh of
relief from most local real estate brokers.

Most of the statistics continue to point to a market in the initial stages of recovery.
Inventory levels continued to decline. There were 3,949 single family homes for sale at
the end of August, compared to 4,067 for sale at the end of July, and down 11.8 percent
from the 4,477 at the end of June. Condos experienced a similar decline, to 2,343, from
2,447 at the end of July and 2,587 at the end of June. Inventory remains at the lowest
point in more than 5 years – a good sign for a market in recovery.

In August 2008, the inventory of unsold single family homes stood at 6,461 – roughly 63
percent higher than this year. For condos, there were 2,407 properties on the market in
August 2008 – nearly the same as this year’s figure of 2,343.

The number of months of inventory – the time it would theoretically take to sell all the
current properties on the market – now stands at 10.34 for single family homes. This
figure is slightly higher than the 9.04 for single family in July 2009, but significantly
lower than the figure of 19.64 in August 2008.

For condos, the current months of inventory stands at 20.5, somewhat higher than the

16.9 months in July, but substantially lower than the 28 months in August 2008. The
overall trend for the past two years, excluding some monthly aberrations, is downward
toward the figure of 6 months, which indicates a market in balance (anything below 6
months indicates a return to a seller’s market).

Prices are also remaining at more realistic, sustainable levels, with the median sale price
for single family homes at $155,000 in August 2009, down from the $185,000 in July
2009, but very close to the figure seen in January, February, March and May this year.
The median sale price for condos was $285,000, much higher than the $212,000 figure
seen in July, and almost at the $295,000 level reported in August 2008.

The median price for all single family homes sold in the past 12 months stood at
$165,000, compared to a median of $255,000 for the 12 months ending in September
2008. For condominiums sold in the past 12 months, the median sales price was
$200,000, compared to $330,000 for last year at this time.*

Pending sales also remained high and consistent, with 830 properties going under
contract in August 2009, compared to 802 in July 2009. Pending sales have dropped off
slightly from the 929 reported in May 2009 and the near record 981 pending sales
reported in April 2009. But the total of 830 was still 53 percent higher than the 541
pending sales reported in August 2008. Pending sales have now exceeded the 500 level
for the 20th consecutive month and the 800 level for the sixth straight month. Generally,
pendings trend downward during the summer months, the slower sales season in our
market.

The statistic is a strong indicator for the next two or three months of sales, when many of
these pendings will become closed sales. Pending sales reflect contracts executed by
buyers and sellers during the month.

“We are continuing to encourage our members to educate their clients and potential
clients on the $8,000 tax credit for first-time home buyers, as we are rapidly approaching
the expiration time of Nov. 30, 2009, when these types of sales must be finalized,” said
2009 SAR President Bill Geller of Suncoast International Realty. “With the higher levels
of short sales and foreclosures remaining in our local market, we can reasonably expect
our sales statistics to be skewed. However, we may be seeing a turning point in recent
months, as the numbers seem to have bottomed out for single family prices.”

Geller said that, lacking a crystal ball, it is difficult to predict what will happen during the
remainder of the year. But lower inventories, sales remaining above the 500 level, and
higher pending sales figures all point to a return to stability.

“We appear to have weathered the storm well, and while tomorrow’s economic weather
forecast remains to be seen, I’m confident and enthusiastic about our future prospects,”
explained Geller. “People who live here and our visitors know that there is no place like
Sarasota, and the selling points for this area are obvious.”

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