Compared to August 2016, the latest market report shows an increase in closed sales, median prices, and inventory for single family homes, while condos in the two-county area reported an increase in closed sales and pending sales. The August 2017 data was compiled from My Florida Regional Multiple Listing Service by Florida Realtors®.
Closed sales for single family homes increased by 6.9 percent from August 2016 in the two county area. As for condos, closed sales also improved slightly from last year, with an increase of 0.8 percent. Combined, closed sales climbed from last month with a 6.4 percent increase to 1,819 sales in August. When looking at closed sales thus far in 2017, sales are higher than they were for the first eight months in 2016, a 2.1 percent increase to 14,254 closed sales.
“We’ve seen some fluctuation in closed sales for 2017,” says Xena Vallone, 2017 President of the Realtor® Association of Sarasota and Manatee. “The first eight months of this year show more sales than the first eight months in 2016, thanks to a strong month of sales in March, May and now August.”
New pending sales are up across the two-county area. There were 1,293 pending single family sales reported in the month of August, a 1.3 percent increase from last month and 516 pending condo sales, a 4.2 percent increase from July. Combined new pending sales also increased from this time last year, with a 2 percent increase in the two-county area. New pending sales can be a good indicator of future closed sales.
“Several conditions can affect exactly when the increased pending sales will turn into closed sales,” explains Vallone. “There is no way to determine Hurricane Irma’s effect on the market at this date, but we are seeing some delays delay due to financed transactions that require re-inspections or a lift of the disaster designation to close.”
During the month of August, there were 6,791 single family and condo properties for sale in the two-county area, a 4.3 percent increase from this time in 2016. Inventory is down from last month in the two-county area. Single family home inventory decreased by 5.2 percent from July 2017, while condos decreased by 6.1 percent.
The month’s supply of inventory is the number of months it would take to deplete the current inventory at the recent sales rate. This figure has been decreasing since March of 2017, staying under the threshold for a balanced market. In Sarasota County, there was a 3.8 month supply of single family homes for sale, while Manatee dropped to a 4.1 month supply. Sarasota condos dropped to a 4.3 month supply, while Manatee is now at a 3.9 month supply.
Year-over-year, median prices continue to rise as distressed properties continue to decline. The median price of single family homes in Sarasota County rose 1.5 percent to $258,000, while it rose 6.2 percent to $286,855 in Manatee County, compared to August 2016. Condo median prices rose 10.9 percent to $183,000 in Manatee County, while they fell by 2 percent to $213,500 in Sarasota.
Realtor® Association Sarasota and Manatee – August 20, 2017
