- November 23, 2024
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The Florida Realtors report that, as of August, the Florida housing market is showing increased closed sales, higher median prices and more pending sales.
BY THE OBSERVER STAFF
Florida's housing market continued positive trends last month with increased closed sales, higher median prices, more pending sales and a stable supply of homes for sale, according to the Florida Realtors.
"Florida's housing market is growing and continuing to gain strength," said Florida Realtors President Dean Asher. "August is the 20th month in a row that we've seen the statewide single-family home median sales price increase year-over-year."
Statewide closed sales of existing single-family homes totaled 20,933 in August, up 12.5% compared to the year-ago figure, according to Florida Realtors' data. Meanwhile, pending sales for existing single-family homes last month rose 17.2% over August 2012.
The statewide median sales price for single-family existing homes last month was $175,000, up 18.6% from the previous year. The national median sales price in July 2013 was $214,000, up 13.5% from the previous year, according to the National Association of Realtors.
As for Florida townhouse and condo sales, a total of 9,491 units sold last month, up 6.3% from August 2012. Pending sales increased 11.6% compared to the year-ago figure. The statewide median price for townhouse-condos was $130,000, up 25.2% over the previous year.
Nationally, the median existing condo price in July 2013 was $209,600.
"The most striking feature of this month's data relates to new listings and inventory," said Florida Realtors Chief Economist Dr.John Tuccillo. "Each month in 2013 has seen a rise year-over-year in new listings for both single-family homes and townhouses and condos, with the exception of March for condo/townhomes. Balancing out the growth in closed sales, the increase in new listings has contributed to steady inventory. Single-family-home inventory is now at 5.1 months for August 2013, after holding steady at a 5-months supply in May through July. ... This suggests that the pressure on inventories that has plagued the Florida market may be easing."
According to Freddie Mac, the interest rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.46% in August, up from the 3.6% average recorded a year ago.
For the full statewide housing report, visit media.floridarealtors.org.
