The Florida Realtors reported on Thursday that the housing market in the Sunshine State continued to improve in recent weeks.
During the month of August there were more closed and pending sales while median prices rose in Florida.
Both sales and prices demonstrate that Floridas housing market is growing and continuing to gain strength, said Dean Asher, a Realtor in Orlando serving as president of the Florida Realtors. The growth in jobs and other positive signs are putting buyers at ease with how the economy is progressing. At the same time, prices are encouraging sellers to get off the fence and helping to ease inventory pressures.
Asher pointed to almost 21,000 single-family homes closed in August, an increase of 12.5 percent from August 2012. August is the 20th month in a row that weve seen the statewide single-family home median sales price increase year-over-year, Asher said.
Pending sales also went up 17.2 percent in August 2013, when compared to August 2012. Last month, median sales for single-family homes rose to $175,000, up 18.6 percent from August 2012. This still trails the national median sales average, which in July 2013 stood at $214,000. There is a 5.1 month inventory of single-family homes in Florida.
Townhouse and condo sales lagged behind single-family home sales but still showed improvement from last year. In August 2013, almost 9,500 townhouses and condos were sold, an increase of 6.3 percent from August 2012, but pending sales were up 11.6 percent from August 2012. While the national median condo sales price was $209,600 in July 2013, in Florida the figure stood at $130,000. While thats far below the national average, it does stand 25.2 percent higher than where it was in August 2012. There is a 5.2-month inventory of condos and townhouses in Florida.
John Tuccillo, the chief economist for the Florida Realtors, sounded an optimistic note on Thursday.
The most striking feature of this months data relates to new listings and inventory, said 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.Condo/townhome inventory remains at a 5.2-months' supply for the third month in a row.
Combined with a relative decline in cash sales, this suggests that the pressure on inventories plaguing the Florida market may be easing, Tuccillo added.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com
