Strong demand and tight inventory combined to produce a sellers’ market in Manatee County and send the median sales price for single-family homes sold in in February to $300,000. That’s up 5.8 percent from a year ago.

It marks the third time the median price has hit the $300,000 mark since the Great Recession of 2008, according to figures released recently by the Realtor Association of Sarasota and Manatee.

The median price of the 441 Manatee County home sales closed in February represents the mid-range of homes sold, and was up 8.6 percent over February 2017. The median also hit $300,000 or more in December and January.

Condo sales were also up year-over-year in February with 202 sold, an increase of 5.2 percent. The median condominium price in Manatee County soared 22.2 percent to $213,250. It is the first time since 2008 that condo prices have surpassed $200,000.

The supply of single-family homes fell 1.6 percent while the supply of condos decreased 2.9 percent during February, making inventory tight.

There is an estimated 4.4-month supply of single-family homes on the market in Manatee County, and a 5.3-month supply of condos.

Sarasota County also saw a strong housing market in February with 569 single-family home sales closed, up 9.8 percent, and 315 condo sales, up 14.1 percent.

Sarasota single-family home prices increased 10.4 percent to a median of $272,500, while condo prices were down 0.1 percent to $219,000.

Inventory also fell in Sarasota during February. The supply of single-family homes was down 5 percent, while the supply of condos fell 0.1 percent.

Sarasota has a 4.1-month supply of single-family homes, and a 5.7 month supply of condos.

Across the state

More closed sales, more new listings and higher median prices in February were the norm around Florida with the for-sale inventory remaining tight.

Even though much of Florida has become a sellers’ market, there was also some good news for buyers. In February, new listings for single-family homes rose 6 percent year-over-year, while new townhouse-condo listings increased 6.9 percent.

Across the nation

Nationally, existing-home sales bounced back in February after two straight months of declines, despite consistently low inventory levels and faster price growth, according to the National Association of Realtors.

Sales increases in the South and West offset declines in the Northeast and Midwest.

The national median existing-home price for all housing types in February was $241,700, up 5.9 percent from February 2017 ($228,200). February’s price increase marks the 72nd straight month of year-over-year gains.

Properties typically stayed on the market for 37 days in February, which is down from 41 days in January and 45 days a year ago. Forty-six percent of homes sold in February were on the market for less than a month.

To learn more about the current state of the real estate market, contact an expert member of the 9 Core Realty Team today!

The luxury home market continues to grow in Naples, with buyers showing more interest in high-end condos, according to a recent Market Report the Naples Area Board of Realtors released.

The report tracks all sales made by its members in Collier County through the Southwest Florida MLS, excluding Marco Island.

The 12-month rolling numbers are remarkable for properties above $1 million, especially in the condominium market, where the data shows a 60 percent increase in closed sales over the last 12 months.

As reflected in the report, there were 56 closed sales of condos above $1 million in the North Naples area in February — 211 percent more than in February 2017.

With an increase in demand for high-end condos came a 16 percent decrease in inventory for condos priced at $1 million to $2 million, compared to last year.

There is not a lot of develop-able land that is left as far as high-end condos on the beach. The region has pretty much built out a lot of that choice land along the beach, so that’s becoming less and less of an option.

However, condos in the $300,000-and-less market had the highest increase reported among all price categories and home types, with a 6 percent increase in inventory, the report showed.

The report showed a 3 percent decrease for overall inventory to 6,286 properties compared with 6,466 properties in February 2017.

Overall closed sales increased 10 percent to 672 homes sold compared with 613 homes sold in February 2017. The overall median closed price was $364,000 — 9 percent more than last year’s figure.

The greatest decrease in price appeared in the category of $1 million to $2 million. That 12 percent drop was to $1.33 million from $1.5 million in February 2017.

The report showed 44 of the 52 homes purchased in the $2 million price category were cash purchases.

Overall pending sales in February decreased 3 percent, but they increased 14 percent in the $1 million-and-above price category and 39 percent in the $2 million-and-over category.

To learn more about the real estate market in SWFL or to get involved in purchasing real estate in the area, contact an expert member of the 9 Core Realty team today!

The majority of us probably don’t make enough to own an average home in Florida, according a recent study.

A new study from How Much, a finance information website, states that Floridians needs to make roughly $70,360 a year in order to afford the average home.

The site came this conclusion by taking the average price of homes in every state from real estate site Zillow, and plugging them into a mortgage calculator with a 10 percent down payment. They then applied the basic rule that your mortgage shouldn’t exceed 30 percent of your income before taxes.

According to Zillow, the average home “Zestimate” in the state of Florida is $220,600. It should also be noted that in the last year property values have gone up 8.3 percent and are projected to go up another 3.1 percent in the next year.

According to Data USA, the median household income in Florida is only $49,426, which of course means that most Floridians are being priced out of owning most homes.

Florida ranks 12th in the country for most expensive homes. Hawaii is the most expensive, with an estimated income of $153,520 needed to buy a home. West Virginia is the lowest with an estimated income of $38,320 needed.

To learn more about Florida real estate, purchasing land in Florida or investing in Florida land and properties, contact an  expert member of the 9 Core Realty Team today.

Millennials looking for a home do not like Florida and the Fort Myers area. That’s according to a recent study done by LendingTree, but some local real estate experts are not buying it.

According to that study, five cities in Florida landed on its top 10 least-popular cities for millennial home buyers. Fort Myers came in as the second-least favorite.

Area real estate experts feel that the region is doing many proactive things to draw in a younger crowd of homebuyers, many of which are successful.  In fact, 2017 was a good year for millennial home buyers in Southwest Florida. Last year 80 percent of first-time home buyers were actually millennials in the area.

More signs point to growth in young home buyers in our area. Building permits for affordable housing — priced around $250,000 or less — increased by 39 percent in 2017.

Are you a millennial ready to buy in SWFL? Give 9 Core Realty a shout today! We can help.

The high-end residential real estate market in Naples continues to soar, with a 10% increase in closed sales of homes priced at $1 million and up in February over February 2017.

In total, 672 homes were sold in Naples last month, up from 613 homes sold in February 2016, according to a report from the Naples Area Board of Realtors. The report tracks home listings and sales within Collier County, excluding Marco Island.

The overall median closed price increased year-over-year in February as well, from $333,000 in February 2017 to $364,000 last month, a jump of 9%. This was due in part to a 95% increase in closed sales for properties priced over $1 million in February.  Several other price points, however, dropped year-over-year in February, the report adds.

Overall inventory continued to rise for the fifth straight month, to 6,286 properties. That figure is down 3% from February 2017. Overall pending sales in February decreased 3%, but it increased 14% in the $1 million and above price category and 39% in the $2 million and over price category, the report shows.

Many area real estate experts believe that the high end market is poised for a good year. The economy is doing much better. The stock market has risen substantially over the last year. All in all many Americans have seen their financial picture improve. This should translate to improved sales, particularly with the high-end market.

To learn more about the real estate market in Southwest Florida, contact an expert member of the 9 Core Realty team today.