Real Estate Market Update: Off the Cuff

The South Florida real estate market has been changing a bit in the past month.  The changes are good for sellers and maybe not as positive for buyers.  My personal experience this past month while representing both buyers and sellers has been brisk and here’s what has happened.

Last week I listed a beautiful 3 Bedroom, 2 Bathroom, Waterfront home with heated pool and 2 car garage in the Coral Heights area for $374,000.  Showings by Cooperating Brokers began on day one and continued steadily.  This morning the house went under contract after a few days of negotiations to an out of town purchaser. 

The purchaser made the offer on the property and to date the purchase remains site unseen.  The virtual tour I used to market the property made the sale.  Six months ago this property would have been offered at a lower price and the time on the market would have likely been one to three months.  I know one of the buyers interested in the property had narrowed their selection to three houses including this one.  As of this morning, two of the three choices are no longer available for that buyer.

The other side of the fence is not quite as nice.  I have a nice couple who are expecting their first child soon.  We’ve worked together for about six months in search of their first home.  There’s been no rush as foreclosures and short sales have been dominating the market and inventory has been plentiful.  Yesterday the wife emailed me a great listing in Boca Raton.  I did a quick search and found that it was priced perfectly with the market and called to schedule for last evening.  This home which had been on the market for two days was already under contract for a little over list price.  Similar experiences have occurred for other first time buyers for whom I am working.  The time to wait may have passed.  My advice is that if you find the right home and it is priced at market value, do not be afraid to make the move and make an offer.

Additionally, I’ve place two other properties under contract in the past month at market value.  So what is happening in our market?  It’s hard to tell just yet but indications are that buyers who have been on the sidelines have decided to enter the market and make their move.  Is this a blip?  I don’t know.  Is it the beginning of a market leaving the bottom?  Hopefully.  Will the market take off again as it did in the early 2000s?  I’m certain that was a once in a lifetime event and the recovery will be a normal one with appreciations in the historically normal 3-5 percent per year range.

At first most of our local activity from buyers was attributed to first time buyers entering the market because of the Home Buyer Tax Credits and historically low mortgage interest rates.  Now we are seeing activity from buyers looking to make a move up thanks to affordable home prices and property taxes in-line with market value.  We are also able to prove what we have always known: A house priced at fair market value is a sellable house regardless of what price point the house is located.  Well maybe that isn’t true.  Houses priced above $800,000 still aren’t showing signs of a recovery.  They were the last to start the decline so they’ll track the lower price point properties on the rise as well.

Do you have questions regarding market conditions in your specific neighborhood?  Let me know and I can email you a Comparative Market Analysis for you.  It is always my pleasure to be of assistance.