The latest statistics for the Florida housing market show signs of a return to normal levels of activity. In July, new listings rose for both single-family homes and condo-townhouse properties, opening a window to would-be buyers. However, prices continue to increase across the board by over 20% in the year.
New listings on the market
After months with inventory levels at rock bottom, July saw the start of a return of new listings on the Florida housing market. The number of single-family properties available rose by 12.1% in the year while new condo-townhouse listings went up by 4.6%.
“This could be good news for buyers who have been sidelined by the shortage of homes,” said Florida Realtors President Cheryl Lambert. However, she was quick to point out that the rise in inventory may be slow.
The figures for supply reflect her concern. For example, there was just 1.2 months’ supply of single-family homes on the market. Inventory levels for condo properties in Florida stood at 1.8 months.
Median prices continue to rise
Despite new listings, the Florida housing market continued to register ever-climbing prices in July. The new median price for single-family homes reached US$355,000, up 20.3% in the year. In addition, condos saw their median price go up to US$253,000, a 20.5% increase on July 2020.
Sales drop but only slightly
After months of burgeoning sales for single-family homes, figures fell slightly in July. Transactions went down by 2.1% in the 12 months to July. This was the first year-on-year decrease in sales for this type of property in Florida since May 2020.
However, according to Florida Realtors Chief Economist, Brad O’Connor, sales figures are best compared to 2019, the last full year before the pandemic. “Looking at 2019, we find that July 2021 single-family home sales were over 9% higher than July 2019,” he explained.
Meanwhile, the market for condo-townhouse properties continued to be brisk in 2021. Sales went up by 21.1% in the year to July.
Return to normality for Florida housing market?
The rise in new listings and the slight drop in sales lead analysts to believe that the Florida property market is on track to return to normality. O’Connor sees “a steady path towards normalcy” in some aspects of the market. This normality could, however, be further rather than nearer on the horizon.
Lambert cautioned that “it will take a long while to get back to the levels we had pre-pandemic”. And certainly, while housing prices continue to skyrocket at year-on-year levels of 20%, many would-be homeowners in Florida are going to be disappointed.
(Source: Florida Realtors)
