2016 looks set to go down as the best year since the crisis for the Florida property market. Prices continued to rise all round, sellers received more of their asking price and sales remained buoyant. Florida outpaced the US on all accounts with some metropolitan areas in the Sunshine State posting considerably higher figures.
Statistics released last week by Florida Realtors reveal that the Florida property market saw continued growth throughout 2016. This was particularly true for house prices and in December, the state registered its 61st consecutive month of increases, while inventory levels plummeted.
Higher and better prices for sellers in Florida
Single family homes saw the largest price hikes. In December, the median price for this type of property in Florida reached US$226,000, 9.2 per cent higher in year-on-year terms. Townhouse and condo properties also rose. Their median price at the end of last year was US$166,900, 7.7 per cent more than 12 months earlier.
Sellers received more of their asking price, a further indication of the appetite to buy within the Florida property market. Single family homes sold for 96 per cent of their asking price and townhouses and condo properties for 94.7 per cent.
Inventory levels, meanwhile, continued to fall. At the end of December, the stock of property in Florida dropped to 3.9 months’ supply in the case of single family homes. Within the market for townhouse and condos, the balance is considerably better and stood at 6 months.
Best year for US property market in a decade
The US property market generally also had a good year in 2016, although all-round figures are lower than those in Florida. Sales across the country registered their highest level since 2006. Median prices for all properties rose by 4 per cent and December posted the 58th consecutive month of price increases.
Like Florida, the property market in the US is experiencing a serious shortage of homes. Inventory levels dropped by 10.8 per cent during 2016 to stand at just 3.6 months. This is the lowest since the National Association of Realtors began its statistical records in 1999.
Star performers in the Florida property market
Some metropolitan areas performed considerably ahead of the Sunshine State average last year. This is the case with Tampa, the best performing property market in Florida in 2016. Single family home prices rose by 14.4 per cent in the year to December. A further indication of the hot market comes in the speed of sales – 50 per cent of listings in the Tampa Bay area sold within the first 30 days of entering the market.
The Orlando property market also registered exceptional figures during 2016. Prices in the most popular holiday spot in Florida saw a 12.4 per cent annual hike. Both Orlando and Tampa featured in the top ten in the Forbes Best-Buy Cities: Where to Invest in Housing in 2017.
“Florida continues ahead of the US in both job creation and population growth so these figures for property are no surprise,” says Dies Poppeliers, Managing Director at BRIC Group. “We fully expect more of the same this year, particularly in single family homes, a key sector of the Florida property market in the southwest of the state.”
BRIC Group, an investment company specialising in global real estate opportunities, offers US real estate investments including turnkey properties in Florida and Houston, and land plots in Florida. BRIC Group is also developing The Coral resort, in Northeast Brazil, a luxury beachfront resort with land and villa investment opportunities. BRIC Group has been creating wealth for its clients since 1996 and has offices in Brazil, Dubai (consulting office), Hungary, Spain and the US.
(Sources: Florida Realtors, Tampa Bay Times)
