The Moulton Sarasota Real Estate Report January 2020

Market is Off to Strong Start in the New Year

The Sarasota Real Estate Market experienced considerable growth in transactions, total dollar volume and prices. Though again inventory availability declined in the area on a year-over-year basis, there was 7% gain in available properties when measured against prior month.

Total sales in January increased 34% over January 2019 with growth in both the single-family segment and condominiums. As I mentioned last month, the completion of The Mark project in downtown Sarasota had a remarkable impact on the activity in Sarasota. With a total of 46 contracts closed in January and 22 of those sold for over $1 million, this development has truly made a “mark!”

More than ½ of the total condominium sales last month that were sold for over $1 million were in the single community. The Mark also had an impact on the median average price and total dollar volume, as prices of total condominiums sold in the Sarasota Real Estate Market increased 15.4% and volume grew 118%.

Pending contracts signed in January in The Sarasota Real Estate Market also increased markedly at 20% over prior year. This leads us to believe that the next 30-60 days will show continued strong sales.

In the new homes market, growth in the eastern and southern portions of Sarasota remains robust. Supply issues and lack of skilled labor, though, continue to hold back pace to some degree.

Nationally, home builders in the custom home market, typically with higher price-points, reported being buoyed by recent reports of declining acquisition, development and construction loan costs. Permits for all price points of new homes in the U.S. were up 17.9% over January 2019 and now the highest since March of 2007.

A recent report from Metrostudy showed that Sarasota new home starts grew 5.3% last year…not enough to meet demand but still contributing to easing a significant shortage.

As many Americans are moving away from one mega-mansion and opting to diversify their real estate portfolios by owning two or more homes in different markets, custom home builders also see opportunity for absorption of new inventory.

Newly built homes tend to cost 25-30% more than existing homes, but it’s always important when making the decision which direction to go to have a sense of the expense (and time) of renovation, repair and modernizing something that may be 10 or more years old.

Sarasota has several extraordinary new home developments and well-located sites to choose from. Should a custom home be something you would like to explore, it would be my pleasure to introduce you to the areas and properties that will best suit your lifestyle.

And now for my statistical report on the January Sarasota Real Estate Market activity:

Sales

  • Total market dollar volume this past month was $395.4 million which increased by $130.7 million or almost 50% from a year ago.
  • Broken down, single-family sales were $231.8 million and condominium sales were $163.6 million for the month.
  • The volume in single-family was up $41.1 million over prior year while condo volume was up $88.6 million.
  • The number of properties sold this past month was 909, 231 more than a year ago. The sales total includes 565 houses, 105 ahead of last year; and 344 condos, 126 more than last year. The monthly sold properties average in 2019 was 1,074 and in 2018 it was 1,001.
    • Florida’s single-family sales increased 17.9% from last year, and condo sales were 14.5% above last year. Homes sold for in excess of $1 million were 33.7% higher than January 2019 and condos closed at over $1 million rose 19.6%.
    • U.S. single-family sales rose 9.7% and condos up 8.9%.
    • Of the closed sales in The Sarasota Real Estate Market this past month, 71 were for over $1,000,000, 29 were houses and 42 were condos.
  • In 2019 Sarasota averaged 32 house sales and 14 condo sales per month over a $1 million, which represents a small portion of our overall sales.
  • Listings that went pending last month were 1,340 an increase of 216 transactions from a year ago – nearly 20% higher. For 2019 the monthly average for pending sales was 1,121.
    • Florida’s single-family pending sales increased 12.4% and condos rose 14.3% compared to last year.
    • U.S. pending sales in January were 5.7% ahead of a year ago.

Prices

  • Sarasota’s single-family homes were sold at a median price of $296,000. The 2019 monthly median price was $288,325.
    • In January, Florida median price for single-family homes was $265,000, a 6% increase over last year.
    • The national median price for existing homes grew 6.9% to $268,600.
  • The condominium median sale price was $277,000 in January and the 2019 monthly median average was $236,797. This large increase is likely also related to the closings at The Mark.
    • Median price for a Florida condo last month was $200,000, a 9.6% increase over January 2019.
    • U.S. median condo price grew to $248,100, a 5.7% increase.
  • Sarasota houses sold on average for $410,249, where the 2019 monthly average was $393,418.
  • Condominiums sold for an average price of $475,464 last month and in 2019 it was $346,755.

Inventory

  • Currently there are 4,378 properties for sale in the Sarasota market. This is an increase of 292 listings from the month before. There were 4,086 listings at the end of 2019 and 5,401 listings at the end of 2018.
  • Of the available inventory for sale, 656 properties are listed for over $1 million or only 15%. Of the active listings over $1,000,000, 474 are houses and 182 are condominiums.
  • The Sarasota market had 1,780 new listings this past month. The market averaged 1,040 new listings per month in 2019. Of the new listings in January, 163 properties were listed for over $1,000,000.
  • Current inventory results in 3.6 months of single-family homes for sale in Sarasota and 4.9 month’s supply of condominiums.
    • Florida currently has 3.4 months of single-family inventory and 5.5 month’s supply of condominiums. Inventory of Florida properties selling for over $1 million has decreased about 5% from last year.
    • U.S. inventory of existing single-family homes and condos has slipped to 3.1 months of supply.

In today’s ever-fluid real estate market and complex economic conditions, the value of partnering with a highly experienced, locally as well as globally connected agent/broker, and a skilled negotiator and advocate cannot be overstated.

Having served clients in The Sarasota Real Estate Market for more than 37 years and carefully analyzed our business conditions, I have developed essential insight to assist both buyers and sellers in achieving their objectives.

It would be my privilege to work with you, your family and friends in realizing your goals in acquiring or selling your property.

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