I have always found real estate to be a very exciting profession. What other job allows and encourages you to peek into people’s closets and check out their favorite shampoo? And right now, real estate professionals are super excited, as they should be – just look at these numbers.
There are few words to describe the Sarasota and Manatee housing market, but “sensational” is one of them. According to the Realtor Association of Sarasota and Manatee, closed sales increased year-over-year by 23.6% across the two-county market. So, let’s look at the Manatee County sales for January, also reported by the Realtor Association of Sarasota and Manatee.
Single-family closed sales in January were 25.6% higher than in January of last year. The median sales price was $370,000, up 12.3% (just to review, the median is the midpoint of sales; half the homes sold for more, half for less). Also, $370,000 is the highest median sales price for single-family homes recorded for Manatee County. The average sales price for single-family homes was $510,940, up 21.4% from last January.
The median time to contract single-family homes was 17 days, down from 41 days last year; this means that half the properties available were in contract in more than 17 days and half in less than 17 days. New listings are down 20.9% and the month’s supply of available properties was 1.1 months, down 67.6% from last year.
Condos closed 20.5% more this year than last. The median sales price was $231,000, up 10%, and the average sale price was $284,037 up 19.9%. For condos, the median time to contract was 40 days compared to 50 days last year, and new listings are down 35.8%, with a month’s supply of properties at 1.6 months, down 66%.
If you think Manatee County is getting too difficult to buy in, don’t think that Sarasota is much easier. Single-family home sales increased by 17.9% in Sarasota and condo sales increased by 32.6%. In Sarasota, the median price for single-family homes was $340,004, up 14.9%, and condo prices were up by 9.1% to $302,250. Essentially, whether you’re looking to buy in either Sarasota or Manatee counties, you’re in for a difficult process. The combined inventory including both property types in the two counties declined by 59.9%.
Alex Krumm, president of the Realtor Association of Sarasota and Manatee, had a couple of things to say about the market when the January numbers were released: “Our sales tend to be strong through fall and winter, but what we’re seeing right now is unprecedented. There are far more buyers than sellers, which reinforces the trend of rising prices and competition in our marketplace.”
He goes on: “Waiting to purchase is a mistake right now. Home prices are increasing at an incredible pace with no sign of slowing, and sellers can take advantage of a very favorable climate to fetch good prices and great terms.”
And to add another log on the real estate fire, the Mortgage Bankers Association anticipates home purchase originations will grow to a record level in 2021 and mortgage rates will stay historically low, generating an even more competitive real estate market.
Living on the edge waiting for properties to close can be stressful for real estate professionals in a normal real estate market, but what we’re experiencing now is far from normal. What is stressing out real estate brokers now is finding properties to sell.
I guess plumbers may have less financial stress and are also welcomed in people’s bathrooms, but where’s the excitement there? Stay safe.
