Happy New Year, are we all just about done with this year? I certainly am. Nevertheless, Anna Maria’s real estate market is not done, and this year has been an immensely successful one in spite of the pandemic.
Anna Maria’s popularity has exploded during the last 10 years, much of it fueled by newspaper and magazine articles about our “Florida Postcard, Old Florida” island. The latest love affair with Anna Maria is in Coastal Living Magazine’s end-of-year issue, just in time for tourist season, if we indeed have one this year. Coastal Living has written before about Anna Maria, but this particular version has to be the purple prose of Anna Maria stories.
The writing is so elaborately infused with the glory of our beaches, “near-dizzying,” the lure of Pine Avenue “hums with the old and the new simultaneously,” with restored homes that are now galleries, restaurants, bakeries, museums and bike rental shops.
Now, to be fair, all of this is true, but if I were reading this right now in snowy shut-down New York City, I would be fighting my way down I-95 to get here. In fact, I might just fight my way over the Cortez Bridge to see what I’m missing. I think it’s great that all of the businesses mentioned in the piece are getting credit and exposure for making Anna Maria such a sought-after island, but “double-decker building of delights” – please. I’ll let you figure out which restaurant they mean.
Practically every month this year, when I review the closed sales numbers in Manatee County, I get excited, and this month is no exception. So, let’s look at the November Manatee County closed sales reported by the Realtor Association of Sarasota and Manatee.
Single-family homes closed 40.3% more properties in November this year compared to last year. Cash sales were up 52%, the median sale price was $350,500, up 7.2%, and the average sale price was $463,015, up 15.6%. The median time to contract was 19 days, up 55.8% and the month’s supply of properties was only 1.6 months, down 51.5%.
Condos closed 58.9% more properties in November this year compared to last year. Cash sales were up 77.4%, the median sale price was $237,250, up 10.3%, and the average sale price was $265,013, up 5.3%. The median time to contract was 34 days (no change from last year) and the month’s supply of properties was only 2.3 months, down 45.2%.
The month’s supply of available properties hit a new low, meaning if you’re looking for a single-family home or a condo, you will have slim pickings. Because of this, the median and average sale prices continue to push up with no end in sight. Fortunately, with mortgage rates also at an all-time low, buyers can qualify for a higher amount of financing. In addition, the percentage of cash transactions is extraordinary. Cash continues to be king and will easily make or break a deal. I expect December’s numbers will be slightly lower based on the surge of COVID-19 infections combined with the holidays, but we’ll see if that’s true.
Finally, I would be remiss if I didn’t acknowledge the recent Longboat Key sale of $16.5 million – the highest registered sale in the history of Sarasota and Manatee.
Even if my writer’s critical eye has taken some exception to Coastal Living, I’m still happy they wrote about Anna Maria. It’s good for business and great for real estate. I just wonder what George Emerson Bean and Charles Roser would have thought. Happy New Year and stay safe.
