The Anna Maria Island Sun Newspaper

Vol. 14 No. 6 - December 4, 2013

REAL ESTATE

Winter and white pelicans are back

 

One of my favorite days of the year happened a week ago. I looked out in the morning at a sea of white floating at the mouth of Palma Sola Bay. The white pelicans were back – always a promise of cooler weather, holiday lights and an active real estate sales season. This year, however, increased real estate activity didn’t wait for the white pelicans to appear, at least not in Florida.

On Nov. 20, the National Association of Realtors reported existing home sales declined 3.2 percent in October. This is the second straight month that previously owned home sales slipped possibly a sign that higher interest rates are cooling the housing market.

The national market started to weaken in July when rates for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage jumped in June and stayed near 4.5 percent through mid-September. As a comparison, a year ago buyers were securing a rate of 3.4 percent for the same type of loan. Every percentage point increase in mortgage interest rates makes homes about 10 percent more expensive for buyers by increasing monthly mortgage payments. In spite of a downturn in sales, the national median price of existing homes increased 12.8 percent from a year earlier to $199,500.

Southwest Florida, however, is ahead of the national market, rebounding to a level not seen since the market’s historic boom a decade ago. October sales did well in spite of rising interest rates, tight inventory and cancelled contracts because of the three week federal shutdown. It appears that the seasonal retirees are back, and they started a little earlier than normal. With mortgage rates leveling off, even more buyers are expected to take the plunge during the active winter months.

Manatee County’s October numbers are also very good. Closed single family homes had an 18.4 percent increase from October 2012, with the median sale price up 14.1 percent to $215,000 for the same period. New listings were down 2.1 percent, which supports the lack of inventory many buyers are experiencing.

Manatee’s townhouse and condo sales did even better in October, with a 21.7 percent increase in sales and a 25.1 percent increase in median sale price to $125,050. New listings were also down by 10 percent from October of last year.

One really interesting number was the increase in cash sales from last year. Single family home cash sales increased 2.1 percent, but townhouse and condo sales increased 31.9 percent pointing to those seasonal retirees coming down with pockets full of cash. All of these statistics were produced by Florida Realtors with data provided by Florida’s multiple listing services.

So that’s all the good news; now for the bad. By now everyone on Anna Maria and indeed everyone who lives in a flood zone in Manatee County are aware of the changes in FEMA’s flood insurance rates. Last year’s legislation was an attempt to curb taxpayer subsidized flood insurance rates, which benefit a relatively small group of people in the country.

But the affects of the extraordinary increases in premiums has hit homeowners so hard that representatives in Congress and the Senate are proposing changes and/or delays to the implementation of the programs. So far, however, the leaders of the House Financial Services Committee are standing behind last year’s bipartisan legislation. Now would be a good time for coastal homeowners to contact their local legislators to express your opinion and relay personal experiences related to premium increases.

At this point, the real estate market in coastal Florida is a mixed bag. The good is that the overall market has improved significantly; the bad is yet to be determined. Never-the-less, the white pelicans have arrived, which always brings a smile to my face.

Real Estate Transactions
Real estate transfers as of May 2013
Sponsored by Alan Galletto Island Real Estate

Sold Date | List Price | Sold Price | Address | Provision | Property Style

Anna Maria

09/06/2013 499,900 465,000 830 North Shore Dr 1467 3 Br/2 Ba SFR
09/20/2013 529,000 490,000 313 Magnolia Ave 1424 73x114 2 Br/2.5 Ba SFR
09/20/2013 799,900 750,000 115 Willow Ave 2140 50x110 3 Br/3 Ba SFR
09/20/2013 750,000 750,000 300 Shore Dr 1680 4 Br/2 Ba SFR
09/23/2013 875,000 800,000 511 South Dr # A 2742 158x130 5 Br/3 Ba SFR
09/23/2013 430,000 445,000 511 Spring Ave 1093 52x145 2 Br/2 Ba SFR
09/24/2013 634,900 600,000 113 Pelican Dr 1008 91x100 2 Br/2 Ba SFR
09/24/2013 720,000 677,500 771 Jacaranda Rd 1586 52x98 3 Br/2 Ba SFR 09/25/2013 594,0 00 540,000 215 Palm Ave 1040 52x110 3 Br/2 Ba SFR 09/06/2013 369,900 360,000 812 Jacaranda Rd 61x108 Vac.
09/20/2013 1,835,000 1,865,000 207 - 215 Magnolia Ave 260x110 Vac.
09/26/2013 500,000 500,000 207 Magnolia 52x110 Vac.
09/26/2013 500,000 500,000 Magnolia 52x110 Vac.

Bradenton Beach

09/20/2013 434,900 405,000 2113 Avenue C 1280 50x100 3 Br/1 Ba SFR
09/05/2013 290,000 265,000 2302 Avenue B 2145 50x100 3 Br/2 Ba SFR, Short Sale
09/06/2013 395,000 380,000 1325 Gulf N Dr # 166 1392 2 Br/2 Ba Condo
09/06/2013 799,999 799,000 2309 Avenue C # Both 3326 6 Br/4 Ba Villa
09/06/2013 799,999 800,000 2309 Avenue C # Both 3326 102x108 Inc.
09/23/2013 269,900 280,000 102 1st N St 2447 50x106 Inc., Bank Owned

Holmes Beach

09/06/2013 475,000 405,000 415 Bay Palms Dr 1746 80x100 3 Br/2 Ba SFR
09/12/2013 2,174,000 1,900,000 534 70th St 3511 109 x 119 4 Br/4.5 Ba SFR
09/12/2013 625,000 575,000 207 69th St # B 1200 70x110 3 Br/2 Ba SFR
09/13/2013 450,000 355,000 6818 Palm Dr # A,B 2042 3 Br/2.5 Ba SFR
09/20/2013 519,000 495,000 4110 6th Ave 1500 3 Br/3 Ba SFR
09/20/2013 1,695,000 1,350,000 204 66th St 3400 29x105 6 Br/5.5 Ba SFR
09/26/2013 2,499,000 2,170,000 103 49th St 2431 113x150 3 Br/2.5 Ba SFR
09/26/2013 649,500 615,000 300 67th St 1450 50 x 100 3 Br/2 Ba SFR
09/30/2013 579,000 552,500 215 66th St 1114 54x105 3 Br/2 Ba SFR
09/30/2013 449,000 438,000 231 64th St 1206 3 Br/2 Ba SFR
09/30/2013 719,000 650,000 5605 Carissa St # South 1500 76x117 3 Br/2 Ba SFR
09/02/2013 249,000 225,000 3601 East Bay Dr # 202 1035 2 Br/2 Ba Condo
09/18/2013 1,000,000 1,000,000 6006 Gulf Dr # 201 2010 3 Br/2 Ba Condo
09/20/2013 325,000 300,000 6200 Flotilla Dr # 261 1426 2 Br/2 Ba Condo
09/30/2013 379,900 379,900 6005 Gulf Dr # 219 1011 2 Br/2 Ba Condo
09/30/2013 529,900 500,000 7000 Gulf Dr # 107 1259 2 Br/2 Ba Condo
09/30/2013 317,500 307,500 5808 Gulf Dr # 104 1198 2 Br/2 Ba Condo
09/30/2013 374,900 360,000 3311 Gulf Dr # 1 1331 2 Br/2 Ba Condo
09/23/2013 279,000 265,000 3100 Gulf Dr # 5 884 2 Br/2 Ba TH
09/17/2013 299,900 287,500 426 63rd St 1216 2 Br/2 Ba 1/2 Dup., Bank Owned
09/25/2013 475,000 425,000 6504 Marina Dr # A 1791 104x100 Inc.

Source: Manatee County Property Appraiser’s Office


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