Home sales rise in two S. Fla. counties
Wednesday, June 23, 2010 at 12:45PM Sales of existing, single-family homes rose in Miami and West Palm Beach, but slid in Fort Lauderdale in May, according to statistics from Florida Realtors. At the same time, the median sales price in all three counties ticked up.
Existing home sales in Miami rose 22 percent, to 727 in May from 597 a year ago. The median price rose 1 percent, to $196,700 from $194,700.
Existing condo sales in Miami shot up 70 percent, to 972 in May from 571 the year before. But, the median price of a condo in Miami fell 10 percent, to $126,100 from $140,300, according to Florida Realtors’ data.
Existing home sales in Fort Lauderdale fell 6 percent, to 731 from 780 a year earlier. On the upside, the median price of an existing home rose 14 percent, to $216,400 from $190,000.
Condo sales fared better. Sales were up 21 percent in Fort Lauderdale, to 965 from 799 a year earlier. The median price rose 1 percent, to $81,500 from $80,400.
West Palm Beach home sales were up 20 percent, to 887 from 737. The median sales price rose 1 percent, to $235,200 from $232,900. Condo sales in West Palm Beach rose 30 percent, to 877 from 676 a year earlier. However, the median price of an existing condo dipped 7 percent, to $99,600 from $107,500.
Across the state, a variety of housing opportunities continues to be available at attractive prices, while mortgage interest rates remain historically low, according to 2010 Florida Realtors President Wendell Davis.
Statewide, sales of existing homes rose 18 percent in May, with 16,745 homes sold. That was up from 14,172 homes sold in May 2009. Condo sales rose 40 percent, year-over-year, statewide.
The statewide median price of an existing home was $140,400 in May, up $300 from April. The median price of a condo in Florida, however, fell 13 percent, to $98,700 from $113,500 a year ago.
Nationwide, existing home and condo sales fell. Home sales slipped 2.2 percent in May, while condo sales fell 6.8 percent.
The drop may not be bad news. Because of the second homebuyers' tax credit, realtors were trading off sales in the second half of 2010 for sales in the first half, noted Patrick Newport, a U.S. economist with IHS Global Insight. He said the drop implies that payback from the second homebuyers' tax credit will be smaller than that from the first tax credit.
A piece of good news is that prices are increasing nationwide. The median and average prices were both up compared with prices a year earlier. And average prices of single-family homes increased, year-over-year, in all four regions and in 16 of 20 cities surveyed. Rising home prices will reduce the number of homes that will fall into foreclosure, Newport noted in a news release.
