Miami Set to Break Single-Family Home Sales Record for Fifth Consecutive Year, Existing Condominiums on Pace for Third-Best Year of All-Time
Miami, FL (PRWEB) December 22, 2015 -- The Miami-Dade County real estate market is on pace to break its all-time annual single-family home sales record for the fifth consecutive year after a solid November highlighted by rising median prices and faster sales, according to a new report by the 41,000-member MIAMI Association of REALTORS® (MIAMI) and Multiple Listing Service (MLS) system.
The Miami-Dade market has registered 12,857 single-family home sales through the first 11 months of 2015, putting the market on pace to eclipse the all-time annual single-family sales record of 13,521, established last year.
Miami-Dade County existing condominiums are also on pace for a banner year despite a rise in pre-construction condo sales east of Interstate-95. With a total of 14,770 existing condo transactions this year through November, the market will likely finish with the third-most sales in Miami history. 2013 holds the record with 17,142 existing condo sales, followed by the 16,409 sales in 2014.
“A fifth-consecutive record year for single-family home transactions is a testament to the vitality and allure of Miami real estate,” said Christopher Zoller, a 27-year Miami-based Realtor and the 2015 Residential President of MIAMI. “International and domestic buyers want to invest and live in one of the world’s top global cities. Miami existing condominiums are also on pace for a historic sales year despite an increase in competition from new construction properties.”
Median Prices Continue Rising for Single-Family, Condos
The median sales price for single-family homes rose 12.2 percent year-over-year in November 2015, from $245,000 to $274,900. Single-family home prices remain at 2004 levels despite four years of consistent year-over-year increases.
The median sales price for existing condominiums increased 7.0 percent in November to $203,000 from $189,777 a year ago. Miami-Dade County condo prices have risen in 53 of the last 54 months, a period stretching nearly four and a half years.
Miami Real Estate Selling Faster and Close to List Price
The average percent of original list price received for single-family homes was 95.7 percent in November 2015, an increase of 1.9 percent from a year earlier. The median number of days on the market for Miami single-family homes fell 19.1 percent to 38 days in November 2015 from 47 days in November 2014.
The median number of days on the market for condominiums sold in November 2015 was 50 days, a 12.3 percent decrease from 57 days in November 2014. The average percent of original list price received was 93.8 percent, a 0.1 percent year-over-year increase.
Total existing Miami-Dade County residential sales, including single-family and condo markets, were consistent with historical averages despite experiencing a decline of 2.2 percent from 2,049 sales in November 2014 to 2,004 last month.
Miami-Dade County single-family home transactions decreased 6.7 percent year-over-year in November, from 972 to 907. Existing condominium sales increased 1.9 percent in November 2015, from 1,077 to 1,097.
Mortgage rates remain at historic lows. On Dec. 16, the Federal Reserve increased interest rates for the first time in nearly a decade. The rate hike could lead to higher borrowing costs for home buyers, but it’s not guaranteed. According to Freddie Mac, the interest rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage hovered below 4.0 percent in November 2015 for the fourth consecutive month but increased to 3.94 from 3.80 in October. The average commitment rate was 4.0 percent a year ago.
New Policy Should Qualify More South Florida Condo Buildings for FHA Loans
Miami existing condominiums have been impacted by a lack of access to mortgage loans. Of the 8,523 condominium buildings in Miami-Dade and Broward Counties, only 23 are approved for Federal Housing Administration loans, down from 29 earlier this year, according to statistics released earlier this year from the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation and FHA.
A new FHA policy, however, should qualify more South Florida condo buildings. On Nov. 12, the FHA announced plans to streamline the condominium recertification process, expand its definition of acceptable owner-occupied units to include second homes not owned by investors and change the way it views co-insurance clauses. The government affairs team of the MIAMI Association of REALTORS® advocated for the changes, which go into effect immediately.
National and State statistics
Nationally, sales of existing single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums, and co-ops decreased 10.5 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.76 million in October from a slightly downwardly revised 5.32 million in October, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). National sales are now 3.8 percent above a year ago.
Statewide, closed sales of existing single-family homes totaled 18,102 last month, an increase of 1.9 percent over November 2014, according to Florida Realtors. Florida’s condominium sales jumped to a total of 7,638 transactions, up 5.7 percent compared to November 2014.
The national median existing-home price for all housing types in November 2015 was $220,300, which is 6.3 percent above November 2014 ($207,200), according to NAR. November’s price increase marks the 45 consecutive month of year–over–year gains.
The statewide median sales price for single-family existing homes last month was $200,000, up 13.6 percent from the previous year, according to Florida Realtors. The statewide median price for townhouse-condo properties was $150,000, up 7.1 percent compared to last year.
Miami’s Cash Buyers Increase and Represent Twice the National Average
In November, cash deals represented 54.9 percent of Miami’s total closed sales, which is more than double the national average. Just 27 percent of all U.S. housing sales were made in cash, according to NAR. Cash transactions represented 53.3 percent of total Miami deals in November 2014. Miami’s high percentage of cash sales reflects South Florida’s ability to attract a diverse number of international home buyers, who tend to purchase properties in all cash.
Condominiums comprise a large portion of Miami’s cash purchases as 67.5 percent of condo closings were made in cash in November compared to 39.8 percent of single-family home sales.
Distressed Property Transactions Decline in Miami
Only 24.5 percent of all closed residential sales in Miami were distressed last month, including REO (bank-owned properties) and short sales, compared to 34.7 percent in November 2014.
Short sales and REOs accounted for 4.3 and 20.2 percent, respectively, of total Miami sales in November. Short sale transactions dropped 51.1 percent year-over-year while REOs decreased 24.2 percent.
Nationally, distressed sales were 9.0 percent of sales in November, up from 25 percent a year ago.
Seller’s Market for Existing Single-Family Homes, Balanced Market for Condos
Inventory of single-family homes increased 2.2 percent in November from 6,365 active listings last year to 6,502 last month. Condominium inventory increased 11.9 percent to 12,885 from 11,515 listings during the same period in 2014.
At the current sales pace, there is a 5.5-month supply of Miami single-family homes, a decrease of 2.9 percent from 5.7 months in November 2014. There is a 9.6-month supply of condominium inventory, up from 8.4 months in November 2014, an increase of 13.8 percent. A balanced market between buyers and sellers offers between six and nine months supply of inventory.
Total active listings at the end of November increased 8.4 percent year-over-year, from 17,880 to 19,387. Active listings remain about 60 percent below 2008 levels when sales bottomed.
New listings of Miami single-family homes increased 3.5 percent from 1,725 in November of last year to 1,785 last month. New listings of condominiums increased 12.2 percent to 2,710 last month, compared to 2,416 during the same time period in 2014.
Nationally, total housing inventory at the end of November decreased 3.3 percent to 2.04 million existing homes available for sale, and is now 1.9 percent lower than a year ago (2.08 million). Unsold inventory is at a 5.1–month supply at the current sales pace.
New Construction Market Update
Strong sales in the preconstruction condominium Miami market east of Interstate 95 continue to reflect significant demand for new properties, according to the latest New Construction Market Status Report released by the preconstruction condo projects website Cranespotters.com and MIAMI.
Thirty-eight towers with 690 floors and 3,639 units have been completed in Miami-Dade County east of I-95 in the four years since 2011, according to the latest report. There are 74 towers with 1,599 floors and 10,148 units under construction in Miami east of I-95. About 65 towers with 1,534 floors and 9,131 units are planned, but have not begun development.
To access November 2015 Miami-Dade Statistical Reports, visit http://www.SFMarketIntel.com
Note: Statistics in this news release may vary depending on reporting dates. MIAMI reports exact statistics directly from its MLS system.
About the MIAMI Association of REALTORS®
The MIAMI Association of REALTORS® was chartered by the National Association of Realtors in 1920 and is celebrating 95 years of service to Realtors, the buying and selling public, and the communities in South Florida. Comprised of six organizations, the Residential Association, the Realtors Commercial Alliance, the Broward Council, the Jupiter Tequesta Hobe Sound (JTHS) Council, the Young Professionals Network (YPN) Council and the award-winning International Council, it represents more than 41,000 real estate professionals in all aspects of real estate sales, marketing, and brokerage. It is the largest local Realtor association in the U.S., and has official partnerships with 136 international organizations worldwide. MIAMI’s official website is http://www.miamire.com.
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Lynda Fernandez, MIAMI Assocation of REALTORS, http://www.miamire.com, +1 (305) 468-7040, [email protected]
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