The August statistics are out from the Sarasota Association of Realtors, and it appears the market is back on track after a slow summer.
SAR cited the expiration of the tax credit for the drop off; it is our assertion that both fears from the oil spill and beautiful weather up north contributed as well. With thoughts of snow fast approaching, and fears about oil on beaches being all but quelled, sales are rising as expected. Sales were up 8 percent over July 2010, and up 14.3 percent over August 2009. Property sales in August 2010 stood at 567 total sales, compared to 496 sales in August 2009.
Distressed condo sales have negatively impacted overall condo median prices significantly. Traditional sales netted three-times as much as bank-owned properties, and twice as much as short sales on average.
Pending sales also rose in August to 816, from last month’s figure of 653, for a 25 percent increase. This rise in properties under contract speaks well for the fall season.
Distressed property sales (foreclosures and short sales) dropped in August 2010 to 47 percent from last month’s figure of 48.7 percent of the overall market. The market inventory level remained basically steady, at just over the 6,000 level in August. This is one of the lowest monthly levels since summer of 2005.
Equilibrium in a buyers and sellers market is gauged by average time a home spends on market before selling. In a healthy market, a property is on market for 6 months. In August the average dropped to the 9 month level, ever closer to equilibrium.