Home sales in the Sarasota-Bradenton area rose by 7 percent compared to the same period last year reports Herald Tribune on Friday October 21 2011.
The local trends show that Southwest Florida’s real estate market is ahead of the rest of the country in terms of its recovery from the Great Recession. Sales nationally fell 3 percent in September, matching last year’s figure — the worst in 13 years. The nation is on pace to sell about 4.9 million homes this year, well below the 6 million economists say is consistent with a healthy housing market. The Sunshine State has seen 143,883 sales year to date, about 10 percent ahead of last year’s pace.
The declining inventories are the most important market indicator at the moment. In 2004, there was a 2.4-month supply of homes under $500,000 on the market. That supply grew to more than 24 months in 2007 before dropping back to under six months today — the point at which supply and demand are in equilibrium and prices can rise. But be aware that inventories of homes in the $500,000 and above range are still high. Looking at $1 million-plus homes, the supply is now around 28 to 30 months. Read more at http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20111020/ARTICLE/111029981/0/FRONTPAGE?p=3&tc=pg
By Per Nordstrom, Team Nordstrom