The Flat Market Continued In October
Here's some earth-shattering news: The obviously flat real estate market stayed flat in October.
As always, we'll review the Pinellas County Absorption Rate (AR) for October. The AR is actually the inventory turn. It is determined by dividing the number of units sold in a month by the total number of units in the Multiple Listing Service (MLS).
The Pinellas County AR for single family homes in October was 5.2%. In September it was 4.8% and in August it was 5.9%. There just is not much overall activity. In fact, this was the third worst AR in Pinellas so far this year for single family homes.
Pinellas County condos shared pretty much the same fate. The AR for condos was 3.4% in October. In September it was 3.1% and in August it was 3.7%. This was also the third worst AR for condos in Pinellas County this year.
Single Family Info
The MLS is showing a total of 9,228 single family homes listed for sale in Pinellas County for the month of October. In September there were 9,233 and in August there were 9,141. It appears that the inventory is remaining fairly flat.
Single family sales in Pinellas were nothing to brag about. October sales stood at 484 units. In September there were 442 sales, and in August there were 540 single family sales. This sales activity is the third worst month so far this year.
Median prices went up significantly for October over September. The median price in October was $212,000 versus $199,900 for September. In August the median was $219,900. Remember, this is median, not average.
Condo Info
The condo sitiation remains really, really flat.
During October, the MLS shows that 8,270 condos were listed for sale. This is actually down from the two previous months' inventory. In September there were 8,527 and in August there were 8,464.
Now, don't get the idea that the reduced inventory is because condos have suddenly become hot and are selling like crazy. They aren't. October condo sales were only 283 units sold throughout Pinellas County. In September there were only 267 sales and in August there were 311 sales. In actual fact, October was the 4th worst month for condo sales this year in Pinellas according to the local MLS. Most likely the reduction in condo inventory is the result of sellers getting tired of trying to sell and placing their units into rental situations, thus removing them from the MLS inventory.
The median selling price on those condos that sold went up a little in October. The median price for sold units rose to $180,700 for October. In September, the median was $162,600, while in August it stood at $155,900. Again, remember that this is a median figure.
Well, there you have it. All in all, another flat month of sluggish sales. Buyers do not seem to understand that this is a fantastic time to get out there and make offers. The operative concept in that last sentence is "make offers". Buyers need to take the bull by the horns, inspect the available properties and make offers to sellers. In many cases, sellers today are highly motivated to sell their properties for virtually any reasonable price. In order to take advantage of that situation, buyers need to -- and here's that operative concept again -- make offers.
What I am seeing is that there are buyers out there. If you're a seller, that's good news. Those buyers are motivated and understand that this is possibly the best time to buy in the last few years. If you're a seller, you need to do your best to make your property the best value you can. In a market like this, only the best values get purchased.
If buyers make offers today, I'd almost guarantee that in three years they will be happy about their home purchase decision. If they don't make offers today, in three years they'll be kicking themselves.
For more information on real estate in Pinellas County, visit my website at http://www.thestpeterealestatesite.com/.
As always, we'll review the Pinellas County Absorption Rate (AR) for October. The AR is actually the inventory turn. It is determined by dividing the number of units sold in a month by the total number of units in the Multiple Listing Service (MLS).
The Pinellas County AR for single family homes in October was 5.2%. In September it was 4.8% and in August it was 5.9%. There just is not much overall activity. In fact, this was the third worst AR in Pinellas so far this year for single family homes.
Pinellas County condos shared pretty much the same fate. The AR for condos was 3.4% in October. In September it was 3.1% and in August it was 3.7%. This was also the third worst AR for condos in Pinellas County this year.
Single Family Info
The MLS is showing a total of 9,228 single family homes listed for sale in Pinellas County for the month of October. In September there were 9,233 and in August there were 9,141. It appears that the inventory is remaining fairly flat.
Single family sales in Pinellas were nothing to brag about. October sales stood at 484 units. In September there were 442 sales, and in August there were 540 single family sales. This sales activity is the third worst month so far this year.
Median prices went up significantly for October over September. The median price in October was $212,000 versus $199,900 for September. In August the median was $219,900. Remember, this is median, not average.
Condo Info
The condo sitiation remains really, really flat.
During October, the MLS shows that 8,270 condos were listed for sale. This is actually down from the two previous months' inventory. In September there were 8,527 and in August there were 8,464.
Now, don't get the idea that the reduced inventory is because condos have suddenly become hot and are selling like crazy. They aren't. October condo sales were only 283 units sold throughout Pinellas County. In September there were only 267 sales and in August there were 311 sales. In actual fact, October was the 4th worst month for condo sales this year in Pinellas according to the local MLS. Most likely the reduction in condo inventory is the result of sellers getting tired of trying to sell and placing their units into rental situations, thus removing them from the MLS inventory.
The median selling price on those condos that sold went up a little in October. The median price for sold units rose to $180,700 for October. In September, the median was $162,600, while in August it stood at $155,900. Again, remember that this is a median figure.
Well, there you have it. All in all, another flat month of sluggish sales. Buyers do not seem to understand that this is a fantastic time to get out there and make offers. The operative concept in that last sentence is "make offers". Buyers need to take the bull by the horns, inspect the available properties and make offers to sellers. In many cases, sellers today are highly motivated to sell their properties for virtually any reasonable price. In order to take advantage of that situation, buyers need to -- and here's that operative concept again -- make offers.
What I am seeing is that there are buyers out there. If you're a seller, that's good news. Those buyers are motivated and understand that this is possibly the best time to buy in the last few years. If you're a seller, you need to do your best to make your property the best value you can. In a market like this, only the best values get purchased.
If buyers make offers today, I'd almost guarantee that in three years they will be happy about their home purchase decision. If they don't make offers today, in three years they'll be kicking themselves.
For more information on real estate in Pinellas County, visit my website at http://www.thestpeterealestatesite.com/.
-30-
posted by Terry Ward at 5:06 AM
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