Miami Herald: South Florida housing market continues trend

BY MONICA HATCHER
mhatcher@MiamiHerald.com

South Florida existing home sales again posted strong gains in July, while median prices tumbled compared with a year ago. Month-to-month price declines mellowed.

In Miami-Dade, July sales of single-family homes were up 64 percent, while the median toppled 40 percent to $192,700. Condo sales also rose by 48 percent. The median condo price also dropped 40 percent to $137,600

Broward showed a similar pattern.

Single-family home sales were up 56 percent, while the median price dropped 28 percent to $219,000. Condo sales also rose 66 percent, with the median price falling 42 percent to $80,800.

Statewide, sales prices dropped 24 percent to $147,600 for single-family homes and 36 percent to $108,300 for condominiums, as sales rose 37 percent and 48 percent, respectively.

Prices have plateaued since the first of the year, however, suggesting that the market may have reached a trough. Month-to-month declines have slowed and even showed gains in some months, as higher-priced homes begin to sell and distressed properties draw multiple bidders, resulting in closings above the list price.

With the months-long surge in sales, the number of homes on the market continue to shrink.

In July, the number of single-family homes in Miami-Dade was down 43 percent since the same month last year, with 9,768 homes on the market for a 13.3-month supply.

Analysts say that at least a 12-month supply is required before home prices can stabilize.

In Broward, single-family home inventory was down 45 percent, with 7,774 homes for sale, for a 7.9-month supply. In normal markets, home values have tended to appreciate when a six-month supply is available. The number of Broward condos also shrunk by 30 percent, 13,225 units on the market for sale, for a 13.3-month supply.

Miami-Dade still has more than a two-year supply of condos on the market, even though inventory was down 25 percent over last year. There were 18,291 condos listed for sale. Thousands more are still being held by developers, who do not list them in the Realtors MLS database.

William Hardin, director of real estate programs at Florida International University, said the month-to-month trends have been positive, but cautioned that a recovery in the housing market would be a lengthy ordeal.

“Those are good numbers but there is still an overhang of potential foreclosures that simply aren’t being put on the market. And, I think that’s the risk out there,” Hardin said.

Florida ranks first in the country for the number of homeowners either behind on their loans or in foreclosure — with 23 percent behind to some degree. Twelve percent of home loans were mired in the foreclosure process, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported Thursday.

“When you look at 12 percent of homes in Florida in foreclosure and then you look at what is for sale, there is an obvious mismatch,” Hardin said. “Now, not all of those homes are going to to be taken back and sold by the lenders, but it is indicative.”