The impact of hurricane season continues to be felt across the southern states with Florida Realtors reporting a sharp drop in sales last month
The impact of hurricane season continues to be felt across the southern states with Florida Realtors reporting a sharp drop in sales last month.
There were 18,030 single-family homes sold in September, down 20.4% year-over-year.
"The impact from Hurricane Irma was wide-ranging across Florida, though the devastation and damage was certainly greater in some areas, such as the Keys and in Naples," said 2017 Florida Realtors President Maria Wells, broker-owner with Lifestyle Realty Group in Stuart.
She added that even before the physical impact of the hurricane, the market was affected by potential buyers and sellers taking time out to prepare for the impact and then there was the post-Irma clean-up.
The fall in sales comes as the statewide inventory remains tight (3.3 months supply for single-family) adding upward pressure to median prices. The existing single-family home price was up 7.6% to $239,900 according to data from Florida Realtors Research department in partnership with local Realtor boards/associations.
For condos/townhouses, the median price rose 8.1% to $173,00o with sales down 15.9% year-over-year to 7,404 units. Inventory was down to 5.5 months of supply at current sales pace.
"Perhaps the most important thing to understand about this month's sales numbers is that these declines in real estate activity are not in any way indicative of a decline in the demand for housing going forward, or any other structural change in Florida's housing market dynamics, for that matter," said Florida Realtors® Chief Economist Dr. Brad O'Connor.
"This is the result of a temporary economic decline brought about by Irma before and after it passed through. We should expect to see similar temporary drops in restaurant and retail sales, job hiring and other economic indicators at the local level,” he added.
There were 18,030 single-family homes sold in September, down 20.4% year-over-year.
"The impact from Hurricane Irma was wide-ranging across Florida, though the devastation and damage was certainly greater in some areas, such as the Keys and in Naples," said 2017 Florida Realtors President Maria Wells, broker-owner with Lifestyle Realty Group in Stuart.
She added that even before the physical impact of the hurricane, the market was affected by potential buyers and sellers taking time out to prepare for the impact and then there was the post-Irma clean-up.
The fall in sales comes as the statewide inventory remains tight (3.3 months supply for single-family) adding upward pressure to median prices. The existing single-family home price was up 7.6% to $239,900 according to data from Florida Realtors Research department in partnership with local Realtor boards/associations.
For condos/townhouses, the median price rose 8.1% to $173,00o with sales down 15.9% year-over-year to 7,404 units. Inventory was down to 5.5 months of supply at current sales pace.
"Perhaps the most important thing to understand about this month's sales numbers is that these declines in real estate activity are not in any way indicative of a decline in the demand for housing going forward, or any other structural change in Florida's housing market dynamics, for that matter," said Florida Realtors® Chief Economist Dr. Brad O'Connor.
"This is the result of a temporary economic decline brought about by Irma before and after it passed through. We should expect to see similar temporary drops in restaurant and retail sales, job hiring and other economic indicators at the local level,” he added.
