Miami Housing Market Enjoys Second-Best June in History

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According to the Miami Association of Realtors, Miami's single-family home market continued its strong selling pace by registering its second-most June transactions in history, and the $1 million-plus luxury sales segment rose for both single-family homes and condominiums.

An average 42.3 Miami single-family homes were sold per day over the last four months, one of the best four-month selling stretches in Miami real estate history. June 2017 saw 1,346 single-family home sales, second only to the 1,390 transactions in June 2015. Miami-Dade County recorded 5,158 single-family home sales in the last four months, from March 2017 through June 2017.

"Miami real estate has seen four consecutive months of single-family sales growth while condominium sales have increased in two of the last four months," said Christopher Zoller, 2017 MIAMI chairman of the board. "Buyer demand and impending interest rate hikes are fueling purchases as buyers want to get settled in their new Miami homes before the school year begins."

According to Freddie Mac, the average commitment rate for a 30-year, conventional, fixed-rate mortgage declined to 3.90 percent in June. The average commitment rate for all of 2016 was 3.65 percent.

Total Home Sales Increase

Total existing Miami-Dade County residential sales -- which posted a record year in 2013 and near record years in 2014 and 2015 -- increased 1.1 percent year-over-year from 2,639 to 2,669.

Sales for Miami single-family homes increased 3.9 percent year-over-year, from 1,296 to 1,346. Sales for existing condominiums, which are competing with a robust new construction market, decreased 1.5 percent year-over-year, from 1,343 to 1,323.

The existing condo market could see future growth, according to new pending sales data. The number of existing Miami condo properties that went under contract in June rose 4.2 percent year-over-year.

Lack of access to mortgage loans continues to inhibit further growth of the existing condominium market. Of the 9,307 condominium buildings in Miami-Dade and Broward counties, only 12 are approved for Federal Housing Administration loans, down from 29 last year, according to Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation and FHA.

Single-Family Luxury Sales Surge 7.1 percent

The rise in Miami single-family home sales is being fueled by a surge in mid-market and luxury transactions. Miami single-family mid-market home sales, or transactions for properties listed between $200,000 and $600,000, jumped 9.9 percent in June, from 840 to 923 sales. Mid-market home sales comprise 68.6 percent of all single-family home sales.

Luxury single-family sales ($1 million and above) jumped 7.1 percent in June 2017, the fourth-consecutive month of increases. Luxury Miami existing condominium sales surged 8.7 percent in June 2017.

Miami single-family traditional sales, or non-distressed transactions, rose 10.8 percent. Traditional sales for existing condominiums increased 7.3 percent. This growth in traditional sales shows the health and strength of the Miami market.

Total sales volume for all properties accounted for $1.19 billion last month. These sales do not include Miami's multi-billion dollar new construction condo market.

Median Prices Rise for More than 6 Percent

Miami-Dade County single-family home prices jumped 6.3 percent in June 2017, increasing from $315,000 to $335,000. Miami single-family home prices have now risen for 67 consecutive months, a streak spanning more than five and half years. Existing condo prices increased 6.8 percent, from $220,000 to $235,000. Condo prices have increased in 71 of the last 73 months.

Despite the rise in prices, Miami real estate remains a major bargain. A 120-square meter condominium in Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Miami Beach cost $170,000 in 2016 Q3, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). The average cost of a 120-square meter apartment in 2016 in the prime inner city areas of London ($4.1 million), Hong Kong ($3.1 million), and New York ($2.2 million) were at least ten times higher, according to Global Property Guide.

Miami Distressed Sales Continue to Drop

Only 9.2 percent of all closed residential sales in Miami were distressed last month, including REO (bank-owned properties) and short sales, compared to 15.7 percent in June 2016.Total Miami distressed sales declined 41.0 percent year-over-year, from 415 to 245 last month. In 2009, distressed sales comprised 70 percent of Miami sales.

Short sales and REOs accounted for 2.5 and 6.7 percent, respectively, of total Miami sales in June 2017. Short sale transactions dropped 20.5 percent year-over-year while REOs fell 46.1 percent.

Nationally, distressed sales accounted for 4 percent of sales in June, down from 6 percent a year ago.

Miami Real Estate Selling Close to List Price

The median number of days between listing and contract dates for Miami single-family home sales was 48 days, a 2.1 percent increase from 47 days last year. The median number of days between the listing date and closing date for single-family properties stayed the same was 100 days, a 5.7 percent decrease from 106 days last year.

For condos, the median time to contract increased 9.0 percent to 73 days. The median number of days between the listing date and closing date stayed the same at 119 days.

The median percent of original list price received for single-family homes stayed the same at 95.5 percent. The median percent of original list price received for existing condominiums decreased 0.4 percent to 93.8 percent.

National and State Statistics

Nationally, total existing-home sales decreased 1.8 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.52 million in June from 5.62 million in May but increased 0.7 percent from a year ago.

Statewide closed sales of existing single-family homes totaled 28,205 last month, up 4.3 percent compared to x27,046 2016, according to Florida Realtors. Statewide closed condo sales totaled 10,996 last month, up 4.9 percent compared to 10,481 2016.

The national median existing-home price for all housing types was $263,800, up 6.5 percent from $247,600 in June 2016 ($x) and marks the 64th straight month of year-over-year gains.

The statewide median sales price for single-family existing homes last month was $245,000 up 8.9 percent from the previous year, according to Florida Realtors. The statewide median price for townhouse-condo properties was $176,820, up 7.2 percent over the year-ago figure. June was the 67th consecutive month that statewide median prices for both sectors rose.

Miami's Cash Buyers Represent Almost Double the National Figure

Miami cash transactions comprised 36.9 percent of June total closed sales, compared to 44.8 percent last year. Miami cash transactions are double the national figure (18 percent). Miami's high percentage of cash sales reflects South Florida's ability to attract a diverse number of international home buyers, who tend to purchase properties in all cash.

Condominiums comprise a large portion of Miami's cash purchases as 51.5 percent of condo closings were made in cash in June compared to 22.5 percent of single-family home sales.

Seller's Market for Single-Family Homes, Supply Declines in June

Inventory of single-family homes decreased 3.8 percent in June from 6,292 active listings last year to 6,052 last month. Condominium inventory increased 6.9 percent to 15,067 from 14,092 listings during the same period in 2016.

Monthly supply of inventory for single-family homes decreased 3.6 percent from 5.6 months to 5.4. The 5.4-month supply indicates a seller's market. Existing condominiums have a 13.6-month supply, which indicates a buyer's market. A balanced market between buyers and sellers offers between six and nine months supply of inventory.

Total active listings at the end of June increased 3.6 percent year-over-year, from 20,384 to 21,119, Active listings remain about 60 percent below 2008 levels when sales bottomed. New listings of Miami single-family homes decreased 8.9 percent, from 1,861 to 1,696. New listings of condominiums decreased 2.3 percent, from 2,326 to 2,272.

Nationally, total housing inventory at the end of June declined 0.5 percent to 1.96 million existing homes available for sale and is 7.1 percent lower than a year ago (2.11 million), falling year-over-year for 25 consecutive months. Unsold inventory is at a 4.3-month supply at the current sales pace, which is down from 4.6 months a year ago.

New Construction Market Update

Most Miami preconstruction condo developers require a 50-percent cash deposit on new units. The deposit is not only one of the highest in the United States but is significantly higher than the 20 percent required during the last real estate cycle. The large cash deposits show how committed Miami's preconstruction condo buyers are to the local market.

Eighty-six condo towers with 8,749 units have been completed in Miami-Dade County east of I-95 since the beginning of 2011, according to a July 20 report from preconstruction condo projects website Cranespotters.com and MIAMI.