Miami Doubles National Average of Residential Cash Buyers in Q1

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According to the Miami Association of Realtors, increasing demand from domestic and international buyers helped carry the Miami real estate market to a robust first quarter, as single-family home transactions registered double-digit growth while all properties saw a rise in median sale prices.

The median sales price for single-family homes in Miami increased to $250,000 in the first quarter, an 8.7 percent jump compared to the same period last year. The median sale price for condominiums increased 4.8 percent year-over-year to $196,500. Miami-Dade County has now seen 13 consecutive quarters of prices growth for single-family homes and condominiums.

"Miami real estate sales continue growing at a moderate pace after a historic 2014 that saw the market register an all-time annual record for existing home sales and the second-best sales year for condominiums," said Christopher Zoller, a 27-year Miami-based Realtor and the 2015 Residential President of the Miami Association of Realtors. "Miami's recent emergence as a cultural and art destination as well as its budding technological hub and world-class amenities are attracting more international and domestic buyers."

Nationally, the median existing single-family home price in the first quarter was $205,200, up 7.4 percent from the first quarter of 2014 ($191,100), according to the National Association of Realtors. The national median existing-condo price was $193,500 in the first quarter, up 1.5 percent from the first quarter of 2014 ($190,600).

Statewide, the median sales price for single-family existing homes in the first quarter was $182,000, up 8.3 percent from the same time a year ago, according to Florida Realtors. The Florida median price for condos during the quarter was $145,000, up 7.4 percent over the year-ago figure.

Double-Digit Growth for Single-Family Home Transactions

Sales of single-family homes increased 10.2 percent to 3,187 in the first quarter, while condominium transactions decreased 3 percent to 3,744 compared with the same period in 2014.

The Miami market had 6,931 total residential sales in the first quarter of 2015, a 2.7 percent increase compared to the first quarter of 2014.

Nationally, total existing-home sales for single-family and condominiums declined 1.8 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.97 million in the first quarter from 5.06 million in the fourth quarter of 2014, but are 6.2 percent higher than the 4.68 million pace during the first quarter of 2014.

Statewide, closed sales of existing single-family homes totaled 59,599 in the first quarter of 2015, up 18.6 percent over the first quarter 2014 figure. Florida's townhome-condo market had 26,637 total closed sales during the first quarter of 2015, up 7.1 percent compared to the first quarter of 2014.

New, Active Listings Rise in First Quarter

Seller confidence in Miami's balanced housing market continued to expand in the first quarter. Miami saw a 1.7 percent increase in new listings for single-family homes, growing from 6,384 in the first quarter of 2014 to 6,490 in the first quarter of 2015. New listings for condominiums increased by 0.7 percent year-over-year from 9,334 to 9,397.

The Miami market had 18,266 active listings in the first quarter, an 8.2 percent increase from the 16,879 listings at the same time last year.

At the current sales pace, the number of active listings represents 5.3 months of inventory for single-family homes and 9.0 for condominiums. A balanced market between buyers and sellers offers between six and nine months of supply inventory. The inventory for single-family homes decreased 4.8 percent compared to the same period from last year. Compared to the first quarter of 2014, the monthly supply of inventory for condominiums increased 18.8 percent.

The median days on the market for single-family home listings during the first quarter was 51 compared to 47 a year ago, an increase of 8.5 percent. The median days on the market for condominiums was 63 compared to 57 last year, an increase of 10.5 percent.

Luxury Sales Rise for Single-Family Homes, Decline for Condos

Miami saw a 2.3 percent rise in sales for $1 million-plus single-family homes in the first quarter compared to the same period last year. Miami - which was recently ranked as the sixth most important city in the world to individuals with a net worth of at least $30 million by the London-based consultancy Knight Frank had 222 luxury homes sold in the first quarter. Luxury condominiums listed at $1 million or above saw 3.6 percent decline in sales, registering 241 in the first quarter.

The median days on the market for luxury single-family homes was 94 in the first quarter, which equaled the amount from the first quarter of 2014. The median days on the market for luxury condos was 103, a 15.7 percent increase from the same time period in 2014.

Percentage of Cash Sales Increase Compared to Last Quarter

Miami cash sales increased compared to the fourth quarter of 2014, but decreased year-over-year. About 56.5 percent of closed sales in the first quarter of 2015 were all cash compared to 55 percent in the final quarter of 2014. A year ago, Miami's percentage of cash sales was 61.6 percent.

Miami has double the national average of residential cash buyers. Just 24 percent of U.S. home properties were made in cash in March 2015, the most recent statistical data on cash buyers released by the National Association of Realtors. Statewide, cash sales represented 49.6 percent of all closed sales in the first quarter of 2015, down from 55.4 percent during the same period last year.

Miami's existing condo market has more cash-only deals with a whopping 69.4 percent of all transactions made in cash. In the single-family sector, about 41.1 percent of all deals are made in cash. Since nearly 90 percent of foreign buyers pay cash, this reflects Miami's top position as a prime market for foreign buyers. Miami has a significant percentage of international buyers, generating more than double the cash transactions than the national average.