Miami Sales Brisk as 188 New Condo Towers Announced

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The skies over Miami are filling up with cranes - again.
 
According to the Miami Association of Realtors, strong demand for existing Miami properties fueled sales and price growth in September, despite strong new construction sales and dozens of new project announcements.

Single-family home prices, which again increased in September, remain at affordable 2004 levels despite 34 months of consistent year-over-year increases for single-family homes.  Condo prices also increased in September, marking 39 months of growth in the last 40 months. Condo prices declined in August for the first time in more than three years but rebounded in September.

The median sale price for single-family homes increased 11.1 percent, up to $250,000 from $225,000 in September 2013. The average sale price for single-family homes decreased 0.4 percent from $372,191 in September 2013 to $370,880 last month.

Compared to September 2013, the median sale price for condominiums increased by 7.3 percent to $195,000 from $181,749 a year prior.  The average sale price for condominiums increased 12.5 percent to $355,156 from $315,615 in September 2013.

See related story: Miami's SLS Lux Brickell Signs $300 Million in New Condo Sales in Ten Days

"Strong demand for Miami real estate is fueling healthy market activity for both single-family homes and condominiums," said 2014 Chairman of the Board of the Miami Association of Realtors Liza Mendez. "New construction condos are also selling rapidly, reflecting all-around robust market performance fueled by both domestic and international buyers."

Sales Rise for Single-family Homes, Condos

Single-family home sales in Miami-Dade County increased 5.3 percent relative to September 2013, from 1,107 to 1,166. Compared to September 2013, condominium sales also increased 5.3 percent from 1,353 the previous year to 1,425 last month. Combined, residential real estate sales therefore also increased 5.3 percent to 2,591 compared to 2,460 in September of last year.

Miami Real Estate Selling Fast, Close to List Price

Miami properties continue to sell at a rapid pace and at nearly asking price, reflecting strong demand.

The median number of days on the market for single-family homes sold in September was just 46 days, an increase of 12.2 percent from September 2013. The average percent of original list price received was 95.6 percent, down a negligible 0.3 percent from a year earlier.

The median number of days on the market for condominiums sold in September was 59 days, an increase of 28.3 percent compared to the same period in 2013. The average sales price was 93.9 percent of the asking price, a decrease of 2.9 percent.

"While greater supply is creating more opportunities for buyers, particularly for condominiums, lack of financing for condominiums and new construction sales are impacting existing sales," said 2014 Miami Association of Realtors Residential President Francisco Angulo. "The Miami real estate market remains very competitive depending on neighborhood, price point and property type."

National and State Figures

Nationally, sales of existing single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums, and co-ops also bounced back in September, increasing 2.4 percent from August but remain 1.7 percent below what they were in September 2013, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR).  Statewide closed sales of existing single-family homes totaled 20,792 in September, up 13.5 percent compared to the year-ago figure, according to Florida Realtors. Statewide sales of condominiums totaled 8,622, up 2.0 percent from September 2013.

The national median existing-home price for all housing types was $209,700 in September, a 5.6 percent increase from September 2013, according to NAR.  The statewide median sale price for single-family existing homes last month was $180,000, up 5.9 percent from the previous year, while that of townhouse-condo properties was $142,700, up 9.8 percent over the previous year.

Cash Sales Decline

Cash sales in Miami continue to decline as more financing becomes available.  Still, access to mortgage loans for condominium buyers remains limited, impeding further market strengthening.

In Miami-Dade County, 55.8 percent of total closed sales in September were all-cash transactions, compared to 60.5 percent in September 2013. Cash sales in Miami are still more than double the national figure of 24 percent. All-cash sales accounted for 40.3 percent of single-family home and 68.4 percent of condominium closings, compared to a year earlier when cash sales were 47.8 percent of single-family home sales and 71 percent of condominium sales.

Since nearly 90 percent of foreign buyers in Florida purchase properties all cash, this continues to reflect the much stronger presence of international buyers in the Miami real estate market.

Short Sales Continue to Decrease

While traditional sales continue to increase, distressed property transactions in September again declined in Miami-Dade due to fewer short sales.  In September, only 34.5 percent of all closed residential sales in Miami-Dade County were distressed, including REOs (bank-owned properties) and short sales, compared to 37.6 percent in September 2013.

Short sales and REOs accounted for 8.8 and 25.8 percent, respectively, of total Miami sales in September.  Sales of REOs increased 24.6 percent while that of short sales declined by 41.5 percent.

Nationally, distressed homes accounted for 10 percent of September sales compared to 14 percent in September 2013.

Active Inventory Continues to Rise

After three years of record sales activity that resulted in an inventory shortage, seller confidence continues to result in more properties being listed for sale in Miami.

Active listings at the end of September increased 23.5 percent, from 14,274 in 2013 to 17,480 last month but remain 60 percent below levels 2008, when sales bottomed. Inventory of single-family homes increased 19.7 percent from 5,304 in September 2013 to 6,347 last month. Condominium inventory increased 24.1 percent to 11,133 from 8,970 active listings during the same period in 2013. At the current sales pace, there is a 5.7-month supply of single-family homes, an increase of 16.2 percent from 4.9 months in September 2013, and an 8.1-month supply of condominiums, up from 6.3 months in September 2013, an increase of 29.1 percent. A balanced market between buyers and sellers offers between six and nine months supply of inventory.

New listings of single-family homes increased 2.1 percent, up to 2,021 in September 2014 from 1,601 during the same period in 2013. New condominium listings increased 4.0 percent from 2,727 in September 2013 to 2,837 last month.

At the end of the September, total housing inventory nationally declined 1.3 percent to 2.30 million existing homes available for sale compared to the previous month, which represents a 5.3-month supply at the current sales pace.  Unsold inventory nationally is 6.0 percent higher than a year ago.

New Construction Market Update

Strong sales in the coastal new construction condominium Miami market (east of I-95) reflect significant demand for new properties, according to the latest New Construction Market Status Report released today by Cranespotters.com.

Currently, there are 188 new construction towers that have been announced in Miami-Dade County east of I-95, of which 66 have not been approved, 60 are planned but have not begun development, 55 are under construction, and 7 were completed in 2014.

Of the above projects in Miami-Dade:

• 82 projects with 96 towers comprising 14,690 units are currently selling

• Since 2011, 65 percent or 9,478 units have been sold, compared to 66 percent in August

• The mean price per square foot of these units is $850, compared to $844 last month

"September proved to be another active month for preconstruction condo sales East of Interstate 95 in the tricounty coastal region based on the latest Carnespotters.com Monthly Developer Price Survey," said Peter Zalewski, founder of Cranespotters.com.  Our researchers learned that buyers entered into contracts to purchase nearly 250 preconstruction condos - an average of more than eight units per day - in the month of September.  Buyers accounted for more than 45 units in Broward County, nearly 200 in Miami-Dade County and fewer than 5 units in Palm Beach County.  As a result, some 65 percent of the more than 16,900 preconstruction condo units actively being marketed for presale are now under contract or recently sold.  For the remaining 5,850 units available the minimum mean price per square foot is $772. On a county-by-county basis, minimum price per square foot is $507 in Broward, $850 in Miami-Dade and $495 in Palm Beach."