Foreign Buyers Driving Miami's Pending Home Sales Uptick

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(MIAMI, FL) -- Based on data from the Miami Association of Realtors and the Southeast Florida Multiple Listing Service (SEFMLS), total current cumulative pending home sales - including single-family homes and condominiums - in Miami-Dade County increased 14.4% compared to a year ago, from 10,392 to 11,887, and 3%, up from 11,544, compared to the previous month.

March Contract Activity Surges

The total number of listings, including single-family homes and condominiums, that pended in March increased by 79 percent from 2,621 to 4,692 compared to the previous year and by 17 percent from 4,009 compared to the previous month.  The number of condominium listings pended in March increased by 138 percent from 1,208 to 2,878 compared to the previous year and 14.6 percent from 2,511 to 2,878 compared to the previous month.

"Increasing contract activity month-over-month and year-over-year is pointing to strengthening future sales in Miami-Dade County," said Jack H. Levine, 2011 chairman of the board of the Miami Association of Realtors.  "This coupled with strong sales activity thus far this year is evidence of healthy demand expected to result in the highest annual sales levels since the peak of the real estate boom in 2005."

Cumulative Pending Sales on the Rise

Total cumulative pending sales of condominiums continue to outperform that of single-family homes.  Pending sales of single-family homes are 7.0 percent higher than they were a year ago, from 4,574 to 4,896, and increased 2.4 percent from 4,782 compared to last month.  Pending sales of condominiums are 20.2 percent above what they were a year ago, from 5,818 to 6,991, and 3.4 percent compared to last month, when pending condominium sales totaled 6,762.

"We are experiencing demand for properties of all types and in varying prices ranges, especially from the important foreign buyers," said 2011 Miami Association of Realtors Residential President Ralph E. De Martino.  "An increasing number of buyers is taking advantage of record affordability and the incredible lifestyle South Florida has to offer."

Nationally, the Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contract signings, rose 5.1 percent to 94.1 in March from a downwardly revised 89.5 in February, according to the National Association of Realtors. The index is 11.4 percent below 106.2 in March 2010.

Increased pending sales are an indication of increased future sales.  A sale is listed as pending when a contract is signed but the transaction has not closed, though the sale usually is finalized within one or two months of signing.

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