A recent local newspaper article stated something that applies pretty generally to all of the Southwest Florida "Sun Coast".
At last, "real people" are starting to buy homes again. Realtors from Marco Island to Tampa Bay are beginning to see more prospective buyers who are looking for "homes of their own." Previously, Realtors have been seeing mostly bottom-feeders looking to "steal a home" in a short sale or foreclosure and speculators still trying to make money by "flipping" a home as an investment option.
Why is this happening? In large part, this trend is occurring because the price of homes and condos have come down far enough that the average family can actually afford to buy a home again. Previously, in many Florida communities, home prices had become so high that the average family could not afford to buy one based upon their family income and other non-housing expenses to which they were already committed.
Across the U.S., in the 4th quarter of 2008 about 41% of all real estate transactions were either foreclosures or short sales. That helped to reduce the number of such properties on the market dragging prices down. New home construction fell again in January, 2009. Currently new construction home sales are essentially limited to distress sales of homebuilders’ existing model home inventories plus a few custom homes. While this may seem like negative news, the dramatic reduction in the number of new homes being built also helps work off the high volume of homes currently on the market.
Meanwhile, in January, 2009, in Lee and Collier Counties existing home sales increased by 155% pending sales in the Sarasota Florda real estate market rose to 683both positive signs that "real people" are back in th markt looking for homes.
In Lee and Collier County Florida, the current inventory of existing homes on the market is now down to a 4.2 month supply, a big drop from the 21.5 months supply on the market a year ago. The number of homes for sale in Sarasota has dropped to just over 4,400 in January, 2009 from numbers far higher than that last year.
So, what should you do about this if you are considering buying a home ? You need to stop "dreaming" of a home of your own and get started taking the steps to actually "owning a home of your own" in Florida's Sun Coast. The best way to get started may be to contct Rich Stover, a Sarasot real estate expert, at 941-266-1799 or e-mail him at rstover9@comcast.net
