Click HERE for the December 2019 statistics press release and summary charts.
The January 2020 report will be released February 21, 2020. Year-End 2019 report will be released on February 12, 2020.
The residential housing market in Sarasota and Manatee counties showed more activity in December of 2019 than the same month in 2018 with a 49.2 percent increase in the total volume of sales. According to monthly reports from Florida REALTORS®, the number of closed sales increased year-over-year, along with cash sales, median prices and new listings.
Sarasota and Manatee county REALTORS® participated in 1,983 total existing sales, a 36.5 percent increase from December 2018. Single-family closed sales increased by 61.9 percent to 853 sales in Sarasota County and increased by 24.9 percent to 628 sales in Manatee County. Sarasota condo sales increased by 29.2 percent to 310 sales, while Manatee condo sales increased by 4.9 percent to 192 sales.
“December was a banner month for real estate transactions by most measurements,” said David Clapp, 2020 President of the REALTOR® Association of Sarasota and Manatee. “With homes spending less time on the market, an increase in cash sales and the volume of sales, December 2019 experienced more market activity than we typically see this month. We expect this strong finish in 2019 to carry over into a positive 2020.”
Cash sales showed significant increases in December 2019, with a 64.8 percent jump in Sarasota single-family sales and a 42.6 percent increase in Manatee single-family cash sales. Condo cash sales increased by 28.2 percent in Sarasota but decreased by 5.9 percent in Manatee.
“Cash sales can point to a number of factors in the market,” added Clapp. “Lately, we’re seeing a lot of retirees take advantage of the seller’s market by selling their northern property and taking the cash funds to purchase a home in Florida. Investors may also be taking advantage of the market and homeownership tax benefits before year-end.”
In addition to the large amount of closed sales in December 2019, the volume of sales also increased. In Manatee County, single-family sales volume increased by 38.2 percent to $264.3 million while Sarasota County increased by 53.1 percent to $326.9 million in sales volume. The volume of condo sales also increased favorably with a 90.5 percent in Sarasota to $142.3 million in sales and a 7 percent increase in Manatee to $46.3 million.
“A market anomaly appears in the Sarasota condo market, showing a 90.5 percent increase in the volume of sales coupled with increased sales and prices,” said Clapp. “It’s likely that a lot of high-priced condo sales took place this month.”
Median home prices for single-family homes increased by 5.2 percent in Manatee to $325,000. Sarasota single-family prices decreased by 0.7 percent to $283,000. Condo prices increased by 2.9 percent to $195,500 in Manatee and increased by 23.6 percent to $271,945 in Sarasota.
The number of listed properties that went under contract this month show a healthy increase in December 2019, indicating more closed sales in the months that follow. Single-family pending sales increased by 33.8 percent in Sarasota and by 8.3 percent in Manatee. Condo pending sales increased by 5.8 percent in Manatee and by 28.2 percent in Sarasota.
Single-family new listings increased by 11.5 percent in Manatee County and increased by 15.6 percent in Sarasota. Condo new listings in Manatee increased by 0.5 percent, while Sarasota condo new listings decreased by 19.9 percent.
The combined inventory for both markets in both counties decreased by 16.1 percent from December of 2018. Single-family home inventory decreased by 9.4 percent in Manatee and by 11.4 percent in Sarasota. Condo inventory in Manatee decreased by 16.5 percent while Sarasota decreased by 31.5 percent.
“The amount of inventory, or active listings, continues to decline and in some markets as much as 31 percent,” said Clapp. “This will create more demand for the available properties for sale. The two-county area is now under a 4-month supply of inventory, compared to the beginning of 2019 when we were closer to 5 or 6 months.”
The current month’s supply of inventory is lower than this time last year. Sarasota condo inventory decreased by 29.1 percent to a 3.9-months’ supply and Manatee condos decreased by 10 percent to 3.6-months. Sarasota single-family homes decreased by 22.9 percent to 3.7-months and Manatee decreased by 14.6 percent to 3.5-months.
Monthly reports are provided by Florida REALTORS® with data compiled from Stellar MLS. For comprehensive statistics dating back to 2005, visit www.MyRASM.com/statistics.
