MIAMI — Broward County total home sales, dollar volume, $1-million-and-up transactions and median prices increased year-over-year in December 2019, according to the MIAMI Association of Realtors (MIAMI) and the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) system.
Broward County continues in a seller’s market (inventory below 6 months of supply) with months of supply trending downward, a sign of the high demand for Broward real estate.
“Fort Lauderdale is a dynamic real estate market in a robust region,” Broward MIAMI President Sharon R. Lindblade said. “Consumers in tax-burdened states such as New York, New Jersey and Connecticut are planting roots in Broward County, which like the rest of Florida has no city or state income taxes and has a 6% state sales tax.”
Broward Total Home Sales Jump 14.2%
Broward County total home sales surged 14.2%, from 2,361 to 2,697. Broward single-family home sales increased 15.1%, from 1,148 to 1,321. Broward existing condos rose 13.4%, from 1,213 to 1,376.
A rise in mid-market and luxury ($1-million-and-up) transactions fueled the increase in total home sales.
Broward homes priced between $400K to $600K registered a 44.6% home sales increase. Broward condos priced between $400K to $500K saw a 46.9% transactions increase.
In the luxury market, Broward single-family home sales jumped 48.1% to 77 luxury transactions. Broward luxury condos increased 22.2% to 22 transactions last month.
With consumer confidence rising, unemployment low, job creation high and increased migration to Florida, Broward real estate should enjoy steady growth.
According to Freddie Mac, the average commitment rate for a 30-year, conventional, fixed-rate mortgage increased to 3.72% in December, up from 3.70% in November. The average commitment rate across all of 2019 was 3.94%.
Single-family home dollar volume increased 29% from $506.2 million to $653.1 million. Condo dollar volume increased 22.8% from $258 million to $316.8 million.
Lack of access to mortgage loans continues to inhibit further growth of the existing condominium market. Of the 9,307 condominium buildings in Miami-Dade and Broward counties, only 12 are approved for Federal Housing Administration loans, down from 29 last year, according to Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation and FHA.
Broward Median Prices Continue Rising
Broward single-family home median prices increased 8.6%, from $350,000 to $380,000. Broward existing condominium median prices increased 12.5%, from $160,000 to $180,000.
Broward Distressed Sales Stay Low, Reflecting Healthy Market
Only 3.7% of all closed residential sales in Broward were distressed in December 2019, including REO (bank-owned properties) and short sales, compared 4.8% in December 2018.
Total Broward distressed sales decreased 11.5% year-over-year, from 113 to 100.
Short sales and REOs accounted for 0.9% and 2.7%, respectively, of total Broward sales in December 2019. Short sale transactions increased 13% year-over-year, from 23 to 26. REOs decreased 17.8%, from 90 to 74.
Nationally, distressed sales represented 2% of sales in December, unchanged from both November 2019 and December 2018.
Broward Real Estate Selling Close to List Price
The median number of days between listing and contract dates for Broward single-family home sales was 48 days, a 4.3% increase from 46 days last year. The median number of days between the listing date and closing date for single-family homes was 86 days, a 2.4% increase from 84 days.
The median time to contract for condos was 52 days, a 13% increase from 46 days. The median number of days between the listing date and closing date for condos was 89 days, a 3.5% increase from 86 days.
The median percent of original list price received for single-family homes was 95.7%. The median percent of original list price received for existing condominiums was 94.3%.
National and State Statistics
Nationally, total existing-home sales transactions increased 3.6% from November to a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 5.54 million in December. Additionally, overall sales took a significant bounce, up 10.8% from a year ago (5.00 million in December 2019).
Statewide closed sales of existing single-family homes totaled 25,557 last month, up 23.8% from December 2018, according to Florida Realtors. Florida’s condo-townhouse market totaled 9,605, up 17.7% from the level a year ago. Closed sales may occur from 30- to 90-plus days after sales contracts are written.
The national median existing-home price for all housing types in in December was $274,500, up 7.8% from December 2018 ($254,700), as prices rose in every region. November’s price increase marks 94 straight months of year-over-year gains.
Statewide median sales prices for both single-family homes and condo-townhouse properties in December rose year-over-year for 96 months in a row. The statewide median sales price for single-family existing homes was $270,000, up 5.9% from the previous year. Last month’s statewide median price for condo-townhouse units was $200,000, up 8.1% over the year-ago figure. The median is the midpoint; half the homes sold for more, half for less.
Broward Cash Buyers Represent Almost Double the National Figure
Broward cash transactions comprised 33.7% of December 2019 total closed sales, compared to 36.9% last year. Broward cash transactions are almost double the national figure (20%).
Condominiums comprise a large portion of Broward’s cash purchases as 49.6% of condo closings were made in cash in November compared to 17.1% of single-family home sales.
Seller’s Market for Broward Real Estate
Months supply of inventory for single-family homes decreased 18.2% to 3.6 months, which indicates a seller’s market. Existing condominiums decreased 5.3%, from 5.7 months to 5.4 months, which also indicates a seller’s market. A balanced market between buyers and sellers offers between six and nine months of supply.
Total active listings at the end of December decreased 11.8% year-over-year, from 13,892 to 12,258. Inventory of single-family homes decreased 16.3% in December from 5,762 active listings last year to 4,824 in December 2019. Condominium inventory decreased 8.6% to 7,434 from 8,130 listings during the same period in 2018.
New listings of Broward single-family homes decreased 0.4% from 1,230 to 1,225. New listings of condominiums decreased 2.1%, from 1,594 to 1,560.
Nationally, total housing inventory at the end of December totaled 1.40 million units, down 14.6% from November and 8.5% from one year ago (1.53 million). Unsold inventory sits at a 3.0-month supply at the current sales pace, down from the 3.7-month figure recorded in both November and December 2018. Unsold inventory totals have dropped for seven consecutive months from year-ago levels, taking a toll on home sales.
To access December 2019 Broward County Statistical Reports, visit http://www.SFMarketIntel.com
Note: Statistics in this news release may vary depending on reporting dates. MIAMI reports exact statistics directly from its MLS system.
About the MIAMI Association of Realtors
The MIAMI Association of Realtors was chartered by the National Association of Realtors in 1920 and is celebrating 100 years of service to Realtors, the buying and selling public, and the communities in South Florida. Comprised of six organizations, the Residential Association, the Realtors Commercial Alliance, the Broward-MIAMI Association of Realtors, the Jupiter Tequesta Hobe Sound (JTHS-MIAMI) Council, the Young Professionals Network (YPN) Council and the award-winning International Council, it represents 52,000 total real estate professionals in all aspects of real estate sales, marketing, and brokerage. It is the largest local Realtor association in the U.S. and has official partnerships with 222 international organizations worldwide. MIAMI’s official website is www.miamirealtors.com
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