MIAMI —Despite the ongoing global pandemic, Broward County single-family home sales increased year-over-year in 2020, according to the MIAMI Association of Realtors (MIAMI) and the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) system.
Broward registered 16,035 single-family home sales in 2020, a 0.4% year-over-year increase from 2019. It is Broward’s highest annual single-family home sales since 2015 when the market posted 16,874 single-family home transactions.
“The Fort Lauderdale and Broward real estate market’s resiliency was on display in 2020 as it persevered through a global pandemic to post a robust sales year,” Broward-MIAMI President Patrick Simm said. “Pent-up demand, record-low mortgage rates, Florida’s low taxes, low inventory and purchases from home buyers in tax-burdened states, and increased interest from international buyers are all boosting Broward real estate.”
Lack of supply is expected to improve later this year as housing starts increase and sellers become more comfortable listing properties and allowing strangers in their homes once the COVID-19 vaccine is widely distributed.
Broward Total Home Sales Post Strong Numbers
Broward total home sales registered 31,476 transactions in 2020, a 3.5% year-over-year decline from 32,609 in 2019.
Broward Existing Condominiums Eclipse 15,000 Transactions
Broward existing condominiums decreased 7.1% year-over-year in 2020, from 16,630 to 15,441.
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 13 are approved for Federal Housing Administration loans, down from 29 last year, according to Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation and FHA.
A better condo approval process is expected to increase sales. The guidance, which went into effect in October 2019, extends certifications from two years to three, allows for single-unit mortgage approvals, provides more flexibility with owner/occupancy ratios, and increases the allowable number of FHA loans in a single project. The changes, many of which MIAMI and NAR have championed, are expected to generate increased homeownership opportunities.
Broward Luxury Sales Post Major Gains in 2020
Luxury ($1 million-and-up) single-family home sales jumped 43.4% year-over-year to 1,068 transactions in 2020.
Luxury condo transactions increased 22% year-over-year to 272 sales in 2020.
Record-low interest rates; a robust S&P 500; the appeal of stable assets in a volatile economy; homebuyers leaving tax-burdened Northeastern states to purchase in Florida (no state income tax); and work-from-home and remote-learning policies have all combined to create a robust market for luxury single-family properties.
Broward Median Prices, Dollar Volume Rise in 2020
Broward existing single-family homes finished 2020 with a median sales price of $400,000, up 9.6% from $365,000 the previous year. The Broward median price for existing condominiums in 2020 was $189,000, an increase of 10.5% from $171,000 in 2019.
Single-family home dollar volume increased 15.6% year-over-year, from $7.4 billion to $8.5 billion. Condo dollar volume increased 3.6%, from $3.7 billion to $3.8 billion.
Hottest Broward Neighborhoods at Year-End 2020
Months’ supply of inventory, which is an important indicator of consumer demand and market performance, reflects limited supply in many neighborhoods and price ranges. As a result, lack of supply is also impacting property sales, particularly for single-family homes.
Top Broward neighborhoods with the lowest months of supply of inventory with at least 100 new pending sales at year-end 2020:
Single-Family Homes
1. Pembroke Pines, a south Broward community north of Miramar, had 0.9 months supply
- Coconut Creek, a north Broward community on the Palm Beach-Broward line, had 1.0 months supply
- Cooper City, a south Broward community north of Pembroke Pines, had 1.0 months supply
- Coral Springs, a north Broward community west of Coconut Creek, had 1.0 months supply
- Miramar, a south Broward community on the Broward-Miami-Dade line, had 1.1 months supply
Condominiums
1. Cooper City, a south Broward community north of Pembroke Pines,, had 1.6 months supply
- Miramar, a south Broward community on the Broward-Miami-Dade line, had 2.0 months supply
- Plantation, a central Broward community west of Fort Lauderdale, had 2.4 months supply
- Coral Springs, a north Broward community west of Coconut Creek, had 2.4 months supply
- Weston, a south Broward community west of Davie, had 2.5 months supply
Broward Real Estate Selling Close to List Price
The average percent of original list price received for single-family homes in 2020 was 96.9%, an increase of 1.1% from a year earlier. The median number of days to contract for Broward single-family homes decreased 33.3% to 32 days in 2020 from 48 days in 2019.
The median number of days to contract for condominiums sold in 2020 was 52 days, a decrease of 3.7% from 54 days. The average percent of original list price received was 94.9%, a 0.5% year-over-year increase.
State Year-End Statistics
Statewide closed sales of existing single-family homes totaled 310,378 at the end of 2020, up 5.8% compared to the 2019 figure, according to Florida Realtors. The statewide median sales price for single-family existing homes at year’s end was $290,000, up 9.6% from the previous year.
Looking at Florida’s year-to-year comparison for sales of condo-townhouses, a total of 119,336 units sold statewide in 2020, up 2.5% over 2019. The statewide median price for condo-townhouse properties at the end of the year was $215,000, up 12% from year-end 2019.
The interest rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.11% for 2020, down significantly from the previous year’s average of 3.94%, according to Freddie Mac.
Broward’s Cash Buyers Top the National Figure
In 2020, cash deals represented 30.9% of Broward’s total closed sales, which is a decrease from 35% in 2019. About 20% of all U.S. housing sales are made in cash, according to NAR. Broward’s high percentage of cash sales reflects South Florida’s ability to attract a diverse number of international home buyers, who tend to purchase properties in all cash.
Condominiums comprise a large portion of Broward’s cash purchases as 46.4% of condo closings were made in cash in 2020 compared to 16.2% of single-family home sales.
Distressed Property Transactions Continue to Decline in Broward
About 2.8% of all closed residential sales in Broward were distressed in 2020, including REO (bank-owned properties) and short sales, compared to 3.9% in 2019.
Short sales and REOs accounted for 0.7% and 2.1%, respectively, of total Broward sales in 2020. Short sale transactions dropped 21.8% year-over-year while REOs decreased 31.8%. A decline in short sales points to more homeowners with increased equity, which should result in increased market activity.
Seller’s Market for Broward Real Estate
Inventory of single-family homes decreased 41.1% in 2020 from 4,824 active listings in 2019 to 2,842 in 2020. Condominium inventory decreased 3.8% to 7,155 in 2020 from 7,434 listings in 2019.
At the end of 2020, inventory for Broward single-family homes stood at a 2.1-month supply, a 41.7% decrease from 3.6 months in the previous year. Inventory for Broward existing condominiums at the end of 2020 stood at 5.6 months, which is up 3.7% from 5.4 months. A balanced market between buyers and sellers offers between six and nine months supply of inventory.
Total active listings at the end of 2020 decreased 18.4% year-over-year, from 12,258 to 9,997.
New listings of Broward single-family homes at year-end 2020 decreased 6.9% from 21,955 to 20,432. New listings of condominiums decreased 1.8%, from 24,339 to 23,907.
Lack of supply is expected to improve later this year as housing starts increase and sellers become more comfortable listing properties and allowing strangers in their homes once the vaccine is widely distributed.
4Q 2020: Broward Single-Family Home, Condo Sales Rise
Broward closed sales of existing single-family homes totaled 4,748 in the fourth quarter of 2020, up 23.7% compared to the previous year. Broward existing condo sales totaled 4,833 in 4Q 2020, up 26.5% year-over-year.
Statewide closed sales of existing single-family homes totaled 86,543 in the fourth quarter of 2020, up 23.6% compared to the year-ago figure, according to Florida Realtors. Looking at Florida’s year-to-year comparison for sales of condo-townhouses, a total of 35,865 units sold statewide in 4Q 2020, up 29.4% compared to the same period a year earlier.
Median sale prices for Broward single-family homes increased 18.9%, from $370,000 to $440,000, in 4Q 2020. Condo median prices increased 10.2% from $245,000 to $270,000.
The national median existing single-family home price in 4Q 2020 rose 14.9% on a year-over-year basis, to $315,900.
The statewide median sales price for existing single-family homes for 4Q 2020 was $306,000, up 14.6% from 4Q 2019. The statewide median price for condo-townhouse properties for the quarter was $226,000, up 15% over the previous year. New pending sales for condo-townhouses for 4Q 2020 increased 30.9% compared to a year ago, while new listings were up 5.9% from the same quarter the previous year.
New listings of Broward single-family homes for sale in 4Q 2020 increased 4.2% compared to the same quarter the previous year, from 4,579 to 4,772. New listings for existing condos in 4Q 2020 increased 6.4% from 5,544 to 5,897.
To access Year-end 2020, 4Q 2020 and Local Residential Market Metrics Year-end 2020 Broward County Statistical Reports, visit 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 101 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 223 international organizations worldwide. MIAMI’s official website is www.miamirealtors.com
###
