MIAMI — Palm Beach County total $1M and up home sales continue trending up, according to May 2024 statistics released by the MIAMI Association of Realtors (MIAMI) and the MIAMI Southeast Florida Multiple Listing Service (SEFMLS).
“Palm Beach County active listings continue to increase for our high-demand, low-supply market,” JTHS-MIAMI President Courtney Smitheman said. “This is great news for homebuyers as they now have more options than they did a year ago, when listings were near historic lows.”
Palm Beach County Total $1M & Up Home Sales Rise
Total $1M & up Palm Beach County home sales increased 2.6% year-over-year in May 2024, from 467 to 479. The upper end market is posting sizable sales gains because that’s where most of the new inventory is.
Palm Beach County total home sales declined 7.3% year-over-year in May 2024, from 2,775 to 2,573. The decline is due to a lack of inventory at key price points. The statistics would be much stronger if they included South Florida’s robust developer new construction market and volume.
Palm Beach County single-family home sales declined negligibly by 1.4% year-over-year, from 1,439 to 1,460.
Palm Beach County existing condos decreased 13.8% year-over-year in May 2024, from 1,315 to 1,134.
MIAMI Chief Economist: South Florida Price Appreciation to Continue
“High mortgage rates continue to derail sales, but home prices are still rising in over half of markets across all counties,” MIAMI REALTORS® Chief Economist Gay Cororaton said. “The price appreciation reflects the rising share of million-dollar home sales and the competition for lower priced homes. I don’t foresee this appreciation abating with mortgage rates heading towards a quarter percent below 7% by the end of 2024 and a quarter percent below 6% by the end 2025, boosted by the entry of frustrated buyers from the past three years.”
According to Freddie Mac, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage 6.87% as of June 20. That’s down from 6.95% the prior week but up from 6.67% one year ago.
Palm Beach County New Listings Nearing Pre-Pandemic Level, Giving Buyers More Options
Palm Beach County new listings are nearing pre-pandemic levels. This has added to total inventory and is giving home buyers more variety.
Palm Beach County total new listings increased 13.53% year-over-year in May 2024, from 3,053 to 3,466.
Palm Beach County Inventory is Still Down from Historical Average
Total inventory is down 27.6% from the historical average for Palm Beach County. The monthly historical average for Palm Beach County existing inventory is 16,196 and current inventory is at 11,726.
Total active listings at the end of May increased 62.9% year-over-year, from 7,198 to 11,726.
Inventory of single-family homes increased 44.7% year-over-year in May 2024 from 3,529 active listings last year to 5,108 last month. Condominium inventory increased 80.4% year-over-year from 3,669 to 6,618 listings during the same period in 2023.
Months’ supply of inventory for single-family homes is 4.4 months, which indicates a seller’s market. Inventory for existing condominiums is 7 months, which indicates a balanced market. A balanced market between buyers and sellers offers between six- and nine-months supply.
Nationally, total housing inventory registered at the end of May was 1.28 million units, up 6.7% from April and 18.5% from one year ago (1.08 million). Unsold inventory sits at a 3.7-month supply at the current sales pace, up from 3.5 months in April and 3.1 months in May 2023.
Palm Beach County Price Appreciation
Palm Beach County single-family home median prices increased 3.6% year-over-year in May 2024, increasing from $622,500 to $645,000. Existing condo median prices increased 7.9% year-over-year from $315,000 to $340,000.
Florida’s Live Local Act, which was passed in 2023 and amended in May 2024, is encouraging developers to build more affordable housing. The Live Local Act gives developers the highest density allowed in a local area if they allocate 40% of its units for affordable housing. The state law defines an affordable unit as being at or below 120% of an area’s median income.
South Florida’s Massive Wealth Migration
With elevated levels of out-of-state migration into Southeast Florida and its strong economy that has attracted business expansions and relocations, the share of million-dollar homes to total sales has steadily climbed since 2019. In 2023, the share of million-dollar homes to total single-family sales listed on the MIAMI SEFMLS rose to 17% in 2023 (6% in 2019); for condos/townhomes, the share rose to 9% (5% in 2019).
Migration into Southeast Florida remains strong. In 2023, 153,347 driver licenses were exchanged for a Florida license in the counties of Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach, and Martin, up 8.3% from the level in 2022 (141,621). New York, New Jersey, and California continue to be the market’s top feeder states.
Palm Beach County Real Estate Posts $316 Million Local Economic Impact in May 2024
Every time a home is sold it impacts the economy: income generated from real estate industries (commissions, fees and moving expenses), expenditures related to home purchase (furniture and remodeling expenses), multiplier of housing related expenditures (income earned as a result of a home sale is re-circulated into the economy) and new construction (additional home sales induce added home production).
The total economic impact of a typical Florida home sale is $123,000, according to NAR. Palm Beach County sold 2,573 homes in May 2024 for a local economic impact of $316 million.
Palm Beach County total dollar volume totaled $2.4 billion in May 2024. Single-family home dollar volume increased 7.28% year-over-year to $1.8 billion. Condo dollar volume decreased 6.95% year-over-year to $644 million.
Palm Beach County Distressed Sales Remain Low, Reflecting Healthy Market
Only 0.4% of all closed residential sales in Palm Beach County were distressed last month, including REO (bank-owned properties) and short sales, lower than 0.7% in May 2023.
Short sales and REOs accounted for 0.07% and 0.3% year-over-year, respectively, of total Palm Beach County sales in May 2024.
Palm Beach County’s percentage of distressed sales are lower than the national figure. Nationally, distressed sales represented 2% of sales in May 2024, virtually unchanged from last month and the prior year.
Palm Beach County Price Appreciation Outperforming Nation, State
In Florida, closed sales of single-family homes statewide totaled 26,252 in May 2024, down 0.5% year-over-year, while existing condo-townhouse sales totaled 10,415, down 8.6%. Closed sales may occur from 30- to 90-plus days after sales contracts are written.
Nationally, total existing-home sales completed transactions that include single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops – retreated 0.7% from April to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.11 million in May. Year-over-year, sales waned 2.8% (down from 4.23 million in May 2023).
The statewide median sales price for single-family existing homes was $426,581, up 1.6% from the previous year, according to data from Florida Realtors Research Department in partnership with local Realtor boards/associations. Last month’s statewide median price for condo-townhouse units was $330,000, up 1.5% over the year-ago figure. The median is the midpoint; half the homes sold for more, half for less.
Nationally, the median existing-home price for all housing types in May was $419,300, the highest price ever recorded and an increase of 5.8% from one year ago ($396,500). All four U.S. regions registered price gains.
Palm Beach County Real Estate Attracting Near List Price
The median percent of original list price received for single-family homes was 94.1% in May 2024. The median percent of original list price received for existing condominiums was 93.5%.
The median number of days between listing and contract dates for Palm Beach County single-family home sales was 39 days, down from 27 days last year. The median time to sale for single-family homes was 84 days, down from 75 days last year.
The median number of days between the listing date and contract date for condos was 44 days, up from 32 days. The median number of days to sale for condos was 85 days, up from 73 days.
Palm Beach County Cash Sales 86.4% More than National Figure
Cash sales represented 52.2% of Palm Beach County closed sales in May 2024, compared to 52.1% in May 2023. About 28% of U.S. home sales are made in cash, according to the latest NAR statistics.
Cash buyers are not deterred by rising rates. The high percentage of cash buyers reflects South Florida’s top position as the preeminent American real estate market for foreign buyers, who tend to purchase with all cash as well as some moving from more expensive U.S. markets who can buy more with their profits from real estate sales.
Cash sales accounted for 60.1% of all Palm Beach County existing condo sales and 46% of single-family transactions.
To access May 2024 Palm Beach 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 (MIAMI) was chartered by the National Association of Realtors in 1920 and is celebrating 104 years of service to Realtors, the buying and selling public, and the communities in South Florida. Comprised of six organizations: MIAMI RESIDENTIAL, MIAMI COMMERCIAL; BROWARD-MIAMI, a division of MIAMI Realtors; JTHS-MIAMI, a division of MIAMI Realtors in the Jupiter-Tequesta-Hobe Sound area; MIAMI YPN, our Young Professionals Network Council; and the award-winning MIAMI Global Council. MIAMI REALTORS represents 60,000 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 260 international organizations worldwide. MIAMI’s official website is www.MiamiRealtors.com
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