HomeownerBuyerGeneralNew HomeownerRenterSeller

July 28, 2020

It’s one of the most common questions we get asked at Laurie Finkelstein Reader Real Estate - how’s the market looking?

If you are thinking about buying or selling in South Florida in the next few months, it’s important to understand the market.

It’s a particularly pertinent question in 2020 with many industries coming to terms with the COVID-19 pandemic.

So...

If we look at the latest Miami Association of Realtors report, we get an excellent idea.

And drumroll...there’s serious pent-up demand for single-family homes! Exactly what our agents have been seeing out in the market over the past few weeks.

Why?

In this new working environment, with many working from home, homeowners are valuing more space and the data backs it up.

Our agents are regularly attending open houses with queues out the door of people waiting to view the property.

Let’s look at the data...

The initial impact of the pandemic saw the total number of home sales drop by 40% year-over-year in April and 50% year-over-year in May.

But in a clear sign of increasing activity, pending sales have actually increased year-on-year from June 2019 to June 2020.

The decrease we saw in April and May reflects the real estate market adjusting to the pandemic. Many businesses pivoted to virtual showings and this took time to implement.

But now we are in a strong position and the market is responding.

Pending sales in Miami-Dade and Broward have increased year-over-year for both counties. Miami-Dade saw a 33.8% uptick in single-family homes under contract, from 1,205 in June 2019 to 1,820 in June 2020. The county also saw a 12.9% increase for condos, from 1,310 to 1,504.

Pending sales in Broward grew by 21.2% for single-family homes — from 1,651 to 2,095 — and 1.6% for condos — from 1,681 to 1,708.

This surge reflects pent-up demand across the market as many transactions were paused for two months or more as they could not be completed virtually.

Many buyers are also taking advantage of the historically low interest rates available to homeowners at this time. Interest rates can be found at 2.875% for a 15-year fixed rate mortgage!

“The reality is inventory has never been this low,” said Laurie Finkelstein Reader. “The buyers are lined up at the door looking for property.

“The interest rates are so low as well, it’s like the perfect storm. If it serves you and your family, it looks like now is the time to sell.”

There you have it…