Housing Gets More Expensive In Florida

By Author: Razvan Jr
Total Articles: 36
Comment this article

Up until this year, the Lee County existing home prices rose as foreclosures continued to fall, even as the country’s national marked continued its long decline. Local experts say that we should not expect any significant changes in the near futures as things keep bumping along the bottom. As far as the median price for a single-family home that was sold with the help of a real estate agent, it increased by 4% this February - from $87,900 to $91,500, in comparison to 2010, according to the statistics published by the Florida Realtors. In comparison to January’s $88,500, the price rose by 3%.

In addition, the total number of the single-family properties that were sold dropped by 12% this year, from 1,259 to 1,106. However, February’s sales were almost 1% up from January’s 1,072. Across the entire United States, fewer Americans purchased previously occupied properties in February and those that bought them, did it at steep discounts. According to a National Realtors Association report, the weak sales and rise in foreclosures forced home prices down to a minimum in almost nine years.

Regarding the sales of ...
... previously occupied properties fell in February to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.88 million, which is 9.6% less from January’s 5.4 million. This pace is well below the 6 million properties per year that economists say that represents a healthy market. As far as Lee County is concerned, which is one of the markets hardest hit by the housing collapse, the prices reached their maximum in December 2005 - $322,300, before a very long decline that flattened out in 2009.

Real estate broker Denny Grimes, who is the current president of Denny Grimes & Co. at Royal Shell in Fort Myers, said that although the local numbers are not very good, they are better than the alternative. He added that the market is basically stable. However, he didn’t say that further drops are out of the equation. On the contrary, a second downfall might occur if the homes yet to be foreclosed on by the investors who will eventually sell and bank-owned inventory are released.

However, until then, the demand and supply are strong and the prices and sales are not going to modify very much in the months to come. Another real estate broker, Steve Koffman, who works for Century 21 Sunbelt in Cape Coral, says that he has his doubts regarding a spike in foreclosures that will change the balance. He added that banks are not hoarding a generous inventory to be released later, saying that “when they have them, they get rid of them.”

Across the entire United States, almost 40% of all February’s sales were short sales or foreclosures, when the lender accepts less than the seller owes on the mortgage. As far as Lee County, it is about 60%. In February, the median sales price nationally dropped by 5.2% to $156,000, which is the lowest level since April, 2002.

As a conclusion, if you are in the market for a house in Cape Coral for example, or any other city within Florida, you need to be prepared more than before, but if you are lucky enough and you have the help of a good estate agent, you might find a bargain.

About Author: Looking for a well-reputed Cape Coral real estate agent? Look no further as on www.realestatefloridacapecoral.com you will find everything that you need.