The National Association of Realtors (NAR) announced this month that existing home sales climbed nationwide by 2.4% to a seasonally adjusted rate of 5.15 million. On the bright side, the pressures that caused home sales to stall last year seem to have eased. The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate has dropped back to just over 4.1% and home prices are no longer rising at double-digit annual rates.
Unfortunately, all that positive news aside, the outlook for real estate sales nationwide is also showing some weaknesses. Viewed regionally, July home sales in the Northeast were flat while Midwestern home sales increased by only 1.7% and remain 4.7% below the July, 2013 level. Home sale in the South did rise by 3.4% although the increases were not evenly spread across the whole region and in the West, sales climbed by only 2.6%, still 8.6% below the rate of sales in 2013.
The S&P/Case Shiller index of 20 metropolitan areas reported in August that single-family home prices in those markets actually declined slightly in the first half of 2014. Lawrence Yun, NAR Chief Economist, warned that in upcoming months, the affordability of homes will most likely decline as median household incomes continue to lag inflation and the job market, while improving, is doing so only slowly and not evenly across the nation.
A reputable economic agency reported that across all income levels, incomes have actually lost ground to inflation in the first half of 2014. According to a Rutgers University report, 41% of those surveyed reported that they have less pay and savings now than before the recession began in 2007. Only 7% of respondents say they're better off now. Adding to the downbeat outlook, as the Fed starts allowing interest rates rise in 2015, mortgage rates will inevitably rise making home affordability an even bigger issue. None of these factors bodes well for the housing industry across the United States.
But then there's the Sarasota Florida “Sun Coast” area including Bradenton, Lakewood Ranch, and the barrier islands, Longboat, Lido, Bird and Siesta Key and Anna Maria Island. Here, you'd never know there that the housing market is facing headwinds. To date this year, Sarasota real estate sales volumes have been running at a near record breaking rate. The Sarasota Association of Realtors (SAR), reported that property sales in Sarasota County reached almost the 1,000 level for the fifth straight month in July. The year-to-date pace remains at or close to the near-historic level of sales rate in 2013. August sales, while a bit slower because this is the slowest time of the year for home sales, still look healthier than they have in years.
In Sarasota County, the median sale price for the 12-month period ending in July, a statistic that moderates the effect of monthly swings, was up 11.2% for single-family homes and up 10.6% for condos over last year; a far different scenario than one sees on a nationwide basis. The inventory of homes and condos available for purchase dropped in July by a fairly significant one month decline of 6.7% as buying keep snapping up homes. The month’s supply of inventory for single family homes stood at a 4.4 month supply and for condos only a 3.8 month supply. “The Sarasota real estate market remains a seller’s market, with low inventory and rising prices,” said SAR® President, Peter Crowley. “All the numbers point to a very healthy 2014 for Sarasota County real estate.”
Part of the reason the Sarasota real estate market is doing so well is clearly the affluence of the area and the real estate market. A higher than normal rate of home sales here are done as all-cash transactions especially for reasonably affluent folks at or approaching retirement.
But the affluence of the area, alone, doesn't explain why, quite the opposite of the nationwide situation, the Sarasota real estate market continues to grow at a robust rate. Clearly something else is at work here. In fact, the reason so many people of all ages and incomes choose to live, work and retire in Sarasota Florida is not difficult to understand.
Those who love sunshine and a year-round warm climate who enjoy lounging on the beach, there are 35 miles of beaches in Sarasota County, Florida including world-famous Siesta Key with the softest, whitest sand in the world. And nowhere will you find more gorgeous sunsets to view as you sip a cocktail next to your country club or high rise condo pool than here on Florida's West Coast jewel.
It's been said that “Sarasota offers all the amenities of a big city with the charm and casual lifestyle of a much smaller community.” With literally scores of galleries, theaters, boutique shops, casual and fine dining restaurants and entertainment venues in downtown Sarasota, at world-famous St Armands Circle and many other spots, there’s always something to do and see. There's a constant flow of public events including live music, art festivals, shows and parades.
Sarasota, Lakewood Ranch, Bradenton, Osprey and Venice offer over 80 public, semi-public and private golf courses which will challenge every level of player and those courses are surrounded by communities of golf course homes, villas, and condos in all price ranges.
Boaters, day-sailors, scuba divers and fishermen love the wide variety Sarasota of private docking facilities, marinas, yacht clubs and the warm, crystal clear waters of Sarasota Bay, the Gulf of Mexico the Manatee River and many smaller lakes and ponds.
Arts and culture buffs know Sarasota as "Florida's Cultural Coast," home to the Sarasota Orchestra, Sarasota Ballet, Sarasota Opera, the Van Wezel and Asolo theaters, the Ringling Museum and mansion and many other local venues.
As for housing options, Sarasota has the widest range of housing styles, prices and locations you can imagine from wonderful golf course and waterfront homes and condos, to historic neighborhoods and more than its share of Sarasota luxury homes and condos.
And, Sarasota County offers some of the best health care, long term care, and active living facilities for seniors in the nation.
Perhaps the question you should be asking isn’t "why is the Sarasota Florida area doing so well when other regions of the country are not", but rather "why aren't you living here? "
My goal as your Sarasota Realtor is to help you find and buy the perfect home or condo in the Sarasota Florida real estate market in the right neighborhood at a right price with a minium of hassle and frustration. I'd be delighted to answer your questions Sarasota itself or about the homes and condos options that might best suit you in Sarasota, itself, or in next door communities of Lakewood Ranch and Bradenton, Osprey and Venice. You may wish to peruse my website dedicated to homes for sale in Sarasota Florida. For an immediate response, though, call me today at 941.266-1799
