As Real Estate professionals, we are no stranger to everyone’s favorite real estate question/conversation piece – “How’s the market doing around here?”
It has been a question on the mind of every homeowner, prospective buyer, and investor since the big bubble burst 5 years ago. As a REALTOR, it is getting easier and easier to give a positive answer. We are now able to avoid dancing around the topic of a suffering market. Our friends at the Realtor’s Association of the Palm Beaches (RAPB) have made answering the famous opening line question even easier. The article contained in the link below is the Annual Report on the Palm Beach County Housing Market. The report is extremely thorough, and very to-the-point. It truly is a valuable resource for all Palm Beach County residents.
http://www.rapb.com/docs/december-2012-market-reports/rapb_ann_2012.pdf?sfvrsn=0
If you read the report, you’ve answered your own “How’s the market doing?” query – it’s on the rebound. I found two statistics in the report particularly telling.
Lack of Inventory for Sale
“Currently, buyers have 38.8 percent fewer choices than this time last year.”
The RAPB is, quite accurately, telling us that buyers will begin to have to pay more to get exactly what they want. Obviously with flooded supply (2008-2012) comes diminished demand. There was so much inventory on the market in the past five years that buyers didn’t have to pay a premium to find their dream home. They could simply play the field and move on to the next in line if the seller didn’t budge. The first statistic above paints a different, more current picture. Buyers can no longer have the “on to the next dream home” attitude. With shrinking inventory, they are beginning to pay for the location and lifestyle they desire.
Number of Closed Sales on the Rise
“Closed sales were up 3.6 percent to 26,248 for the year. That’s the most since 2007.”
This stat doesn’t need expansive explanation. More people are getting their homes sold in Palm Beach County!! Buyers are qualified again and sellers are coming out from underwater on mortgages. Values are rising and enticing homeowners to list their properties again. Locally and nationally, we have seen the best year in sales since the height of the boom in 2007. The Village of Tequesta, one of my areas of expertise, saw a 33.8% in increase in closed sales in 2012. This ranked Tequesta 5th most improved of all cities and towns in Palm Beach County.
I think it’s safe to say you have your answer to how the market is doing around here. Improving every day!!