December 2010 Sarasota Real Estate Sales Skyrocket

Sarasota association of Realtors just released December 2010 Sarasota housing sales statistics, and there was extremely positive news to report.

According to the Sarasota MLS sales numbers, sales increased 27.8% from November 2010 to December 2010. Also, the median sold price increased as well. Actually, if you are a frequent visitor to my website WeSellSarasota.com, you probably already knew this would probably be the case.

I chart local Sarasota Median LIST price data daily on the home page. (I would chart daily SOLD price if I could, but there is no way to report daily sold price at this time) Either way, the Sarasota real estate trends are fairly clear. Sarasota Homes median list price is trending up right now, and now we confirm that the Sarasota median Sold price also increased in December 2010.

“Pending sales remained strong in December 2010. There was a reported 789 properties placed under contract, compared to 764 in November 2010, and higher than the 739 reported last December, when the market was still strengthened by the homebuyer tax credit initiative. This statistic is a strong indicator for the next two or three months of sales, as pending sales reflect current buyer activity”. (Sarasota Association Of Realtors)

Overall, Sarasota sales in 2010 were up 12.4%, and this marks two years in a row that sales have increased over the previous year! Based on my own personal experience, there has been a surge in buyer inquiries on my website, so I know buyers have “amped up” their search efforts.

Inventory is at the lowest level since August of 2010. Where November had a 10.9 month inventory level, December 2010 watched that number drop to 7.8 months of inventory.   I remember (but want to forget) when we had 20+ months of inventory just a couple years ago, so at 7.8 months of inventory in December 2010, it is fairly clear that the Sarasota real estate market has experienced significant recovery already. Prices are down, and sales are up, and inventory is dropping…. and that means if you are a buyer, you may want to act sooner than later if you want the best value for your money.

I am not saying this is over….It is my opinion that prices will skip along the bottom for a while. There are still plenty of Sarasota foreclosures to deal with, however interest rates are moving up, and will continue to do so. For this reason alone, I feel buyers need to act now, not to mention the fact that inventory levels are almost balanced at this point.

Interest rates rising 1-2% will hit a buyer in the wallet much harder than than the benefit of a home’s price dropping another 1-2%.

Want to learn more about the Sarasota real estate market and how to choose great Sarasota homes for the dollar? Call me, Bill McCue, to be your agent.