The luxury single family home market ($1M+ homes) is much more of a buyer’s market in Sarasota County this year than last. Although Manatee County is also a stronger buyer’s market for luxury homes this year than last, it hasn’t changed nearly as much as Sarasota County. Markets are generally considered in “balance” when there is about six months of inventory for sale at the current pace of home sales. When the inventory gets greater than that, buyers tend to have more leverage than sellers in negotiations.
Manatee County
In Manatee, there are less than 1% fewer luxury homes on the market this year than there was last year at this time. However, over 10% fewer luxury homes are selling each month then they were last year. You put those two facts together, and you have inventory increasing from 12.6 months of sales last year to 14.2 months of sales this year. It is significantly higher than the six months of inventory required to be in balance. The video below illustrates the points above.
Sarasota County
In Sarasota, there are about 4% fewer luxury homes on the market this year than there was last year at this time. However, almost 40% less luxury homes are selling each month then they were last year. You put those two facts together, and you have inventory increasing from 13.9 months of sales last year to a whopping 19.4 months of sales this year. It is significantly higher than the six months of inventory required to be in balance. The video below illustrates the points above.
The bottom line is that it remains a very good time to buy a luxury single family home in our area. If you are in the market to sell, you must ensure you position your property to stand out from the competition or there is a very good chance that you will be listing it for more than a year.