While I will move to our local market reports over my next few blog posts, this one will cover the latest from across the nation according to the National Association of REALTORS®. The headline is that existing home sales dropped for the sixth straight month in July.
We have seen the brakes heavily applied to the number of real estate transactions in the United States. The chart below, from the National Association of Realtors, shows just how much has changed in recent months.
Over half the single-family homes sold in Sarasota County in June were cash sales. Wow! On the plus side for buyers, inventory is way up YoY. That said, it still has to go a long way before we start to see market balance. As it is the slower season for real estate in our area, we have to watch the next few months to really get a handle on what this market is going to look like when we get to our busier winter months. That said, those risk adverse on both sides of transactions may find this interim period as opportunistic.
We are rapidly approaching two months of inventory in Manatee County, which is a welcome change from where we were over the last 12+ months. Buyers are starting to see real options and some leverage in negotiations. Personally, I am a much bigger fan of markets where both sides have leverage rather than the one-sided market (sellers this time) we recently experienced. If you have questions about the infographic below, or what the market looks like at your price point, let me know.
While I will be getting into June results for Manatee and Sarasota counties soon, I thought it would be good to start with an update on the U.S. overall. The information below is from the National Association of Realtors.