While I focus most of my time on what’s happening in Manatee and Sarasota counties, it’s also important to follow the broader real estate trends. Overall, the real estate market in the United States is seeing significant price increases. Over the past 12 months, average sale prices for homes have risen by 6.2%.
Category: Home Selling
The Sarasota and Manatee county markets for condos & townhomes are currently moving in lockstep. Both markets are Seller’s markets for condos & townhomes priced below $400,000, Balanced markets for condos & townhomes priced between $400,000 and $600,000, and Buyer’s markets above $600,000.
Whether you are looking to buy, sell or invest in real estate, it is important to understand market conditions. Real estate is hyper-local, with market dynamics changing from subdivision to subdivision. However, county trends will give you a good idea of what to expect.
Although the luxury single family home market ($1M+ homes) is better balanced this year than last in Sarasota County, it is still a strong buyer’s market. In Manatee County, it is even a stronger buyer’s market this year than last. 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.
The real estate market for townhomes and condos in both Manatee and Sarasota counties was great for sellers in the first half of 2018. Between the two counties, almost $1.3 billion worth of homes sold from January through June. The table below shows some of the highlights from the first half of this year.