Many people believe that selling a home during the holidays or winter is not ideal. However, in Florida, this couldn’t be further from the truth. While the spring market is traditionally more favorable for home sales in many regions, Florida tends to gain momentum during the winter months.
Even with the weather challenges this fall, Sarasota County’s single-family home sales have been resilient. We haven’t seen the drop off in home sales like we have in Manatee. However, the market has been stronger in the mid to lower-tier price points than the higher-tier listings. Inventory remains in a good place for our rapidly approaching busy season. With the current statistics, it looks like we are in for a balanced market this winter. The infographic below from Florida Realtors contains more from October.
Closed transactions were down significantly when compared in October when compared to last year. Obviously, this year’s hurricane season played a role in that outcome. The question is whether that will continue. While the likely answer is “yes” to some extent, now is not the time to panic if you need to sell. There is still only around five months of inventory on the market, which means we are dealing with a market that is in balance. It really doesn’t heavily favor buyers or sellers. Putting your best foot forward will be important if you are buying or selling at this time as your leverage will most likely be limited. The infographic from Florida Realtors below contains more.
Mortgage interest rates have been trending higher over the past 30 days, leading to potentially increased costs for new borrowers of approximately $30 per month for every $100,000 borrowed. As of this week, the average U.S. interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages stands at 6.54%, up from 6.08% a month ago. However, forecasts for future interest rate changes remain mixed as the recent short-term interest rate reduction caused a spike in mortgage interest rates.
With the severe weather we have recently experienced, I have been a little slow to stay active on this page. Let’s hope Milton was the last major impact of the season.
For those of you who are going to be in the market to sell your homes this season, don’t forget the details as they matter. This infographic from Florida Realtors contains one that can often be overlooked.
