Image courtesy of Flickr by Brian Norwood
The September real estate numbers for the Emerald Coast, including Okaloosa and Walton counties, are a mixed bag. There were some shocking jumps, such as the 53 percent median price increase in condo and townhouse sales in Okaloosa County and a few not-so-shocking highs and lows when comparing this year’s real estate sales to last year at the same time.
Single Family Home Sales
Emerald Coast
- Closed sales increased 24.6%
- Pending sales rose 20.3%
- Median prices increased 2%
- Inventory increased 20.4%
- Months supply increased 10.2% to 8.2 months of inventory
Okaloosa County
- Closed sales increased 25%
- Pending sales increased 20.7%
- Median prices decreased 8.4%
- Inventory increased 19.9%
- Months supply increased 9.2% to 6.7 months of inventory
Walton County
- Closed sales increased 41.4%
- Pending sales increased 19.7%
- Median prices fell 1.3%
- Inventory increased 23.8%
- Months supply increased 9.5% to 9.9 months of inventory
Townhouse and Condo Sales
Emerald Coast
- Closed sales decreased 22.2%
- Pending sales saw no change.
- Median prices increased 11.2%
- Inventory dropped 7.6%
- Months supply increased 10.1% to 10.1 months of inventory
Okaloosa County
- Closed sales dropped 13.6%
- Pending sales rose 2.7%
- Median prices rose 53% (from $150,000 in 2013 to $229,500)
- Inventory decreased 7.7%
- Months supply increased 17.2% to 11 months of inventory
Walton County
- Closed sales decreased 14.5%
- Pending sales increased 19.7%
- Median prices decreased 9.4%
- Inventory rose 1.3%
- Months supply increased 8% to 10.1 months of inventory
A few things to remember…
Inventory levels have changed when compared to the previous year, but inventory levels have stayed consistent through the summer. A healthy inventory level for any real estate market is around 6 months supply of inventory. Anything over 8 is considered a high level of inventory and could begin to bring down prices as buyers are given more options and competition increases among sellers.
Townhouse and condo sales could be an indication of tighter financing options, insurance affordability, as well as the fact that the typical vacation season ends after Labor Day and demand is decreasing for resort or vacation properties. No one thing contributes to declining sales.
Pending sales are only an indication of the month ahead. In months with an increase in pending sales, you can expect sales to increase for the following month. A decline in pending sales may be an indication of lower sales the next month. It is not an automatic as sales often take more than 30 days to close, and a pending sales in June may affect sales data several months in the future.
All sales data is from the Emerald Coast Association of Realtors® (ECAR) Multiple Listing Service (MLS) and is compiled by Florida Realtors®, the state association for Florida. The Emerald Coast statistics cover both Okaloosa and Walton counties as well as surrounding areas based on the listings entered into the MLS by ECAR MLS participants.
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