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May was a good month for single family home sales along the Emerald Coast. Condo and townhouse sales faltered slightly in Okaloosa County but remained steady elsewhere. Prices dipped slightly in some areas but not enough to indicate any major changes. Inventories continue to shrink in across the Emerald Coast. All sales data is a year-over-year comparison between May 2015 and May 2014.
Single Family Home Sales
Emerald Coast
- Closed sales increased 16.8%
- Pending sales rose 20%
- Median prices decreased 1.7%
- Inventory decreased 3.7%
- Months supply decreased 20.9% to 6.7 months of inventory
Okaloosa County
- Closed sales increased 13.1%
- Pending sales increased 12%
- Median prices decreased 0.1%
- Inventory decreased 5.3%
- Months supply decreased 22.1% to 5.6 months of inventory
Walton County
- Closed sales increased 19.3%
- Pending sales increased 30.9%
- Median prices increased 10.6%
- Inventory decreased 4.%
- Months supply decreased 24% to 7.9 months of inventory
Townhouse and Condo Sales
Emerald Coast
- Closed sales increased 3.6%
- Pending sales increased 14.3%
- Median prices decreased 2%
- Inventory dropped 2.7%
- Months supply increased 6.4% to 10.1 months of inventory
Okaloosa County
- Closed sales decreased 12.2%
- Pending sales decreased 2.4%
- Median prices decreased 20.9%
- Inventory decreased 4.9%
- Months supply increased 8.6% to 11.1 months of inventory
Walton County
- Closed sales increased 7%
- Pending sales increased 18.4%
- Median prices decreased 1.4%
- Inventory decreased 9.6%
- Months supply decreased 10.8% to 8.7 months of inventory
A few things to remember…
A healthy real estate market (meaning neither buyer nor sellers have an “advantage”) is a six to eight month inventory. Below six months, it’s thought to be a seller’s market and above eight months is considered a buyer’s market.
Inventory can decrease while the months’ supply can increase – as well as the reverse. As inventory falls, buyers have less options. If the available inventory shrinks too much, sales can slow down which will increase the months’ supply of homes for purchase. This also contributes to quicker offers for well-priced and positioned homes, as well as multiple offers.
Median prices decreased in all areas for single family homes, condos, and townhouses but one in May. The median price is determined, in part, by the price ranges buyers are selecting and the inventory available in those price ranges. The decrease was negligible, statistically, but its bears monitoring.
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.
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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