Joe Foster's Blog

Sarasota Real Estate Sales Rebound in January

Property sales in the Sarasota market were 58 percent higher in January 2010 than in January 2009, and pending sales were also strong, topping the 800 mark for the first time since October 2009. In sharp contrast to the first month of last year, January 2010 saw 506 overall sales, compared to only 319 sales in January 2009. In addition, pending sales surged by over 10 percent from December 2009 to a total of 815. The statistic is a strong indicator for the next two or three months of sales, as pending sales are an indicator of current buyer activity.

Normal arm’s length property sales continue to show median sale prices roughly 150 percent higher than distressed property sale prices. Bank-owned sales are bringing in a median price of roughly $80,000, while for short sales the price is roughly $120,000. For normal arm’s length sales in January 2010, properties were sold for a median price of approximately $250,000 – more than double the prices for distressed properties.

“Our market is rebounding from the recession, particularly in the category of normal arm’s length transactions,” said 2010 SAR President Erick Shumway. “We are seeing a stark contrast between these two markets, and this probably reflects the fact that some buyers don’t want to wait for additional months often involved in closing a purchase of a distressed property. Also, the condition of normal, non-distressed properties can be far superior to the short sales and foreclosures on the market. Once the number of distressed properties begins to drop substantially, we should see the median sale prices start to recover.”

~ Article excerpts are from The Sarasota Association of Realtors web site