Florida, once a red-hot destination during the pandemic, is now witnessing a cooling trend in its housing markets, with six cities in the state experiencing significant declines in activity. Western Florida cities such as North Port, Tampa, and Cape Coral have seen a surge in housing inventory by over 60% in the past year, accompanied by a slowdown in home sales, according to a recent analysis by Redfin.
The increase in housing supply and decrease in demand have prompted approximately 40% of home sellers in these cities to reduce their asking prices. In April, the median time homes spent on the market in Florida was 53 days, up nine days from the previous year.
This slowdown in the Sunshine State marks a return to pre-pandemic inventory levels in several cities where housing prices had outpaced the national average in recent years. Redfin attributes the cooling trend partly to the growing prevalence of natural disasters, leading to higher home insurance costs, which in turn discourage potential homebuyers and affect the region's real estate market.
On the bright side for buyers, a surge in new construction has helped alleviate competition. Florida is currently building more new homes than any state except Texas, contributing to a moderation in prices.
Elijah de la Campa, Senior Economist at Redfin, stated, "More supply is the best way to bring down prices and combat the housing affordability crisis buyers are facing today-and that’s exactly what’s happening in parts of Florida."
However, sellers face challenges as the rise in new supply coincides with elevated mortgage rates, which have dampened demand across the country. To counteract this, homebuilders are offering more incentives such as price reductions and credits for closing costs.
A recent survey of real estate agents also reflects a slowdown in Florida's housing market. Only 30% of resale agents in Southern Florida reported a surplus of buyers compared to sellers in their market, according to John Burns Research and Consulting. Nationally, 76% of real estate agents indicated a surplus of buyers over sellers, rising to 94% in the Northeast.
This geographic disparity is evident in Redfin’s report, which shows several markets in the Northeast remaining hot, with inventory down and prices up in cities like Rochester and Buffalo, New York, and multiple New Jersey cities.
Redfin compiled a list of the nation’s fastest-cooling housing markets from April 2023 to April 2024, based on various factors including the year-over-year change in prices, price drops, inventory, the sale-to-list ratio, and the share of homes that went off the market in two weeks.
According to Redfin, the nation’s fastest-cooling housing markets are:
North Port, Florida
Tampa, Florida
Cape Coral, Florida
Orlando, Florida
Denver, Colorado
Houston, Texas
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Jacksonville, Florida
Lakeland, Florida
Dallas, Texas
www.wfla.com/n...
8 сен 2024
