Real Estate & Economic Insights for the week ending May 8, 2020

Posted on May 8, 2020May 8, 2020 by Chris Losquadro

Real Estate & Economic Insights for the week ending May 8, 2020

COVID-19 continues to dominate the headlines as the financial markets react to the US economy losing more than 20 million jobs in April. As businesses start to reopen there is a watchful eye on how many will be able to return back to a meaningful level of operations.

The real estate market in South Florida remains fairly static as Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade county have not started “Phase 1” of reopening unlike the 64 other counties throughout the state. According to Governor DeSantis the South Florida counties were not included as part of the initial reopening as they have much higher rates of COVID-19 cases and related deaths.

To learn more about the residential and commercial real estate market in Palm Beach County as well as throughout South Florida, please visit the Market Reports page on our web site. Every month it is updated with the latest published reports on the housing market in Palm Beach, Martin, Broward, and Miami-Dade counties as well as commercial real estate information which is provided by data providers and local market experts.

During this past week we found the following articles related to real estate and the economy that are useful in highlighting both where things stand and where we are headed.

Housing Market Update for March 2020

Posted on April 21, 2020April 22, 2020 by Chris Losquadro

Housing Market Update for March 2020

Prior to experiencing the full economic impact of the coronavirus, the residential housing market was mixed on both a nationwide and local basis. While prices continue to improve, there is evidence that overall activity is withering which will have a significant affect on the market in the coming months.

The National Housing Market

According to the National Association of Realtors, existing home sale transactions on a nationwide basis fell in March by 8.5% (month-over-month) to a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 5.27 million units.

While home sales have declined, prices have remained strong with the national median home price reported to be $280,600. This is up 8.0% from March 2019 and this increase marks 97 straight months of year-over-year gains.

Total housing inventory was up approximately 2.7% from February 2020 to 1.5 million units. Unsold inventory equates to a 3.9-month supply at the current sales rate which is down from 4.1 months as reported for the month of September.

Coronavirus and Real Estate Transactions

Posted on March 24, 2020March 30, 2020 by Chris Losquadro

Coronavirus and Real Estate Transactions

The coronavirus is causing all sorts of issues with in process real estate transactions. Everything from physical & engineering inspections, title review and transaction financing is running into delays, if not outright being cancelled.

The term “force majeure” is now becoming more apparent in real estate contracts, allowing for extensions and / or terminations of agreements for unforeseeable circumstances or “acts of God”.

Housing and the Coronavirus (COVID-19)

Posted on March 23, 2020March 28, 2020 by Chris Losquadro

Housing and the Coronavirus (COVID-19)

The housing market statistics for February 2020 were recently published and it showed that the market continues to remain strong with not only price appreciation, but increasing sales volume. Existing-home sales improved by 6.5% (year-over-year) which was the strongest amount for the month of February since 2007.

The market across four counties in the greater South Florida area also remained quite strong with gains in the number of homes sold as well as the median prices for both single family homes and townhomes / condominiums. The following table highlights the individual county statistics as of the end of February 2020 (year-over-year).

	FOR FEBRUARY 2020 (Year-Over-Year)
	No. SFR Sales	SFR Median Price	No. Th/Co Sales	Th/Co Median Price
Palm Beach County	12.30%	6.80%	12.50%	3.30%
Martin County	1.20%	13.80%	21.40%	3.20%
Miami-Dade County	9.80%	7.20%	4.70%	2.00%
Broward County	7.00%	10.00%	3.80%	12.80%

As of mid-March 2020 with the coronavirus in full swing, a number of states now have ‘Shelter in Place’ orders and significant restrictions on businesses across the state of Florida. This will of course have massive implications on the economy as a whole, but how specifically will it impact the housing market?

Top Home Sales Prices for 2019 – Featured Palm Beach County Towns & Cities

Posted on January 11, 2020January 24, 2020 by Chris Losquadro

Top Home Sales Prices for 2019 – Featured Palm Beach County Towns & Cities

Residential real estate in Palm Beach County experienced another outstanding year during 2019. Although home sales across all price points were strong, the luxury home market was one of the biggest beneficiaries of price appreciation.

The following is a summary of the five highest priced home sales for featured Palm Beach County area towns and cities and is based on information obtained from the local Multiple Listing Service (MLS).

Data for each area is based on that provided by the listing real estate agent and while deemed reliable, it is not always 100% accurate. In addition, there may be home sales that occurred during the year there were conducted outside of the MLS service; those individual homes sales will be shown in our analysis below.

Mirasol Country Club – Real Estate Market Update Year End 2019

Posted on January 11, 2020January 24, 2020 by Chris Losquadro

Mirasol – Real Estate Market Update for Year End 2019

Mirasol is one of the finest golf and country club communities in Palm Beach Gardens and throughout the northern Palm Beaches. Due to the high overall quality of the community and the popularity of the club, home sales have remained strong over the past several years. As a whole, Mirasol has a fairly wide range of price points starting from around $400,000’s and exceeding $4 million.

Over the past five years the housing market in Mirasol has continued to strengthen with respect to price appreciation. This was due to increasing buyer demand, limited inventory levels and historically low interest rates. Similar to that experienced across most luxury home communities in 2019, home sellers in Mirasol were able to take advantage of the strong market as median prices increased by more than 10% year-over-year. It should be noted, however, that the number of individual home sales declined from 2018 by more than 18%.

Overall how did the real estate market in Mirasol perform in 2019? Continue reading to learn more.

PGA National – Real Estate Market Update Year End 2019

Posted on January 10, 2020January 11, 2020 by Chris Losquadro

PGA National – Real Estate Market Update for Year End 2019

PGA National is one of the more mature golf and country club communities in Palm Beach Gardens and throughout the northern Palm Beaches. As a result, inventory turnover is lower than other communities in the area which leads to greater overall market stability.

During the past five years the housing market in PGA National has continued to improve with strong sales trends and home appreciation across virtually all price points. This was due to increasing buyer demand, limited inventory levels and historically low interest rates. As a result, home sellers were able to take advantage of the strong market as priced continued to rise.

How did the real estate market in PGA National perform in 2019? Continue reading to learn more.

PGA National Real Estate Market – Results for 2019

According to data provided by the local Multiple Listing Service (MLS), there were 368 individual home sales in PGA National for the year 2019 representing a combined sale value of more than $140 million.

The 2019 results were an improvement over what was experienced in 2018 with 346 individual home sales representing a combined sale value of approximately $129 million.

To put the results for 2018 and 2019 in prospective, there were 172 homes that sold in PGA National during 2010 with a combined sale value of approximately $50.5 million. Therefore, the market activity has virtually doubled during the decade with respect to both the number of sales as well as the overall volume.

Housing Market Update for November 2019

Posted on November 26, 2019November 26, 2019 by Chris Losquadro

The Current State of the Housing Market

Nationwide Housing

According to the National Association of Realtors, existing home sale transactions on a nationwide basis rose in October by 1.9% to a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 5.46 units. Year-over-year sales were up by 4.6% from 5.22 million units in October 2018. The nationwide median existing home price across all housing types for October was $270,900, up 6.2% from October 2018. Prices rose in all regions and this month’s price increase marks 92 straight months of year-over-year gains.

Total housing inventory was down approximately 2.7% from September 2019 to 1.77 million units. Unsold inventory equates to a 3.9-month supply at the current sales rate which is down from 4.1 months as reported for the month of September.
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The Real Estate Market Continues to Roll – Update for October 2019

Posted on November 9, 2019November 9, 2019 by Chris Losquadro

Real Estate Market Update for October 2019

Due to a combination of low interest rates, low unemployment and increasing wages, the real estate market continues to show strong buyer demand and consistent price growth. On a nationwide basis as well as within Palm Beach County, foreclosures and other distressed properties continue to decline indicating a strong and healthy real estate market.

Commercial Real Estate

The national commercial real estate market also remains strong with low vacancy rates, increasing rent growth and declining capitalization rates. According to Real Capital Analytics, cap rates averaged 6.1% in July and August 2019 (properties above $2.5 million).