Miami Pending Real Estate Sales Increase Nearly Six Percent in One Month

Pending home sales increased six percent in June 2009 from May 2009 in Miami-Dade County as more buyers took advantage of improved affordability conditions and the first-time home buyer tax credit according to the Realtor Association of Greater Miami and the Beaches (RAMB).

According to the Southeast Florida Multiple Listing Service, Miami-Dade pending sales of single-family homes rose 3.9 percent to 3,429 in June 2009 up from 3,301 in May 2008. Pending sales of condominiums increased 7.9 percent, from 3,089 to 3,332 during the same time period. The total number of pending sales, including both single-family homes and condominiums, were 6,761, up 5.9 percent in June 2009 compared to May 2009.

A sale is listed as pending when the contract has been signed but the transaction has not closed, though the sale usually is finalized within one or two months of signing. Increased pending sales are an indication of increased future sales, and in the current market, are signs that the South Florida Market may have bottomed.

At RAMB’s recent International Real Estate Congress and Expo in Miami, a panel of local industry experts offered insight about the strengthening South Florida real estate market.

“The Internet is driving most buyer traffic, while (real estate) signs account for the majority of other buyers,” said Charles Richardson, regional senior vice president of Southeast Florida for Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate. “Buyers today are more selective, more demanding on price. They expect value and will walk away if there is any problem.”

“The Affordability index in South Florida has skyrocketed in the last year. If we’re not at the bottom, we’re very close to the bottom in some buildings. Recovery is building specific. We have about 21 months of inventory including both single-family and condominiums. Six to twelve months of inventory is what we should have, but that metric has dropped 50 percent since last year,” said Ron Shuffield, president of Esslinger-Wooten-Maxwell, Inc.

Less expensive homes are selling faster in the current South Florida real estate market.

“Inventory for lower price points is below six months. There are more transactions in lower price points,” said Rei Mesa, president and chief operating officer for Prudential Florida Realty in South Florida. “We are seeing a shift in financing, appraisal challenges . . . flippers and speculators have left the market. Thirty-five percent of buyers are investors, while sixty-five percent are end users.”

“There is less than five months supply for properties under $200,000, and we are seeing bidding wars again,” emphasized Mike Pappas, chief executive officer/president for The Keyes Company.

First-time, cash, and international buyers in addition to investors are driving sales according to the panelists, who also provided information about current real estate buyers.

Mesa said, “We welcome Internet traffic. It’s a lot more efficient than newspapers. Internet buyers are more focused, more educated . . . great buyers to work with.”

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Lynn Cromer & Robin Parker are real estate sales and marketing professionals for Coldwell Banker in beautiful Pinecrest, Florida. For more information on Pinecrest, Florida or the communities of Coral Gables, Palmetto Bay and Coconut Grove, Lynn can be reached at 305-962-4068, Robin at 305-546-0447, by email at info@WeSellMiami.com or online at www.WeSellMiami.com.

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