Orlando Real Estate Trends

Analyzing the Late Summer / Early Fall Orlando Real Estate Trends
Guest Post by Paige Taylor

The end of summer is a time when some of Central Florida’s businesses may see an annual bump in sales. The influx of part-time residents and tourists bolster many of the markets. In real estate, just the increased numbers of people buying and selling real estate is a boon to the success of any Realtor, however this phenomena will not influence the market for several months. What inference can we draw from recent activity to predict the growth trends of real estate in MetroWest and Orlando in general? 

While the ends of September numbers are not yet available, the trend through August and early September looks very encouraging. Orlando remains active in real estate sales and continues to be one of the top twenty cities in the country searched for property acquisition. According to statistics posted from the Orlando Regional Realtor Association the average interest rate is at a sixteen year all time low while the median sale price jumped fifteen percent. This interest rate is the lowest since the Association started tracking. The second next lowest interest rate was 4.28 in October of 2010 as opposed to 4.26 at the present time. The rate has dropped from 4.53 as reported for July.

In August the average sale price was $115,000.00, a 15.12% increase from this time last year and a 21.18% increase from January of this year. Another strongly positive indicator from these statistics shows a decrease in the number of available properties by 39.19% from August 2010. Orlando apartment and condominium sales seem to be leading the pack with 51.84% less inventory compared to 35.54% single family dwellings in the same period last month. Not surprisingly, sales under contract also reflect this improvement in the market. There are almost 1,000 more today than a year ago. 

What does this mean? First, it means that while buyers are paying more, they are in a higher income earning category than over the past few months. Orlando steadily continues to draw from a population of affluence. This is supported in the Florida Board of Realtors statistics from August 2011.

These numbers reflect that while in most cities the percent of sales increased a greater amount than Orlando, the average sale price was significantly less than the previous year. Orlando not only showed a marked increase in the number of sales and in the median cost of each sale. It also means that the Orlando real estate market is reaping the benefits from lower interest rates generated from other parts of the country. 

Another way to gauge the Orlando real estate trends in the immediate future is to look at a one week comparison of new listings and average asking prices compared to the rest of the country. The Department of Numbers website reports that as of September 19, 2011, the inventory of available homes in Orlando is up 0.3% as opposed to the majority of cities reflecting a negative listing rate per cent. It is also the highest per cent in all Florida cities reported. In addition, the average listing price has the third highest increase in the country, only behind San Francisco, CA and Tucson, AZ.

As the country recovers from the crippling events the real estate market has been enduring, slow but steady gains are very encouraging. When not only compared to the entire country, but cities in Florida, the statistics strongly suggest what the business elite have always known. Orlando will continue to be a destination for prospective residents and home owners.

For more information on MetroWest Orlando real estate sales, email: Info@MyMetroWestRealty or call: 407-290-3408.

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