April NEWSLETTER 2013
Sales for April 2013 at 29 (SF-21, Con-3, Dup-2 & Lot-3) were only 29% of April 2012 at 41 (SF-26, Con-13, Dup-0 & Lot-2). Sales for the first Quarter of 2013 were 72 (SF-41, Con-23, Dup-2 & Lot-6) down 25% from the first Quarter of 2012 at 96 (SF-55, Con-32, Dup-4 & Lot-5). The first quarter of 2013 was a much slower start then 2012. Sales for the last 12 months at 407 (SF-231, Con-117, Dup-25 & Lot-34) were up 14% over the previous 12 months at 358 (SF-197, Con-123, Dup-15 & Lot-23). Of the sales for the last 12 months, the distressed properties were 10% or 41 (SF-19, Con-19, Dup-3 & Lot-0) compared to the distressed properties for the previous 12 months at 17% or 61 (SF-21, Con-32, Dup-5 & Lot-3). Currently there are only 14 distressed properties in the inventory or 4% of the inventory. Five are single families with 2 being bank owned and 3 being short sales; 6 are condos with 2 being bank owned and 4 being short sales; 3 are duplex’s with 2 being bank owned and 1 a short sale. Pended properties (properties under contract) continue to be strong at 67 (SF-35, Con-18, Dup-11 & Lot-3) up from last month’s 61 and the previous months 51. Inventory on the island continues to shrink at 344 (SF-160, Con-103, Dup-32 & Lot-49) down from 351 last month and 366 the previous month.
Two of the properties in last month’s Frank, Larry and Al’s Great Buys have gone under contract. The property at 115 36th Street (west of gulf drive) just went under contract and is due to close in May. The property at 313 64th St (a townhouse condo with private pool) also went under contract and just closed for $515,000. Currently there are only 8 properties for sale west of Gulf Drive under $1 million and we have seen a spike up in the sale prices of these properties. West of Gulf drive is the prime location for renting. A pool home with at least 3 bedrooms will do between $60K and $100K depending on the location, amenities and number of bedrooms. Again the best investment buy on the island is 2916 Avenue E (4 houses from the beach) listed at $629,000 and does gross annual rental of $67,000. Number two again this month is 109 Cedar Ave (3 houses from the beach) which could do $65K-$75K in rental income. The third investment buy is 3603 4th Ave listed at $959,000 a great 3bedroom 3 bath townhouse style home with pool and roof top deck with views of the Gulf and inter-coastal waterway. Check out the virtual tours on these 3 properties.
To summarize the Island market the year has started off about 25% below the first quarter of 2012 and 2012 was the third highest year of sales in the last 30 years. Based on the activity we are seeing and the strong enthusiasm in the market place I expect that gap to narrow as we continue through the year. For example in March there were 29 properties sold on the island or 58 sides (buyer side and seller’s side). In March, Island Real Estate sold 19 properties and 12 of them were on the island and on 2 of them we had both sides so we sold 14 sides in March. In March we sold 24% of the properties sold on the island, just about our normal share of the market. Also in March Island Real Estate put 20 properties under contract, 14 of them on the island. You can see the sales are still coming strong.
In the broader regional market while the national market is slightly down, the median list price of homes for sale is up 3.73% in Sarasota-Bradenton and 11.17% in the Punta Gorda-Charlotte County markets from a year ago, according to the National Association of Realtors. In Sarasota, the median home price is $250,000. The national median is $187,900, down 0.05% from a year ago. Meanwhile, inventories of homes in the Sarasota-Bradenton market, listed for sale by Realtors continue to shrink. Sarasota-Bradenton’s 6,640 listings represent a 20.25% year-over-year decline but is 1.44% more than the previous month. Days-on- market, the time it takes listings to sell is down 22% in both local markets and 9% nationally. That can be borne out by many mainland Real Estate customers I’ve talk to have been in multiple offer situations. In short the Island and regional markets are continuing to heat up.
Call me, Realtor ALAN GALLETTO 941.232.2216 of Island Real Estate. www.Alangalletto.com