Tag Archives: Florida Association of Realtors

Florida Realtors®: June is National Homeownership Month

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Orlando, FL – June 5, 2023 (PRNewswire) Florida Realtors®, along with Realtors® in the Sunshine State and across the U.S., celebrate June as National Homeownership Month. The recognition acknowledges the importance of owning a home and the impact it has on the lives of American families, local communities and the nation’s economic health. This month marks the 21st anniversary of National Homeownership Month.

“Buying a home is often the biggest financial investment of a lifetime – but it also means so much more,” says 2023 Florida Realtors® President G. Mike McGraw, a broker-associate with RE/MAX Central Realty in Orlando. “Our homes are where we share our lives, build our futures together and make priceless memories. Not only do our homes provide shelter, security and stability, they also give us a sense of place and community.

“Each and every day, Realtors in Florida promote housing opportunities and help people realize the American dream of homeownership.”

For generations of families, homeownership has been essential to their plans for their lives and their futures. Beyond the emotional and social benefits, homeownership builds household wealth. A homeowner’s average net worth in 2021 was $300,000 – nearly 40 times that of a renter at $8,000, according to recent research from the National Association of Realtors® (NAR).

President Joe Biden has issued a proclamation recognizing June as National Homeownership Month, showcasing homeownership as a source of economic strength and emphasizing the need to increase the ranks of homeowners, especially among minorities.

The proclamation stated, “During National Homeownership Month, we recognize the power of owning a home when raising a family, planting roots in a community, building equity and passing down generational wealth to continue the American Dream for generations to come. We recognize that a place to call home, regardless of owning or renting, is essential to a life of security, dignity and hope.”

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the homeownership rate in Florida was 66.6% in first quarter 2023; the U.S. homeownership rate was 66% for the same period.

This national spotlight on homeownership began as a weeklong recognition in 1995 and was first proclaimed to last the entire month in June 2002 under former President George W. Bush.

Realtors are celebrating this June as Homeownership Month with homebuyers and sellers in communities across Florida, with the help of materials from Florida Realtors. The National Association of Realtors (NAR) also has info and more available on its Homeownership Month Resources webpage.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) offers assistance and helpful info on homeownership, housing policies, programs, counseling and more at their website, https://www.hud.gov/.

Florida Realtors® serves as the voice for real estate in Florida. It provides programs, services, continuing education, research and legislative representation to 238,000 members in 51 boards/associations. Florida Realtors® Newsroom is available at http://floridarealtors.org/newsroom.

SOURCE Florida Realtors

Florida’s Housing Market: Statewide Inventory Continues to Rise in April

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Orlando, FL – May 18, 2023 (PRNewswire) Florida’s housing market in April showed continuing trends from the past few months, with more for-sale inventory (active listings) and higher median sales prices for condo-townhouse units compared to a year ago, according to Florida Realtors®’ latest housing data. Across the state, economic factors like mortgage rates above 6%, and still rising – but easing – inflation impacted closed home sales.

“More active listings spark buyers’ interest and provide more homeownership opportunities,” said 2023 Florida Realtors® President G. Mike McGraw, a broker-associate with RE/MAX Central Realty in Orlando. “In time, having more available inventory could ease the pressure of rising prices; however, Florida’s current for-sale supply is still constrained as cautious buyers and sellers remain wary of higher mortgage interest rates.”

Last month, closed sales of existing single-family homes statewide totaled 23,334, down 17.2% year-over-year, while existing condo-townhouse sales totaled 10,040, down 26.8% over April 2022. Closed sales may occur from 30- to 90-plus days after sales contracts are written.

Florida Realtors Chief Economist Dr. Brad O’Connor said that the drop in closed sales of single-family existing homes in April was “slightly worse than what we saw in March, when we were down by 15% year-over-year. But it’s still an improvement over February’s decline of 21%, and significantly better than January’s decline of 32.5%.”

The statewide median sales price for single-family existing homes in April was $410,000, the same as in April 2022, according to data from Florida Realtors Research Department in partnership with local Realtor boards/associations. Last month’s statewide median price for condo-townhouse units was $325,000, up 4.8% over the year-ago figure. The median is the midpoint; half the homes sold for more, half for less.

“With the median price for existing Florida single-family homes in April at the same level of $410,000 as last April, it brings an end to a remarkable more than 11-year stretch – that’s 135 months – where the monthly median single-family home sale price in Florida was up on a year-over-year basis,” said Dr. O’Connor. “The impact of the higher mortgage rate environment we’re in and the scarcity of homes on the market has led to this moderation in home price growth, but the major detrimental impact of this type of environment remains the decline in listings and sales.

“The streak of consecutive months of median price growth, on the other hand, is still very much alive over in the townhouse and condo category, which had a median price in April of $325,000, a year-over-year increase of almost 5%.”

On the supply side of the market, inventory (active listings) rose year-over-year with single-family existing homes at a 2.6-months’ supply in April, while condo-townhouse inventory was at a 3.5-months’ supply.

To see the full statewide housing activity reports, go to the Florida Realtors Newsroom and look under Latest Releases or download the April 2023 data report PDFs under Market Data.

Florida Realtors® serves as the voice for real estate in Florida. It provides programs, services, continuing education, research and legislative representation to 338,000 members in 51 boards/associations. Florida Realtors® Newsroom website is available at http://floridarealtors.org/newsroom.

SOURCE Florida Realtors

Florida Realtors® Real Estate Trends: What’s the 2023 Florida Outlook?

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Orlando, FL – Jan. 23, 2023 (PRNewswire) What should consumers, Realtors® and policymakers expect when it comes to Florida real estate over the next year? After the unexpectedly strong years of 2020 and 2021 despite an ongoing pandemic, Florida’s housing sector in 2022 was affected by rapidly rising inflation and higher mortgage interest rates, Florida Realtors® Chief Economist Dr. Brad O’Connor told nearly 500 Realtors during the 2023 Florida Real Estate Trends summit last Thursday.

“Now, we expect the state’s residential real estate market to return to a more typical pace,” he said. “I believe 2023 will look more like the ‘traditional’ housing market years of 2018-2019 in Florida as supply and demand become more balanced.”

The event was part of this year’s Florida Realtors®‘ Mid-Winter Business Meetings at the Renaissance SeaWorld Orlando. In addition to O’Connor, the summit featured John Leer, chief economist of Morning Consult, which uses high-frequency survey data to capture insights into consumer attitudes and concerns. Leer leads global economic research and oversees the firm’s economic data collection, validation and analysis. He is an authority on the effects of consumer preference, expectations and experiences on purchasing patterns, prices and employment.

It also included a panel of Realtors who use Florida Realtors’ SunStats resource regularly, sharing how it helps them in their business. Panelists were Peter West, broker/managing partner, Bishop West Real Estate; Kara Wisely, broker associate, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Florida Realty; and John J. Adams, president, Adams, Cameron and Co., Realtors. Jennifer Warner, Florida Realtors economist and director of economic development, served as the moderator.

Dr. Brad O’Connor, Florida Realtors chief economist

One major question currently on the minds of real estate professionals, homebuyers, home sellers and others: Is a price correction on the way?

“Well, prices are determined by both demand and supply,” O’Connor said. “Falling demand is only one ingredient needed for a large correction; we also need a flood of supply – in the last housing cycle, this came from overbuilding and foreclosures. And it’s unlikely that we’re going to see a flood of newly built homes on the market for several reasons. First, fewer home builders currently exist than in years past; builders are more conservative when it comes to taking on new builds; and home builds are taking longer to complete. Supply is also being affected by homeowners who don’t want to list their house and buy a different one because they’re likely to have to pay more on the next home due to higher mortgage interest rates.

“So it’s true some owners are feeling ‘locked-in’ to their current home and current mortgage rate, but it’s not all homeowners. We are seeing gains in inventory (active listings) and closed sales are continuing. And we are going to see some relaxing or easing in prices, but we’re not going to see a great drop unless or until we see more supply available.”

According to O’Connor, inflation will continue to be a factor in 2023, though recent economic news shows the Federal Reserve’s action to fight inflation appears to be having a positive effect. Buyer demand in Florida in the coming months will continue to be challenged by insurance costs, mortgage rates – especially if rates start rising again to 7% or higher – and ongoing economic uncertainty that erodes consumer confidence.

“Mortgage rates will come down, but it’s all dependent on different factors,” he said. “All of the current forecasts on existing home sales in 2023 rely on where the 30-year mortgage rate is going to be, and that’s in flux.

Recent 2023 forecasts for U.S. existing home sales compared year-over-year to 2022 include:

National Association of Realtors® (12/13/22): Existing home sales fall 7.0% Y/Y in 2023
Fannie Mae (12/12/22): Existing home sales fall 21.1% Y/Y in 2023
Mortgage Bankers Association (12/19/22): Existing home sales fall 13.7% Y/Y in 2023
Redfin (12/6/22): Existing home sales fall 16.0% Y/Y in 2023
Realtor.com (11/30/22): Existing home sales fall 14.1% Y/Y in 2023
National Association of Home Builders (1/4/23): Existing home sales fall 15.7% Y/Y in 2023

O’Connor said, “In the first half of this year, I feel confident that we’re going to see home prices flatten out on average, and I think sales will kind of hug below the line of 2018 (closed existing home sales). I expect closed sales to hover a bit below the more usual pace of Florida home sales, such as what we saw in 2018. However, because home prices are much higher now than in 2018, we are still going to see a higher dollar volume of closed existing home sales, just not at the level of last year or in 2021 with dollar volume.”

Dr. John Leer, Morning Consult chief economist

How consumers are affected by the economy, inflation and other factors – or how they feel about what’s going on in the world around them – influences consumer confidence and factors into their buying decisions or saving habits, according to Dr. John Leer, chief economist for Morning Consult.

“In 2023, consumer confidence is starting to rise across most of the U.S. but remains far off from where it was a year ago,” he said. “It’s going to take a prolonged period of real wage growth and fairly stable policy outcomes for consumers to feel more comfortable and confident about the economy and their future. In December, consumers reported rising credit balances at the highest rates since tracking began. Research shows more consumers are finding it difficult to make ends meet at the end of the month, and the share of adults able to save each month continues to shrink.”

Leer pointed out this is a sign that consumers have been pushed to the brink and are having to pull back on spending as higher expenses erode their savings and sense of financial stability.

“While we’re seeing in the news that inflation is starting to cool, inflation is still impacting consumers,” he said. “They still feel and see that inflation is costing them more. Consumers are under financial stress and they’re trying to downsize their spending. Over the last two months, what we’re seeing is the outlook for the U.S. economy has really deteriorated, particularly among consumer fronts. Consumers have exhausted their sources of spending. We expect to see consumers continue to draw back from spending as small business and other sectors reduce hiring, expenditures and otherwise also contract.”

However, Leer also noted that housing and homeownership remain a top priority for many consumers. “Housing prices are beginning to flatten but continue to resist declines as buyer interest perks up,” he said. “Buyers are still waiting in the wings, interested in purchasing a home as soon as they’re able to do so financially. We continue to see that homeownership remains a strong goal for consumers, particularly for young adults looking to start a family and who feel secure in their jobs and ready for that next transition.”

Florida Realtors® serves as the voice for real estate in Florida. It provides programs, services, continuing education, research and legislative representation to more than 238,000 members in 51 boards/associations. Florida Realtors® Newsroom website is available at http://floridarealtors.org/newsroom.

SOURCE Florida Realtors