Spring brings more good news for home sellers in Manatee. For buyers, not so much
Single-family home sales increased 8.4 percent in Manatee County in March, compared to the same month a year ago, while the median price rose 9.5 percent to $312,000.
In Sarasota County, the median price for single-family homes fell by 0.7 percent to $285,000, according to the Realtor Association of Sarasota and Manatee.
“When looking at price, the two counties differ,” Amy Worth, 2019 president of the Realtor association, said in a press release. “Manatee County’s decrease in month’s supply could explain the continued rise in median price. Sarasota shows the opposite with a decrease in price and increase in month’s supply,” Worth said.
The median is the midpoint; half the homes sold for more, half for less.
Inventory in Manatee County fell 2 percent in March, while inventory increased 13.2 percent in Sarasota.
“Manatee seems to be outpacing Sarasota, especially with all the new developments in Lakewood Ranch, Parrish, Palmetto and Myakka City,” Worth said.
Condo inventory was up in both counties: 1.9 percent in Manatee and 12.1 percent in Sarasota. Condo prices rose 1 percent to $203,450 in Manatee and decreased 5.1 percent to $227,825 in Sarasota.
Single-family home sales rose 8.4 percent to 629 in Manatee and 1.4 percent to 778 in Sarasota.
“Single-family homes continue to become more balanced, spending more days on the market while closed and pending sales increase,” Worth said. “This could be a sign of more activity from sellers and buyers entering the market.”
In Manatee County, the median time for single-family homes on the market was 58 days; in Sarasota, the median was 51 days. Manatee condos spent a median of 38 days on the market; in Sarasota, the median was 52 days.
Manatee County remains a seller’s market with a 4.2-month supply of single-family homes. Sarasota had a 5.3-month supply.
Across the state
In March, statewide median sales prices for both single-family homes and condo-townhouse properties rose year-over-year for the 87th month in a row, according to the Florida Association of Realtors.
The statewide median sales price for single-family existing homes was $256,000, up 2 percent from the previous year, 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 $189,500, up 3.6 percent over the year-ago figure.
Across the nation
Nationwide, existing-home sales fell in March, following February’s surge, according to the National Association of Realtors. Each of the four major U.S. regions saw a drop-off in sales, with the Midwest enduring the largest decline in March.
The median existing single-family home price was $261,100 in March, up 3.8 percent from March 2018.
The median existing condo price was $244,400 in March, which is up 3.6 percent from a year ago.
“It is not surprising to see a retreat after a powerful surge in sales in the prior month. Still, current sales activity is under-performing in relation to the strength in the jobs markets. The impact of lower mortgage rates has not yet been fully realized,” Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist, said in a press release.
This story was originally published April 22, 2019 at 4:26 PM.