Wondering what's selling in Broward? How many Homes Sold in Broward in May?  How many homes sold in Ft. Lauderdale and other Broward cities? Looking for a monthly Broward Real Estate Market Report?

When considering buying or selling a Home, it is important that you're familiar with REAL data/facts about homes sold (NOT rumors about how many homes are selling, which homes sold, and what they're selling for). When you're ready to place an Offer to purchase a home, this data also assists you with placing an Offer that's based in reality, an Offer that's more likely to be accepted.

Single Family Home Sales

During the month of May, 2010, there were 1,099  Single Family Homes SOLD in Broward County (they were sold at final sales prices between $10,200 and $9,300,000) through Brokers and these sales comprise the vast majority of total sales. Of the 1,099 Single Family Homes SOLD in Broward County in May, 2010 (The "Sold" prices below mean the final sale price, NOT the listing price at the time of the sale):

259 were sold for $100,000 or less
335 were sold between $100,000 - $200,000
276 were sold between $200,000 - $300,000
147 were sold between  $300,000 - $400,000
55 were sold between $400,000 - $500,000
40 were sold between $500,000 - $600,000
20 were sold between $600,000 - $700,000
12 were sold between $700,000 - $800,000
15 were sold between $800,000 - $900,000
31 were sold at $900,000 and higher

The largest number of sales occurred in the $300,000 and under price range, so the $300,000 and under price range is VERY competitive.  Homes in this price range are selling EXTREMELY quickly and Buyers searching for Homes in this price range often find that the availability of Homes that meet their search criteria is very limited.  In many areas, more Inventory is needed within this price range to meet the demand.

Overall, sales have increased, Inventory has decreased, and the number of pending Offers has increased (view Inventory and Sales Charts below for 2009 - 2010).

Of the 1,099 Single Family Homes sold, 228 were Short Sales and 341 were Bank Owned properties, so ~50% of the sales were distressed sales, which means that, contrary to popular opinion, Short Sales and Foreclosures ARE NOT the vast majority of closed transactions. 

Real Estate is local and every market is very different.  There are significant market differences from one Community to the next, even within the same City and in areas that are within very close proximity.

Of the 341 Bank Owned Foreclosures that were purchased:

• The average sales price to list price ratio was 98%
• 6 of the properties are Waterfront Ocean access Homes
• The purchase price range was $10,200 - $560,000
• The average purchase price was $152,524 (luxury Properties ARE NOT the majority of Foreclosure sales)

Click here to view Foreclosure listings.

Of 1,099 sales, 405 are indicated to have been Cash purchases, so there are LOTS of Cash Buyers in the current market.

In the $100,000 and less category of Sales, 198 of the 259 Homes purchased were Cash Sales, so only 61 of the purchases were financed!!!  Reasons for this include the following:

1. A large number of Investors in the market are purchasing Homes in this price range
2. Many Homes in this price range are in need of significant repair and/or updates so are not of interest to Buyers who are interested in immediately occupying the Home as their primary Residence
3. Many Homes in this price range are smaller than desired by non-Investor Buyers and/or not located in areas that are desireable to non-Investor Buyers
4. Because of necessary repairs and/or missing Appliances that are often an issue with these Homes, many of these Homes will not qualify for Financing, particularly not FHA Financing
5. Banks that are selling properties prefer Cash Buyers and, very often, when presented a strong Cash Offer, they will accept it instead of an Offer from a Buyer who requires Financing

What this means is that the $100,000 and less market for Single Family Homes is, in most cases, not a good fit for those who are seeking Homes in this price range as their primary residence, who are usually interested in financing their purchases.  Such Buyers are simply unable to compete with Investors in the current market and are left to continue Renting or to compromise and attempt to find a Condo or Townhouse that might be appropriate.

Buyers who are interested in purchasing Homes in the upper price range are still finding that there are challenges with obtaining Financing for Jumbo Loans (Loans over the amount of $417,000 are known as Jumbo Loans). A significant number of Buyers in the upper price range are also Cash Buyers.

I don't expect the end of the First Time Homebuyer's Tax Credit to have a significant impact on our Market because many of our local Property purchases are made by Buyers who aren't First Time Homebuyers.

 Condo, Townhouse, Villa, and Co-op Sales

During the month of May, 2010, there were 1,497 Condos, Townhouses, Villas and Co-ops SOLD in Broward County with final purchase prices between $10,000 - $1,950,000 as follows:

906 were sold under $100,000 (of the 906 properties purchased, only 25 are Waterfront Ocean access properties)
390 were sold between $100,000 and $200,000
104 were sold between $200,000 and $300,000
38 were sold between $300,000 and $400,000
19 were sold between $400,000 and $500,000
39 were sold at $500,000 and above

285 of the 1,497 sales were Short Sales and 499 were Bank Owned Foreclosures.

NOTE:  My monthly Reports present information related to active, sold, and pending listings of Single Family Homes, Condos, Co-ops, Villas, and Townhouses sold through Brokers ONLY, however, these sales and listings ARE NOT inclusive of the ENTIRE Real Estate Market as there are Commercial Properties and Businesses that are sold, as well as Vacant Lots and Land, Docks, and multi-family dwellings (such as Duplexes, Triplexes, Fourplexes, and Apartment buildings).

Additionally, there are Developer-owned Properties (Condos, Single Family Homes, Townhouses, etc.) that are sold to Buyers directly from the Developer, many of which are not listed for sale through the MLS (non-MLS listed property sales data is available by searching local Tax Records). 

Of Developer owned Condo sales in Broward, Sapphire Condo has had significant sales in 2010, with 37 Condos sold in 2010 through May 31, 2010, with a purchase price range of $297,000 - $690,000.