Arrrgh matey there be too many short sales out there

So you're looking for a home under $200,000 in the Palmetto/Parrish area that is not a short sale.

Well it probably appears the sea of resale homes out there is filled with short sales.

Yikes, you have to really look hard to find the foreclosures and simple resales to find the well priced good condition homes.

Short sales or pre foreclosures are those homes that the owners are trying to sell for less than they owe their lender or multiple lenders. It can be a long and frustrating process for buyers.

A couple of months ago there were a number of great buys on the market in the north Manatee County area that were not short sales. That market has been and is drying up.

It means for buyers they need to be ready, willing and able to move fast when those homes that are good buys and not short sales under 200k come on the market.

All the best
Greg Owens PA
Keller Williams Realty of Greater Manatee
941.932.6343
greg@teamworksfla.com

Bumping along the bottom

Buyers beware!

We've started the bump across the bottom.

According to the latest market stats the skid probably came to halt a little over two months ago for Manatee and Sarasota counties.

Yes, there still is as always a lot overpriced inventory on the market but that 20 percent that is priced right and in good condition for the market is moving and moving fast.

As always there will people who say, yeah, but the market is still sliding in other parts of the country or other parts of Florida. Great but it may be raining there to but it isn't here right now.

Some real estate markets (think Manhattan for instance) went up in pricing during the slump.

There is still a lot of inventory out there but the well priced and good conditions homes are being picked through fast. What you will be left with are homes that are in poor condition with a good price or good condition with a higher price.

I am a Buyer's Specialist. I wanted nothing more than to see the strong buyers market continue. For me everyday has been a trip to Disney World for the past year or so.

My clients got to chose the cream of the crop at the price they wanted to pay. Those days are dwindling away.

All the best
Greg Owens PA
Keller Williams Realty of Greater Manatee
941.932.6343
greg@teamworksfla.com

Lookng for bottom, you probably missed it

If you were looking for the bottom of the market in Sarasota and Manatee County you probably missed it.

As a Buyer's Specialist I like nothing more than seeing prices drop and putting in lower offers betting on where the market will be in a month or so.

Unfortunately all good things come to an end.

First, if you are looking for a sign stop looking at national statistics. This is the Sunshine Coast of Florida, beach, sunshine, beautiful water. Most people never get bored of that.

Here's the scoop our prices dropped like a rock over the past couple of years(for the most part there a few people still waiting for the Real Estate Fairy to wave their magic wand and make their overpriced home be gone).

We have had an overall three month trend of dropping inventory and increased sales.

We are seeing bargains like well priced foreclosures (yes, even foreclosures can be overpriced for the market), being sold over list price with multiple cash offers within hours of being put in the market.

We're talking over price cash offers no contingencies.

What does that mean for the fence sitter?

You missed the bottom but you want to get off the fence now before the prices start to climb again.

All the best
Greg Owens PA
Keller Williams Realty of Greater Manatee
941.932.6343
www.teamworksfla.com

Condo inventory falling

Imagine a high mountain ski slope.

You push off and have a good fast ride towards the bottom.

That is somewhat what the condominium/townhouse market is looking like for Manatee and Sarasota Counties.

In January of this year there was slightly more than 54 months of inventory for the resale market for condominiums/townhouses in Manatee County.

By May of this year that inventory had dropped to just over 23 months of inventory.

In Sarasota that slope was a little more bumpy with a couple of bunny hops. It started at a high of 44 months of inventory in September of 2007 down to just over 19 months of inventory by May of this year.

A combination of increased demand and lower prices is what moved the bar on inventory way down.

There has been a glut of condos/townhouses on the market compared to single family homes but in both cases the inventory is dropping along with the prices.

Greg Owens PA
Keller Williams Realty of Greater Manatee
941.932.6343
greg@teamworksfla.com

Supplies lower, sales higher

Sales are up, inventory is down.

This is what is happening overall in Sarasota and Manatee counties. The number of houses for resale in May year over year dropped more than 400 and pending sales are up by more than two dozen year over year.

We now have the lowest amount of inventory on the market in the last 15 months for both Sarasota and Manatee counties.

Yes, there are lot of foreclosures out there but the ones priced right are being snapped up within hours, not days, hours.

Yes, this is a sign. It looks like the bounce across the bottom has started.

The next faze is slight increases, when that will come is any ones guess.

All the best
Greg Owens PA
Keller Williams Realty of Greater Manatee
941.932.6343
greg@teamworksfla.com

Still coming in but slower

There are still more people moving in to Florida then out.

I had heard a couple of real estate agents say the opposite so I did some research and found that the most recent data I could find showing a net migration into the state of 35,000 last year.

A recent study by United Van Lines for 2007 showed they are still moving more people into the state then out, albeit only by a small amount.

Basically we have gone from a flood to a trickle.

Given the hard hit housing market across the nation I'm not surprised. But despite the naysayers of gloom and doom it still looks like we are gaining more people.

Think of other states where the net migration is negative. Hmmm, let me think how that might impact the housing market?

Well, more people moving out probably means less demand and more supply which just might result in prices continuing to fall.

In the case of Florida, more people moving in then out should have an opposite effect.

Sunshine and beaches are still an attraction, imagine that.

All the best
Greg Owens PA
Keller Williams Realty of Greater Manatee
941.932.6343
greg@teamworksfla.com

Times are changing

Change is constant.

In the real estate market for Manatee and Sarasota counties this has never been truer.

Our sales have been up and our prices down. Great combination.

Lenders are talking about loan restrictions loosening up a bit in the next couple weeks.

The number of foreclosures dropped in the Manatee County area.

Not withstanding all those other economic factors there might be something in the air that we have not seen in a couple of years.

Market stabilization.

Not a dramatic drop (prices are still dropping) not a dramatic increase (stay away boom).

Inventory is dropping and that is also a good thing.

Maybe, just maybe, by the time we the fall comes around this market will have settled down.

All the best
Greg Owens PA
Keller Williams Realty of Greater Manatee
941.932.6343
greg@teamworksfla.com