Orlando existing home and existing condo sales declined in May, according to the latest housing data released by Florida Realtors. Existing home sales declined 5 percent last month with a total of 2,476 homes sold in Orlando compared to 2,593 homes sold in May 2010, according to Florida Realtors.
Orlando median sales price for existing homes last month was $126,300: a year ago, it was $134,600 for a 6 percent decrease.
Existing condominiums sales in Orlando in May 2011 dropped to 585 units compared to 816, a decline of 28 percent. Sale prices of condos rose by 19 percent last month to $59,300 compared to $49,900 sold in May 2010, according to Florida Realtors.
Twelve of Florida’s metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) reported higher existing home sales in May; 14 MSAs also had higher condo sales. It’s the sixth consecutive month that Florida Realtors has reported higher year-over-year existing home and existing condo sales statewide.
Florida’s median sales price for existing homes last month was $135,500; a year ago, it was $142,900 for a 5 percent decrease. However, May’s statewide existing home median price was about 2.9 percent higher than it was in April. Analysts with the National Association of Realtors® (NAR) note that sales of foreclosures and other distressed properties continue to downwardly distort the median price because they generally sell at a discount relative to traditional homes.
The national median sales price for existing single-family homes in April 2011 was $163,200, down 5.4 percent from a year ago, according to NAR.
According to NAR’s latest industry outlook, tight credit is one of the reasons why the market is under-performing. “Although existing-home sales are expected to trend up unevenly through next year, unnecessarily tight credit is continuing to restrain the market along with a steady level of low appraisals that result in contract cancellations,” said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun. “A robust economic and housing market recovery cannot occur as long as banks continue to hold onto huge cash reserves.”
In Florida’s year-to-year comparison for condos, 8,338 units sold statewide last month compared to 7,104 units in May 2010 for an increase of 17 percent. The statewide existing condo median sales price last month was $98,200; in May 2010 it was $96,400 for a 2 percent increase. May’s statewide existing condo median price was about 6.9 percent higher than it was in April. The national median existing condo sales price was $167,300 in April 2011, according to NAR.
The interest rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.64 percent in May, a drop from the 4.89 percent averaged during the same month a year earlier, according to Freddie Mac.
