March Newsletter

What else happened in Florida last months?

The Daytona 500

Visiting the Aston Martin Residences: we could finally visit the inside of the building with our
Buyers, soon to be Owners. The building is still under the final steps of construction, however, we
stepped into the east and west side, walk-through the units, and enjoyed the breathtaking 55th floor
pool area with cabanas, jacuzzi, and the view to the port, bay and neighboring buildings. The elevator
quickly liŌed us to over the 40th floor. The closings will start soon!

What is happening in March?

Spring break: it lasts for several weeks in the USA. Many travel to the Sunshine State, especially to
Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, and also the west coast of Florida, to the shores of the Gulf of Mexico, and to
Orlando to relax and to beach.

Easter: The Easter Monday is not a holiday, only Easter Sunday and for many, Good Friday. On Sunday,
families and friends gather. The children’s favorite activity is the “egg hunt”. This could be an organized
community event, too.

Loan for Locals: the mortgage rate is higher for the locals again, meaning that cash is gold and
fastens the home purchasing process. Currently, for the well-qualified homebuyer it is over 7%, but could
reach 8% for the less qualified applicant.

How is the market?

There are several parts of that question. The Florida Realtors provide a monthly official report, analyzing
the previous month’s data provided on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) by counties. Please see a few
factors of the January report. (The February report is coming soon, see info on our Facebook and
LinkedIn)

What was the Median Sales Price? In case of single-family homes, the median sales price was
$630,000 which is 15.6% higher than it was a year earlier, in 2023 January, $610,000.
Condos and townhouses: there was only a slight change from last January, a 1.4% year-over-year
change. This year the median sales price was $405,750, last January was $400,000 for condos
and townhouses in Miami-Dade County.
Important: this is not the average price! There are large discrepancies in property values in
Miami-Dade County. The small number of properties with a higher price are raising the average
prices, (namely the 20-40 million dollar ocean and waterfront houses, mansions and other
luxury residences).
Thus, the average prices are much higher in a county than the Median Sales Price. The average
sales price in January 2023 of single-family-homes was $1,206,990 compared to the 2023.
December $907,066. The condos and townhouses: $735,325 this January, aŌer the Dec.
$642,700.
Cash Sales is another significant data of the market- especially for investors! In January, 30.7% of
the single-family-homes were purchased by cash which was 7.2% more than last January, a
28.7%. Investors more likely to have the funds and able to purchase a home up front than a
typical homebuyer requiring financing. Looking at the condos and townhouses, the cash
purchase is even higher! This January 52.5%, and in Dec. 2023 it was 49.5% based on properties
shown on MLS.
Inventory: the number of properties for sale and also the “Month Supply of Inventory”. From
2023 November there are more than 4 months of supply of single-family-homes in Miami-Dade,
so there are more properties available to choose from. Also, the Sellers still wait for the asking
price, so takes longer now to sell at higher price. Notable, that during the pandemic, there were
less than six-month inventory for many consecutive months and many locations. That created
the seller’s market.
Another important fact is to analyze the market, the time needed to have a property for sale
under contract and then close.