Real Estate in Detail
A spring of paused transactions spurred a surge in buyer activity that continued into August and put Orlando-area home sales in positive territory for the second month in a row, reports the Orlando Regional REALTOR® Association. Orlando's median price also continued to rise, while inventory fell again to a new low.
"Lack of inventory - not lack of buyer activity, as you would expect - is clearly becoming the troubling result of the COVID-19 pandemic," said ORRA President Reese Stewart, RE/MAX Properties SW. "In fact, the availability of single-family properties within our most sought-after price ranges of $160,000 to $400,000 is astounding; less than a single month's supply."
Real estate economists generally consider a 5 to 6 month supply to indicate a healthy and balanced market between buyers and sellers.
Real estate market indicators
Average Price
The overall average sales price in Orlando (all types combined) in August is $275,000, which is 10.0% above the average price of $250,000 in August 2019 and 1.9% above the July 2020 average price of $270,000.
The average price for single-family homes sold in August increased by 9.3% compared to August 2019 and now stands at $295,000. The average price of condos increased 11.3% to $152,500 and townhomes/duplexes increased 4.2% to $225,900.
Orlando's housing affordability index for August is 137.47%, compared to 137.74% last month.
*An affordability index of 99% means that buyers earning the state-reported median income are 1% below the income needed to buy a median-priced home. On the other hand, an affordability index greater than 100 means that median wage earners earn more needed to qualify for a median-priced home.
The affordability index for first-time buyers fell to 97.76% from 97.95% last month.
Sales and stock
ORRA member brokers participated in 3,539 sales of all home types combined in August, which is 4.2% more than the 3,397 sales in August 2019 and 3.8% more than the 3,679 sales in July 2020.
Sales of single-family homes (2,868) in August 2020 increased by 7.5% compared to August 2019, while sales of condos (367) decreased by 12.8% year-on-year. Sobrados/townhomes/duplexes (304 combined) decreased by 1.6% compared to August 2019.
Distressed home sales(foreclosures and short sales) reached 82 in August and are 4.7% less than the 86 distressed sales in August 2019. Distressed sales represented 2.5% of all transactions in the Orlando area last month.
The average interest rate paid by home buyers in Orlando in August was 2.85%, compared to 2.97% in the previous month.
Homes whose deeds were signed in August took an average of 49 days to go from listed to pending (when the sales contract is signed) and an average of 44 days between pending and closing (when the deed is signed), for an average total of 93 days from listing to closing (equal to a total of 93 days in the previous month).
The overall stock of homes available for purchase in August (5,958) represents a decrease of 22.1% compared to August 2019 and 4.2% compared to the previous month. There were 34.3% fewer single-family homes; 20.3% more condos; and 28.3% more sobrados/townhomes/duplexes, year on year.
Future Indicators
Pending sales in August were up 15.8% on August last year and down 1.7% on last month.
New contracts increased by 11.4% year on year, and new listings increased by 3.3%.
Figures for the Metropolitan Region
Home sales in the entire Orlando metropolitan area (Lake, Orange, Osceola and Seminole counties) in August were 0.7% lower than in August 2019. So far this year, sales in the MSA are down 11.3%.
The sales comparisons for each county are as follows:
- Lake: 6.0% more than August 2019;
- Orange: 4.4% less than August 2019;
- Osceola: 6.3% more than August 2019; and
- Seminole: 2.5% less than August 2019.