Real Estate in Detail
Housing sales in Orlando suffered a slight drop in June, falling 2% compared to June 2018, during what is traditionally close to the peak of our real estate buying season.
"We expect June's sales decline to reverse in the coming months as families try to close on their new homes before the start of the school year," says ORRA President Jeffrey M. Fagan.
"In addition, we anticipate an eagerness to take advantage of favorable conditions, such as small but steady increases in the stock of homes available for purchase in the Orlando area and falling mortgage rates."
According to ORRA's latest monthly report, home buyers in the Orlando area secured an average interest rate of 3.93% in June.
ORRA members were involved in 3,399 real estate transactions during the month of June. Townhome sales decreased by 22%, which was enough to reduce the overall sales comparison by 2%. Sales of single-family homes improved by about half a percent compared to last year, while condominiums increased by more than 3%.
Speaking of condos, this type of residence is leading Orlando's eight-month streak of rising inventory. The number of condos available for purchase in June rose 24% to 1,135. Single-family homes had 5% more availability than in June 2018, increasing our total inventory by 7%.
Despite the inventory gains, Orlando is still clearly a sellers' market, as it only has a 2.37-month supply (economists consider a six-month period to indicate a balanced market between buyers and sellers). However, the balance shifts when considering the price categories for single-family homes, with the lower price categories firmly favoring sellers and the higher price categories ($700,000 or more) favoring buyers. Those in the market for a home priced between $2 million and $5 million currently enjoy a 26-month supply. For your information, there is a 15-month supply for the home priced above $5 million.
ORRA's report also shows that the overall average price is climbing back up, following the trend over its years. After a brief derailment into the red in April, Orlando's median price - the figure where half the homes sold for more and half sold for less - rose 5% in June, to $250,000.
Single Family Houses
Sales of single-family homes rose 0.5% in June, with 2,685 units sold throughout the Orlando area, compared to 2,673 a year earlier. Compared to last month, sales were down 11%.
The median price for single-family homes increased by 3% to $270,000 in June. The inventory of this type of home improved by 5% compared to June 2018, and there are currently 6,289 single-family homes available for purchase through the MLS.
Apartments
Apartment sales increased by 3% (406); inventory increased by 24% (1,135), and the average price rose by 7% (US$134,350,500).
Great Orlando
Existing home sales throughout the Orlando metropolitan area (Lake, Orange, Osceola and Seminole counties) in June were down 2.7% compared to June 2018. Year-to-date, sales are down 6.9%.
The sales comparisons for each county are as follows:
- Lake: 8.3% up on June 2018;
- Orange: 2.8% down on June 2018;
- Osceola: 8.5% below June 2018; and
- Seminole: 5.9% down on June 2018.