Miami Property Market Makes Big Gains

Courtesy of : Property Wire

Miami has long led the charge in the U.S. housing recovery as local and foreign investors snap up bargains in the form of distressed homes marked at a discount, and the latest statistics show just how great the gains have been. The Miami Association of Realtors reports that pending homes sales reached a 15% year-on-year high in August despite a shortage of inventory. Local agents are taking it as a good sign for future home sales, although it remains to be seen whether supply will be able to keep up with demand as both condominiums and single-family homes continue to move in record numbers. For more on this continue reading the following article from Property Wire.

Pending home sales in Miami are continuing at record high levels, up 15% year on year during the month of August, according to the latest data from the Miami Association of Realtors.

The number of single family and condominium listings that pended in August increased 26.3% and 6.28 percent respectively compared to August 2011.

‘Pending sales in the Miami real estate market remain at historically strong levels, particularly when considering the current shortage of local housing inventory,’ said Martha Pomares, chairman of the board of the Miami Association of Realtors.

‘Pending sales continue to reflect strong demand compared to record sales levels in 2011. This activity is driving home prices to rise sooner and stronger than expected,’ she added.

She also explained that increased pending sales are an indication of increased future sales. A sale is listed as pending when a contract is signed but the transaction has not closed, though the sale usually is finalized within one or two months of signing.

Total cumulative pending home sales, including single family homes and condominiums, in Miami-Dade County currently are 1% above what they were a year ago, up from 11,915 to 12,222, but 1.5% below what they were the previous month, down from 12,210.

Pending sales of single family homes were 10% above what they were a year earlier, up from 4,941 to 5,435, and 0.5% above the previous month, when pending single family homes sales totalled 5,407.

Pending sales of condominiums were 5.5% lower than they were a year earlier, down from 6,974, and 3.1% below what they were the previous month, down from 6,803 to 6,587.

‘The Miami real estate market has experienced rising demand from international buyers over the last year,’ said Patricia Delinois, residential president of the Miami Association of Realtors.

‘Foreign buyers have been and continue to be an instrumental factor in strengthening the Miami real estate market unlike any other in the nation. As a global city, Miami will continue to draw demand from international buyers and investors long into the future,’ she explained.

Nationally, the Pending Home Sales Index, a forward looking indicator based on contract signings, rose 2.6% to 99.2 in August from 101.9 in July, according to the National Association of Realtors. The index is 10.7% higher than the 89.6 index reported in August 2011.