Inventory Down. Sales Up!

It's the first day of a new month and a new quarter. We completed our month-end reports yesterday and we are also carefully reviewing the year-to date statistics in each of the markets that we are most active. We found a few interesting conclusions based on data from our local MLS that I thought I would share. Keep in mind, these findings are inclusive of all geographic areas in Naples. Certain market segments are holding there own better than others, and indeed, certain areas are quite active and showing strong signs of leveling off. More than just a few local real estate gurus are predicting we may be at or near the bottom.

• Residential Sold Listings peaked in June of 2005 with three subsequent spikes in the next 3 years in March 2006, May 2007 and May 2008. The most recent peak in May 2009 marks the first time since September 2005 that closings in the Naples MLS exceeded 700 units!

• Residential Pending Sales By Month, which is typically the best barometer for determining what is happening "now" shows a marked improvement when tracking pendings June 2005 through to the present. The average number of pending per month over the past four years has been 475, but in April and May of this year we exceeded 1000 each month!

• Residential Median Sold Price Per Month indicates the "middle" (half sold above this price, half sold below) from June 2005 to May 2009 at $352,006. However, if all listings priced at $300,000 or less are taken out of this equation, the Residential Median Sold Price By Month dramatically becomes $515,718. (keep in mind, 4 years ago you'd have been hard pressed to find any listings priced under $300,000 in Naples Florida. Today approximately 40% of our inventory is listed under $300,000).

• When duplicating this same search, but only going back 12 months to June 2008 another interesting result occurs. The Residential Median Sold Price By Month hit a low of $175,000 last month. However, once again when we eliminate all closed sales of listings priced below $300,000 from the search criteria the median price for this date range is back up to $517,371.

• Currently, Naples MLS inventory is down to under 9,000 Residential Active Listings. Just one year ago, in June 2008, we had a 33.76 month supply in inventory. But, when we take our current inventory and chart it with the current 12 month trend of pendings and closings we calculate that as of June 30th, 2009, we have a 20.79 supply in months of Active Residential Listings.

There is a strong demand for well priced listings; today's buyers are looking for value. Interest rates have remained stable. ~and We feel very lucky to be selling real estate in Naples Florida. Chip & I have had a good 1st and 2nd quarter. Year-do -date pendings and closed sales exceed 2008.

Please don't hesitate to contact us should you have any comments or questions concerning the current state of the real estate market here in Naples Florida. The Harris Peppe Team is happy to provide you with details about any specific communities or condominiums. We hope to hear from you soon and look forward to earning your business. Please call us anytime at 239-370-0574 direct. Thank you...have a super month!