ORLANDO HOUSING MARKET REPORT – SEPTEMBER 2018

Orlando home prices, sales rise as inventory continues to slip in September

One year after Hurricane Irma threw a wrench into the Orlando housing market, data from the Orlando Regional REALTOR® Association shows positive September-to-September comparisons for both sales and median price. Inventory, however, stayed on its year-over-year downward slide.

“The good news,” points out ORRA President Lou Nimkoff, Brio Real Estate Services LLC, “is that in September the actual number of homes available for purchase reached its highest point this year. The month-to-month increase in inventory, combined with the traditional autumn lull in sales, is an opportunity for those buyers who struggled with competition during the summer. In addition, fall home shoppers can also enjoy a bit more attention from REALTORS®, lenders, and other service providers who typically do not have quite as many clients to attend.”

Median Price

The overall median price of Orlando homes (all types combined) sold in September is $233,000, which is 3.6 percent above the September 2017 median price of $225,000 and 1.3 percent above the August 2018 median price of $230,000.

Year-over-year increases in median price have been recorded for the past 87 consecutive months; as of September 2018, the overall median price is 101.7 percent higher than it was back in July 2011.

The median price for single-family homes that changed hands in September increased 3.8 percent over September 2017 and is now $254,250. The median price for condos increased 6.4 percent to $125,500.

The Orlando housing affordability index for September is 127.13 percent, down from 130.14 last month. (An affordability index of 99 percent means that buyers earning the state-reported median income are 1 percent short of the income necessary to purchase a median-priced home. Conversely, an affordability index that is over 100 means that median-income earners make more than is necessary to qualify for a median-priced home.)

The first-time homebuyers affordability index decreased to 90.41 percent, from 92.55 percent last month.

Sales and Inventory

Members of ORRA participated in 2,768 sales of all home types combined in September, which is 8.5 percent more than the 2,552 sales in September 2017 but 18.1 percent less than the 3,381 sales in August 2018.

Sales of single-family homes (2,096) in September 2018 increased by 7.6 percent compared to September 2017, while condo sales (390) increased 23.4 percent year over year.

Sales of distressed homes (foreclosures and short sales) reached 124 in September and are 3.1 percent less than the 128 distressed sales in September 2017. Distressed sales made up just 4.5 percent of all Orlando-area transactions last month.

The overall inventory of homes that were available for purchase in September (8,092) represents a decrease of 6.4 percent when compared to September 2017, and a 3.6 percent increase compared to last month. There were 5.6 percent fewer single-family homes and 2.6 more condos, year over year.

Current inventory combined with the current pace of sales created a 2.9-month supply of homes in Orlando for September. There was a 2.3-month supply in August 2018 and a 3.4-month supply in September 2017.

The average interest rate paid by Orlando homebuyers in September was 4.66, up from 4.57 percent the month prior.

Homes that closed in September took an average of 48 days to move from listing to pending and took an average of 84 days from listing to closing.

Pending sales in September are down 14.2 percent compared to September of last year and are down 6.0 percent compared to last month.