Those following local and national existing homes sales reports should be thankful home sales are up in Polk County, Florida. As a whole, Polk County home sales for January 2009 show an increase of 18.6 percent over last year’s January total.
The national picture – coming in at home sales lower by 8.6 percent over last year – looks far less promising. Thankfully, if we peer a bit deeper into the data, we can find a silver lining – on both fronts.
For Polk County, rising sales – at the cost of lower sales prices – are starting to put a dent in our existing home inventory.
In a sense, the boomerang is coming back around, and the glut of homes on the market in areas outside of Winter Haven, South Lakeland, and along the Highway 27 corridor left behind after the market tanked means that sellers are having to “play ball” with buyers – letting homes go for nearly $0.70 on the dollar.
Sure, more than half of the Polk County, Florida homes sold in January were distressed or bank-owned homes, but sold is sold.
Home Sales Numbers Contain Promising News as Well
Looking beyond attention-grabbing headlines like “Existing Home Sales Lowest Since ’97,” we see the real story; the one that shows — once again — that housing market fundamentals are coming back into balance.
Home values are still dropping, and Polk County home buyers and investors have the real estate sales around here really popping.
The Ledger reports that January’s 230 home sales compared to 272 in December. On an annual basis, Lakeland’s sales increased to 126 from 114, while East Polk’s rose to 104 from 79. Bartow – our County Seat – had no sales, compared to 1 sale last year.
According to the Florida Association of Realtors (FAR), sales of existing single-family homes state-wide were up 24 percent on the year as the median price sank 33 percent to $139,500. It was the fifth consecutive month of year-to-year sales increases.
Home sales totals moving into the summer months should continue to edge upward, as well:
- The Federal Reserve is trying to hold mortgage rates low
- Fannie Mae is opening its checkbook to real estate investors
- The stimulus package is granting tax credits to first-timers
So, it’s not that the headlines are wrong; it’s just that they’re incomplete.
In looking at all of the data and not just one sliver of it, we can find hope. Falling supply plus rising demand leads home values higher and that’s the basis for a recovery.
I hope you found this post useful! As always, if you or anyone you know is in need of a local Florida mortgage broker, I’m your guy. Call me at 863-604-3019 or apply online for your Florida mortgage. We’ll keep you posted and let you know when it’s time to pull the trigger!
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