Forward looking view to 2021. We are blessed to live in an area which for most of us is well positioned to withstand the aftershock of this pandemic. Fortunately, the number of people moving to Florida has only increased.  The Annual National Migration Study by United Van Lines reported that in 2020 Sarasota was #2 … Continue reading Forward looking view to 2021. Look back at 2020.

Home prices reach an all-time high. 14 Years!  It has been a slow, steady, uphill crawl to get back to pre-Great Recession prices.  This past quarter, August – October 2020, the median sold price of all homes (single family, condo and villa) nosed ahead of the previous all-time high, in early 2007.  It has taken … Continue reading

A culmination of events beyond our control has resulted in a booming Seller’s Market.  Home sales, new and resales, at all price points, whether it be single family, condos, villas or townhomes are slaying it.  Home prices are up, home building is up, pending sales are up, sold prices are way up.  In September, new … Continue reading Undeniable – the housing market is booming!

Last month I reported home sales in Sarasota County rebounded in May.  1,215 pended sales in May 2020.  5% more than May 2019, Before COVID.  I called it a V-shaped recovery. That V-shaped recovery is continuing with increased alacrity.  In June, 1,452 homes and condos (resales) went under contract.  31% more than May 2020.  A … Continue reading The housing market is back (if we can keep it).

  At the outset of COVID-19, I posited that housing will lead the recovery. Designated by the Governor as an “essential service”, as Realtors we continued to service the needs of buyers, many of whom sold their homes in our feeder markets, anxious to move to our area and begin their retirement.  Many were renting … Continue reading V-shaped recovery for housing market in Sarasota County.

Rise in Purchase Mortgage Applications  In further substantiation of my most recent Reports of May 10 and 21 that home sales are leading the recovery (reproduced herein for ease of reference), today the Mortgage Bankers Association (“MBA”) reports for the week ending May 22, a sixth consecutive weekly increase in mortgage applications, a jump of … Continue reading Rise in Purchase Applications: Further Supports Housing Leading the Recovery.

The Mortgage Bankers Association (“MBA”), which tracks mortgage applications and purchases, reported yesterday that its index for single-family homes rose for the fifth consecutive week. On Tuesday Fed Chairman Jerome Powell testified before the Senate Banking Committee.  He gave a pretty grim assessment of the state of the US economy.  The mortgage market was the … Continue reading Pending home sales outpacing same time last year.

Let’s not pretend that our perspective in Florida squares with the rest of our country.  Many of us, retired and living on fixed incomes have an easier time with a stay-at-home order than younger generations who are in their wealth building years.  Disadvantaged, poor and struggling workers are falling into an even deeper despair. I … Continue reading Perspective: Let’s get personal.

Unlike 2008 when inflated prices and reckless lending paved the way for the Great Recession, as we face COVID-19, housing’s fundamentals have never been better, along with record breaking jobs and economic expansion.  There will be challenges, but the housing market in Sarasota County is positioned to meet them. On March 16th things changed.  The … Continue reading Home sales and COVID-19