Update on the Luxury Home Market

 “Experts” say the housing market is turning around, but has anyone bothered to explain why or how? At Coastal Properties Group, we are constantly monitoring the trends in the housing market to help educate our clients on when is the best time to buy or sell their home.

Currently there are only 2,684 active SFR listings in Pinellas County. The listing inventory is down nearly 10% since January 2013. The number of active condo listings has also decreased 15% since January; with only 1970 condos still available compared to the 2,328 that were active in January.

The state of the Luxury Market is even more surprising. Currently there are only 414 active SFR listings over $750,000. In the past 12 months, there have been 329 single family homes that sold for over $750,000. At this rate, we only have a 15 month supply of luxury homes available in Pinellas County. Compare that to the 250 month supply we had in 2012. That’s a dramatic 31% change in closed luxury sales, but it’s even more astonishing when you look at the luxury condo market.

With only 109 active listings for Condos over $750,000, we only have a short 10 month supply left! That’s right, at this pace Pinellas will be out of luxury condos within a year! If you compare that to the 135 luxury condos that sold in the past 12 months, it would indicate that NOW is the time to list your luxury condo!

Did you know we have an annual net migration of 400,000 people that are relocating to the sunshine state? With our blue skies, powdery sand, and crystal clear waves compliment fine dining, lively nightlife, and tropical fun in the sun, it’s no wonder people want to join us in this lovely state.  However, they are going to need a place to live and there has been a limited supply of new construction. Only 500,000 new homes have been built since 2009. That means in the last four years we would need 1.5 million homes to house our newest residences; however that’s not the case.

What about the 80 Million Baby Boomers that will be retiring over next 15 years? Our warm & sunny state is a top destination for retirees, especially along the gulf coast!

When we tell you that now is the time to sell, we aren’t just guessing, we know it’s a sellers’ market. You may have tried to sell your home before and were unsuccessful, or maybe you thought about selling but it wasn’t the right time. Well, we can assure you that now is a great time to put your luxury home or condo on the market.

Remember there has been a 10-20% increase in prices over the last 12 months! Underwater Mortgages fell by nearly 2 Million Homes last year. Considering the 10-20% price gain we’ve already experienced; if we added an additional 10% price gain it will reduce underwater mortgages by another 40%!

About Coastal Properties Group

Coastal Properties Group International, one of the area’s most successful and fastest growing real estate brokerages in Pinellas County, is an invitation-only boutique brokerage made up exclusively of multi-million dollar producers. The exclusive affiliate of Christie’s International Real Estate for the Tampa Bay Region, Coastal Properties Group International specializes in waterfront and luxury properties and estates in Pinellas County and surrounding areas.  The company has five offices throughout Pinellas County including Clearwater Beach, Dunedin, Palm Harbor/East Lake, and Belleair.  The firm is dedicated to providing exceptional service to its clientele while employing intelligent use of technology to market its portfolio of outstanding properties. For more information, please contact Alex or Laren Jansen at 727-474-9071.