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Ocala Real Estate Market Report February 2011

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Sales were good for February but the big news is a decline in the number of listings. For the first time since I can remember listings went below 5,000. At one time in late 07 and early 08 we were up around 7500. We still have a little over 14 months of inventory but that’s way below the 30 months of inventory during those dark days of 2008.

As you can see we’re still selling plenty of foreclosures most of which are in the Shores and Marion Oaks. Short sales still lag behind foreclosures in the number of sales. Banks still can’t seem to get a handle on short sales and move then in a reasonable period of time. Short sales take from 8 weeks to 6 months or more to close and most buyers can’t or won’t wait that long.

It’s great weather in March in Ocala. The 80’s every day with no humidity and very little rain. Housing prices are the lowest in Florida. Call me, email me or use my Dream Home Finder and I’ll find you a house.

Ocala Real Estate Market Report January 2011

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Ocala area home sales for January 2011 were pretty good considering sales were based on contracts written during the holidays. Actually compared to January 2009 sales last month were great. In January 09 there were only 135 sales in Marion County as compared to this year with 282 sales. In January 2010 there were 233 sales: a 20% increase in sales compared to 2010. As has been the case for a couple of years now sales were driven by foreclosures. January 2011 had 119 foreclosures accounting for 42% of all residential sales. Active listings are gradually going down and I expect that they will go below the 5,000 mark in the next month or two. I think home sales will be good in 2011 do to the fact that the Ocala area has the lowest median homes prices in all of Florida.

Ocala Real Estate Market Report December 2010

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Home sales in Ocala and surrounding Marion County were up in December.  Sales were up by about 10% over October and November. Although December sales appear to be during the holidays, contracts take 30 to 45 days on average to close, so December sales are based on contracts written in October into early November.

I’m not going to get into new years predictions BUT I’m pretty sure prices won’t be going up any time soon. I am concerned that interest rates will go up. The Fed is artificially keeping interest rates low and it can’t last forever. Higher rates will hurt buyers who need financing by wiping out gains from lower prices. However if interest rates go up enough to force prices even lower cash buyers could benefit.

Ocala Real Estate Sales Report November 2010

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Ocala area home sales for the last few months have been down from the peak months of March through August when sales were around 375 per month. See all of 2010 Ocala Marion County homes sales reports. I don’t know the reason for this decline. It can’t be the first time buyers tax credit, which expired on April 30, as claimed by the Nation Association of  Realtors because sales were constant until August.

If you’re into market statistics like I am then check out the above link to all this years reports. There is an obvious decline in the  $100,000-  to $200,000- price range. This months sales in that range are about half of what it was in the spring of this year. Once again I have no explanation. I actually think the $100-200,000- price range is a real sweet spot. This is where you find a pretty nice house that doesn’t need much if any work.

If you’d like more info on Ocala or Marion County homes then call me, email me or use my Dream Home Finder on the right side of this page.

Ocala real estate market October 2010

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October was the first time since February that we sold less than 300 homes in a month. Foreclosures were down quite a bit which is probably do to the mess here in Florida with bad paper work in the foreclosing process. Short sales were pretty good but if you look at past months and take an average it doesn’t look like short sales are getting any easier. That’s disappointing as short sales are tomorrow’s foreclosures.

The fall and winter are usually pretty good months in the Ocala area for home sales despite the holidays. The colder and nastier it gets up north the better for home sales here in Ocala.

The Ocala area has the dubious distinction of having the largest price drop in the entire country during the 3rd quarter as compared to the same period in 2009.

As I always say ” now is the time o buy”. Ocala home prices are down 50% from market highs in 2005-08. Interest rates are at historical lows and are artificially suppressed by the FED for political reasons. Loans are available don’t believe the bad press.

Call me, email me or use my Ocala Dream Home Finder. I can find you a house.

Ocala real estate market report September 2010

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Ocala area home sales were down for the month of September. I have no idea why that would be. Foreclosure sales were down from last month but that is not a result of the new foreclosure mess. If you read all my market reports you’ll see great and not so great months. What I’m looking for is a trend not a fluctuation.

Probably the biggest news in Ocala real estate sales is the new foreclosure mess. It seems banks were taking short cuts in their paper work during the foreclosure process. These short cuts can cloud the title making title companies reluctant to insure the title. Without title insurance banks can’t sell their foreclosures. We will have to wait and see how this will effect Ocala area foreclosures. As you can see from the chart about foreclosures are a very large percentage of our total sales.

Ocala Real Estate Market Report August 2010

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If you follow my monthly market reports, all of which can be accessed in the right side bar, you’ll remember that last month we saw a substantial decline in sales. In April we had 382 sales, May had 369 and June had 372. Then July dropped to 319. I am relieved to see that August is up to 375 home sales and that July was an abnormal month.

Inventory is still high with around 5,400 homes and seems to be inching up over time rather than declining. To roughly determine the months of inventory you divided 5,400 by 375 and get 14.4 months. A buyers market is defined by over 6 months of inventory.

Foreclosures and short sales are still a big part of our market. For some reason foreclosures are high than usual and short sales are lower.

Interest rates are at historical lows with the 30 year fixed below 4.5% for buyers with the best credit. Banks here in Ocala are giving loans. Don’t believe what you see on TV it’s way too negative.

Ocala Real Estate Market Report July 2010

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Sales for July were down quite a bit from previous months. From March through June we were doing 370-380 homes a month. In July we dropped down to 319. I’m sure some will blame the tax credits expiring but I’m not so sure.  I’m going to wait a month or 2 and see if this is a trend or a statistical aberration.

Looking back at old Market Reports you can see that although sales are up in 2010 inventory has remained about the same. As long as inventory is as high as it is our severe buyers market will continue.

The average 30 year mortgage dropped again to to 4.44% for the week ending 8/12. The 15 year rate was 3.92%. This is the lowest rate since Freddie Mac began keeping records in 1971. These rates are being kept artificially low by the FED to stimulate the economy. These rates can’t last forever.

If you’d like to know more about Ocala area home prices email me, call me or use my Ocala Dream Home Finder.

Ocala Real Estate Market Report June 2010

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June was another good month for home sales in Marion County. There were 372 residential home sales in the Ocala area which is about what we have been seeing since March. Also, as we have been seeing for well over a year now, short sales and foreclosures represented 208 out of the total of 372 homes sold.

Here’s my advise to buyers. Interest rates, much to my surprise, have gone down even further. Rates are at a 50 year low with no where to go but up. There is a great selection of bargain priced homes. Buy now .

My advise to sellers is to price your house right. Testing the market is a waste of time, no one will look at your house. Speaking of a lack of showings, buyers are looking at your house every day, just not in person. Buyers look at homes online and then decide to view the best priced homes in person. Finally even if you do get an offer on your house it still has to pass a bank appraisal. Banks are using short sales and foreclosures as comparables for traditional sales. Well priced traditional sales are selling as evidenced by the 164 sales this month.

If you are interested in buying a home in the Ocala area call me, email me or use my Dream Home Finder in the right hand column of this blog.

Ocala real estate market report May 2010

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Once again we had a pretty good month here in the Ocala area with 369 sales for the month of May. That’s a huge improvement over May 2009 when we had only 253 sales.

Inventory is still high at about 14 months. The Ocala Marion County MLS  has had over 5,000 homes for about a year now. Inventory is actually down from June 2007 when there were 7,167 homes for sale on our MLS. We will have a buyers market until inventory drops well below 6 months or around 2,500 home listings. By the way, a buyers market is more common than a sellers market historically.

There were 146 foreclosures and 41 short sales in May. It is these distress sales that keep prices down. Traditional sales have had to drop their prices in order to compete.

If you’re a buyer, interest rates are at historical lows and prices can’t drop much more. If there is a bottom, this is it.

If you are a seller you can either sell at market value or stay put for the next 3 to 5 years because prices aren’t going up any time soon.