News that effects the Ocala Marion County area real estate market

Punxsutawney Phil 2022

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I always found it fascinating and fun to see my favorite little ground hog on the television.  The whole affair of predicting the weather without radar, Doppler and satellites is amusing.  Seeing Punxsutawney’s handlers all dressed up with their suits and top hats has always brought a smile to my face.  I mean, who wants another 6 weeks of winter, right?  All that cold, windy, snowy stuff to deal with is not fun.  Well, Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow this morning so there is 6 more weeks of winter for folks in other parts of the country.  The good news (and don’t ruin it for the little ones) is he is only 40% accurate.  I heard he took the first flight to Florida he could today to get out of the cold!

We don’t really worry about 6 more weeks of winter in Central Florida.  We had a freeze for a couple of nights last week and they tell us one of those nights was the coldest in 4 years. It was pretty cold!  However, as it always happens in Florida it warms back up again.  Tomorrow we are going to experience 80 degrees and sunshine!  I have a lunch date with a colleague tomorrow.  I am going to head over in my golf cart because I can.  Talk to you soon!

 

Christmas Is Over!

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Christmas in Florida

Christmas is Over!

I have a confession to make.  I knew when we booked our cruise for the end of November 2021 that it was going to cut into the Christmas season and therefore, I made an agreement with my husband that there would be no need to decorate our home – much to his relief!  However, when we got on our cruise on the day after Thanksgiving, the ship was not decorated for the holidays – not until the cruise after ours (what the what?).  We had a great time in our suite and on ship for 7 days.  What was not to like about having lots of room, a double balcony and even a bathtub in our cabin? We arrived home and I felt a little sad about not having decorations to enjoy.

I have been busy with Real Estate, my husband has been busy with being an over the road truck driver – but I ached for Christmas in our home!  So, as wonderful husbands do, George got all the stuff out of storage to decorate our house:  The 9 ft tree, the Thomas Kincade Santa ornaments, the nick knacks, all of it.  Friends told me, “Don’t worry about it!  Decorations can stay up until January 6th!”  I liked this way of thinking, buying more time and all!  Now, fast forward a little and we accepted the opportunity to go to Destin for a long weekend right after the New Year.  No problem, I was able to work from the car, the time share or from anywhere at any time – and I did!  The problem is when we got back it was January 10th and my tree was still up!  Dang it!!  I will have it put away this week, but I really love the holidays here in Florida – when the weather is 80+ degrees and sunny!  There is so much to do like golf carting, walking, biking, pickle balling, golfing, quilting, railroad making, Veteran fellowshipping, swimming, working out, taking classes and/or field trips and so much more – nothing but a smile and a kind heart is required (and maybe a nice pair of shorts).  So here is the picture I wish to remember during this past holiday season.  I had waited so long to get poinsettias that all I could find were these little ones but that is OK because on this January 10th, they still look good after a little water.  I am going to give them to some friends and neighbors starting with my next-door neighbor.  The wonderful thing about living in a great 55+ community is helping others to smile…  Are you ready to enjoy people again?  Give me a call.

Ocala Real Estate Market Report – November 2021

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Market Report
CLOSED SALES 668
MEDIAN SOLD PRICE $250,000
AVERAGE SOLD PRICE $305,211
MEDIAN % ORIGINAL LIST PRICE 100 %
MEDIAN TIME TO CONTRACT 12 days
MEDIAN TIME TO SALE 60 days
NEW PENDING SALES 589
NEW LISTINGS 608
ACTIVE LISTINGS 871
MONTHS SUPPLY OF INVENTORY 1.3 months

Inventory is 1.3%, down 40.9% down from last year.  This is a serious Sellers Market.  Even though inventory is down and sales prices are up, Ocala is still an affordable place to live compared to the rest of Florida and the rest of the country.

Ocala Real Estate Market Report July 2021

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Market Report
CLOSED SALES 647
MEDIAN SOLD PRICE $234,900
AVERAGE SOLD PRICE $300,568
MEDIAN % ORIGINAL LIST PRICE 100 %
MEDIAN TIME TO CONTRACT 9 days
MEDIAN TIME TO SALE 62 days
NEW PENDING SALES 646
NEW LISTINGS 759
ACTIVE LISTINGS 825
MONTHS SUPPLY OF INVENTORY 1.3 months

Closed sales for July were down from the previous couple of months. Sales are typically lower in the summer here. Prices keep going up if you compare average and median sold prices to previous months. Active listing have gone up and that is good news but the months of inventory is still really low.

Ocala Real Estate Market Report June 2021

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Market Report
CLOSED SALES 855
MEDIAN SOLD PRICE $235,000
AVERAGE SOLD PRICE $298,774
MEDIAN % ORIGINAL LIST PRICE 100 %
MEDIAN TIME TO CONTRACT 8 days
MEDIAN TIME TO SALE 60 days
NEW PENDING SALES 740
NEW LISTINGS 817
ACTIVE LISTINGS 757
MONTHS SUPPLY OF INVENTORY 1.0 months

Homes are selling very fast often in less than a week and prices seem to be going up constantly. The average sale price is up 30% over June 2020 and the median sale price is up 43% over the same period. New home builders are adding an escalation clause to new builds allowing them to increase the sale price since homes are taking 7-9 months to finish. I don’t see this stopping any time soon. The only positive is that Ocala still seem cheap compared to other parts of the country and further south in Florida.

Ocala weather report summer 2021

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We went from a very dry may, one of the driest on record to June where I swear that it rained every day. Some summers are wetter than others and 2021 is off to a very wet start.

All summer the weather is much the same. Mid to high 70’s first thing in the morning. Heating up to the high 80’s or low 90’s with extreme humidity all day 24/7.

It’s hurricane season. Hurricane Elsa just hit north of Cedar key as a tropical storm, winds less than 75 mph and we got rain and light winds here in Ocala. The hurricane season ends in October and the chance for hurricanes increases as the ocean water gets warmer over the summer.

I like to say that the hot humid summers are a small price to pay for no winter and no snow or ice.

Ocala Florida real estate market report May 2021

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Market Report
CLOSED SALES 809
MEDIAN SOLD PRICE $225,000
AVERAGE SOLD PRICE $275,132
MEDIAN % ORIGINAL LIST PRICE 100 %
MEDIAN TIME TO CONTRACT 11 days
MEDIAN TIME TO SALE 57 days
NEW PENDING SALES 792
NEW LISTINGS 759
ACTIVE LISTINGS 711
MONTHS SUPPLY OF INVENTORY 1.0 months

I’m late on my sales report because the source, Florida Realtors keeps changing the numbers because of late reports from some brokers.

We are in a severe sellers market. Homes are selling in just a few days. A buyer asked me if all homes are selling for list price. I looked at the community he liked best Stone Creek going back 60 days. There were homes that sold for full list price. There were also some homes that sold for a few thousand less but also some that sold for over list price. I think that’s how we got that 100% of list price statistic in the chart above.

Ocala Florida real estate market report April 2021

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Market Report
CLOSED SALES 814
MEDIAN SOLD PRICE $215,000
AVERAGE SOLD PRICE $271,884
MEDIAN % ORIGINAL LIST PRICE 100 %
MEDIAN TIME TO CONTRACT 15 days
MEDIAN TIME TO SALE 65 days
NEW PENDING SALES 812
NEW LISTINGS 805
ACTIVE LISTINGS 686
MONTHS SUPPLY OF INVENTORY 1.2 months

April was a huge month for home sales here in Marion County and Ocala. I’m not sure if I can remember a month with so many sales. I admit I am surprised by that high a number. There are very few homes to sell on the MLS. I guess it’s because they are just selling so fast. Homes are selling in 15 days and for 100% of the list price. I assume the 100% is because some homes are selling above list price. You might think as A realtor I would be happy with such booming sales but I’m not. It’s very difficult working with out of state buyers when homes go on and off the market so quickly.

Ocala Florida weather report May 2021

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May is a great month here in Ocala. It’s warm, maybe hot by some people’s standards but dry without the summer humidity. Most days are in the 80’s and nights in the mid to high 60’s. This is the last month of the dry season so we get very little rain. The humidity and afternoon thunderstorms get going the very end of May or the beginning of June.

Ocala Florida Market Report March 2021

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Market Report
CLOSED SALES 628
MEDIAN SOLD PRICE $193,000
AVERAGE SOLD PRICE $253,716
MEDIAN % ORIGINAL LIST PRICE 98.5%
MEDIAN TIME TO CONTRACT 22 days
MEDIAN TIME TO SALE 78 days
NEW PENDING SALES 872
NEW LISTINGS 768
ACTIVE LISTINGS 962
MONTHS SUPPLY OF INVENTORY 1.5 months

We are in a serious sellers market here in Ocala. Prices keep going up and inventory is low. Homes in the lower price ranges are selling very fast. This is a competitive market if you are planning on buying you need a plan to compete with other buyers.