Miami home prices were up for the sixth consecutive month in May, with median condo prices increasing by 22 percent, according to new data from the Miami Association of Realtors (MAR).
Statewide, sale prices were similarly encouraging, increasing 8.9 percent for single-family homes and 14.3 percent for condos.
Other interesting data from MAR included:
- Existing-condo sales in Miami-Dade were up 10 percent from May 2011, a month that had, at the time, set a new record for sales levels. Single-family sales were up 14 percent for the county.
- Statewide, existing single-family home sales were up 7.5 percent from last year, and condo sales were up 5.4 percent.
- Inventory continued its dramatic slide, falling 33 percent from last year to just 4.2 months of supply in Miami-Dade. Christopher Zoller, a broker associate at EWM International in Coral Gables-South Miami and Master Brokers Forum member, said inventory has shrunk every month in 2012, with the decreases in Coral Gables, Pinecrest and Miami Beach being particularly prominent. “We back to a seller’s market,” Zoller said, such is the demand in some pockets of Miami.
- Forty-six percent of sales were distressed, down from 57 percent in May 2011.
- International buyers continued to have a strong impact, as 64 percent of all closed sales involved all-cash transactions – and 90 percent of international buyers use all cash.
Martha Pomares, the 2012 Chairman of the Board of MAR, said the latest increase in median prices is just the latest in an incredible recovery for Miami’s market.
“Miami home prices have experienced double-digit appreciation consistently over the last six months,” Pomares said . “Strong demand for Miami properties continues to fuel this dramatic market strengthening that has yielded limited supply and will result in home prices increasing further.”
Zoller seconded the correlation between inventory and pricing, and he added that multiple offer situations have been increasingly prominent for both rentals and purchases. A recent rental property in Coconut Grove, he said, received multiple bids and is now renting above the asking price, and a townhouse in the Oasis development in South Miami received five offers, with the seller choosing an all-cash offer above the asking price.