Hurricane Irma contributes to September drop in Orlando home sales
Hurricane Irma helped drive Orlando’s home sales down by nearly 20 percent in September compared to September of last year, reports the Orlando Regional REALTOR® Association. In addition, sales decreased by almost 30 percent when compared to last month.
“Based on our previous experience with hurricanes, REALTORS® expected September sales to post a decline,” says ORRA President Bruce Elliott, Regal R.E. Professionals LLC. “Hurricanes delay closings due to circumstances such as title companies without power and home damage that requires repair and another inspection. Hurricanes also typically cause a decline in inventory as properties are taken off the market for repair, or as owners stall plans to list their homes while they deal with hurricane aftermath. It’s no surprise that new listings for the month of September dropped by 31 percent compared to September of 2016.”
Despite the impact of Hurricane Irma, the median price of Orlando homes sold during the month of September continued its upward trend. The overall median home price (all home types combined) is $225,000, which is 9.8 percent above the September 2016 median price of $205,000. The median price remains unchanged from last month.
Year-over-year increases in median price have been recorded for the past 74 consecutive months; as of September 2017, the overall median price is 94.8 percent higher than it was back in July 2011.
The median price for single-family homes that changed hands in September increased 8.9 percent over September 2016 and is now $245,000. The median price for condos increased 26.9 percent to $118,000.
The overall overage home price for September 2017 is $267,578, an increase of 8.4 percent over the average home price in September 2016. The average home listed for $276,276 in September and sold for 96.9 percent of its listing price (97.1 percent in September 2016).
Sales
Members of ORRA participated in 2,526 sales of all home types combined in September, which is 18.8 percent less than the 3,110 sales in September 2016 and 29.5 percent less than the 3,580 sales in August 2017.
Sales of single-family homes (1,926) in September 2017 decreased by 20.8 percent compared to September 2016, while condo sales (316) decreased 12.0 percent.
Sales of distressed homes (foreclosures and short sales) reached only 127 in September and is 60.0 percent less than the 325 distressed sales in September 2016. Distressed sales made up 5.0 percent of all Orlando-area transactions last month.
The average interest rate paid by Orlando homebuyers in September was 3.84 percent, down from 3.92 percent the month prior.
The overall inventory of homes that were available for purchase in September (8,643) represents a decrease of 16.6 percent when compared to September 2016, and a 2.2 percent decrease compared to last month. There were 14.3 percent fewer single-family homes and 27.9 percent fewer condos.
Current inventory combined with the current pace of sales created a 3.4-month supply of homes in Orlando for September. There was a 3.3-month supply in September 2016 and a 2.5-month supply last month.
MSA Numbers
Sales of existing homes within the entire Orlando MSA (Lake, Orange, Osceola, and Seminole counties) in September were down by 19.3 percent when compared to September of 2016. Year to date, MSA sales are up by 2.3 percent.
Each individual county’s sales comparisons are as follows:
*Lake: 20.5 percent below September 2016;
*Orange: 18.7 percent below September 2016;
*Osceola: 15.1 percent below September 2016; and
*Seminole: 23.1 percent below September 2016.
This representation is based in whole or in part on data supplied by the Orlando Regional REALTOR® Association and the My Florida Regional Multiple Listing Service. Neither the association nor MFRMLS guarantees or is in any way responsible for its accuracy. Data maintained by the association or MFRMLS may not reflect all real estate activity in the market. Due to late closings, an adjustment is necessary to record those closings posted after our reporting date.
ORRA REALTOR® sales, referred to as the core market, represent all sales by members of the Orlando Regional REALTOR® Association, not necessarily those sales strictly in Orange and Seminole counties. Note that statistics released each month may be revised in the future as new data is received.
Orlando MSA numbers reflect sales of homes located in Orange, Seminole, Osceola, and Lake counties by members of any REALTOR® association, not just members of ORRA.
