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South Florida Real Estate
Buying Real Estate is a Long-Term Investment
“Long term Miami will outperform the rest of the country. In 10,20, 30 years, prices will be rising faster in Miami than in the rest of the country,” states Lawrence Yun, Chief Economist of the National Association of Realtors. The important item in this quote is the time frame. 
Miami Home Prices Continue to Decline, Presenting Buying Opportunities
Although today’s S&P/Case Schiller Price Home Index showed a slight 0.5% increase in home prices between April and May, Miami had a 0.8% decrease. Nationally, this was the first month to month increase in three years and has many people claiming that the real estate market appears to be stabilizing as price decreases level off.
Overall, this is great news as any stabilization in the housing market will help ease a lot of the economic problems that resulted in the market’s severe free fall. This does not mean that prices will be going up any time soon, especially in hard hit areas like Miami, but rather that the decreases should not be as significant as they have been. Home prices in Miami are down 25.2% over last year’s prices and the market in Florida still has a long way to go before we can say we have recovered. Some facts that will keep our market trudging along slowly:
- Florida’s real estate market still has a lot of inventory to work through;
- Spring and early Summer normally have higher sales as families purchase and settle in before a new school year;
- $8000 first time buyer credit expires at the end of November. If you are a buyer that qualifies for this credit, hurry;
- Interest rates, while still low, have started to move up slightly;
- There are probably many sellers sitting on the sidelines waiting for the inventory to decrease a bit before listing their property
- The majority of sales and listings are still short sales and foreclosures.
This is not doom and gloom news. Just a reality check. There are great deals out there if you are a buyer or investor. If you are a seller, be realistic with your sales price and your property will sell.
Which Florida Cities Will Rank As Most Expensive in 2009?
Last year, Forbes’ 500 most expensive zip codes list included 11 in Florida, including the number 1 most expensive zip, 33109 in Miami Beach, with a median sales price of $3,850,000! Miami Beach also ranked #369 with zip code 33154 which had a median home price of $745,900. The list was based on sales between July of 2007 and June 2008, so it will be interesting to see what changes this year’s list holds for Florida cities. Stay tuned, the list should be out in the next couple of months and I will post the results with a more detailed analysis.
Luxury Real Estate – Coral Gables in the Top 5 of Fastest Moving Luxury Neighborhoods
A recent Forbes article rated Coral Gables, FL as one of the fastest moving luxury neighborhoods in terms of days on 
market. Forbes’ rating system, which is based on the 500 most expensive zip codes, is better than other housing indexes which cover too broad of an area to give an accurate picture of what is happening in a specific neighborhood, but their assessment also has some flaws. For example, for Coral Gables, which was rated number 5 by Forbes, the zip code they used was 33146. Don’t get me wrong, 33146 is an expensive zip code, but Coral Gables, which extends significantly further South from the better known business and restaurant district which is their formal downtown, has 7 zip codes! Based on an MLS search today, there were 69 Active listings ranging in price from $13.5 million down to $395,000 in the 33146 zip code. 14 of those listings were waterfront. However, there were a total of 261 Active MLS listings in the Gables, South of US 1. The most expensive listing was $49.5 million and was in the 33143 zip code, which also had higher closed sales prices. Having Forbes rate Coral Gables the 5th fastest moving luxury market, with an average of 66 days for the top 10 zips vs 115 days average for the whole 500 index, is great news for Coral Gables, but it doesn’t tell the story for luxury real estate in the Gables. There were several zips and luxury price ranges which had significantly longer days on market. When pricing your luxury home for sale or making an offer on your purchase of one, make sure you check with a local luxury expert.
3 Reasons Miami-Dade’s Housing Market Will Take Longer to Recover Than Broward’s
The Miami Herald posted an article that Broward’s housing market is close to bottoming out, even though prices in both Broward and Miami-Dade counties continue to slide. The article was correct in predicting that Broward will rebound faster mainly because:
1) Miami’s inventory was higher than Broward’s to begin with. Last year at this time, Broward’s single family home inventory was 28 months and is currently 13. Miami-Dade had a 42 month supply last year and a 17 month supply now. Condos in Broward were at 31 months and are now at 17 month. Dade condos were at a 53 month supply and there is currently a 27 month supply. These supplies are only based on MLS numbers. There are many more units being held by developers that aren’t listed on the MLS
2) Miami still has a lot of projects that are just now coming on line, especially in the condo market, which is already saturated.
3) Miami built more in outlying areas, especially in the southern part of the county and along the Biscayne corridor.
Miami FL – Commercial Real Estate is the Next Buyers Market
An Associated Press article last week highlights opportunities in commerical real estate. Whereas many economists are
predicting that the housing market is at or close to bottom, the commercial sector is just starting to see massive defaults. A skyscraper in New York that was purchased for approximately $50o million in 2006 just sold for $100,000! The commercial real estate market is the worst in decades and there are billions worth of distressed properties in every market. This creates an amazing opportunity for long term real estate investors.
Although Miami does not have the commercial density of New York or Chicago, it did go through a commercial building boom, and there will be many opportunities in all commercial sectors over the next year.
Miami Real Estate Market May Be Turning
Could it be? While it is too early to say for sure, there are definitely signs that real estate market in Miami-Dade County may be turning. As I have said before, this recovery is going to be location and building specific, meaning some are going to recover faster and with less overall price decreases than others.
On a county-wide level, there are a number of positive signs, including:
- Inventory is starting to move. For single family homes it has decreased 30% over same time last year and for condos it is down 18%
- Median prices are significantly lower. Single family homes have plunged from their peak of $381,000 in July, 2007 to $177,000 at the end of April, 2009. Condos are down from their peak of $269,000 in April of 2008 to $139,000 in April of 2009.
- Sales are up. Single family sales increased 77% and condo sales increased 60% over same time last year.
Related articles:
Pinecrest, FL Real Estate – Market Trends First Quarter 2009
Pinecrest FL Rated the 10th Most Expensive Suburb to Live In 2009
The Village of Pinecrest was just rated the 10th most expensive suburb to live by Business Week.
The most expensive suburb in each of the 52 states were chosen based on:
- cost of living
- median home price
- property taxes
- mortgage and utilities
The article acknowledges that what contributes to the popularity and expense of these areas are:
- excellent public schools
- low crime rate
- gorgeous neighborhoods
- parks and recreational facilites.
Pinecrest has all 4 of the above and additional benefits that were not mentioned such as:
- large lot sizes
- small local government
- tree canopy
- proximity to marinas
- variety of homes and sizes
- international population
For more information on Pinecrest read:
Pinecrest FL Real Estate – Market Trends First Quarter 2009
7645 SW 117 Pinecrest FL Is In A Great Location
Unbelievable Land Value in Pinecrest, FL – 7935 SW 134 Street- Builder’s Acre Under $550,000
Food Tasting and Entertainment at 7th Annual Taste of Pinecrest at Pinecrest Gardens
Looking for Something to Do? Head to Pinecrest!
Miami Real Estate – Quarterly Update For Miami-Dade County
Wow, EWM’s Coral Gables office alone had over $24,000,000 worth of transactions this week! Does this mean the market has finally reached bottom? Not necessarily, but if we are not there yet in terms of prices, I think we are in terms of the decrease in sales. Put in perspective, the lowest level of inventory for all single homes in Miami-Dade County listed on the MLS was in April of 2005: 2,973. Based on the number of sales for the first quarter of 2009, our inventory peaked in July of 2008 with 17,070 single family homes. The inventory at the end of April stands at 11,936. As you can see the from the graph below, inventory is starting to move. Summer is the peak of purchasing season, especially for single family homes, so we should see significantly more movement over the n
ext several months.
5 Ways To Tell If Your Home Has Chinese Drywall
Chinese drywall could be present in your home if it was built or extensively remodeled between 2004 and 2008. Due to the building boom and major hurricane damage during those years, drywall had to be imported for the first time. Unfortunately, Chinese drywall has high levels of chemicals that we do not find in drywall made in the United States.
- Presence of sulfur smell or other strange odor
- Corrosion of copper pipes, especially on the air conditioning unit. Instead of seeing a copper pipe, you will see one covered in a black, soot-like coating.
- The air conditioner evaporator coil located inside the air handling unit fails.
- Writing on the back of the drywall that says, “Made in China” or confirmed presence by builder.
- Confirmation by an outside expert.
BEWARE OF SCAMS!!! This is Florida, after all. DO NOT pay someone to come take an air test, as to date, there is no air test for Chinese drywall. The easiest way to tell if it may be an issue are items 1-3 above. If you are not sure, call your air conditioner technician. DO NOT pay someone to spray anything on your walls. There is no product currently being backed by anyone that can contain the dangerous substances found in the drywall
For important updates on Chinese drywall from, sign up at Florida’s State Department of Health
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