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Editor’s note: This is the second in a series of five articles focusing on the advantages Florida’s residential real estate market currently offers to buyers.

Why Buy a Florida Home Now? Low Pricing Means Bargains for Buyers, Say Florida Realtors®

ORLANDO, Fla., Jan. 21, 2008 – From Pensacola to Key West, buyers are taking advantage of the lowest Florida home prices in several years.

“Pricing on both homes and condominiums has been drifting downwards in the past year, as sellers have become more realistic in their expectations,” said Nancy Riley, a broker with Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate in Pinellas County and the 2007 president of the Florida Association of Realtors® (FAR).

In November – the latest data available – Florida’s median sales price for existing single-family homes was $215,800, down 10 percent from a year ago. The median is the midpoint where half the homes sold for more, and half for less.  The statewide median sales price for condos was $186,700, down 9 percent from November 2006.

In Naples, “prices have adjusted to a more realistic range than in 2005,” said Sally Masters, broker-associate with Coldwell Banker’s North Naples office. “There are some great deals here as far as waterfront properties, golf course communities and estate homes.”

On the other side of Florida, John Kent, sales associate, Prudential Star Real Estate in Cocoa Beach, said savvy buyers can purchase two-bedroom condominiums on the Atlantic Ocean for under $300,000, while condos facing the Banana River are under $200,000. “Where else can you watch the space shuttle and rocket liftoffs while walking the beach or relaxing in your pool, at such affordable prices?” he said. “This is still one of the most affordable beachside communities in the country.”

Mike Pappas, president/CEO of The Keyes Company, Miami, noted that lower sales levels and a high inventory, resulted in a 20 percent reduction in Broward condominium prices in the past year, while condos in the Boca Raton/West Palm Beach market declined nearly 30 percent.  

Nationally, Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the National Association of Realtors® (NAR), recently said he expects existing-home prices to hold steady this year at the 2007 level of $217,600.

Meanwhile, lower prices in Florida offer buyers an ideal opportunity to upsize, according to Barbara Bellani, sales associate, Coldwell Banker in Coral Springs. “This is a great time for the growing family to buy upward,” said Bellani. “The mathematics are compelling.”

For instance, Bellani said one Broward family recently sold their home for $300,000, a price $30,000 or 10 percent below its peak. Then, they purchased a larger home, originally priced at $500,000, for just $400,000 for a net gain of $70,000.

Looking ahead to 2008, broker Ron Shuffield, president of Esslinger Wooten Maxwell (EWM) in Coral Gables, believes sellers are becoming more realistic about the market. “Everyone agrees that the long-term outlook for Florida is very bright,” he said, “so the next year will offer some real opportunities for buyers. Compared with 2007, we’re expecting a pickup in sales volume but with lower average prices.”

The Florida Association of Realtors (FAR), the voice for real estate in Florida, provides programs, services, continuing education, research and legislative representation to its 150,000 members in 67 boards/associations. FAR's Media Center Web site is available at http://media.floridarealtors.org.