Inventory inches upward while median price strides ahead

The inventory of homes available for purchase in the Orlando area has experienced its first year-over-year increase since July of 2015, reports the Orlando Regional REALTOR® Association. The overall inventory in November 2018 is 1.7 percent higher than in November 2017.

 

“This slight rise in inventory can be attributed to a combination of both slowing sales and a bump in new listings, which increased by 4.5 percent compared to this same time last year,” explains ORRA President Lou Nimkoff. “Factor in expected increases in interest rates that traditionally dampen sales, and we anticipate prospective homebuyers enjoying bolstered inventory levels throughout the upcoming year.”

 

Median Price

The overall median price of Orlando homes (all types combined) sold in November is $233,100, which is 3.6 percent above the November 2017 median price of $224,995 and 1.8 percent above the October 2018 median price of $229,000.

 

Year-over-year increases in median price have been recorded for the past 89 consecutive months; as of November 2018, the overall median price is 101.8 percent higher than it was back in July 2011.

The median price for single-family homes that changed hands in November increased 4.2 percent over November 2017 and is now $251,000. The median price for condos increased 12.3 percent to $134,655.

 

The Orlando housing affordability index for November is 122.96 percent, down from 126.77 percent last month. (An affordability index of 99 percent means that buyers earning the state-reported median income are 1 percent short of the income necessary to purchase a median-priced home. Conversely, an affordability index that is over 100 means that median-income earners make more than is necessary to qualify for a median-priced home.)

 

The first-time homebuyers affordability index decreased to 87.44 from 90.15 percent last month.

 

Sales and Inventory

Realtors participated in 2,575 sales of all home types combined in November, which is 6.9 percent less than the 2,767 sales in November 2017 and 11.9 percent less than the 2,924 sales in October 2018.

 

Sales of single-family homes (1,978) in November 2018 decreased by 8.9 percent compared to November 2017, while condo sales (330) increased 1.5 percent year over year.

 

Sales of distressed homes (foreclosures and short sales) reached 129 in November and are 23.2 percent less than the 168 distressed sales in November 2017. Distressed sales made up just 5.0 percent of all Orlando-area transactions last month.

 

The overall inventory of homes that were available for purchase in November (8,432) represents an increase of 1.7 percent when compared to November 2017, and a 1.9 percent increase compared to last month. There were 2.0 percent more single-family homes and 11/5 percent more condos, year over year.

 

Current inventory combined with the current pace of sales created a 3.3-month supply of homes in Orlando for November. There was a 2.8-month supply in October 2018 and a 3.0-month supply in November 2017.

 

The average interest rate paid by Orlando homebuyers in November was 4.97 percent, up from 4.85 percent the month prior.

 

Homes that closed in November took an average of 53 days to move from listing to pending and took an average of 89 days from listing to closing.