ORLANDO HOUSING MARKET REPORT – MARCH 2018

Orlando home sales hold steady, median price rises in March

Orlando’s median home price rose 6 percent in March when compared to March of last year while sales held steady with a slight 1 percent increase, reports the Orlando Regional REALTOR® Association. Inventory declined by nearly 10 percent compared to this time last year.

The overall median price of Orlando homes (all types combined) sold in March is $230,000, which is 5.5 percent above the March 2017 median price of $218,000 and 0.4 percent above the February 2018 median price of $229,000.

Year-over-year increases in median price have been recorded for the past 81 consecutive months; as of March 2018, the overall median price is 99.1 percent higher than it was back in July 2011.

The median price for single-family homes that changed hands in March increased 6.3 percent over March 2017 and is now $249,900. The median price for condos increased 19.4 percent to $122,900.

The Orlando housing affordability index for March is 133.76 percent, up from 132.60 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 increased to 95.12 percent, from 94.29 percent last month.

Sales and Inventory

Members of ORRA participated in 3,508 sales of all home types combined in March, which is 0.9 percent more than the 3,477 sales in March 2017 and 38.2 percent higher than the 2,538 sales in February 2018.

“Orlando’s housing market continues to be tugged by opposing factors such as low inventory and high demand,” says ORRA President Lou Nimkoff, Brio Real Estate Services. “The result is a wash for sales: Transactions for the first quarter of 2018 closely mirror Q1 2017, with this year up by a slight 1.5 percent. However, the quarter’s median price is up by a healthy 9 percent and the dollar volume is up by 11.4 percent over Q1 2017.”

Sales of single-family homes (2,727) in March 2018 decreased by 0.4 percent compared to March 2017, while condo sales (421) increased 3.2 percent.

Sales of distressed homes (foreclosures and short sales) reached only 115 in March and are 57.7 percent less than the 272 distressed sales in March 2017. Distressed sales made up just 3.3 percent of all Orlando-area transactions last month.

The overall inventory of homes that were available for purchase in March (7,710) represents a decrease of 9.7 percent when compared to March 2017, and a 0.1 percent increase compared to last month. There were 6.1 percent fewer single-family homes and 24.3 percent fewer condos.

Current inventory combined with the current pace of sales created a 2.2-month supply of homes in Orlando for March. There was a 2.46-month supply in March 2017 and a 3.04-month supply last month.

The average interest rate paid by Orlando homebuyers in March was 4.29, down from 4.39 percent the month prior.

Pending sales in March are down 6.6 percent compared to March of last year and are up 3.6 percent compared to last month.

MSA Numbers

Sales of existing homes within the entire Orlando MSA (Lake, Orange, Osceola, and Seminole counties) in
Each individual county’s sales comparisons are as follows:

*Lake: 4.4 percent below March 2017;
*Orange: 2.9 percent below March 2017;
*Osceola: 5.9 percent above March 2017; and
*Seminole: 3.7 percent below March 2017.

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.