Tips for understanding Florida's home sales information

Donald Pickett
·4 min read
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The first quarter of 2023, the Median price of all homes sold in the State of Florida was only slightly down. How did the individual counties fare? We have some counties with millions of residents and some with hundreds. Each county’s sales are reported to the Florida Realtors association.

It's important to understand the source of information for home sales in reports. Frequently it is the National Association of Realtors or National Builders Association. It can also be an independent source. Someone’s “home” may be a single-family home, condo, townhome, mobile or modular home. All these are homes. In this article a home refers to a single family detached home. My sources are the Florida Realtor association and the Tallahassee Board of Realtors MLS.

In Tallahassee, in the first quarter of 232, the entire Leon County’s average home sold price was $367,557.
In Tallahassee, in the first quarter of 232, the entire Leon County’s average home sold price was $367,557.

I have looked at the home sold production of all 67 counties in the state for the first quarter. It is very likely there are many counties you have never heard of. Many of the low populated counties have very few home sales. Their production has little to do with overall percentage average home sales in the state.

This is a shining example of “Real Estate is Local.” The overall state performance has little impact on real estate sales activity in the less populated counties. They work with their fewer sales activity in determining value.

In the State of Florida in the month of December there were a total of 19,158 homes sold with an average closed price of $527,919, with a median price of $395,000. The median price is what is used for comparative purposes in real estate analysis. Here is an example why. In all of Palm Beach County in the first quarter of 2023 the average sold price was $951,075. In the City of West Palm Beach, the average sold price was $832,197. In the City of Pahokee, my first home, the average price was $191,875.

In Tallahassee, as an example, in the first quarter, the entire Leon County’s average home sold price was $367,557. In the NE $447,477, NW $280,890, SE $344,824 and the SW $183,154.

Meaningful home sales data is local. I will always remember visiting an FSU classmate who lived in the Town of Palm Beach. His home was much like what you will find in the older downtown area of Tallahassee. Down the street on the beach, however, the ocean front homes would sell for millions. In today’s market, his home would likely sell for a million or so as well. That is the reason Realtors use a “comparative” market analysis in determining real estate estimated value of like-type properties.

So how are we doing in Tallahassee (Leon County) in the first half of May since the beginning of the year? I will give you examples in a way that demonstrates how there can be different views based on input. This will be for single family detached homes.

First view, looking at the entire county including both new and resale homes: As of May 17, 2023, there were 282 homes available for purchase in MLS. In January 151 homes sold with an average sold price of $368,128. In the month of April there were 231 homes sold, a 53% increase, with an average sold price of $375,621, which is a 2% increase. We are selling about as many homes as are coming on to the market.

The second view is for only resale homes in the County. As of May 17 there were 197 homes available for purchase in MLS. In January 125 homes sold with an average sold price of $342,511. In the month of April there were 191 homes sold, a 53% increase, with an average sold price of $363,626, which is a 6% increase.

The third view is with only resale homes in the Northeast Quadrant of Leon County. Why just the NE? Because 50% of the total 798 closed sales in the first 4 months were made in the NE. More data gives a better reflection of the Tallahassee real estate market trend. As of May 17 there were 102 homes available for purchase in MLS. In January 56 homes sold with an average sold price of $410,888. In the month of April there were 87 homes sold, a 55% increase, with an average sold price of $493,171, which is a 20% increase.

I hope this article will help you have a better understanding of what you read or hear about the home sales market. If you have a real estate question, consult a Realtor with a successful and time proven successful track record.

Donald Pickett, Realtor, GRI, Tallahassee Real Estate N Data Services, Coldwell Banker Hartung. Email at donpick@aol.com.

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Tips for understanding the data on home sales in Florida