Miami home sales fall for first time since last year as low inventory chokes buying
South Florida residential sales volume dropped in September, marking the first slowdown this year.
Single-family home transactions in Miami-Dade and Broward counties dipped when comparing activity in September 2020 to September 2021, according to the latest Douglas Elliman signed contracts report. Condo sales declined in Broward, but rose in Miami-Dade.
In Miami-Dade, the number of new signed contracts fell by about 12% for houses — from 1,336 contracts to 1,177. Broward experienced an approximately 23% decline for houses, from 742 transactions to 569, and 8% for condos, from 866 transactions to 796.
Blame low inventory and timing, said Dan Hechtkopf, Realtor associate at Douglas Elliman.
“Last year, September was booming. At the time, you had plenty of inventory. A year goes by and the majority of the homes are gone. It’s a supply-and-demand issue,” Hechtkopf said.
Miami-Dade’s condo market remains resilient, with a 43% increase. Total condo sales jumped from 1,253 in September 2020 to 1,785 in September 2021.
“You are not finding a lot of single-family homes that are move-in ready,” Hechtkopf added. “The condo market took off as the single-family homes were dwindling.”
Still, changes are occurring in Miami-Dade’s condo market, according to data from the Miami Association of Realtors. In August, prices slightly decreased for both condos and houses for the first time in 2021.
Demand remains given the steady migration of new companies expanding to South Florida, he said. Many transplants prefer to rent for the moment, furthering the increase of rental prices.
“A lot of people know where they want to be. They see their friends moving to Coconut Grove, Coral Gables, Fort Lauderdale and they all want to be together,” Hechtkopf said. “They might rent but they eventually want to buy where their friends are.”
Before September there were month increases in sales activity in January, February, March, April, May, June, July and August, according to sales reports by the Miami Association of Realtors.
This story was originally published October 6, 2021 at 6:37 PM.
