By Robert Nardi
According to the December 2023 Market Report by the Naples Area Board of REALTORS® (NABOR®), which tracks home listings and sales within Collier County (excluding Marco Island), overall inventory increased 45.9 percent to 3,949 properties from 2,706 properties in December 2022. The report showed consistent monthly increases in inventory during the year, which means more options for buyers in 2024, especially in the condominium market, which reported a 78.7 percent increase in inventory. However, according to broker analysts reviewing the December report, the housing market faced several challenges in 2023: rising interest rates, insurance rates, and inflation. Brokers also point to increased personal travel in 2023 as another reason home sales lagged. As a result, closed sales in 2023 decreased 13.6 percent to 8,816 from 10,206 closed sales in 2022. Despite the challenges, there were seven months in 2023 when new listings increased more than new listings reported in comparative months in 2022. New listings increased 12.1 percent for December to 892 new listings from 796 new listings in December 2022. Interestingly, unlike other industries that experience a price reduction when supply increases, the Naples area housing market enjoyed a 9.7 percent increase in overall median closed price in December to $631,000 from $575,000 in December 2022. In comparison, according to the National Association of Realtors, the median existing-home price in the U.S. increased 4.4 percent to $382,000 from $366,000 in December 2022.
Migration in the eastern part of the Collier County is booming. The land values are lower since it is farther out, so pricing is attractive, giving consumers "a bigger bang for the buck." In 2023, the Immokalee/Ave Maria area was the only geographic area tracked by NABOR® that reported an increase in single-family home closed sales (+34.1 percent). Conversely, the report indicated a 24.8 percent decrease in closed sales for single-family homes near the beach. Nowadays, the cost of homeownership includes a lot more than the sales price of a home. Contributing costs to homeownership are property and flood insurance, association fees, and potential future assessments.
The NABOR® December 2023 Market Report compares single-family home and condominium sales (via the Southwest Florida MLS), price ranges, and geographic segmentation and includes an overall market summary. NABOR® sales statistics are presented in chart format ( CLICK HERE ) for those who like to see all of the statistics.
What does this all mean?
We did not outperform last year's sales because buyers who had plans to relocate to Florida moved up their timeline. The pandemic convinced many people to buy sooner, so the high sales numbers we enjoyed in 2021 and 2022 were stolen sales from what would have happened in 2023. In 2021 and 2022, interest rates were low, Florida was an open state during COVID-19, we had no state tax, and our weather was a huge draw, which made it attractive to buy then. Now sellers realize that the market has changed, and those "glory days" of selling quickly are over. Hence, that's why a 29.6 percent increase in price decreases in 2023.
The good news is that mortgage interest rates have dropped a bit. Because of this rate reduction, the market is loosening, and now, people who have been waiting have decided to sell their property. However, instead of staying in Florida, some are migrating to other states where home prices are lower.
If you need assistance with selling, buying, renting, or looking for a seasonal or annual rental, please feel free to contact me directly at 239-293-3592 or send an email to Robert@NardiRealty.com . I or one of my team members would be happy to help.
If you would like to see your property's potential list price or if you enjoy performing property searches, please go to BuyNaples.net.
Happy Valentine's Day to all!