By Robert L. Nardi
Sales of homes above $1 million in Naples during the first quarter of 2018 drove the market. Their sales increased 61 percent compared to the same quarter of 2017 according to the First Quarter 2018 Market Report released by the Naples Area Board of REALTORS® (NABOR®), which tracks home listings and sales within Collier County (excluding Marco Island). According to NABOR’s monthly reports, January had 672 closed sales, February reported 672 closed sales, but March kept agents very busy with 942 closed sales, driven by a strong high end which included a number of new construction condominiums just delivered.
Pending sales in the first quarter of 2018 increased 3 percent to 3,177 compared to 3,097 in the first quarter of 2017. Although pending sales for both single-family homes and condominiums over $1 million increased by double digits, it was the $2 million and above condominium market that raised eyebrows. There was 109 percent increase during the quarter in pending sales for condominiums over $2 million. This month there was many statistics provided, so below is a chart outlining the change in percentage from 2017 to 2018. See below:
CATEGORIES IQ2017 1Q 2018 CHG%
- Total homes under contract (pending sales) (quarter/quarter) 3,097 3,177 +3
- Total closed sales (quarter/quarter) 2,205 2,306 +5
- Median closed price (quarter/quarter) $330,000 $370,000 +12
- Median closed price >$300K (quarter/quarter) $510,000 $575,000 +13
- Total active listings (inventory) 6,389 6,112 -4
- Average days on market 95 95 0
- Single-family closed sales (quarter/quarter) 1,059 1,050 -1
- Single-family median closed price (quarter/quarter) $410,000 $448,000 +9
- Single-family inventory 3,236 2,964 -8
- Condominium closed sales (quarter/quarter) 1,146 1,256 +10
- Condominium median closed price (quarter/quarter) $270,000 $299,000 +11
- Condominium inventory 3,154 3,148 0
And for those of you who really like statistics, I have two charts that you can view/print at your leisure.
What’s Happening?
From the statistics presented sales are brisk in the high-end market ($1M-2M) and home/condominium sales are moving slower in the $1M or below market. The luxury condominium market has increased greatly because many of the luxury high rises that were offering pre-construction pricing 2 years ago have now received their Certificate Occupancy and now all of those buyers are closing on their new construction. What’s interesting in my own firm, is that I am noticing there is more of a demand of homes in the $1M or more category. From the beginning of April to the middle of May 2018, we have had a $4.1M, $1.25M, $1.265M & we will have another closing of $1.3M on May 15, 2018. That equates to 30% of my sales associates have had individual sales of $1M or more.
It also appears that season is running late for the firm. Usually, sales are all wrapped up by the end of March, however, we are seeing brisk sales all the way up until the end of May 2018. This is a direct effect of a low volume of interest in February 2018 to purchase. I personally had very little foot traffic/showings in many of my listings. Then, all of sudden in March 2018 it was like a buying frenzy. Psychologically, people who have been vacationing/renting in Southwest Florida just dreaded the fact that the weather was inclement up North and thought, “Do I really want to go home to that?” Many vacationers/renters turned into buyers.
Speaking of Renters…
As you may know, we have a large rental department. My best advice is to book early if you are thinking about renting in Southwest Florida for 2019. I am seeing a lot of new clients booking rentals for next season. You can call our rental line directly at 239-228-7359. Please let them know what you are looking for and if we don’t have it in our inventory, you’ll be able to be assigned to one of our astute rental agents to assist you. Your other options are to either call me directly at 239-293-3592 or go on-line at NardiRealty.com to search properties for sale or available rentals. What sets us apart from other websites is that our property search engine gives you much more in-depth information like homeowner association & condo fees per year.
Wishing you a very Happy Spring into Summer. The cold weather is past us, bring on the warmth!