Home sales rise; home prices fall, Florida Realtors report

By Palm Beach Business.com

DELRAY BEACH — It was the same old story for the used home market in April as foreclosures and short sales continued to dominate: the number of homes sold rose, while the median price fell.

The median price of a used home in Palm Beach County fell to $234,400 in April from $314,000 a year earlier, a decline of 25 percent, according to Wednesday’s report from the Florida Association of Realtors. The number of sales climbed slightly, to 681 from 662 a year ago, a gain of 3 percent.

In Broward County, the number of sales jumped 33 percent in April to 690 from 518 a year ago. The median price fell 35 percent to $191,300 from $298,100.

Statewide, the median price fell 31 percent to $138,500 from $199,500 a year ago, while the number of sales rose to 13,111 from 11,133, a gain of 18 percent, according to FAR.

For the first four months of 2009, used home sales are up 23 percent over the same period a year ago; the median price is down 30 percent. The median price is the midpoint — half the homes sold for more, half sold for less.

The condo market mirroed single family homes.

In Palm Beach County, 735 condos sold in April, up 11 percent from the 664 sold a year earlier; the median price dipped to $98,200 from $156,000, a decline of 37 percent.

Meanwhile, according to the National Association Realtors' latest housing industry outlook, it could take a few months for the housing market to gain momentum, though there are signs of stabilization. Low mortgage rates and newly enacted federal incentives for first-time buyers are stimulating interest.

"The share of lower priced home sales has trended up, indicating a return of many first-time buyers," said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun. "Buyer traffic has been rising, and real estate offices are getting phone inquires about the tax credit. By early summer we should be seeing a positive impact on home sales from record-low mortgage interest rates in addition to the stimulus provisions."