Sarasota Real Estate Report: September 2020

The following report, information and statistics are from the Realtor Association of Sarasota and Manatee as published for their Realtor Membership on October 22, 2020 for closed September 2020 business.

More Sales Reported in First Nine Months of 2020 than in 2019

SARASOTA, Fla. (October 22, 2020) – Despite a global pandemic, the housing market in Sarasota and Manatee is staying strong. The residential market data for September reports that more homes were sold in the first nine months of 2020 than in the first nine months of 2019, according to Florida Realtors®. The September market continues the trend from the previous month: a rise in sales, higher prices and fewer available listings than the same month last year.

“The September numbers show us more of what we have been seeing for the last several months,” said David Clapp, 2020 President of the Realtor® Association of Sarasota and Manatee. “But, the months’ supply of inventory continues to go down, now at a painfully low level of just two months of supply for single-family homes and three months for condos. Keep in mind that six months is considered a balanced market.”

Year-to-date, closed sales have increased by 3.6 percent for the combined markets in both counties. The year-to-date report is calculated using data totaled from January 2020 to the current month.

“September’s reported year-to-date increases for closed sales, prices, pending sales, and dollar volume show that we’re no longer playing ‘catch-up’ from the challenges we faced this Spring,” added Clapp. “The exception to having caught up in sales is the low number of active listings. While new listings continue to increase, we have not been able to have any net increase because we continue to sell more properties than we replace with new listings on a weekly basis.”

Closed September Sales

As for the month of September, a total of 2,327 sales were reported in Sarasota and Manatee counties which is a 35.1 percent increase from last year.

Single-family closed sales increased by 31.4 percent to 707 sales in Manatee and by 27.7 percent to 880 sales in Sarasota.

The condo market increased with 73.5 percent jump to 314 sales in Manatee and a 35.2 percent increase to 426 sales in Sarasota.

Median Prices

The median price for single-family homes in both counties decreased slightly from the record highs reported in August but are still up from September of 2019.

In Manatee County, single-family median prices increased by 11.1 percent to $350,000. Sarasota single-family prices increased by 6.9 percent to $318,500.

Condo prices increased year-over-year by 10.6 percent to $220,000 in Manatee and by 8.7 percent to $252,240 in Sarasota.

Cash Sales Increase

“We have seen the number of cash sales go up once again, increasing by 27 percent in Sarasota and by 48 percent in Manatee County compared to the same period in 2019. Many cash buyers are migrating to our great area from urban markets like New York City and Chicago, selling their homes up north and entering our market with cash,” added Clapp.

With an increase in sales and rising prices, the dollar volume of sales jumped in all markets last month. For the condo market, dollar volume in Manatee County increased year-over-year by 113.5 percent to $94.5 million. As for Sarasota condos, dollar volume increased by 91.1 percent to $169.8 million. The volume of sales for single-family homes increased by 65 percent in Manatee and by 50.2 percent in Sarasota.

Year-over-year, the combined inventory of active listings in both counties decreased by 29.6 percent. Condo inventory decreased by 13.7 percent in Sarasota and by 14.8 percent in Manatee. Single-family home inventory decreased by 36.2 percent in Sarasota and by 40.3 percent in Manatee.

Month's Supply of Inventory

The month’s supply of inventory for single-family homes fell by 38.2 percent to a 2.1-months in Sarasota and decreased by 42.4 percent to 1.9-months in Manatee. Condo supply decreased by 23.7 percent to 2.9-months in Manatee and by 20.5 percent to 3.5-months in Sarasota. The month’s supply of inventory is an estimate of the number of months it will take to deplete the current inventory given the recent sales rates.

The total number of new listings for both markets increased in September by 19.8 percent from last year. Condo new listings increased by 15.5 percent in Sarasota and by 13.5 percent in Manatee. Single-family home new listings increased by 25.3 percent in Sarasota and by 18.4 percent in Manatee.

Pending sales increased for the fourth consecutive month in September with a combined 47.5 percent increase. For single-family homes, pending sales increased by 48.4 percent in Manatee and by 41.5 percent in Sarasota. Condo pending sales increased by 60.2 percent in Manatee County and by 50.8 percent in Sarasota.

Monthly reports are provided by Florida REALTORS® with data compiled from My Florida Regional Multiple Listing Service. For comprehensive statistics dating back to 2005, visit www.MyRASM.com/statistics.

Sarasota Single Family Home Sales Year to Year Comparison