As Seen in the Naples Daily News and Bonita Daily News

Are we at the bottom?  How’s the market?  When will prices go up?  Can it go lower?  These are just some of the questions that I’m asked almost daily.  All valid questions, especially if you are looking to buy a slice of SW Florida paradise!

If you are looking to either sell or buy, these questions become especially important.  Should you wait to put your home on the market?  Is now a good time to sell?  Should you jump at the opportunity to buy right now because of current market conditions?  The funny thing is that if you ask 10 different people you’ll get 10 different answers.   Anyone who can financially gain from you selling or buying will always say, yes, now is the best time.  What a joke!  You need to look past that one-sided advice and gather the facts for yourself.  First make an educated decision, and then hire the help of a Realtor or other professional to get the job done. Knowing the facts can help you make an educated decision that can hopefully save you lots of cash and help you navigate this turbulent market.

From 3/2009 to 2/2010 we averaged 2,270 new listings on the market per month. This past year from 3/2010 to 2/2011 we averaged 2,177 new listings per month on the market.  That’s a decrease of approximately 100 residential new listings on the market each month!  That’s a great thing – our supply of homes being introduced to the market is decreasing!

Looking at pending sales, from 3/2009 to 2/2010 SW Florida has averaged 1,154 per month.  The following year from 3/2010 to 2/2011 we have averaged 1,206 pending homes per month.  That’s an increase of over 60 homes per month going into a pending status!

All that really matters is how many closings are actually happening, right?  From 3/2009 to 2/2010 we averaged 916 closed sales in SW Florida per month.  We have averaged 982 closed sales per month from 3/2010 to 2/2011.  That’s an increase of about 65 more closed houses per month!   (All statistics are from SunshineMLS)

Overall, I’d say our market is certainly improving!  New listings coming onto the market are down about 4%; our pending homes are up almost 5% and our closed sales are up almost 7% from a year ago.  This is a good recipe for a strong market – supply is going down and sales are going up!  Please use this knowledge to your benefit and take advantage of our very low and attractive prices.