Tuesday, September 22, 2015

From Jeff Ostrowski: "Tight inventories translate to fierce competition for Palm Beach County homes"

Even in the little City of Lake Worth have heard homes are selling sight unseen. That's how hot the market is for housing here in Palm Beach County. This is all market-driven—southeastern Florida is a very desirable place to live for people and families from all over the world.

This news from Jeff Ostrowski at the Post made the front page, above the fold in today's print edition. Here's an excerpt:
     The median sale price in August was $295,000, up 9 percent from a year ago. With demand outstripping supply, buyers face fierce competition for homes at the low end of the price range.
     “You can’t buy something if it’s not there,” said Myles Minns, president of Continental Properties in West Palm Beach.
     Houses priced at $150,000 to $200,000 needed only 22 days to sell, while homes sold for $200,000 to $250,000 were on the market for a median of only 23 days.
     Condos and townhouses take a bit longer to sell, but there’s strong demand for them, too, Minns said. Buyers have grown so fearful of losing the race to make an offer that they’ll submit a contract even before touring a property.
The Great Recession is becoming a distant memory here in south Florida.