MIAMI — Broward County total pending sales rose again for the second consecutive month, according to February 2023 statistics released today by the MIAMI Association of Realtors (MIAMI) and the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) system.

 

“Fort Lauderdale and Broward County real estate continues to post sales on par with pre-pandemic numbers,” BROWARD-MIAMI President Alfredo Pujol said. “Rising pending sales and showing appointments are indicators of future buyer activity and strong signs for the high-demand, low inventory Broward market.”

 

Pending Sales and Showing Appointments Rise for Second Consecutive Month

Total pending sales rose 12.2% month-over-month, from 2,541 in January 2023 to 2,850 in February 2023. Pending sales are an indicator of future sales, but it takes up to 40 days for pending transactions to close and not all pending sales end in deals.

 

Showing appointments in the Southeast Florida MLS, which is owned by MIAMI REALTORS®, increased 1.6% month over month to 237,395 showings in February.

 

Home sales are sensitive to mortgage rate changes and homebuyers are taking advantage of any rate declines. According to Freddie Mac, the average commitment rate for a 30-year, conventional, fixed-rate mortgage 6.60% as of March 16. That’s down from 6.73% from the previous week but up from 4.16% one year ago.

 

Broward February 2023 total sales decreased 31.6% year-over-year, from 2,687 to 1,839, because it’s in comparison to a historic February 2022 and the current market has lower inventory in specific price points and higher rates.

 

Broward existing condo sales decreased 32.4% year-over-year, from 1,489 in February 2022 to 1,006 in February 2023, due to lack of inventory and rising mortgage rates.

 

Single-family home sales decreased 30.5% year-over-year, from 1,198 in February 2022 to 833 in February 2023 because of its comparison to a historic February 2022 and the current market has lower inventory in specific price points and higher rates.

 

South Florida Home Prices, Household Income Rise with Wealth Migration

Broward County single-family home median prices increased 7.9% year-over-year in February 2023, increasing from $519,000 to $560,000. Existing condo median prices increased 13.3% year-over-year, from $240,000 to $272,000.

 

South Florida’s out-of-state homebuyers with a mortgage earn nearly $100,000 in median household income, according to research by MIAMI REALTORS® Chief Economist Gay Cororaton.

 

“Current economic and lending conditions are favoring regions with strong real estate market fundamentals like South Florida,” Cororaton said.

 

Miami and West Palm Beach rank in the top-10 in the U.S. in median homebuyer growth (2019 vs 2021). Miami median homebuyer income grew 16.9% to $104,000 in 2021, and West Palm Beach median homebuyer income is $110,000 via Redfin report.

 

Home prices are determined by supply and demand. Lower supply and higher demand create higher prices. Inventory for Broward single-family homes (2.8 months) and condos (3.2 months) are low. Also, one of the supports for home prices is rents and rents are up.

 

South Florida Real Estate’s Market Fundamentals Lead the Nation

Price Appreciation

• Broward prices keep rising unlike many other major markets and homes keep selling fast.
• South Florida is 1 of only 2 U.S. markets forecasted to see price appreciation in 2023 according to Goldman Sachs forecast.

Migration Gains

• South Florida ranked No. 1 in the U.S. for most inbound population gains between 2019 and 2022, a 56.2% increase via United States Postal Service change-of-address data.
• South Florida out-of-state driver license exchanges remain up double digits for relocating New Yorkers, Californians, New Jerseyans and more, according to Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (FLHSMV) data.
• Florida is fastest-growing state for the first time since 1957 (1,142 net new residents per day in 2022 per U.S. Census)

Cash Buyers

• Broward’s percentage of cash buyers (43.4%) is significantly higher than the national average (29%).

Wealth Influx

• Florida ranked No. 1 in the U.S. in largest net gain of adjusted gross income (AGI) due to domestic migration, gaining $23.7 billion, according to most recent IRS-SOI data.
• Broward County and Miami-Dade County ranked No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, in the U.S. for $10M+ sales volume on basis of percentage change from 2019 vs 2022 via Compass
• Global companies continue relocating to Miami, such as Citadel, a multinational hedge fund that manages $57 billion in assets and is developing a $1 billion Miami office tower with plans to have 1,500 employees in 10 years.

Job Growth

• Miami ranked in top-20 in the U.S. for most tech job postings via CompTIA Tech Jobs Report. Tech industry offers some of the highest-paying jobs.
• About 60 companies expanded or relocated to Miami-Dade County in 2021-22, creating 8,000 new direct and indirect high-value jobs with average salary of $97,000, according to Beacon Council.
• South Florida has one of the strongest job markets in the country, with 2% unemployment– lower than the national figure.

Teleworking and Coworking

• Nicknamed the Coworking Capital of the World, Miami saw a 143% increase in demand for flexible office space in 2022 vs. pre-pandemic via The Instant Group.
• Expansion of remote work benefits Miami because if you can work wherever why wouldn’t you want to live in sunny Miami?

Global Buyers

• South Florida is the No. 1 U.S. market for global buyers. Foreign homebuyers purchased $6.8 billion of South Florida residential properties in 2022, up 34% from $5.1 billion in 2021, according to our 2022 MIAMI REALTORS® Global Study.

 

Broward Active Listings Still Near Historical Lows; More Supply Needed

Total active listings at the end of February 2023 increased 79.2% year-over-year, from 4,310 to 7,723.

 

Inventory of single-family homes increased 93.8% year-over-year in February 2023 from 1,639 active listings last year to 3,176 last month. Condominium inventory increased 70.2% year-over-year to 4,547 from 2,671 listings during the same period in 2022.

 

New listings of Broward single-family homes decreased 24.2% to 1,248 from 1,646 year-over-year. New listings of condominiums decreased 10.2%, from 2,088 to 1,874 year-over-year.

 

Months’ supply of inventory for single-family homes increased 154.5% to 2.8 months year-over-year, which indicates a seller’s market. Inventory for existing condominiums increased 113.3% to 3.2 months, which also indicates a seller’s market. A balanced market between buyers and sellers offers between six- and nine-months supply.

 

Nationally, total housing inventory at the end of February was 980,000 units, identical to January and up 15.3% from one year ago (850,000). Unsold inventory sits at a 2.6-month supply at the current sales pace, down 10.3% from January but up from 1.7 months in February 2022.

 

Broward Real Estate Posts $206.9 Million Local Economic Impact in February 2023
Every time a home is sold it impacts the economy: income generated from real estate industries (commissions, fees and moving expenses), expenditures related to home purchase (furniture and remodeling expenses), multiplier of housing related expenditures (income earned as a result of a home sale is re-circulated into the economy) and new construction (additional home sales induce added home production).

 

The total economic impact of a typical Florida home sale is $112,500, according to NAR. Broward County sold 1,839 homes in February 2023 and had a local economic impact of $206.9 million.

 

Broward total dollar volume totaled $954 million in February 2023. Single-family home dollar volume decreased 30.2% year-over-year to $614.6 million. Condo dollar volume decreased 33.9% year-over-year to $339.1 million.

 

Broward Distressed Sales Remain Low, Reflecting Healthy Market
Only 0.9% of all closed residential sales in Broward were distressed last month, including REO (bank-owned properties) and short sales, compared to 1.2% in February 2022.

 

Short sales and REOs accounted for 0.05% and 0.9% year-over-year, respectively, of total Broward sales in February 2023.

 

Broward’s percentage of distressed sales are on par with the national figure. Nationally, distressed sales represented approximately 2% of sales in February, nearly identical to last month and one year ago.

 

Nearly 36.4% of all Florida Condo Sales Happened in South Florida in February 2023

South Florida (Miami, Broward, Palm Beach) registered 36.4% of all condo sales in Florida in January 2023. For all properties, South Florida had 20.3% of all sales in Florida.

 

In Florida, closed sales of single-family homes statewide totaled 18,627 in February 2023, down 21.3% year-over-year, while existing condo-townhouse sales totaled 7,665, down 30.2%. Closed sales may occur from 30- to 90-plus days after sales contracts are written.

 

Nationally, total existing-home sales transactions vaulted 14.5% from January to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.58 million in February. Year-over-year, sales fell 22.6% (down from 5.92 million in February 2022).

 

The statewide median sales price for single-family existing homes was $395,000, up 2.5% from the previous year, according to data from Florida Realtors Research Department in partnership with local Realtor boards/associations. Last month’s statewide median price for condo-townhouse units was $315,000, up 8.6% over the year-ago figure. The median is the midpoint; half the homes sold for more, half for less.

 

Nationally, the median existing-home price for all housing types in February 2023 was $363,000, a decline of 0.2% from February 2022 ($363,700), as prices climbed in the Midwest and South yet waned in the Northeast and West. This ends a streak of 131 consecutive months of year-over-year increases, the longest on record.

 

Broward Real Estate Attracting Near List Price
The median percent of original list price received for single-family homes was 94.8% in February 2023, down from 100% last year. The median percent of original list price received for existing condominiums was 96.5%, down from 98.5% last year.

 

The median number of days between listing and contract dates for Broward single-family home sales was 42 days, up from 15 days last year. The median time to sale for single-family homes was 78 days, up from 57 days last year.

 

The median number of days between the listing date and contract date for condos was 29 days, up from 23 days. The median number of days to sale for condos was 69 days, even with last year.

 

Broward Cash Sales 55% More than National Figure
Cash sales represented 43.4% of Broward closed sales in February 2023, compared to 44.9% in February 2022. About 28% of U.S. home sales are made in cash, according to the latest NAR statistics.

 

Cash buyers are not deterred by rising rates. The high percentage of cash buyers reflects South Florida’s top position as the preeminent American real estate market for foreign buyers, who tend to purchase with all cash as well as some moving from more expensive U.S. markets who can buy more with their profits from real estate sales.

 

Cash sales accounted for 55.8% of all Broward existing condo sales and 28.5% of single-family transactions.

 

To access February 2023 Broward Statistical Reports, visit http://www.SFMarketIntel.com

 

Note: Statistics in this news release may vary depending on reporting dates. MIAMI reports exact statistics directly from its MLS system.