Tag Archives: florida
Year on year US foreclosure inventory falls for 43rd month in a row
Foreclosure inventory in the United States has fallen for 43 consecutive months, year on year, down to just 1.3% of homes. The latest data from CoreLogic shows that national foreclosure inventory fell by 27.4% in May compared with the previous year to approximately 491,000 homes. Also in May 2015, the 12 month sum of completed foreclosures fell by 18.1% to 528,000, since May 2014 while the seriously delinquent inventory fell to 1.3 million loans, a 22.7% year on year decline. There were 47 states that posted year on year declines in the foreclosure inventory, and 27 of those states had decreases of more than 20% while only three states had year on year increases. The five states with the largest year on year drop in the foreclosure inventory were Florida with a fall of 47%, Connecticut at 36.5%, Idaho at 35.6, Washington at 35.3% and Illinois at 34.5%. The District of Columbia saw a 22.5% rise and the three states with foreclosure inventory growth were Massachusetts up 22.4%, Wyoming up 18.2% and South Dakota up 1.1%. Judicial foreclosure states continued to have higher foreclosure rates in May 2015 than non-judicial states, averaging 2.2% and 0.7% percent, respectively. The data also shows that the foreclosure rate for judicial states peaked in February 2012 at 5.4% while non-judicial states experienced peak foreclosure rates of 2.5% in January 2011. As of May 2015 some 42% of outstanding mortgages were in judicial states, but 71% of total loans in foreclosure were in those states. Continue reading
US sees fall in overseas buyers due to stronger dollar, analysis suggests
Fewer overseas buyers are purchasing property in the United States with currency exchange playing its part in the drop off, a new analysis report suggests. In general home sales during the first four months of 2015 have been the best in eight years with year on year growth of 9% helped by a drop in fixed mortgage rates of almost 0.5%. But the National Association of Realtors reports that the number of international buyers dropped to 2% during the first four months of 2015 from 2.5% a year earlier, a 19% decline. About three fourths of real estate agents who work with international clients report that changes in foreign exchange rates have a moderate to very significant effect on foreign buying. Indeed, the US dollar has strengthened against currencies used by many foreigners who buy homes in the country. For example, from the beginning of 2014 o April 2015, the US dollar appreciated 10% relative to the UK pound, 13% relative to the Canadian dollar and 26% relative to the euro. Notable exceptions to these large swings in foreign exchange values were the Chinese yuan and Hong Kong dollar, which have closely tracked the value of the US dollar. A new analysis report from real estate firm CoreLogic points out that a stronger US dollar makes property more expensive for foreign buyers whose currencies have weakened. Consequently, purchases by foreign buyers have dropped, especially for those whose currency was most affected by the foreign exchange swing. Between the first four months of 2014 and the same four months of 2015, the number of homes sold to foreign buyers drastically declined. Foreign purchases were down between one quarter to one third during this period for buyers whose currencies depreciated significantly relative to the US dollar, even though domestic purchases rose. ‘In addition to the shock caused by the stronger US dollar, the markets where foreigners tend to buy have had strong home price appreciation in the last few years. For example, many Canadians, Europeans and South Americans prefer to buy along the Southeast coast of the US for the beaches, cultural amenities, warm winter temperatures and accessibility,’ the report says. Canadians made roughly two thirds of their US home purchases during the first four months of both 2014 and 2015 in Florida. Of these purchases in 2015, nearly a half were located in the Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Palm Beach area where home prices rose about 8% from April 2014 to April 2015. ‘Couple that with the effect of a stronger US currency, and the average Canadian considering a home purchase in south Florida saw a jump in purchase cost of 20% to 25% in the past year,’ it explains. The report suggests that foreign buying could continue to decline, level off or increase in 2016 depending on the value of the US dollar relative to most foreign currencies, but the uncertainties surrounding how the Eurozone will resolve the debt crisis in Greece has made it… Continue reading
Miami real estate market continues to be busy, latest data shows
Miami is continuing to be one of the busiest real estate markets in the United States with the latest data showing that median sales prices for all housing types rose in April. The data from the Miami Association of Realtors also shows that single family homes have seen their most robust sales since December last year. ‘The continued stability in Miami’s job market and low interest rates are improving buyer confidence. Not only are we seeing more single family home sales in Miami, but we are seeing more homes and condos listed as seller confidence grows,’ said Christopher Zoller, the association’s residential president. Single family home transactions, which set an all-time Miami annual record in 2014, increased 8% year on year in April while existing condominium sales, which posted the second best year in Miami history last year despite an increase in new condo construction, fell by 6.8%. Single family home prices, which again increased in April, remain at affordable 2004 levels despite more than three years of consistent year on year increases. Condo prices also increased in April 2015, marking 46 months of growth in the last 47 months. The median sale price for single-family homes increased 7% to $260,000 in April 2015 from $243,000 in April 2014. The median sale price for condominiums increased 3.1% in April to $199,000 from $193,000 a year ago. The data also shows that the average percent of original list price received for single family homes was 94.6%, down a negligible 0.1% from a year earlier. The median number of days on the market for single family homes sold in April 2015 was 43 days, equalling last year’s figure. The average percent of original list price received for existing condominiums was 93.1%, a 0.5% decrease. The median number of days on the market for condominiums sold in April 2015 was 63 days, an increase of 14.5% compared to the same period in 2014. Cash deals represented 51.9% of Miami’s total closed sales in April 2015, down from 59.3% in April 2014. Nationally, just 24% of housing transactions are made in cash. Since 82% of foreign buyers in Florida purchase properties all cash, Miami’s high percentage of cash buyers continues to reflect South Florida’s ability to attract international buyers. Condominiums comprise a large portion of Miami’s cash purchases as 65.8% of condo closings were made in cash in April compared to 35.7% of single family home sales. Seller confidence continues to result in more properties being listed in Miami. Active listings at the end of April increased 6.1% year on year and active listings remain about 60% below 2008 levels when sales bottomed. Inventory of single family homes decreased 2.5% while condominium inventory increased 10.9%. At the current sales pace, there is a 5.1 month supply of single family homes, a year on year decrease of 7.8% and there is a 9.1 month supply of condominium inventory, an increase of 17.7% from 7.7 months in April 2014. A… Continue reading
