Supply on the rise in Sarasota real estate market

The number of homes and condominiums on the market hopped up in a year-over-year comparison for the first time in three years, signs of a potential change in a real estate market that has broken price records fairly routinely of late, according to metrics released Thursday by the Realtors Assocation of Sarasota and Manatee.

Unsold single-family home inventory sits at a 0.8-month supply for Manatee County, which is a 33.3% increase from last year. In Sarasota County, single-family home inventory is now at a one-month supply, a 42.9% increase from last year. The condo market is at a 0.8-month supply in April, a 14.3% increase for Manatee County but an 11.1% decrease for Sarasota County.

In comparison, a three-month supply is typically seen as a balanced market, one that doesn't favor buyers or sellers. 

“As we've been anticipating, it appears that the rising interest rates and inflation are beginning to put pressure on our local real estate market,” said 2022 RASM President Tony Veldkamp, a senior adviser at SVN Commercial Advisory Group. “While we're still seeing fewer pending and closed sales when compared to last year, we are starting to see an increase in new listings and the amount of inventory of homes and condos for sale. In fact, Sarasota County has its highest home inventory in 12 months, with its second month in a row of positive year-over-year increases. Sarasota County's single-family home inventory has risen to a 1-month supply, the first time since January 2021, while Manatee County has risen to a 0.8-month supply.”

At the end of April, there were 1,969 active listings combined in both counties for both markets, a 14.3% increase from the same month last year. Compared to last month, active inventory increased month-over-month by 23.5% when combined for the two counties.

Prices for single-family homes in Sarasota County rose year-over-year by 27.1% to $482,803, while in Manatee the median price increased year-over-year by 27.2% to $515,000. For condos, the median price in Sarasota increased by 27.4% from last year to $395,000, and Manatee prices increased by 48.9% to $350,000.

But home prices in April are off a bit from their median levels in the previous 2022 monthly benchmark: $487,500 in Sarasota and $525,000 in Manatee for March.

The national average for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage on Thursday stood at 5.57%, which is up nearly 2 points from the first of the year.

Considering a 30-year mortgage for $500,000, a two-point interest difference translates into a $600 difference in monthly payments.