The Daily Soak - September 25

South Florida Rising: Home Sales Post Highest Rate Since 2004

Florida fence-sitters and bargain hunters finally started pulling the proverbial trigger in August according to data released yesterday by the Florida Association of Realtors. Existing single-family home sales jumped 22% and 12% in Miami-Dade and Broward, respectively, versus August of last year. Condo sales also increased 13% in Miami-Dade but were flat in Broward. The sudden boost in sales activity is thanks in large part to the 30% decrease in median sales prices in Miami-Dade and 27% in Broward compared to last year. New homebuyers Adam and Jennifer Clarin just bought a 4-bedroom Palmetto Bay home for $405,000; the seller paid $670,000 for the same house two years ago. "The market is not horrible if you are a buyer right now," says Jennifer Clarin.


HousingBath Swallowing Years of Appreciation

A similiar scenario exists on the other side of the Everglades, according to the HeraldTribune. Those shopping for a home in Southwest Florida today are in the driver's seat, but those hoping to sell and retire on years of double-digit annual price appreciation can forget it. The HousingBath of short sales, foreclosures and abandoned homes has forced home prices down to late 2003 levels. And unlike Miami and Fort Lauderdale, the August sales numbers didn't provide any cause for celebration in either Sarasota (down 29% vs. August '07) or Bradenton (down 21% vs. August '07). Adam Chicoine of Sarasota-based Re/Max says the reality check is slapping some sellers in the face: "People have started to take notice that they definitely have to lower their price and accept lower than they wanted to sell their house."


U.K. Company Offers to Buy 22 WCI Units for $3.52 Million

WCI, the Bonita Springs luxury homebuilder, is apprently in a mood to make some deals with foreign buyers looking for bargains. The company has an offer on the table from Scotland-based Southern Caledonian to buy an entire 22-unit condominium complex for $3.52 million, or $160,000 per unit. While it may sound like a great deal for Southern Caledonian on the surface, someone should tell them to take a closer look at some comps on Trulia. Existing condo units for sale in the same Pelican Preserve community of Fort Myers are going for thousands less. A 1,300 square foot, 2/2 can be found for $139,900, while another unit is listed for $148,900. According to the Wall Street Journal, "The bankruptcy court will consider approval of the deal at an Oct. 8 hearing."