Andre's Blog

Sales of existing single-family homes surged again in South Florida last month, jumping by 101 percent in Miami-Dade County and 47 percent in Broward, as the triple draw of low interest rates, tumbling prices and a new $8,000 first-time-homeowner tax credit lured in buyers.

March was the eighth consecutive month in which the number of homes sold grew over the year-ago-period in both counties, according to monthly numbers from the Florida Association of Realtors. Sales of condominiums rose by 59 percent in Miami-Dade and 28 percent in Broward.

South Florida's sales increases eclipsed the nation as a whole -- nationally, resales fell by 7 percent compared with last year, and 3 percent from February. Sales growth in South Florida also outpaced the state.

Though prices continue to fall by double-digit percentages, the new momentum underscores growing confidence among South Florida buyers who believe prices and the available housing options may not get much better. Roughly 40 percent of homes on the market are foreclosures and other distressed properties that are selling at big discounts.

Davis Pagan and his wife Lesli, of San Diego, are currently in Miami for 10 days of house hunting. The couple, who plan to move to South Florida within the next two months, decided against renting, fearing that if they waited a great opportunity could pass them by.

''There is always a chance the market could change in six months, so we are buying now,'' said Pagan, 33, who works for the Coast Guard and is being transferred to Miami in June. ``Our lender told us they could lock us in at 4.8 percent.''

In Miami-Dade, the March median home price slipped to $205,600, a 39 percent drop from March 2008. The median condo price fell 43 percent to $151,000.

The median selling price for a single-family home in Broward County fell 30 percent to $219,500. The median condo price fell 40 percent to $82,100.

In the state as a whole, the median home price fell 30 percent in March to $141,300 and dropped 37 percent for condos to $108,800.

It is unlikely home prices will see a turnaround anytime soon because thousands of homes hat remain on the market. In both counties, roughly 61,000 homes and condos were for sale. In March, a total of 2,546 properties changed hands.

An abundance of foreclosures and other distressed property sales also will continue putting downward pressure on pricing, analysts said.

Last month, 62 percent of closings were distressed sales, according to Ron Shuffield, a Coral Gables-based real estate analyst and president of Esslinger Wooten Maxwell Realtors. That drove down median prices -- the point at which half the homes sold for more and half for less -- in both counties.

While the median price for houses rose marginally between February and March, analysts say several months of sustained appreciation are needed to indicate a lasting trend rather than a market blip.

Dramatic price declines erode the personal wealth of homeowners, but they also make homeownership affordable for thousands of new buyers.

The Pagans, for instance, said they were looking for a house in the $300,000 to $350,000 range, which puts more than half of the homes in Miami-Dade and Broward within their reach.

Pagan said that compared to San Diego, also considered a highly desirable market, Miami prices were a great bargain. He echoed the attitudes of foreign buyers and others from outside the area who now find South Florida prices enticing compared to those in other top domestic locales.

''Even outside of [San Diego], foreclosures are still selling for $400,000,'' Pagan said.

About 30 percent of the homes for sale in Miami-Dade and Broward counties are listed for less than $100,000.

''We are now comparing very, very favorably with most every city across the U.S. when you compare our median income to median home price,'' Shuffield said.

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