Eva Oliver is a Realtor with Coldwell Banker Miami Beach.

Every week, we ask a Miami real estate professional for their thoughts on the top three stories from the week before.

This week, we talked with Eva Oliver, a Realtor with Coldwell Banker in Miami Beach. One of Miami’s top agents, Eva has worked in real estate for 12 years, and is extremely well versed in not only local trends, but also high tech real estate tools in the market today.

Miami Agent (MA): What market trends will you be following in the New Year?

Eva Oliver (EO): I’ve been keeping an eye on how quickly the market is moving and how long properties are staying on the market. Properties trade like commodities – when the price is right, the buyers come. If a buyer is looking to obtain financing, there is an additional challenge that the property will have to appraise, and appraisals tend to be based on “history of sales” rather than the current market. I have also noticed that some sellers have been increasing their prices. If a property is on the market and not selling, a price increase pushes the sellers further away from the buyer pool. I have seen several price increases on the Multiple Listing Service in the last three to six months in both sales and rentals.

That has led to an abnormally high amount of “stale” inventory. In our market, the number of properties coming on to the market is stable, but the total inventory is rising. This primarily happens when there is a good amount of inventory at prices that are not attracting the current buyers in the market. A good buyer will want to pay fair market value for a property. Most buyers are reluctant to over-pay, and due to the rampant amount of information, they are very well informed.

MA:  Keeping with the topic of prices, Miami’s prices in the latest Case-Shiller posted the second strongest monthly increase in the nation. What do you think is behind Miami’s sustained home-price growth?

EO: There is no doubt that prices are on a steady climb – I strongly believe it’s a simple supply and demand factor. Our supply is steady, and along with sunshine, we’re in an excellent position for international attraction with an area that offers so much, from entertainment, premier dining and year round water sports and unlimited fun.

Buyers are back to buying, developing is on the move again and if a buyer really wants a property, they are willing to pay what they need to pay. It is a wonderfully dynamic market that is ripe for sellers who want to sell and buyers who want to buy. We are sustained by a strong influx of interested buyers from around the world, as well as a strong domestic flow from the Northeast U.S. and Canada.

MA: Finally, what social networks have you found to be the most helpful for your marketing efforts?

EO: My two favorite sites are Facebook and LinkedIn. There are others like Instagram, which is becoming very popular, but these two work well for me. Many email campaign programs sync with most of the social media sites, making it easy to post information about your listings. For me and my generation, it’s just as natural as talking on the phone.

I have a huge reach through social media, which is a huge benefit for my clients and a great resource to me. There is no limit to where you can grow your social media and the exposure that it gives my properties.