Total home sales declined by 7.5 percent in the first quarter of 2018 when compared to the same time last year, according to the Miami Association of Realtors. At the same time, the median home price in the area has risen for the 25th consecutive quarter. How can sales decline while home prices continue to increase? The simple answer: inventory.
After a prolonged period of declining inventory, the number of homes available in South Florida actually rose in the first quarter. For single-family homes, inventory increased 2.5 percent to 6.2 months of supply, according to the Realtor association.
A healthy market should have between six and nine months of inventory, so Miami is just within the “healthy” designation when it comes to supply. A look at inventory on the neighborhood level, however, shows a much different story.
The Miami Association of Realtors highlighted the five communities with the tightest single-family home inventory levels, which include:
- Westview: 1.6 months supply
- Miami Gardens: 2.3 months supply
- Virginia Gardens: 2.4 months supply
- Hileah Gardens: 2.4 months supply
- Palmetto Estates: 2.6 months supply
Notice that the list does not contain some of Miami’s most in-demand areas, which have seen single-family luxury homes or $1 million or more fly off the shelves this year. The list of the communities with the lowest single-family supply are mostly middle-class areas that need more (affordable) housing stock the most.
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Check back tomorrow to see the list of the five local condo markets with the lowest supply.