Homes under $300K 'virtually non-existent'

Link to news story by Sarasota Herald Tribune:
http://www.sarasotaherald.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050426/BUSINESS/504260390/1060

The median price for existing homes rushed past $300,000 to an all-time high last month in the Sarasota-Bradenton housing market.Sales prices for existing houses rose 36 percent during March and a like amount -- 35 percent -- for Charlotte County-North Port, lifting that community's median to just over $208,000.Although huge increases, the March median price of $305,400 placed Sarasota-Bradenton only in the middle of the Sunshine State's rabid housing pack, a Monday report from the Florida Association of Realtors showed.Miami's prices jumped 40 percent and Fort Myers saw a staggering 43 percent price increase.But whatever the percentages, the $305,400 median placed the Sarasota-Bradenton market in some rarefied company. Only Naples at $430,800, West Palm Beach-Boca Raton at $371,500, Fort Lauderdale at $332,400 and Miami at $322,300 had higher median prices, while the statewide average was $212,300.Realtors cautioned against reading too much into the numbers, noting that March's totals signify only one month's sales and probably not a lasting trend. They also pointed out that the volume of housing sales for the month was virtually unchanged or down slightly from last year in many communities.Statewide volume rose 6 percent, but in the Sarasota-Bradenton market, the number of homes sold dropped 6 percent compared with March 2004, and in Charlotte-North Port it rose a mere 3 percent.Still, crossing the $300,000 plateau raised a few eyebrows."Yeah, it's a big number," said Judy Schomaker, president of the Sarasota Association of Realtors and an agent at Re/Max Properties Sarasota. "But honestly, it's no different to me if you pay $300,000 for a house than $299,000. It doesn't mean anything unless we see that's what the trend is at the end of the year."Prices have been surging for months against a backdrop of leveling or declining home sales.Orlando-based economist Hank Fishkind, pointing to a recent analysis that includes additional indicators, such as condominium sales and housing starts, says the number of home sales in Southwest Florida peaked early last summer and has been declining ever since.Fishkind and others blame the escalating prices on rising mortgage rates -- an average of 5.93 percent in March on a 30-year, fixed-rate loan, compared with 5.45 percent a year before -- and a dwindling supply of available houses under $500,000.Many Realtors say trying to find listings at that relatively low end is like playing a hyper-fast cat-and-mouse game counted not in days but hours."They come on the market and come off the market pretty fast," said Sue Louis, president of Coldwell Banker's Sarasota-Bradenton division. "I'm surprised the median is that low."Based on an analysis of the Multiple Listing Service, Louis says the average asking price in March for an existing house in Sarasota was just over $1 million. The average sale price last year was $467,822.That gold rush of home sales at the upper end, coupled with shrinking supply at the low end, is lifting the median, Louis said.Of homes priced below $300,000, Schomaker noted: "They're virtually non-existent."Realtors say sellers at the low end are skittish about listing their homes because they can't find alternatives that fit their price range.As a result, many are staying put, sinking their money into renovations and keeping their homes off the market until their financial profiles improve.There are added pressures from retirees and pre-retirees who bid up properties and make cash purchases to be assured their offers are accepted.Louis also points to another phenomenon: Buyers who initially had set their sights on new houses are getting frustrated at the wait for home sites, sometimes stretching to six months, and are shifting focus to the existing-home market.All this makes for challenging times for Realtors such as Devon Davis of Re/Max Gulfstream in Manatee County.She checks the Multiple Listing Service database three times daily and lately sees "more property sold or pending than being listed."The $250,000 to $300,000 range is the most sought-after market, but also the thinnest, Davis said."It's very, very difficult. I tell buyers they have to be pre-qualified and be ready to move if something comes on the market, and then they have to be willing to go over the asking price."