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Homes sales heat up despite interest rates

Published on April 13, 2023 at 12:19 pm
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Higher interest rates apparently aren’t fazing people looking to buy or sell a house in Northeast Florida.

Homes sold more quickly in March than the month before, even though more homes were on the market, according to new data from the Northeast Florida Association of Realtors.

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Homes stayed on the market an average of 40 days, down 21% from February. More than 3,200 homes were newly listed, 33% more than the month before, and the total on the market came to 4,725, up 6%.

But, with buyers active, the market had only enough homes to last two months, which was 24% lower than February. Six months’ supply would be considered a stable housing market.

“Many buyers were quick to make an offer and secure the property shortly after its listing was introduced to the market,” association President Diana Galavis said in a news release. “Sellers appear to be unfazed by interest rate ups and downs. People are choosing to step into the real estate market in Northeast Florida,” as they often do at this time of year.

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The Realtors data showed that sellers on average were getting close to full price for their properties — 97% got at least what they listed their homes for. That was up slightly from February, but it was a dramatic change from last year, when bidding wars often pushed prices beyond their listed price. The percentage of homes that closed over the list price in March was 70% less than last year.

The median price for a single-family home inched up in March to $363,990 in Baker, Clay, Duval, Nassau, Putnam and St. Johns counties, the Realtors association said. “Many year-over-year statistics indicated that, perhaps, the crazy market increases that occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic and its aftermath are continuing to correct themselves,” the association said.

Sill, the median price was only 2% less than a year ago, and it remained unaffordable for many buyers.

The region’s affordability index — a measure of whether the typical family can afford the typical house — stood at 75 in March, the same as February. An index of 100 would indicate that the average family has exactly enough income to qualify for a mortgage.


author image Senior News Editor

Randy comes to Jacksonville from the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, where as metro editor, he led investigative coverage of the Parkland school shooting that won the 2019 Pulitzer Prize for public service. He has spent more than 40 years in reporting and editing positions in Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, Ohio and Florida. 


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