Market looking up

"How is the real estate market going for you these days?" This is the question that is routinely posed to realtors, in Winter Park and elsewhere. Often the question is posed with a tilted head and sympathetic tone, in anticipation of a negative response. The truth is that right now real estate is moving and realtors are very busy. With housing prices at levels not seen since the turn of the century - you know, the year 2000 – and with short sales and foreclosures o'plenty, investors and deal-seekers are coming out of the proverbial woodwork. Yes, even in Winter Park! At the penning of this article, there sits a foreclosure listing in the prestigious "Vias" for $189,900. In addition, the rental market has increased exponentially, due both to homes that will not sell, and to renters who are unwilling or unable to buy. After the real estate drought of the last couple of years, everyone is enjoying the current downpour of activity. The perfect storm of unprecedented interest rates (under 5% for qualified buyers) and affordable prices has made Winter Park suddenly affordable to previously excluded individuals.

The real estate market that we are currently experiencing is active and functional, but it is a very different marketplace from five years ago, one year ago, and maybe even last week, as the rules are in a state of constant flux. There have been tax incentives for first time home buyers, tax incentives for move-up buyers, changes in lending rules, changes in settlement statements and multiple new programs for home owners "under water." It's hard to avoid the new real estate paradigm even in Winter Park where approximately 28% of the homes on the market are either bank owned or "short sales." Buying or selling a home these days is certainly more complicated. It could take a bit longer to close; it may require more paperwork; it definitely requires a hefty amount of patience, but buyers and sellers are negotiating fair prices and properties are moving.

In Winter Park, we are seeing our greatest activity in the $200,000 to $400,000 price range (with 78 sales since January of this year and another 21 currently pending.) Conversely, the overall Central Florida market is seeing most of the activity for homes priced less than $200,000. Winter Park has only had 20 sales of homes priced over $1 million since January, and this is less than half as many as was seen over the same time period in both 2005 and 2006. Surprisingly, it is more than twice the number of million dollar sales in the same period for both 2002 and 2003, before the market lost control of its self. So while the high end market seems depressed, it is comparatively more active than it was in more moderate times.

The rental market in Winter Park has experienced a sharp upswing in recent years, as more and more homes that do not sell are placed into the rental pool. These rentals are being absorbed by individuals who are still waiting for "the perfect deal" before making a purchase, or by those who have themselves lost homes to a short sale or foreclosure. The MLS, which only reflects homes that are rented by a real estate professional, shows that the number of Winter Park rentals increased from 65 in 2005 to a whopping 371 in 2009. In 2005, none of these homes rented for as much as $3,000 per month, however in 2009 there were 22 such rentals. This year, 173 homes have rented so far in Winter Park, 14 of which have rented for $3,000 or over. The increase in the number of high end rentals is commensurate with the recent decrease in the sale figures for these same homes.

So next time you ask your Realtor, "How's business?" don't be so worried. Things are looking up. Both sales volume and median sales price have been steadily increasing since January of 2010. And as we muddle through the inventory of distressed properties, we look toward a bright tomorrow of real estate normalcy – whatever that is!

—Brenda Cole & Laura Carroll of Gould and Company

statistical data provided by Orlando Regional Board of Realtors Multiple Listing Service.