We are now well into our sluggish, sultry summer market with daytime temperatures in the 90s and more rain than we can remember but our local Punta Gorda/Port Charlotte real estate market continues to be active. In July we closed on 232 single family homes bringing our total for this year to 1639 units. This is slightly ahead of last year’s total but the average price has risen by over 20% and it is taking 3 weeks less time to get them under contract. Our market is changing from a buyer's market to one that favors sellers. Although the inventory is much less than several years ago, there is still a great selection. Smart sellers who have been waiting to put their homes on the market are now listing them for sale knowing that interest rates for loans to buyers won't stay at 4.25% forever. Sales of condominiums, townhomes and villas are ahead of last year’s pace also, with prices up about 12% and volume up a comfortable 7%. Another healthy sign is the diminished flow of bank influenced properties coming on line helping to stabilize the market.
A segment of our market that has been dormant for years, lot sales, has started to come alive again... especially waterfront lots. So far this year we have closed on 50 waterfront lots in PGI. In 2009 the total for the same time frame was 10!! So, all phases, homes, condos and land are doing well.
