"Real Estate Update - Palm Coast, FL"



Every Class We Take... Now
Starts With "Short Sale."

  I do my best to update you on the main issues affecting real estate here in Flagler County, Florida.  This is a "snapshot" of the past 30 days in Palm Coast and Flagler Beach, Florida.  Included are zip codes 32164, 32137, and 32136.  The numbers this time are pretty much the same as they have been for the past few months.  We seem to be in a rut.  When we get to the end of 2010 - only 78 days from now - I'll do some trend analysis.  I'd like to be able to show how we're coming out of the woods, but know that is wishful thinking at this time.

So here we go:  (These numbers are for "Single Family Homes."  They do NOT include input for condos or land/lots or commercial transactions)

• There are currently 1153 homes "For Sale" in Palm Coast.
• They are priced between $45,000 and $2,600,000.
• They have been on the market between 1 and an astonishing 1872 days!
• 40% of the listed homes have been for sale for over 6 months... up to over 5 years!
• Hint:  We have a serious mis-understanding of The Law of Supply & Demand.  My partner (in real estate and in life) Maritssa, ran some stats the other day and found that over 70% of homes listed... never sell!  The stark reality is that they are over-priced.  For every location and/or condition, there is a price, at which every property will sell.  In a market like ours, facing that price can often be a challenge.  To "Git er done" today, you need a Price Motivation Level of at least an "8" (on a scale of 1-10).
• 34% of listings (391 homes) are short sales attempts.
• Only 3.7% of our listings (43 homes) are bank owned foreclosures.
• Hint:  We are caught up in the world of pre-foreclosures... or foreclosure avoidance.  But the foreclosures are coming, with over 300,000 notices issued per month for over 18 months in a row!
• We have SOLD 111 homes, or 9.6% of available inventory.  9.6% is known as the absorption rate.  The implication is that if no new inventory came on the market, we could sell everything in about 10 months.  It's a fallacy, however, because 70% of our listings are over-priced and won't sell in the foreseeable future.
• These homes sold between $55,000 and $840,000.
• 67 of these sales were "distressed" sales - short sale or bank owned - almost all short sales.  That's an amazing 60% of all closings being distressed! 
• Flagler Beach is more of the same.
• 116 homes for sale at this time.
• 5 sold in the past month.
• With a lack of "comparables," appraisers at the beach have to get creative.





Five Year "Down Cycle?"
Come' on, Man!




These "Distressed Sales"
Are Now 60% of our Market!