July real estate stats slightly lag behind state, but cash deals dominate
As cash deals continue, the Lee and Charlotte County regions slightly lag the rest of the state in July real estate statistics, according to information released this week from the Florida Board of Realtors and local boards.
Statewide, existing single-family houses sales were down 6.4 percent year-over-year, to 22,198, while existing condo-townhouse sales were down 9.4 percent, to 8,463.
For Lee County and the Cape Coral Fort Myers area, closed sales were down 5.3 percent to 1,106, comparing July to July. Closed sales in the county so far for all of 2023 were down 14.6 percent, to 8,431. The median sales price in that metro area was $434,980, down just 1.1 percent for the year so far.
For the Punta Gorda area, closed sales were down 10.6 percent comparing July to July, with 388 closed single-family sales and a median price of $391,300. Closed sales overall in the Punta Gorda area were down 20.6 percent, to 2,766, and the median price was down 2.4 percent, to $380,000.
Cash sales continue to be a factor in Cape Haze and Boca Grande.
Cash sales predominated this week of Aug. 13-19, 2023 in the zip codes of 33946, 33947 and 33921, according to the Englewood Board of Realtors. While there were no sales reported to the Board on Boca Grande, seven of the 12 deals were cash sales, including 41 Lemon Bay Lane, in Palm Island Estate, for $1,850,000. The highest priced sale in the area was 570 Gaspar Drive in Cape Haze, which sold for $2,950,000 with conventional terms.
National Stats Moderate
The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.84 percent in July. That had some effect on national housing numbers.
This week, the U.S. Census released new house-building numbers, commonly called housing starts. Housing completions for July were down 6.4 percent, year over year, and existing condo sales were down 9.4 percent, also year over year.
