Miami Beach Real Estate Trends & Buyer Lessons

Miami Beach Real Estate Trends & Buyer Lessons. Well, friends, here is the 1Q scoop. The graph above shows us the Miami Beach condo inventory (33141/waterfront). Condo inventory listed for sale throughout 2007 into the first quarter of 2008. Notice the inventory heading up and then down. This may signify the market inventory improving. I’ll be watching this closely in quarters 2, 3, and 4 to see if we have reached the bottom and will keep you informed through the Miami Beach Real Estate Blog.

 

Miami Beach Real Estate Trends

This graph above is also crucial to understand. We are reviewing the average time on the market for condos that HAVE SOLD. The next crucial indicator is the Sold Price to List Price Ratio. This indicates the buyer discount, which shows us an average of 90%+ of the list price. The latter part is important for today’s buyers to understand…This oceanfront entity of Miami Dade County is specifically Miami Beach. The demand is and will always be Miami Beach OCEANFRONT condos, Duh! This graph also includes Bay front condo sales. What I’m going to repeat over and over is that well-priced properties… let’s call them “Deals, Bargains, Steals, Foreclosures, Short sales,” or whatever it is that your query for a “good deal” constitutes, are indeed selling at 90%+ of the list price.

Buyer Lessons

Lesson 1.

It’s fairly plain and simple that there are no “good deals” at 30, 40, or especially 50 cents on the dollar. Maybe if you factor in the value in 2005 and then get close. This oceanfront segment of the market has depreciated 25% since the market peaked in 2005. If you think time is on your side in finding this markdown, you may be waiting and never own in Miami Beach. 

Lesson 2.

For those needing financing… as interest rates rise, you may find yourself priced out of the building you could afford today. With a 2% rise in the interest rate, your $400,000 loan just went from $2,359 (5.85%) to $2,893 (7.85%) for an additional $534 monthly expense. Will this happen? You better count on it as the Fed places a band-aid on an open wound.

Lesson 3.

If you are previewing the 1 to 3 of the very best “Deals, Bargains and Steals” of a condominium meeting your overall criteria and the best-priced condos are at the $450,000 to $500,000 range while recent comparable closed sales are showing 3 sales at, let’s say $550,000, $565,000 and $599,000, it will be very unlikely (sometimes insulting) that the owner will take $300,000! The best I’ve seen and saved my client this year is 16%, and it was a cash offer with 7-day closing.

Lesson 4.

You MUST first know it’s a BARGAIN when previewing the building by reviewing a comparable closed sale report. This may be provided by an area expert and proving it’s a great buy. Understand this last part and ensure your agent shows you both MLS and privately closed sales.

The moral of this story is Miami Beach real estate has great new opportunity with today’s excessive Miami Condo inventory. We will get you a “Deal, Bargain, Steal” on your terms when a “reasonable” offer is presented. Reasonable is 10 to 20% off the asking price at best, depending on your financial capabilities, sale contingencies, and closing time frame. 

Feel free to comment with your thoughts on Miami Beach Real Estate Trends and this blog. The many readers and I would love to hear from you! I continually add to my Miami Beach real estate blog, and once you visit, you can be notified by email each time I post a new article.