Housing prices continue to rise in the Sarasota and Manatee market with August 2021 marking the 15th consecutive month of year-over-year price increases for single-family homes. According to data from Florida REALTORS and compiled by the REALTOR Association of Sarasota and Manatee (RASM), August reports fewer closed sales, while an increase in cash sales coupled with low supply indicates high demand and competition among buyers.

In August 2021, the combined closed sales of all property types in both counties decreased year-over-year by 7.5% to a total of 2,125 sales. August tends to be a slower month for home sales in the region, and while sales are down from the pandemic induced ‘frenzy’ in late 2020, closed sales for August 2021 improved by 8.4% when compared to August 2019.

For single-family homes, closed sales decreased year-over-year by 6% to 815 sales in Sarasota County and by 2.7% to 694 sales in Manatee. Condo sales decreased by 15.6% to 341 sales in Sarasota and decreased by 12.1% to 275 sales in Manatee.

“We're just a few months out from our high season, and right now we have about half the number of available homes than we did this time last year. There is still enormous buyer demand—expect competition, and therefore prices, to continue to rise,” said 2021 RASM President Alex Krumm, Broker Owner of NextHome Excellence. “Inventory almost always creeps up in the late summer and this year is no exception. It will be interesting to see what happens as we enter season with one-third of the available homes we had last year.”

Single-family prices have increased year-over-year each month since June 2020 and continue to rise in August. In Manatee County, the median price for single-family homes was $430,000, a 19.4% increase from last year. The single-family home price in Sarasota was $390,093 in August, an increase of 18.2%. In the condo market, Sarasota condos reported a 26.3% increase to a median price of $315,000, and Manatee reported a 23.3% increase to $275,000.

Newly listed homes, combined between the two counties, grew year-over-year by 2.3% for single-family homes and decreased by 16.3% for condos. As for new pending sales, the combined data in August showed a 16.4% decrease for single-family homes and a 24.4% decrease for condos.

“High competition for the limited number of available homes is tempting buyers to make sacrifices in price or condition in order to purchase. Buyers should be patient in finding their home, aggressive when offering for a home, and above all, make sure that their offers allow them the opportunity to do their due diligence,” added Krumm.

August 2021 reported more cash sales than the same month last year. In the North Port-Sarasota-Bradenton MSA, cash sales increased by 46.4% for single-family homes and by 12.7% for condos.

The inventory of all property types in the two counties decreased by 61.9% to 1,836 active listings at the end of August. The month’s supply of inventory for single-family homes is 0.8 months in both counties, a 63.6% decrease in Sarasota and a 61.9% decrease in Manatee. Condo inventory decreased by 83.8% to a 0.6-month supply in Sarasota and dropped by 78.8% to 0.7 months in Manatee County.

The median time from listing date to contract date is hovering around one week in the two counties. For single-family homes, combined for both counties, the median time to contract was 5 days in August, an 83.3% decrease from the same time last year. For condos in the North Port-Sarasota-Bradenton MSA, the median time to contract decreased by 85.1% to 7 days.

REALTOR Association of Sarasota and Manatee