New Contracts Grow In North Florida

The number of new contracts for real estate in North Florida continues to grow.

In September, the number of new contracts grew an amazing 39% over September in 2011, and it was 8th month where consecutive year over year gains were recorded. Additionally, it was the single largest gain in new contracts since September 2005 (six years ago)!

New Contracts Forecast Future Housing Market

In the real estate graph below, the number of new contracts for home sales in North Florida are monitored. The graph shows activity in Leon County, Wakulla County, Gadsden Country, Jefferson County, Franklin County, and "other areas."

The graph records the monthly change in new contracts (yellow) as well as the year over year changes (purple). The yellow area can fluctuate due to seasonal changes that occur, but the purple bars show us the real movement of the market. We monitor new contracts in real estate in order to forecast the number of sales that will occur over the next few months.

New Contracts Key To Housing Market Recovery

The housing market recovery will be predicated on returning to balance between supply and demand, and the key to doing this will be the return to "normal" levels of new contracts in the Tallahassee MLS.

The following graph shows the supply and demand for real estate in North Central Florida, and with more than 14 months of supply, there is still far too much inventory for the current rate of new contracts hitting the market.

The green line in graph above is the trend of closed home sales, which has finally moved above its all time low.

Currently, the market is at a bit of an impasse, where nearly 1/2 of all buyers wanting to buy are trapped in a home with no equity (or negative equity). New contracts are on the rise (slightly) as buyers who did short sales three and four years ago have recovered and are returning to the market. These recovering buyers will represent a growing niche in the market over the next five years.

If you are thinking about short selling your home (so that you can return to the market in a few years at better prices and lower interest rates), then consider reading our free resource "Should I Short Sale My Home?" Many of today's happy buyers are glad they did just a few short years ago.

If you would like to know more about buying a home or getting to a position where you can buy a home, just drop me a note and we can schedule a time to discuss your specific situation. As bad as your current situation might seem, we have the experience to help you move through it and reduce the stress that comes with not having "your house in order."

We encourage you to fix your housing problem as soon as you can, and before you know it, you will be part of the North Central Florida new contracts report.