MLS Inventory Tops 20,000 Total Units
My friend John Ringlespaugh of Tourtelot Brothers Real Estate in St.
Petersburg, Florida likes to keep track of the number of listings available
in the Pinellas County Multiple Listing Service. According to John's figures
and what we learned in Economics 101, real estate prices should be falling
-- and falling fast! Here's what John reported to me on Friday, February
23rd ...
Total Number Of Properties In the Pinellas MLS: 21,893
Residential Properties: 17,907
Multi-Family: 610
Rentals: 1,825
Vacant Land: 761
Commercial Listings: 790
Deduct the rental units from that tally sheet, and you have about 20,000
units for sale. That's a lot of available properties! If you're a
residential buyer, you have mega-choices to make because the number of
residential listings last Friday was nearing 18,000.
Here's how residential listings break down according to John Ringlespaugh's
categories ...
Single Family Residences: 8,379
Condominiums: 7,230
Townhomes: 1,454
Condo Hotels: 193
Mobile Homes: 214
Others/Misc: 437
So, what does this mean?
If you're a buyer, it means you have a wide selection and you can now be
selective. It means you can probably negotiate a lower price and better
terms. It means you can probably get the seller to make consessions. It
means you can take a little more time and be a little more reflective in
what you're doing. It's a great time to be a buyer!
If you're a seller, this huge inventory means you have to become realistic
about your pricing and the quality of your property. I'm going to give
sellers Economics Rule 102: In an overly saturated market only the best
items get sold. Today's market may not be overly saturated yet, but
there sure is a glut of available property. If buyer's don't view your
property as among the best of what they see, they won't buy it. It has to be
the best value for the money, be in the best condition, be in the best
neighborhood. You have to be willing to negotiate the best deal from the
buyer's viewpoint. Sellers also need patience and a great marketing program.
Mostly though, sellers need to start lowering their asking prices. |
