Short Sale and Foreclosure Listings Down in My Miami

Today in my geographic market - which runs from the northern edge of Downtown Miami, through Brickell, Coconut Grove, South Miami, Downtown Kendall & Dadeland, Pinecrest and Palmetto Bay – there are currently 2964 condominiums and townhouses listed for sale on the MLS. Of those, 480 are listed as Short Sales and another 72 as “REO’s” (or bank-owned/foreclosure property). This represents just 19% of the market, which is both surprising and encouraging. That is substantially less than the 37% nationwide in January, as reported by Lawrence Yun, chief economist at the National Association of Realtors. Anecdotally, agents in my office are also reporting that more of their listings are for traditional sellers – owner-occupied with equity.

But with 46% of Florida homeowners “under water” with their mortgages, and nearly one of every four foreclosures in the country still occurring in Florida, is the improvement in my real estate market a sign of improvement… or a lull in the storm?

What do you think? If you are a property owner, prospective buyer, or real estate professional in my geographic area – or even if you are not - I’d love to hear your opinion on these statistics.