ORLANDO—Like in many markets across the rest of the country, the residential sales market in Orlando is seeing strong demand against a backdrop of low inventory that results in higher sale prices.

The Orlando residential market has been on quite a run, in fact it has registered 81 consecutive months of median home price increases.

The latest home sales report released by the Orlando Regional Realtor Association shows the median home price in greater Orlando rose 5.5% in March when compared to a year earlier to $230,000 and 0.4% above the February 2018 median price of $229,000. The Orlando Regional Realtor Association's market service area includes Lake, Orange, Osceola and Seminole counties.

The median price for single-family homes in the Orlando region that closed in March increased 6.3% over March 2017 to $249,900. The median price for condos increased 19.4% during that same period to $122,900.

The overall inventory of homes that were available for purchase in March (7,710) represented a decrease of 9.7% when compared to March 2017, and a 0.1% increase compared to February. There were 6.1% fewer single-family homes on the market and 24.3% fewer condos in Orlando in March as compared to March 2017.

“Orlando's housing market continues to be tugged by opposing factors such as low inventory and high demand,” says ORRA president Lou Nimkoff, a principal of Winter Park-based Brio Real Estate Services. “The result is a wash for sales. Transactions for the first quarter of 2018 closely mirror the first quarter of 2017, with this year up by a slight 1.5%. However, the quarter's median price is up by a healthy 9% and the dollar volume is up by 11.4% over the first quarter of 2017.”

Sales of single-family homes totaled 2,727 in March 2018, a decrease of approximately 0.4% compared to March 2017, while condo sales (421) increased 3.2%. A breakdown of sales activity in greater Orlando includes a 4.4% decline in sales in Lake County; a 2.9% decline in Orange County; a 5.9% increase in sales in Osceola County and a 3.7% home sales decrease in Seminole County.

Distressed home sales (foreclosures and short sales) totaled 115 in March and were 57.7% less than the 272 distressed sales in March 2017. Distressed sales made up 3.3% of all Orlando-area transactions in March.

Current inventory combined with the current pace of sales created a 2.2-month supply of homes on the market for sale in the Orlando region in March.

The National Association of Realtors reported recently that total housing inventory at the end of February rose 4.6% to 1.59 million existing homes available for sale across the nation, but was still 8.1% lower than a year earlier (1.73 million). Home inventory in the US has fallen year-over-year for 33 consecutive months. Unsold inventory in February was at a 3.4-month supply at the current sales pace.

Instant Insights /

Low Inventory Fuels Home Price Increase in Orlando

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