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Hernando Today
Published: January 13, 2013
Updated: January 13, 2013 - 12:00 AM
The housing picture brightened considerably last year, thanks to one of the lowest home inventories in years for single-family homes and increased investor activity.
The number of existing single-family home sales for 2012 was 2,787, up from 2,582 a year ago, according to statistics from the Hernando County Association of Realtors' multi-listing service.
The average sales price was $96,000, up slightly from $95,000. Average days on the market remained the same at 108.
"We're taking a turn in the right direction," said Marisa Brewer, broker with Preferred Property Associates.
Brewer said she would like to see the average sales price go up more. Home prices peaked in 2006 when the average single-family home sold for $204,000. Prices have declined every year since.
"Hopefully we have hit bottom and started to stabilize," Brewer said. "Depending on the economy, we can start to see some appreciation again. There are still buyers out there ? cash buyers."
If a home is priced correctly in this market, it should sell, she said.
"It's affordable to live in Hernando County again," Brewer said.
Further breaking out the home sales for 2012:
- 607 sales (or about 22 percent) were foreclosures.
- 352 sales (about 13 percent) were short sales.
- 1,829 of the sales (about 65 percent) were traditional transactions.
Brewer said rental prices are also on the rise, another positive sign.
"It's not real easy for investors to flip a home and make an instant profit," Brewer said. "But if they hold on and rent it out, there's positive cash flow there."
Meanwhile, with 11 months of data reported, 2012 will go down as a record year for favorable housing affordability conditions, and a great year for buyers who could get a mortgage, according to the National Association of Realtors.
The NAR cited its Housing Affordability Index, which is based on the relationship between median home price, median family income and average mortgage interest rate.
The higher the index, the greater the household purchasing power.
For all of 2012, NAR projects the housing affordability index to be a record high 194, up from 186 in 2011 ? the previous record.
"Although 2012 (had the strongest affordability) on record, excessively tight underwriting precluded many would-be homebuyers from locking in generational low interest rates," NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun said in a press release. "Rising home prices and a gradual uptrend in mortgage interest rates will offset improvements in family income, but 2013 likely will be the third-best on record in terms of household buying power."
On the new-home construction front, there were 122 single-family home permits issued by the county from Jan. 1, 2012 through September 2012. That compares to 124 for all of 2011, and a far cry from a high of 4,185 in 2005, the last big boom year for construction.
Hoping to jump-start sales, county commissioners this week voted unanimously to extend the suspension of impact fees until Aug. 14 of this year.
The ordinance creating the suspension was set to expire in May, but the board decided to extend it another three months.
Builder Robert Eaton told board members Tuesday he supported the extension.
"Our industry has been devastated, as we all know, as has the real estate industry in general," Eaton said. "Trying to build it back, it has been helpful to have the suspension of impact fees. It has made a difference."
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