Home Sales Drop in Orlando Housing Market

Orlando housing market home sales in April decreased when compared with the previous month, while median home prices also receded slightly, according to the Florida Association of Realtors.

For April, 1,609 existing single-family homes sold in the Orlando metropolitan statistical area, a 35 percent drop from the 2,491 that sold the same month a year prior. The median price in April was $250,300, a 5 percent decline from the $263,100 price in April 2006.

Meanwhile, 207 existing Florida condominiums sold last month in the Orlando MSA, an enormous 57 percent drop from the 486 sales in April last year. The median sales price fell 7 percent, from $166,100 in April 2006 to $154,500 last month.

Statewide, April single-family existing home sales totaled 12,016 compared to 16,283 homes sold in April 2006. The Sunshine State’s median sales price for existing single-family homes in April fell 3 percent, from $245,900 a year ago to $237,800.

For existing condos, 4,321 were sold in Florida last month, compared with 5,344 the same month last year - a 19 percent slide. The median sales price was $215,500 in April 2007, up 3 percent from April 2006’s price of $210,000 and a sign that Florida mortgage loan borrowers could find a reasonable deal here.

The National Association of Realtors says existing home sales are expected to gradually improve in the second half of the year, with a price recovery following soon after, according to a news release.

The monthly report is based on multiple listing service sales levels reported by Realtor boards and associations throughout the state and prepared by FAR and the University of Florida Real Estate Research Center.