Boca Raton home buyers see low inventories, rising construction costs

   The townhouse/condo  comparison showed an even bigger upside, with 410 units selling for a combined $300,440,615 , a 734.6 percent increase from the May 2020 number.

   There were just 334 homes for sale at the end of this past May, compared to 957 in May of 2020 – a 65.1 percent decrease. That left the months supply inventory at 1.2 months, down from 5.1 in May of 2020 – a 76.5 percent decrease.

   Townhouse/condo inventory listed 516 units for sales at the end of May (1,163 in May of 2020 – a 55.6 percent drop), with the months supply inventory down to 1.6 months (5.8 in May of 2020 – 72.4 percent drop).

   The inventory issue and higher construction costs don’t appear to be going away anytime soon.

   “With such limited supply of existing homes to purchase, all eyes are on home builders to provide a much-needed boost of inventory to the market to help meet buyer demand,” the report states.”However, increasing material and labor costs, along with supply chain challenges, have contributed to significantly higher construction costs, with builders passing these costs on to homebuyers.

   “And while the warmer temperatures, rising sales prices, and the reopening of the economy may draw more sellers to the market, historically low levels of homes for sale are likely to continue for some time.”

• Median sales price up 23 percent – $675,000 in May 2021, $549,000 in May 2020
• Average sale price up 56.5 percent – $1,279,667 in 2021, $817,862 in 2020
• Percent of original list price received up 6.6 percent – 98.2 percent in 2021, 92.1 percent in 2020
• Median time to contract down 47.9 percent – 38 days to sell a home in 2021, 73 days in 2020
• Pending sales up 35.7 percent – 281 in 2021, 207 in 2020
• New listings up 21.2 percent – 337 in 2021, 278 in 2020

The total number of Boca Raton townhouse/condo units sold through the first five months of the year (1,621) is a 77.4 percent increase over the same time span in 2020 (914) and the total dollar volume so far this year ($799,981,848) is a 164.8 percent increase over the same time span in 2020 ($302,119,445).

Other May townhouse/condo Realtor | Broward, Palm Beaches, St. Lucie stats were:

• Median sales price up 39.5 percent – $300,000 in May 2021, $215,000 in May 2020
• Average sale price up 157.1 percent – $734,525 in 2021, $285,698 in 2020
• Percent of original price received up 6.1 percent – 95.3 percent in 2021, 89.8 percent in 2020
• Median time to contract down 9.9 percent – 64 days to sell a townhouse/condo in 2021, 71 days in 2020
• Pending sales up 129.6 percent – 411 in 2021, 179 in 2020
• New listings up 32.3 percent – 430 in 2021, 325 in 2020

For more information on single family, townhouse/condo housing and commercial properties in Palm Beach and Broward counties, visit Petruzzelli Real Estate at their iconic 2325 N. Ocean Blvd. (A1A) office in Boca Raton or call them at 561.362.8413.