New Inventory is Absorbed During Busy Season
Northeast Broward County
Sales volume this season was still a bit below normal levels, but activity was still strong enough to absorb the excess inventory in our market. We currently have 10.3 months of supply of single family waterfront homes in Northeast Broward County. That is down from 11.3 months at the start of the season in early February. We anticipate demand will remain strong through the spring and early summer which should continue to stabilize our housing supply. Inventory levels are also consistent across our different waterfront communities, another sign of a market returning to normal.
Sellers are definitely more negotiable with median list prices down over 16% from last year and homes selling for 94% of list price. However, much of our inventory was overpriced, so we view this as a sign that sellers are now more reasonable about their property values. Median sale prices and price per square foot are still up 11% and 9.7% respectively over last year. Bottom line, single family waterfront is still in high demand and we don’t expect that to change anytime soon. Now is a great time for both buyers and sellers to negotiate a fair deal on a waterfront home.
Also available: Oceanfront Condo Report
Northeast Broward County has the most plentiful supply of ocean access lots in all of South Florida. They don’t call this the Venice of America for nothing. The majority of our waterfront homes are located in Fort Lauderdale, Pompano Beach and Lighthouse Point.
Waterfront sellers are more negotiable and list prices are down, but median sale prices are still up 11% over last year. Sale price per square foot is also up 9.7%.
Northeast Broward County Waterfront Market Watch Report
Fort Lauderdale
Fort Lauderdale has seen the largest pricing adjustment since 2022 when the median sales price was inflated to almost $2.5 million. So, even Fort Lauderdale sellers are coming back to reality with median sale prices now in the $1.9 million range.
Inventory in Fort Lauderdale is consistent with the rest of the county at 10.5 months of supply. We expect inventory to remain stable, so don’t expect the current price correction to last long. Fort Lauderdale ocean access property will always be in high demand and you can expect sale prices to return to their normal year over year increases.
Median sale prices are flat year over year in Fort Lauderdale, but don’t expect this correction to last long.
Fort Lauderdale Waterfront Market Watch Report
Pompano Beach
Pompano Beach continues to be in high demand with waterfront buyers. The median sale price of a single family home in Pompano is now $1,500,000. This is up over 21% from last year and up over 100% from 5 years ago. Pompano has always been a value market compared to Fort Lauderdale, but there is currently only a 3.3% difference in sale price per square foot between the two cities. It will be interesting to see if this trend continues.
Inventory levels in Pompano are the lowest in the area at 9.9 months of supply, but just below the NE Broward average of 10.3 months. This is a dramatic increase however compared to last year when Pompano’s inventory was about half of NE Broward’s median supply. We will be watching Pompano closely for a correction similar to what Fort Lauderdale experienced.
Median sale prices for single family waterfront in Pompano Beach have reached all time highs and inventory levels are rising quickly. We may see a small correction just like Fort Lauderdale experienced.
Pompano Beach Waterfront Market Watch Report
Lighthouse Point
Lighthouse Point currently has the highest inventory in the Fort Lauderdale area at 10.6 months of supply, but this is a smaller market so inventory levels tend to fluctuate more.
The median sales price in Lighthouse Point is down to $1,975,000 which is almost a 22% decrease from last year. However, price per square foot is the highest in NE Broward at $870 per foot. So, what’s happening? Both of these fluctuations are due to a large number of smaller home sales. The median size of homes sold in the past 6 months is only 2,356 square feet versus 3,164 a year ago. This is a good indication that smaller homes are being sold for lot value and we can expect more new home construction.
Due to a large number of smaller home sales in Lighthouse Point, median sale prices are down and price per square foot is up. We anticipate seeing new construction on some of those lower priced lots.
Lighthouse Point Waterfront Market Watch Report
Summary
The busy season is bringing some interesting changes to our market. While sales volume is still a bit below normal, demand is still strong across our waterfront communities. We are experiencing some corrections throughout the market, but nothing to be alarmed about. We have experienced a turbulent few years on the waterfront, so some corrections are welcome. While inventory levels are technically favoring buyers, prices are still on the rise with the median sale price per square foot up almost 10% from last year. More “fair” deals are getting done with the average waterfront home selling for 94% of list price. Buyers can be comfortable making lower offers and more often than not sellers are negotiating and meeting buyers at a fair market value.
Buying and selling waterfront property can be tricky business these days. Please make sure you have a local waterfront specialist to assist you.
