The famous quote from George Carlin  “it’s a big club” seems really appropriate these days.  If you have been trying to buy a house, condo, or even rent an apartment in South Florida on a budget, prices are out of reach for most.  If you think this clown show setting monetary policy and creating massive bubbles care about people struggling to afford a place to live, think again.   It’s a big club and you ain’t in it!

Today we will look at the recent real estate activity in South Florida.  Our charts cover Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach County.  The housing bubble may finally be deflating, but the South Florida market may still not be affordable for years even if there is a serious correction.  Here are the numbers for August:

Average sale price of Single-Family Homes

• Miami-Dade – $985,000, up from $942,484 in July
• Broward – $667,853, down from $719,293 in July
• Palm Beach – $826,567, down from $1,031,919 in July

Average sale price of Condo Properties

• Miami-Dade – $575,720, down from $624,884 in July
• Broward – $292,311, down from $307,951 in July
• Palm Beach – $365,413, down from $409,595 in July

Transaction Volume for Single-Family Homes

• Miami-Dade – 1,373, down from 1,542 in July
• Broward – 1,680, down from 1,803 in July
• Palm Beach – 1,774, down from 2,117 in July

Transaction Volume for Condo Properties

• Miami-Dade – 2,259, down from 2,515 in July
• Broward – 1,999, down from 2,318 in July
• Palm Beach – 1,541, down from 1,913 in July

Inventory of Single-Family Homes

• Miami-Dade – 2,957, up from 2,867 in July
• Broward – 2,414, up from 2,405 in July
• Palm Beach – 2,493, down from 3,185

Inventory of Condo Properties

• Miami-Dade – 8,473, up from 8,440 in July
• Broward – 3,898, down from 4,097 in July
• Palm Beach – 2,256, down from 2,966 in July

At some point the mania in the real estate market has to cool down.  Although the quality of mortgages has improved dramatically during this cycle, there are plenty of recent buyers that will be trapped in their properties for years if they want to sell.  There are hazards to keeping mortgage rates so low for so long, as it encourages people to take on too much debt and risk.  What if the housing market crashes?  Will there be another series of bailouts like during the Great Financial Crisis?  At this point it’s hard to tell.  We just look at the charts and hopefully they will tell us where the market is going.  Here is a look at mortgage rates:

Mortgage foreclosure filings remain may grind higher over the next year, but and don’t expect that inventory to hit the market anytime soon.  Once they get elevated, there will probably be another bailout and or institutional buyers will scoop them up just like during the last housing market crash.  It’s a big club and you ain’t in it!

This market outlook covers real estate activity in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach County, Florida.  Here are just a few of the cities in each of these three markets:

• Miami-Dade – Aventura, Coral Gables, Miami Beach, Hialeah, Sunny Isles Beach, North Miami, Homestead, Doral, Miami Lakes, Downtown Miami, Brickell and Key Biscayne.

• Broward – Fort Lauderdale, Pompano Beach, Deerfield Beach, Hollywood, Hallandale, Weston, Parkland, Wilton Manors, Oakland Park, Plantation, Cooper City, Davie, Coral Springs and Lighthouse Point.

• Palm Beach – Delray Beach, Highland Beach, Jupiter, Palm Beach Island, Boynton Beach, Boca Raton, Highland Beach, Palm Beach Gardens, West Palm Beach, Wellington and Lake Worth.