When is the next housing market bailout?  By looking at some real estate charts, it looks like this latest housing market rally may be fading.  Irresponsible fiscal and economic policies created another massive bubble in the real estate market.  If you read our latest post, you will understand that we have been in a perpetual bailout since the last housing market crash.  It just seems like we go from boom to bust, then rinse and repeat all over again.  Today we will show how the South Florida real estate market may finally be taking a break, or if this bubble is ready to pop.

Our first chart today looks at the average sale prices of single-family homes in the tri-county area during the month of May.  Here is a summary:

• Miami-Dade – $1,043, 942, down 6% from $1,112,985 in April
• Broward – $660,338, down 4% from $689,592 in April
• Palm Beach – $983,654, down 5% from $1,035,392 in April

The condo market saw price declines in Miami, but Fort Lauderdale and Palm Beach markets saw an uptick.  Here is the breakdown:

• Miami-Dade – $676,675, down 3% from $697,114 in April
• Broward – $296,156, up 3% from $287,920 in April
• Palm Beach – $481,771, up 13% from $425,069 in April

Deal volume continues to decline across the single-family home and condo segments.  Here is a quick look at the transaction volume for houses in Miami, Fort Lauderdale and Palm Beach:

Deal volume in each market for the month of May was:

• Miami-Dade – 1,360 closed sales, down 14% from 1,584 in April
• Broward – 1,634 closed sales, down 8% from 1,782 in April
• Palm Beach – 1,890 closed sales, down 5% from 1,989 in April

How about the volume of condo sales in South Florida?

Condo sales  volume in each market for the month of May was:

• Miami-Dade – 2,176 closed sales, down 8% from 2,376 in April
• Broward – 2,071 closed sales, down 7% from 2,224 in April
• Palm Beach – 1,887 closed sales, down 6% from 2,017 in April

Available inventory is still very low for single-family homes, but appears to have bottomed and should be moving up through the summer months.

And finally, condo inventory……

Almost forgot mortgage rates.  Yes, they are still at a historically low level.  When is the next housing market bailout?  It will probably be one year after mortgage rates reach a range of 4.5% – 5% and deal volume really tanks.  Until then, party on!

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.