Condo sales outperform single-family home sales in Sarasota and Manatee counties

Condominium sales in 2018 reached record levels in Sarasota and Manatee counties, outperforming single-family home sales.

According to data from The Realtor Association of Sarasota and Manatee, the two counties reported a combined total of 21,344 closed sales in 2018 — a 6.7 percent increase from 2017. 

There were a total of 6,485 single-family home sales and 2,757 condo sales in Manatee County. Sarasota County saw a total of 7,952 single-family home closed sales and 4,150 condo closed sales. 

“Even with the national trends of low inventory and rising prices, our year-end report illustrates how strong the Sarasota and Manatee markets were in 2018,” said Amy Worth, president of the Realtor Association of Sarasota and Manatee, in a release. 

Additionally, sales volume for both condos and single-family homes in both counties increased. Single-family homes increased 5% to $3.1 billion in Sarasota County and 11% to $2.5 billion in Manatee County. Sales volume for condos in Sarasota County increased nearly 7% to $1.5 billion and nearly 19% percent to $643.2 million in Manatee County.  

This means the median sales prices for single-family homes in both counties — now $282,500 in Sarasota and $300,475 in Manatee — have also increased. Median condo prices have increased to $232,300 and $190,500, respectively. 

Foreclosures and short sales represented 2.2% of total sales, while distressed sales decreased 39.7 percent from 2017, totaling 466 across both counties. 

“A record-breaking year may be tough to follow,” Worth said. “With rising prices and an increase in inventory, the market could become more balanced in 2019.”