Much has been made of the real estate boom that happened a few years ago and even more has been made of the supposed real estate bust that homeowners are experiencing right now. Luckily for those people who purchased real estate in south Florida, the highs and the lows have been much less extreme. In fact, the Miami area market has been the nation’s most successful real estate market over the last five years, as prices has constantly risen at a level higher than that of other markets. Still, the national real estate market is in flux, so that leaves major questions to be answered for south Florida. Where do things go from here?

Correction to the mean is imminent, though things won’t be nearly as bad in Miami as they will be elsewhere. South Florida homeowners and new home buyers probably fell into the trap of thinking that prices would continue to rise from then until the end of time, but the reality of the real estate market said that such growth wasn’t realistically possible. Still, real estate investors in the area don’t need to fret their decision to put down a stake in south Florida. In fact, they should take some time out to celebrate.

Though homeowners can certainly expect their property value growth to slow over the next few months and years, they should be encouraged by the fact that their growth will be much better than those people in other areas around the country. Those people in south Florida who own homes worth more than $1 million are still seeing huge increases in their value, while others around the country struggle to even acquire equity in their homes. A little perspective is necessary for Miami residents. Even when times get a little bit worse from here on out, they are certainly better than what our neighbors to the north are facing.

Where should homeowners go from here? In short, they just need to wait it out. In some areas, especially ones as profitable as south Florida, owning a home is still a good, safe investment. Though you might not be able to expect to triple your money like you could have a few years ago, marginal growth of your nest egg is better than no growth at all. That is something that all homeowners can agree on, from Los Angeles to South Beach.

Real estate Miami

Though most markets have seen their prices hit a sharp decline, the people of south Florida are still in good shape when it comes to their real estate investments. Even outside of the area, this is true for the most part. As of this year’s statistics, homeowners in America own a record amount of equity in their homes. That number is somewhat staggering at just below 11 trillion dollars. In a market that has seen its share of negative indicators, that is certainly a reassuring fact for people who have made the choice to own their own home.

Nowhere in the country is this more true than in south Florida. In areas like Miami, Miami Beach and Fort Myers, homeowners are still pretty happy with what they’ve got going on. Between the years of 2001 and 2006, the average home price grew by more than 100% in these areas. Though the majority of low end property has seen its stock drop significantly, the high end category of real estate has been strong enough to carry the statistics. Though there are a couple of areas in the United States where the prospectus is still good, no one can hold a candle to what has been done in south Florida up to this point.

Home buyers seem more apt to move to the area above any other area in the country. Los Angeles, which has also been a hotspot for new homebuyers in the last five years, has not seen the type of equity growth for homeowners that Fort Myers and the surrounding area has been able to produce. That is a wonderful sign for people who are looking to get their feet wet in real estate investing. As the market makes its inevitable return to normalcy over the next few years, the residents of south Florida will already have a leg up on just about every one else. While people in other areas of the country will spend their time catching up on what they lost, those folks in the Miami area will be busy building an even great amount of equity in their home investment.

The painful truth is that things are going to get worse for everyone else before they get any better. Homebuyers can expect a very damaging recession to the mean before prices begin to rise again. Still, if they were lucky or smart enough to purchase a home in south Florida, they wouldn’t have that worry on their plate at this point in time.

Real estate Florida

With the southeast going through perhaps its biggest drought in recent history and the real estate marketing seeing similar problems, some people might think of heading to greener pastures. One place where you might find those greener pastures, both literally and in a business sense, is the real estate rich area of Palm Beach.

With the rest of the southeast having to endure the plight of low property values and brown grass, Palm Beach is having no such problems. In fact, the people there are enjoying the best of both worlds. They’re conserving water and still living on lush, green lawns. They’re watching their friends who are a mere two states above go belly up on real estate, while their livable nest egg continues to grow by leaps and bounds.

So what’s the secret for the fine folks of Palm Beach? For them, it’s all about timing. That - and having something that everyone else wants. In a round about way, the recent weather patterns have actually made their properties more valuable. The browner the grass gets in the coastal areas of South Carolina and Georgia, the more valuable property in Florida becomes. The Miami and Palm Beach areas have always been real estate hot spots, but it would be hard to guess that they’d see success while the rest of the free world struggled during what most economists would describe as a housing bust.

The good thing about ocean front or water based land in south Florida is that they aren’t making any more of it. Regardless of what the weather does or how someone’s stock portfolio looks, the sun is still going to set over the water down there. The water is still going to be blue down there and the beaches are still going to be highly desirable for people who have money to spend. That is the secret for the fine people of Palm Beach. It isn’t like that’s a well kept secret, either. The problem for those real estate owners elsewhere is that, even though they know the secret to increasing home value, they have absolutely no way of increasing theirs.

When the rest of the country snaps out of the real estate funk in a couple of years, excuse the residents of south Florida if they don’t bat an eye. For those with high value Florida real estate, the grass has never been brown and the outlook has never been anything other than merry.

Real estate Miami Beach

If you’ve been through any part of South Florida in the last few months, then you’ve seen the scene. It’s a wild show out there if you’re into real estate, as people are selling as quickly as they’re buying. All through Dade county and other surrounding counties, you can find the signs that signify a house up for sale.

The numbers support what you might have thought, too. In fact, if you consider just the raw data, it’s staggering. Almost 60 homes per day were being sold just a few months ago, but it seems like buyers are looking for more specific property these days.

The dichotomy of south Florida real estate is interesting to consider. While you might think that the market is sluggish based upon how many signs you see on the property of these homes, the numbers suggest otherwise. In fact, the numbers will tell you that almost 2,000 homes in south Florida were sold in the month of September. For those who aren’t familiar with real estate figures, that’s a very big number.

The buyers heading down to the coast to spend their hard earned dollars look like a fickle bunch, though. They aren’t just buying up any old property and fixing it up. Instead, they are looking for premium homes to go on their premium lots. Expensive condo sales have multiplied in the last few months, while expensive home sales are also high when compared to the rest of the market. Buyers want the high dollar property, it seems.

The flipside of this minor expensive housing boom is somewhat disheartening for the entire market, though. Those homes that fall below the $1 million threshold, but are still relatively pricey just don’t seem to be selling anymore. Buyers are looking for value with big numbers, but they aren’t buying the homes that others might think are affordable.

The same goes for the lower end condos, as well. Though these properties are certainly very nice in their own right, they are competing directly with the million dollar buildings across the street. According to most market analysts, the problem is that the people who can afford the $300,000 condos can also afford the $1 million condos. Predictably, they’re electing to go with the more expensive version, right along the beach.

What does this all mean for the market at large? Perhaps south Florida is about to realize what the rest of the nation has already had to come to terms with. Real estate isn’t quite as hot as it was two years ago. For now, those people with the big money will continue to push forward, while the buyers with a little less spending power seem to be biding their time, while waiting for the prices to plummet.

Southi Beach Condos

Even though the real estate market seems to be in something of a lull nationwide, the southern tip of Florida is still a hot market. Prices in the area have been steadily on the rise in the last couple of years, lending credence the thought that new home investors and retired individuals are flocking to the area to spend their fat checks and empty their deep pockets.

In the face of a shrinking and declining market, the real estate industry in south Florida has taken off. Those who have purchased homes in the Miami or Fort Lauderdale area have seen their prices rise at a level that has consistently dominated all of the registered stock indexes in the United States. Miami’s real estate market doesn’t play second fiddle to any other major market in the entire country, according to a report released earlier this year. READ THE ARTICLE >>

Miami Beach Condos

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