Ocala homes for sale and they always will be! How is that for a bold prediction.
Now for the meat of this blog post. What is our local housing market doing and which direction are we going?
Well, we are taking a beating in Ocala with the median home price at $75,400, compared to U.S. at $157,933. However this does mean Ocala is probably one of the most affordable cities to live in(BRIGHT SPOT!) 1 year Appreciation is at -18.8% and 3 years sits at -48.2% or a negative housing equity gain of -$70,100. If you’ve owned own your home for 7 years the Housing Equity Gain(?) is -$20,800. IN SHORT, the recent correction in local home prices wiped out most of the 7 years of gained equity.
Why the drastic drops?
Unemployment has lead to tremendous number of foreclosures on the market not just locally but throughout the state. The State of Florida foreclosure rate is around 14% with the National Average around 5%. Marion Counties current unemployment rate hovers around 12.5% compared to 8.8 nationally, both numbers are down slightly from one year ago which is a good sign.
What to expect?
Well I am surely no professional analyst soon to be hired by Fox or one of the alphabet channels, but I do study and know what’s happening locally. My lovely wife, the appraiser, says the market is still being adjusted at approx. -2% per month and our month to month comparisons from 2010 to 2011 reflect the same trend. Many experts think the end of 2011 will be the stabalizing point for the housing market. The best part about real estate is there is always a good market, for someone, whether its buyers or sellers. Do you know, or have you heard about shadow inventories?
For The Full Report: http://www.realtor.org/files/research/localmarket/fl_ocala.pdf
UNTIL NEXT TIME.