While higher-than-expected mortgage rates and still-rising home prices are still taunting American homebuyers, the U.S. housing market has turned increasingly in their favor over the past few months, especially in certain parts of the country. According to an analysis of 6,291 ZIP codes from ConsumerAffairs updated this week, Florida dominates a list of the top five strongest buyer’s markets in the nation, as there are more properties for sale than buyers looking to purchase, giving them an edge in negotiations. Surprisingly, the strongest buyer’s market in the country is a ZIP code in a city that has recently made headlines for becoming even more expensive than its longtime rival New York—Miami.
The cost of living in Miami has surged in recent years, driven in particular by skyrocketing housing costs, including higher home prices, homeowners' association (HOA) fees, property taxes and homeowner insurance premiums. The increases have been the main reason why Miami, for the first time on record, has become more expensive than New York, according to the latest U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis’ (BEA) latest Regional Price Parities (RRP) report.
Based on the cost-of-living index, which compares the overall price level in a state or metro area with the nationwide average, the Miami metropolitan area’s cost of living is now second only to that of the San Francisco metro area, having surpassed both the New York City metro area and the Los Angeles metro area. Housing, childcare, food, transportation and healthcare have risen faster than many household incomes,” Symeria Hudson, president and CEO of United Way Miami, previously told Newsweek. Housing remains a major pressure point.” Yet Miami is home to the strongest buyer’s market in the nation, ZIP code 33130, which includes parts of Brickell and Little Havana.
This area has three times the national average number of months of supply—a measure of how quickly current inventory would sell out if no new listings were added—at 15.5. Here, 29.4 percent of homes for sale have price drops. There is, however, a catch.
The reason why 33130 is such a strong buyer’s market has to do with how many condominiums are available for sale. In short, there are too many, especially when considering how demand for this type of homes have suffered from a recent increase in homeowners association (HOA) fees after the implementing of new building safety rules in the wake of the Surfside collapse in 2021. Across Miami-Dade County, condo inventory currently sits at 12.3 months of supply, a sharp contrast with the more competitive single-family market supply of 4.9 months, the Miami Association of Realtors reported.
Not only are fewer people are looking to buy condos, but less than 1 percent of South Florida condo buildings are approved for FHA loans, making financing harder. But of those hurdles are turning into great opportunities for buyers willing and able to buy in the neighborhood, as they are able to negotiate lower prices with sellers struggling to gain enough interest for their properties. The five strongest buyer’s markets in the country, based on specific ZIP codes, are: Port Aransas, on the Gulf Coast of Texas, has the highest months of supply of any ZIP code in ConsumerAffairs’ analysis, at 18.3, and one of the lowest percentages of sales that go for above the asking price, at 1 percent.
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