The Latest Pinellas County Real Estate Stats

The February 2023 Pinellas County Real Estate Stats

The February 2023 real estate stats for Pinellas County, FL are here and while closed sales are down year over year, sale prices remain resilient, with positive gains in both the single-family home and condo markets. Check out all the most important stats below to find out everything you need to know about the latest housing market trends in Pinellas County:

The Single-Family Home Market:

• Closed Sales dropped by -23.8% year over year, with 241 less closed sales in February 2023 vs. February 2022. While the drop in sales is partially due to rising interest rates, inventory levels are also a continuing concern (see more on that below).

• Cash Sales continue to represent about 35% or 1 out of every 3 closed sales in Pinellas County, meaning buyers are still competing against cash buyers for many of the best homes.

• The Median Sale Price increased by +4.6% year over year, jumping from $411,000 to $430,000 for single-family home in Pinellas. The average sale price also increased by +7.6% from $538,448 in February 2022 to $579,334 in February 2023. Despite slowing sales (as noted in the first bullet point) sellers are still getting more money for their homes than they would have last year at this time.

• Sellers are More Negotiable than they were last year, with the median single-family home selling for 95% of the original list price in February 2023 vs 100% of the list price in February 2022. Since the sale prices of homes have increased year over year, what this tells us is that sellers are pricing homes too high initially and have to negotiate their price down by about 5% to get them sold.

• Homes are Selling Slower than Last Year, with the median home on the market for 33 days before going under contract last month. This is a +371.4% jump in “days to contract,” which was just 7 days last February.

• Housing Inventory is Too Low, meaning buyers continue to have a hard time finding the perfect home. While it’s true that the single-family home inventory increased by +200% last month in Pinellas County, what that really means is that the months of inventory increased from .6 months to just 1.8 months of housing inventory. A healthy housing market requires 5-6 months of inventory, which we are still a far cry from.

• New Listings Were Down -13.1% Year over Year, meaning fewer sellers are putting their homes up for sale than they were last year at this time. The increase we’re seeing in the supply of housing inventory is likely a “carry over” of overpriced inventory from months prior that has been sitting on the market and building up over the months.

The Condo/Townhouse Market:

• Closed Sales in the condo/townhouse market dropped by -27.3% last month, from 472 closed sales in February 2022 to just 559 closed sales in February 2023.

• Cash Sales represented about 58% of closed sales last month, meaning 1 out of 2 condo/townhouse sales in Pinellas County were paid for in cash. Cash buyers continue to snap up some of the best properties and are still closing on them in record time.

• The Median Sale Price increased in the double digits by +11.3% year over year, jumping from $265,000 in February 2022 to $295,000 in February 2023. The average sale price of a condo/townhouse also increased by +12% last month. So far, despite increased interest rates and slowing sales, sellers have not seen any year over year price decreases in our market.

• Sellers in the Condo/Townhouse Market have also Become More Negotiable, similar to the single-family home market, accepting about 4% off the initial listing price of their homes to get them under contract (aka pending) and sold. The median seller received 95.7% of the original list price in February 2023 vs 100% at the same time the year before. Again, based on the year over year price increases above, what this tells us is that many sellers are simply overpricing their homes from the start and have to bring down their prices based on what buyers will allow. **However, sellers are still collecting double-digit increases this year over last year’s prices.

• Condos/Townhouses are Selling Slower than Last Year, with the median time it takes for a home to go under contract increasing from just 7 days in February 2022 to 31 days in February 2023.

• Inventory Remains Low, with just 2.8 months of available inventory for buyers. The stats show an increase of +300% year over year, but levels were even lower in February of last year at just .7 months available. Like the single-family home market, a balanced market needs 5-6 months of inventory, which Pinellas County is still not even close to.

• New Listings dropped by -2.4% year over year, meaning the inventory increase we’re seeing in the above bullet point is likely from overpriced properties sitting on the market that were listed in prior months. The best properties are still selling quickly when properly staged and priced according to recent comparable sales.

Summary

Sellers thinking about selling their homes shouldn’t be afraid of today’s market in Pinellas County. Since the start of 2023, 40% of our real estate listings have gone UNDER CONTRACT in a week or less. On top of that, 2 out of 3 of our sales were cash transactions. Sellers continue to collect more for their homes than they would have last year, despite sometimes taking a little longer to sell. These are not signals of a struggling real estate market. Remember, buyers are still eager to find the perfect home in today's housing market.

Buyers thinking about a move shouldn’t be intimidated by higher interest rates and low housing inventory. Again, an experienced Realtor will help you find the best homes for your needs and move quickly to get the perfect one under contract once you find it. Interest rates will eventually decrease, as predicted by lenders, economists, and many real estate professionals. Buyers should eventually be able to lower their monthly payment by refinancing when that time comes vs. continually dealing with rent increases and housing price increases if they wait to buy year after year.

Have more questions about investing in the Pinellas County real estate market? We’d be happy to chat with you about it! Feel free to message us directly by CLICKING HERE or call our agent team at (727) 400-3315. With over 35 years of experience serving the Tampa Bay market, we know we can help you!

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