45% of South Florida Homes Sell at a Loss

According to data released yesterday by Zillow, about 45% of South Florida homes that sold in May did so at a loss. The sales information for Broward, Miami-Dade and Palm Beach counties was not greatly improved over April, when 46% of homes were purchased for less than the previous sale price.

According to Zillow, 42% of homes sold in Palm Beach County in May, did so at a loss. In Broward and Miami-Dade counties, 47% and 48% of homes, respectively, sold at a loss. In comparison, during the real estate bubble in 2006, no more than 3% of South Florida homes sold at a loss.

Wednesday's monthly real estate market report also includes May's Zillow Home Value Index, which shows a median value of $152,300 in South Florida. That's a 1.6% decrease from April and a 50% drop from the peak of the market in June 2006.

The Zillow Home Value Index reports the median of all home values, not just sales. The national median home value in May was $182,600, less than a 1% drop from April, but a 24% decrease from the peak.

Zillow's chief economist Stan Humphries in stated in his blog today:"Sorry. Or congratulations if you're not yet in the housing market, as affordability just got better for you. Given a current home ownership rate of 67.1 percent, there are likely more sorries to go around than congratulations."

The report also looked at June price reductions on listed homes. Nationally, about 26% of homes had at least one price reduction in June. In South Florida, 18% of listed homes reduced their asking prices last month. The median price cut in South Florida was 9%.