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Tampa Bay Area Home Sales Increase Slightly In June

Tampa Tribune staff photo by GREG FIGHT

A home in The Reserve, off Boyette Road in Riverview, is offered for sale earlier this year. With more than 30,000 pre-owned homes on the market in the Tampa Bay area, builders of new homes face fierce competition for buyers.

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By SHANNON BEHNKEN | The Tampa Tribune

Published: July 24, 2008

TAMPA - How did Tampa Bay's housing market fare in June? Well, it depends on how you look at it.

Slightly more single-family homes sold in June than in May, and the median sales price rose by more than $2,000, according to existing home sales data released today by the Florida Association of Realtors. The median price — in which half the homes sold for more and half for less — was $178,700, up from $176,100 in May.

Some Realtors say the upswing may mean the local real estate market is nearing a bottom. But since real estate is seasonal and typically does better during the spring, economists look at year-long data to gauge the market.

The area's year-over-year appears to be stabilizing. The decrease in sales has narrowed from 35 percent a year ago to 3 percent now and follows a small rise in home sales in May.

There were 2,346 single-family, existing homes sold in the Tampa, St. Petersburg, Clearwater metropolitan area in June, down 3 percent from 2,428 during the same month a year ago. Prices were down 19 percent from a year ago. The median sales price was $178,700 in June, down from $220,900 in June 2007.

Nationally, sales of existing homes fell more sharply than expected in June as the housing industry continued to be bruised by the worst slump in more than two decades.

The National Association of Realtors reported that sales dropped by 2.6 percent last month from May to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.86 million units. That was more than double the decline that had been expected and left sales 15.5 percent below where they were a year ago.

The downward slide in sales depressed prices, too. The median price for a home sold in June dropped to $215,100, down by 6.1 percent from a year ago. That was the fifth largest year-over-year price drop on record.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report. Reporter Shannon Behnken can be reached at (813) 259-7804 or sbehnken@tampatrib.com.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report. Reporter Shannon Behnken can be reached at (813) 259-7804 or sbehnken@tampatrib.com.

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