How’s our Orlando market faring in the wake of Hurricane Irma?

It’s been about a month and a half since Irma struck, and the good news is our market is back in full swing. Obviously, when storms come through—especially hurricanes—it does have a lasting impact. In our market, though, that impact was pretty short-term.

The areas of impact are obvious to note. Because of power being lost, title companies being closed, and mortgage companies needing post-hurricane inspections, our market slowed down. Additionally, there is a segment of sellers who might’ve pulled their home off the market to do repairs and another segment of prospective sellers who delayed putting their homes on the market to get past the aftermath of the storm. Unsurprisingly, inventory declined 31% from September of last year to September of this year.

Now, though, our Orlando market is as strong as ever and we’re seeing tons of activity. Interest rates are still historically low (just under 4%), and that’s keeping buyers active. We still have a pretty low level of inventory at fewer than 9,000 homes available for sale (or 3.4 month’s worth), so that puts us in a seller’s market.

"Our current market is great for everyone."

The good news is prices are still going up. From September 2016 to September 2017, we saw a 9% increase. That marks 74 consecutive months of increased prices here in Orlando. We’re seeing an especially hot seller’s market in the $200,000 to $300,000 price point.

We’re still seeing a lot of multiple offer situations happening, but our current market is great for everybody. For buyers, because interest rates are so low, it’s still more affordable to buy than it is to rent.

If you have any more questions about our Orlando market or you’re thinking about buying or selling a home, don’t hesitate to reach out to us. We’d be happy to help you.