Northeast Florida becoming slightly more affordable for home buyers: report

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – There is a few good news for homebuyers within the Jacksonville space.

According to a latest report, it’s becoming more affordable to purchase a home in Northeast Florida.

Last yr marked one of many wildest years within the housing market lately.

Housing costs spiked and rates of interest rose, making the dream of proudly owning a home unaffordable for many.

But based on a brand new report from the Northeast Florida Association of Realtors (NEFAR), that’s altering as properties are becoming slightly more affordable.

The six Northeast Florida counties tracked by NEFAR, which embrace Duval, St. Johns, Clay, Putnam, Nassau and Baker, grew to become 4.1% more affordable in January primarily based on the group’s affordability index.

NEFAR president Diana Galavis stated the index measures whether or not a typical household earns sufficient to qualify for a mortgage on a typical home, primarily based on present rates of interest, median earnings, and median home costs.

The complete space has change into 13% more affordable since the latest peak in October 2022.

“A couple of different factors that come into play. One is the interest rates, our buyers are becoming more comfortable with the higher interest rates, and people are still moving into the greater Jacksonville area,” Galavis stated.

Current NEFAR Affordability Indexes (Index worth of 100 implies that the typical household has precisely sufficient earnings to qualify for a mortgage):

• Putnam County: 116

• Baker County: 95

• Duval County: 88

• Clay County: 75

• Nassau County: 74

• St. Johns County: 52

St. Johns County stays the least affordable county within the space, with a median home worth of $526,500 as of January whereas essentially the most affordable space is throughout the St. Johns River in Putnam County, which has a median home worth of $234,000.

“There is a lot of emphasis on Putnam County right now. So we’re watching and seeing what the trends are,” Galavis stated.

In Duval County, the January median worth of single-family housing was $308,000, a slight lower from December 2022 when it registered $319,945, based on NEFAR. The median days in the marketplace in January was 50, a 28.2% enhance over December. Month-to-month, closed gross sales dropped 36.2% to 547, pending gross sales rose 24% to 857, and new listings rose 34.8% to 1,357. Active stock for the county was 2,381 properties, a rise of two% from December and a 4.4-month provide.

“The January market reflects a significant increase in months of supply, moving Northeast Florida closer to a stable market,” Galavis stated. “Closed sales were down for January, but this is a typical slow up for the time of year. Factors such as interest rates, loan processing times, and inventory play a role in the lower closed sales in January.”

NEFAR stated energetic stock regularly rose in January 2.6% to five,011 items within the six-county area, and the month’s provide of properties has risen 57.5% since December 2022. NEFAR stated that demonstrates an extra stabilization of the housing market, which is one thing each consumers and sellers can profit from.

A more detailed breakdown of market statistics can be found on NEFAR’s website.