Naples area home inventory surges 40%

Single family and condominium home sales in most of Collier County fell 14% in the third quarter, even as the overall inventory of properties being marketed for sale surged by 40%.

At the same time, total pending sales in the quarter ended Sept. 30 also dropped 14%, to 1,942 homes, according to a new report from the Naples Area Board of Realtors.

The median closed price of the 1,889 sales that closed in the three-month period ended in September vs. the same period in 2015 rose by 4%, to $312,000, excluding results of Marco Island, which the real estate group does not track.

The organization says the pricing trend is a reflection of the increase in inventory, to 5,044 homes in the quarter. Condo inventory, for instance, rocketed up 53% in the quarter, to 2,375 units.

“I think we're seeing the completion of a cycle that began in 2013,” says Cindy Carroll, of the appraisal and consulting firm Carroll & Carroll Inc. “Prices have remained relatively stable for over a year.”

There was also an overall 10% bump upward in the number of days properties remained on the market in the quarter, though time on the market for high-end residences priced at $2 million and above fell by 12%, the group notes.