Increased Demand in February Shows Homebuyers Recognize a Great Value in Naples

The February 2021 Market Report, released by the Naples Area Board of REALTORS® (NABOR®), which tracks home listings and sales within Collier County (excluding Marco Island), marks the last month of comparative activity before the pandemic shuttered the global economy in March 2020. That said, overall closed sales of existing homes in Naples for February increased 62 percent to 1,307 closed sales from 807 closed sales in February 2020.

Broker analysts reviewing the February 2021 Market Report were not surprised at the increased momentum as many report buyers are scooping up the available inventory of homes in all geographic locations within Naples almost as fast as they come onto the market. Inventory fell 68.8 percent in February to 2,224 homes from 7,127 homes in February 2020.

Single-family homes continue to be in high demand so, according to the report, many buyers pivoted to condominiums in February. As a result, the condominium market experienced a 75.7 percent increase in closed sales and a 66.6 percent decrease in inventory. In fact, condominium sales in February 2021 eclipsed its comparable sales in any month over the past 15 years.

“This is not a housing boom as many people suggest,” said Spencer Haynes, Vice President of Business Development and Broker with John R. Wood Properties. “I consider it a ‘market correction,’ as our area has simply been undervalued until now and it is finally experiencing its due appreciation.”

Haynes added that “in many desirable locations like California and Atlanta, high buyer demand, low inventory, and rising prices have been a reality for years. And unlike 2005/2006, activity is not a result of ‘manufactured wealth’. Sales today are done with real money, which is why home values in our area are finally increasing. Besides, we have what everyone is looking for as it’s now possible to work from anywhere in the world so why not live and work in paradise.”

In addition to the struggle to find existing properties for sale in all price categories, buyers are also finding new home purchasing options are diminishing.

“Builders are reporting a big shortage in materials for new home construction,” said Jeff Jones, Broker at Keller Williams Naples. “For example, orders for new windows are out 14 months because there’s not enough glass for production. And there’s also a shortage of resin for pipe production and lumber has been scarce too.”

Corey McCloskey, NABOR® President and VP of Operations at John R. Wood Properties concurred, commenting that she’s heard from REALTORS® in South Carolina and Arizona that hundreds of new homes in their towns are sitting finished without windows.

Another result of high buyer demand in Naples: “New home communities are nearly sold out so were seeing many put their last lots up for bid,” said Dominic Pallini, Broker at Vanderbilt Realty.

It’s not surprising then that February saw pending sales of existing homes in Naples skyrocket 50.7 percent to 2,299 pending sales from 1,526 pending sales in February 2020. In comparison, there were more pending sales (2,299) at the end of February than inventory (2,224). This resulted in a drastic drop in supply as the February report revealed our area now has only a 2-months supply of homes available to buyers.