Condo sales on the island were down 34% from the previous month and were down 30% from November 2010.  Year-to-date condo sales on the island are up 20% over last year, however.  This may seem to contradict our statement about why sales are increasing for island homes. However, our experience indicates that more retirees buy houses rather than condos.  More condos sold as 2nd homes. The highest sale this month was $320,000 for a condo in the South Passage subdivision at the Moorings–a slow month for high priced condo sales. At the lower end, 4 sold for under $200,000,  Harbour Side II for $175,000, Riverwalk for $170,000, River mews for $175,000 and Harbour Inn for $190,000.  We expect a good selling season forIsland condos this winter, especially at the mid and high end as inquires are increasing, and the weather has already shown previews of a stormy winter in the Northeast.

Condo sales county-wide were pretty much level with last month and down 8% over November 2010. Year-to-date condo sales are 13.3% ahead of last year. On the mainland the prices still seem to be drifting up a little as the low end sales in Vista Royale/Gardens ranged from $24,000 for a 1 bedroom to $52,000 for a 2 bedroom unit. There were 10 sales in Vista Royale/VistaGardens. On the mainland at the high end, there was a sale in Grove Isle for $148,000 and one atHarmonyIsland inGrandHarbor for $176,000. . 

Inventory decreased to 721 units for sale from 726 the previous month.

Inventory of houses and condos in the Vero Beach FL Indian River County area moved up 1.7% from 2631 units for sale in September 2011 to 2678 in October. However, inventory has decreased 15.7% from October 2010. Overall county-wide sales decreased 15.6% compared with last month but increased 15% over October 2010.  Sales have increased year-to-date in all 5 categories including Hutchinson Island

The median price of houses in the Vero Beach Indian River County  area decreased 11% from $120,000 in September to $108,000 in October. There was also a substantial reduction from October 2010.  This figure is the lowest median price in the last 5 years! Remember that the median price change does not necessarily mean that the value of an individual house has increased or decreased. The median can be influenced by the number of high or low priced homes sold in a certain period. We have also noticed that the size of more houses selling are smaller than they were 4 or 5 years ago.  

House sales on the Vero Beach Florida island were 37% lower than last month and 43% lower than last October, about average for October over the last 8 years. Year-to-date single family home sales on the island have increased 30% over last year.  At the low end there was a 2 bedroom house onHoneysuckle Lane that sold for  $240,000 and the real deal was a 2400 sq ft 3 bedroom home in Island Club that sold for $240,199. At the high end, sales moved back on track with 5 sales close to or over $1,000,000.  The high sales were a 6000+ sq ft oceanfront home in Seaview that sold for $3,075,000 and a 5000+ sq ft house inWindsor that sold for $2,675,000. Another deal was a 3500+ sq ft riverfront house in Cache Cay that went for $995,000. We expect a good selling season and believe prices will hold for Island Houses, especially at the mid and high end.

Condo sales on the island in Vero Beach Florida were up 33% from the previous month and were up 50% from October 2010.  Year-to-date condo sales on the island are up 15% over last year.  The highest sale this month was $635,000 for an ocean view condo in the Chelsea Condo subdivision–again a slow month for high priced condo sales. At the lower end, two sold for under $100,000, one in Del Mar for $96,000 and $50,000 for one in Royal Riviera.  We expect a good selling season forIsland condos this winter, especially at the mid and high end as inquires are increasing, and the weather has already shown previews of a stormy winter in the North East.

Single family home sales county-wide were down 21% compared to the previous month but up 14% compared to October last year. Also, this was the best October sales figures in 8 years. Year-to-date sales were up 16.6%. On the mainland, there were 69 houses that sold for under $100,000, much higher than previous months. Most of the sales were in the south end and the northwest side of the county. The high sales were for $450,000 in the golf community of Indian River Club and for $425,000 in Coventry Island in Grand Harbor. County wide inventory of single family houses increased 5 units to 1952 from the previous month. There is a 10.4 month supply of houses for sale on the mainland. This is lower that the overall county absorption rate, which is an indicator that lower priced and smaller properties are more in demand.