South Florida saw affluent home buyers return with gusto between July and September, unhindered by a surge in Covid-19 cases across the state over the summer, according to new data published Thursday.
Single-family house sales in Palm Beach, President Donald Trump’s adopted home, nearly tripled in the third quarter of this year compared to a year ago, with more than 50 deals struck over the last three months, according to the report from brokerage Douglas Elliman and appraisal firm Miller Samuel. Strong market indicators were present in other affluent corridors of South Florida, including Miami Beach and coastal mainland Miami.
The surge in dealmaking in Palm Beach has helped drive down the number of mega mansions on the market there. Luxury single-family inventory plummeted 65% in the third quarter compared to a year ago. There are now only 25 homes on the market in Palm Beach priced at $8.95 million or more—the island’s astronomical luxury price threshold.
Sellers on Palm Beach are now trading homes faster and without negotiating as much on price. The average discount on single-family homes in Palm Beach was 10.7% in the third quarter, down from an average 20% price cut sellers stomached a year ago, according to the report.
The surge in single-family home sales was almost universal in the Florida markets that Douglas Elliman tracks. In Fort Lauderdale, for example, single-family deals doubled from the sluggish second quarter to the third quarter of this year. There were nine more luxury home sales in the third quarter than a year ago, as pent-up demand was unleashed over the last three month.
Meanwhile, luxury mansions stole the show southward in Florida’s urban nebulous Miami. Luxury single-family home sales rose to the highest level in five years, pushing the median price to a record high. The median luxury house sold for $1.94 million in the third quarter, up more than 30% over a year ago.
The boom in high-end single-family homes was a trend that carried over to neighboring Miami Beach and its chain of barrier islands. The standalone house market is considerably smaller than in mainland Miami, but still saw a 64% year-over-year spike in such home sales, with a median price of $14.8 million.
The rush of rebound in activity was less pronounced in luxury high-rises around the Miami area, though activity in that sector still rebounded from the depths of the spring lockdowns. There was a noticeable uptick in luxury condo prices, as buyers moved toward larger units.
On Miami Beach, the median luxury condo sale price rose 29% year-over-year to $2.975 in the third quarter. In mainland Miami, where such homes are considerably less expensive, the median luxury condo price rose by nearly 10% compared to 2019 to $852,500.