Home buyers in Sarasota-Bradenton are fueling the biggest price increase nationwide.  A report Thursday by the National Association of Realtors shows that the two markets were tops in price appreciation when first-quarter home sales were compared with the same period last year.

Bradenton grabbed the No. 1 spot out of 139 markets nationwide. The median price for an existing single-family house grew 45.6 percent to $275,100 for Bradenton and Manatee County.  Sarasota ranked second with a 36 percent increase to $326,300. West Palm Beach/Boca Raton/Delray Beach came in third at 35.9 percent.  Of the 10 markets nationwide that mustered the highest adjustments in price, seven were Florida communities.

“It seems like you guys are morphing into one big metropolitan area out there on the West Coast,” NAR spokesman Walter Molony said.
The rapid escalation apparently did little to curb home buyers’ appetites.

A separate report by the Florida Association of Realtors showed sales volume for the quarter grew 2 percent when Sarasota and Bradenton are viewed as a single metropolitan market.  That report, also issued on Thursday, said sales volume in Charlotte County-North Port declined 6 percent, while the median price for houses shot up 32 percent to $197,800. Last year it was $149,600.  Realtors say retirees and low interest rates are fueling sales in Sarasota-Bradenton.

Increased demand and a view that property here is undervalued compared with some other Florida cities is pushing up prices.  “Everybody wants a piece of Florida,” said Gulfstream Re/Max Realtor Robin Carr. “Just the other day I had three people bidding on the same house. Sellers are getting 98 percent of their asking price, or over their asking price.”

Realtors say they aren’t surprised by the upward push, coming on the heels of 18 months of sharp price adjustments.  Just last month, a report by the Florida Association of Realtors showed the median price for an existing house in Sarasota-Bradenton exceeded $305,000 for March — the highest ever for the area.  Michael Saunders & Co. agent John Allaman said buyers are streaming in from Naples and pricey East Coast destinations because they perceive Sarasota-Bradenton as relatively affordable yet with comparable amenities.

“I think we have better amenities than Naples and people are finding that out, and that’s why they’re coming here,” he said.  Other agents cite a nagging shortage of available houses. Sellers frustrated at high home prices and escalating taxes are staying put rather than trading up to bigger houses.

At new communities, builders are releasing lots sparingly to avoid getting ahead of the market.  The resulting shortage is causing prices elsewhere to increase.  Even after months and months of double digit increases in value, Realtors dismiss talk of a bubble, saying the price increases are bringing Sarasota-Bradenton into line with other waterfront communities.

FAR’s quarterly report shows four cities statewide eclipse Sarasota-Bradenton in median price: Fort Lauderdale, Miami, Naples and West Palm Beach-Boca Raton. Naples, with a median of $377,300, leads Florida.  “I don’t think there’s a bubble,” Allaman said. “There might be some homes out there that are over-priced by people holding out. Any kind of adjustment in price is going to be with people coming back to reality.”   

The NAR study is far from absolute and differs sharply from a report by its Florida counterpart.  For one thing, the National Association of Realtors relies on an older definition of a Metropolitan Statistical Area when calculating home sales. In the NAR study Bradenton is defined as Manatee County.  The Florida Association of Realtors, however, uses an updated definition that combines the geographical areas into a single MSA, Sarasota-Bradenton.

In addition, the FAR report includes more data from unincorporated areas of Manatee and Sarasota counties.  In one example of the inconsistencies, FAR’s report claims that Sarasota-Bradenton combined posted a 36 percent, first quarter increase in median price — or the equivalent increase that occurred in West Palm Beach/Boca Raton, Melbourne/Titusville/Palm Bay, and Fort Pierce/Port St. Lucie.

NAR, meanwhile, says Sarasota posted a 36 percent increase on its own, while Bradenton’s median shot up 45.6 percent.  Representatives from both groups say the NAR study uses a statistical gathering method that is older than FAR’s method.

Likely, the NAR study includes Lakewood Ranch and University Park — among the priciest areas in Southwest Florida — while the Sarasota report includes more affordable Englewood and North Port.
Also, the number of high-priced sales in Sarasota might be lower than in Manatee, even though real estate in Sarasota is more expensive.