Key West Real Estate Market Update - February 2011

What a wild, wild ride Key West real estate has been on for the past 10 years. Speculators drove prices through the roof, realtors sang the praises of an invincible real estate market, and locals were either swept up or swept away in the frenzy.  The Key West Chronicle blog warned in 2005: Speculative Bubble in Key West Real Estate Due to Pop. No one believed it.

Thankfully, it all came to an end before the beloved little island was consumed by the Real Estate Monster. After all, there really are many more interesting things to do in Key West.

Below is a chart showing the market mania and crash that happened in Key West, as measured by Median sale price (according to Zillow):

So where are we today?

Things are looking brighter for Key West residential real estate.

The glut of homes for sale has been greatly reduced, thanks to lower prices.  And local workers, artists, and families are again buying homes.

If you are looking to buy a home in Key West, there are fewer on the market, as shown in this chart of data from the Key West Multiple Listing Service (MLS):

Location	Property Type	Properties for Sale - January 2009	Properties for Sale - February 2011
Key West	All Residential	922	635
Key West	Single Family	417	277
Key West	Condo/Townhouse	400	206

Key West residential real estate sales continue to increase.   Here is the data for Key West only, from the Monroe County Property Appraiser records:

• year 2010: 317 sales of residential single family property (minimum price of $5000)
• year 2009: 286 sales of residential single family property (minimum price of $5000)
• year 2008: 273 sales of residential single family property (minimum price of $5000)
• year 2007: 252 sales of residential single family property (minimum price of $5000

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