Palm Beach County home sales up 33% as prices fall 34% from '08

Palm Beach County home sales up 33% as prices fall 34% from '08

By JEFF OSTROWSKI, Palm Beach Post

Monday, March 23, 2009

Palm Beach County home prices continued to fall in February, but sales spiked as bargain hunters snapped up foreclosures and short sales, the Florida Association of Realtors said Monday.

Though bargain properties are selling, Palm Beach County's expensive homes attract few buyers, said Steven Presson, an agent at Corcoran Group Real Estate in Palm Beach. Buyers are chasing lower-priced homes that sell for far less than they fetched in 2005 and 2006.

"There's such a surplus of that distressed property," Presson said. "The good news is at least we're seeing some stuff move. The quicker we can move that inventory, the quicker we can get back to a normal market."

Even so, Presson predicts prices won't rebound for several years.

"In the $500,000-and-above market, there's just no activity," he said.

Presson said he's telling high-end buyers to wait a few months as sellers become more realistic, advice that would be unthinkable for most Realtors.