Florida real estate: Home prices up in St. Lucie and Martin, down in Indian River

The Treasure Coast real estate market saw increased home prices in most areas April, according to state and local Realtor data. Monthly market trends also saw more homes sold and listed on the market with faster sales, compared to March.

More than 3,800 homes were on the market in April, the most since June 2020 when there were 3,156 homes. Home sales increased in April, which is normal during spring and summer.

Despite high interest rates, St. Lucie County had robust home sales with 29% of completed cash sales. In Martin and Indian River counties, more than 50% of sales were completed in cash. Cash buyers don't have to deal with mortgages and interest rates.

The 30-year and 15-year fixed mortgage rates in April were more than 6.82% and 6.06%, respectively, according to Freddie Mac’s mortgage survey.

The following data comes from: Florida Realtors; Martin County Realtors of the Treasure Coast; Broward, Palm Beach & St. Lucie Realtors; and the Realtors Association of Indian River County, Inc.:

Home price

Median home prices increased in St. Lucie and Martin counties and decreased in Indian River County:

• Martin: $607,500, up from $575,000 in March
• Indian River: $430,000, down from $460,000 in March
• St. Lucie: $403,500, up from $390,000 in March

“Prices continue to rise at a much more sustainable pace and options for buyers continue to expand,” said Florida Realtors’ Chief Economist Brad O’Connor.

Homes sold

More than 1,000 homes sold in April, increasing across each county from March:

• St. Lucie: 544, up from 480 in March; 29%, or 160, were paid in cash
• Indian River: 279, up from 231 in March; 51%, or 143, were paid in cash
• Martin: 197, up from 188 in March; 61%, or 120, were paid in cash

Active listings

There were 3,859 homes on the market, a 1.5% increase from March:

• St. Lucie: 2,053, up from 1,954 in March
• Indian River: 1,137, down from 1,154 in March
• Martin: 669, down from 691 in March

The number of homes on the market increased by 74% since April 2023, and over time have been returning to early and pre-pandemic levels since January 2022, when it hit 1,105, a record low.

New listings

There were 1,346 new listings in April, nearly identical to the 1,347 listings in March. New listings have been at their highest levels since October 2022:

• St. Lucie: 767, up from 722 in March
• Indian River: 330, down from 370 in March
• Martin: 249, down from 255 in March

Homes for sale

Indian River County inventory was at a level Realtors consider “healthy," between five and six months’ supply, but remained low in Martin and St. Lucie:

• Martin: 4.1, down from 4.2 in March
• St. Lucie: 4.4, up from 4.2 in March
• Indian River: 5.3, down from 5.5 in March

Time to sell a house

The median time to contract — meaning the days between a seller listing their house and signing a contract — in April were:

• Martin: 36, down from 39 in March
• St. Lucie: 37, down from 41 in March
• Indian River: 43, down from 49 in March

Ananya Tiwari is a business reporter for TCPalm. You can reach her via email atananya.tiwari@tcpalm.com or follow her work onFacebook,Twitter or X, andMuckRack.