Daily South Florida Real‑Estate News – July 28 2025

by William Gartin

Daily South Florida Real‑Estate News – July 28 2025

Market snapshot: single‑family homes

Miami‑Dade and Broward counties continue to see strong demand for single‑family homes. An analysis of listing data through June 2025 shows that Miami‑Dade’s median list price has stayed between $695,000 and $750,000 over the past year while the number of days on market generally ranged 26–45 daysmomentumlux.com. Broward County’s median list price dipped to the low $600,000s during fall/winter 2024 but returned to about $675,000 by spring 2025; homes spent 29–48 days on the marketmomentumlux.com. Homes sold fastest in late summer and early fall and slightly slower during the winter, but days on market improved again this springmomentumlux.com.

Condo market & regulatory changes

The condominium sector remains weak. Sales of existing condos in May 2025 were down roughly 25 % year‑over‑year in both Miami‑Dade and Broward, marking the 12th consecutive monthly declinewlrn.orgwlrn.org. Several factors are weighing on buyers: elevated mortgage rates near 7 %, a limited number of FHA‑approved buildings (only 21), and the 2022 safety reforms enacted after the Surfside collapse requiring older buildings to perform structural inspections and build reserve fundswlrn.org. A bill passed in spring 2025 delays some of these reserve requirements until the end of 2025 and allows associations to pause contributions for two yearswlrn.org.

Median condo prices slipped in Miami‑Dade and Broward while Palm Beach County saw a small increasewlrn.org. The market is “barbelled”: Miami‑Dade saw a 38 % jump in sales of condos priced under $150,000, while sales of $200k–$400k units fell more than 20 %; luxury units ($1 million+) gained 11 % in Palm Beachwlrn.org. Single‑family home prices rose roughly 3.8 % in Miami‑Dade and stayed about flat in Browardwlrn.org.

Commercial real estate

Miami’s office market remains one of the strongest in the nation. Class A office rents averaged $64.36 per square foot in the second quarter of 2025, up 9.7 % from a year earlierglobest.com. Rents in the Airport/Doral submarket jumped to $49.69 per square foot, a 1,150‑basis‑point gainglobest.com. Vacancy fell slightly to 14.6 %, but leasing volume slowed to about 280,000 square feet as some tenants sought more affordable space in submarkets such as Coral Gables and Downtown Miamiglobest.com.

International buyers

The National Association of Realtors’ 2025 international transactions report shows a rebound in foreign demand. International home purchases in the U.S. climbed 44 % for the year ending March 2025, the first increase since 2017nar.realtor. Florida captured 21 % of all international transactionsnar.realtor. Nearly 18 % of foreign buyers purchased homes priced above $1 million, and about 47 % paid all‑cashnar.realtor. The median U.S. purchase price for foreign buyers was $494,400nar.realtor. The top five buyer countries were China, Canada, Mexico, India and the United Kingdomnar.realtor. Foreign buyers often prefer South Florida due to its climate, cultural ties and relative proximity to Latin America.

Mortgage and interest‑rate update

Mortgage rates remain near multi‑month lows but still high by recent standards. Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey for July 24 reports that the average 30‑year fixed mortgage rate is 6.74 %, essentially unchanged from the prior week, and the 15‑year rate is 5.87 %, down slightlyfloridarealtors.org. Mortgage rates averaged 6.78 % a year agofloridarealtors.org. High rates and soaring home prices continue to dampen sales; the pace of previously occupied U.S. home sales in 2024 fell to its lowest level in nearly 30 years and remains sluggishfloridarealtors.org.

Economic outlook & forecasts

Fannie Mae has revised its outlook for the U.S. housing market. In its July 2025 Economic and Housing Outlook, the research arm projects that mortgage rates will end 2025 around 6.4 % and drop to 6.0 % by late 2026, slightly below its prior forecastfloridarealtors.org. The group lowered its home‑price growth forecast to 2.8 % in 2025 and 1.1 % in 2026 (quarter‑over‑quarter basis) and expects total home sales to reach 4.85 million units in 2025 and 5.35 million in 2026floridarealtors.org.

Tax and insurance changes

State and Local Tax (SALT) deduction: The National Association of Realtors® (NAR) notes that a new federal tax law raises the SALT deduction cap to $40,000 for tax years 2025–2029, quadrupling the $10,000 cap that was in place from 2018 through 2024floridarealtors.org. The deduction gradually phases down for taxpayers with modified adjusted gross income above $500,000 and reverts to $10,000 in 2030 unless Congress extends itfloridarealtors.org. NAR argues that the larger deduction reduces tax liability and encourages homeownership, especially in high‑tax states like Floridafloridarealtors.org.

Homeowners insurance reforms: A consumer‑advocacy group linked to the Florida Chamber reports that property‑insurance reforms enacted in 2023 have stabilized the market by reducing litigation, lowering Citizens Property Insurance Corp.’s policies and attracting new insurersfloridarealtors.org. Since 2023, 14 new carriers have been approved to write homeowners policies in Florida and the number of Citizens policies fell 36 % to 777,592 in June, reducing its exposure by 43 %floridarealtors.org. Despite these improvements, average annual premiums remain high at about $2,625, roughly 24 % above the national averagefloridarealtors.org.

Home‑buying process in Florida

For readers exploring a purchase in Miami‑Dade or Broward, the following steps can help streamline the process:

Define your goals and location. Decide if the property is for personal use, vacation or investment and research communities accordinglyhouzeo.com.
Check your finances. Review your credit score (500+ for FHA loans; 620+ for conventional), calculate your debt‑to‑income ratio (target below 36 %) and budget for property taxes and insurancehouzeo.com.
Explore loan programs. Conventional loans often require 10–20 % down, while FHA loans need just 3.5 %. Florida programs such as Hometown Heroes and Florida Assist can provide down‑payment or closing‑cost assistancehouzeo.com.
Get pre‑approved. Pre‑approval strengthens offers and signals to sellers that you are serioushouzeo.com.
Search and make an offer. Look at multiple properties (including FSBO listings) and include contingencies. Closing costs typically run 2–5 % of the purchase pricehouzeo.com.
Conduct inspections and appraisals. Inspect major systems (HVAC, plumbing, electrical) and consider specialized inspections like wind‑mitigation or milestone inspections for older condoshouzeo.com.
Close and protect your investment. Closings usually take 30–45 days. After closing, file for Florida’s Homestead Exemption to reduce property taxes and schedule regular maintenancehouzeo.com.

Federal Reserve & economic environment

The U.S. Federal Reserve has kept its benchmark federal funds rate between 4.25 % and 4.5 % since mid‑2024 and signaled it will wait for more evidence of inflation moving toward its 2 % target before cutting ratesinvestopedia.com. Futures markets suggest about a 62 % chance of a rate cut in September 2025investopedia.com. Fed officials are divided: some argue that slowing job growth warrants cuts, while others worry inflation could remain persistentinvestopedia.com. The 10‑year Treasury yield, which influences mortgage rates, has drifted lower in recent weeks, helping ease rates modestly.investopedia.cominvestopedia.com.

Summary

South Florida remains one of the nation’s hottest housing markets, yet buyers are navigating a complex environment. Single‑family home prices in Miami‑Dade and Broward have held steady but inventory is tight and mortgage rates hover near 6.7 %. Condo buyers face additional hurdles from insurance fees and stricter building regulations. Long‑term trends remain positive, with major infrastructure projects and international interest supporting demand, but affordability and access to financing will continue to determine the pace of sales.