Sarasota Realtors sales up 8.2%

SARASOTA -- Members of the Sarasota Association of Realtors sold 8,224 homes in 2011, up 8.2% from their 2010 performance.

The 2011 sales total is up 44% from 2008, when a market near its bottom allowed for just 5,820 transactions.

“This is really incredible news, and demonstrates how far this market has improved in only three short years,” says SAR President Laura Benson in a statement.

The median sale price for a single-family home in 2011 was $155,925; the median sale price for condos was $156,800. Home prices have been slightly higher over the past two months; the November median was $162,000, and the December median was $160,000.

Meanwhile, condo prices continue to fluctuate. While the December median was close to the full-year statistic, at $150,000, in November the median sale price for condos was much lower, at $127,000.