Sarasota, Florida Inventory Levels

I had to shrink this graph to make it fit my blog. Here are the last 5 years of inventory, sales and pending sales. Notice the sharp drop off of Sarasota homes and condos for sale over the last 7 months. It will be interesting to see what happens over the next 6 months as this government bailout unfolds.

There are several possibilities that could play out. Some people view the government bailout of the banks as the start of the bottoming of the real estate market. Others feel that prices will continue to drop until inventory levels are lower. I do believe there is pent up demand now that prices have dropped quite a bit from the market highs. The trouble will be if those people can find financing to purchase. With the government buying the troubled debt it looks like banks will be able to lend money more freely. However, their guidelines are much different than before. Essentially, you need to be able to prove what you earn, put some money down (more than before), pay your bills and afford the home you plan on buying. Sounds like a safe loan to me.