Condo sales in Panama City Beach in 2011 started out strong with steady increases in sales through May, culminating in a high of 118 units sold that month, making this the start of a solid year for condo sales in the area. This has not carried forward into the traditionally strong month of June, which may well prove to be a good thing. Normally, sales in June and September surpass the previous month but this has not materialized in 2011. While overall sales volume exceeds 2010 figures, June and July sales exhibited a downward trend with 94 units sold in June and only 67 selling in July.

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Sales figures in June may partially reflect the inability of buyers to find condos with the floor plans and amenities that they desire at a price point with which they feel comfortable. This reduction in inventory can act as a catalyst for price stabilization within certain types of condo floor plans. Eager buyers matching up with the available supply of condos at attractive prices should lead to stabilization. We can still see a downturn in sales when the supply of condos of a certain floor plan exceeds the demand for those units. Foreclosures and short sales can also have a downward effect on these prices, but buyers absorbing this inventory can counter this. While the U.S. economy as a whole still experiences issues, we continue to see a number of buyers who wish to own condos in Panama City Beach. These buyers are quickly purchasing reasonably priced units almost as soon as they hit the market. This represents a basis that will benefit Panama City Beach down the road. While some floor plans have begun to stabilize in price, we need to realize that other floor plans are still dropping, as not all floor plans will bottom out within the same period.

Signs of stabilization become visible in the most common floor plan in Panama City Beach. The two-bedroom floor plans at Ocean Villa, Emerald Isle, Ocean Reef and Twin Palms have all maintained their respective price ranges. One-bedroom gulf-front units built after 1990 have actually seen a slight increase in price per square foot. Many floor plans exhibit this price stabilization and the phenomenon seems very likely to continue for the foreseeable future.

Click on image below to see the full size graph

Click on image below to see the full size graph