Home ownership continues to be less attainable in St. Johns County than in any of the other five counties that comprise Northeast Florida.
According to the most recent report by the Northeast Florida Association of Realtors (NEFAR), St. Johns’ housing affordability index for September was only 47.
The housing affordability index measures whether a typical family earns enough to qualify for a mortgage on a typical home. It’s based on a number of factors: interest rates, median income and median home prices and presumes a 20% downpayment.
An index of 100 indicates that a family earning the median income has the exact amount needed to purchase a median-priced home. A value below 100 means the family does not have enough money. A value above 100 means it has more than enough.
The only county where the index was 100 was Putnam, the most affordable in Northeast Florida.
The indices of the other counties were: Duval, 76; Clay, 70; Nassau, 63; and Baker, 91.
The median price for a single-family home in St. Johns County was $536,493 in September, down 2.5% from August.
By comparison, the median prices for surrounding counties were: Duval, $330,000; Clay, $358,710; Nassau, $395,000; Baker, $275,000; and Putnam, $255,000.
For those who cannot afford to buy, rents continue to pose challenges, as well.
RentCafe.com lists averages as of July. The average for St. Johns County was $1,891 while the average for Duval County was $1,537. The average in Ponte Vedra Beach was lower than the county’s figure: $1,826. But St. Augustine was higher, at $1,928.
These averages do not account for the number of bedrooms, but a white paper on attainable housing released by the St. Johns County Chamber of Commerce in September does break that down further.
That report found that a one-bedroom home had a median monthly rental price of $1,623 at the time it was conducted. A two-bedroom home was $1,795. A three-bedroom home was $2,290, and a four-bedroom home was $2,823.
The latest NEFAR report did find some indications that the housing market may be shifting slightly away from being solely a sellers’ market.
In St. Johns County, the median days on the market rose 31.4% from August, and closed sales fell 12.1%. Meanwhile, pending sales rose by 1% and new listings rose 1.25%. Active inventory of homes increased 8.7% to 1,642. This is a 4.2-month supply, which is greater than the low 3.1-month supply for all of Northeast Florida.
In Duval County, median days on the market rose 17.9%, while closed sales fell 13.5%. Pending sales were also down, by 15.1%. New listings increased 4.8%. Active inventory of homes increased 13.5% to 2,314. However, that indicates only a 2.7-month supply.
According to NEFAR, interest rate changes are impacting the decreasing affordable housing index figures in the region, as well as the increasing number of days on the market and a lower percentage of the asking price received.
