Happy Spring! Last month, we shared with you that after many years of deficient inventory, we were starting to see properties coming on the market more frequently. As we start the month of May, this trend continues as inventory in the Bethany-Fenwick market is up 58% when compared to the same time last year.

The beach real estate market remains firm. As the chart illustrates, sales activity is up 14% so far this year when compared to the first 4 months of 2023 and sales volume is up 19%. Properties are taking a little longer to sell with 11 days as the median days-to-contract so far this year, vs. 9 days last year. Meanwhile, prices are stable.      

The busy Summer season is just around the corner, if we can offer you any real estate guidance,

March has arrived and we are looking forward to longer light filled days ahead! The Bethany-Fenwick area had a good start to the year for real estate activity. While it is not the frenzy that we experienced in 2021 and 2022, to-date, sales are up considerably when compared to last year.

As the chart illustrates, through the first two months, new contracts were up 34% when compared to the same time last year. Inventory is slowly rising, but remains at historical lows. Sales volume in dollars (based on list price) was up 30%.   Properties that are priced appropriately continue to sell very quickly and the average sale price for properties settled in January and February was down 5% when compared to the same months in 2023. This is due to the fact

As we head into what is typically a strong selling season for beach property, this is a time we like to calculate absorption rates to determine whether we are trending in the direction of a buyer’s or seller’s market. We compare the pace of sales over the previous 12 months to determine how many Months Supply of Inventory is for sale. Generally, a balanced market would have between 6 to 7 months of inventory. At this time, all areas have 2 months of inventory or less. We are clearly still in a strong seller’s market in Fenwick Island due to inventory shortages, but as the chart illustrates, the trend is starting to change direction in most areas at the beach when compared to the same time last year.

This shift is a good representation of what we