September sales of Naples-area homes fell 30%

Hurricane Irma slammed Naples-area house and condo sales in September, cutting the number of closings by 30 percent from the same month last year while pending sales dropped by 55 percent.

The Naples Area Board of Realtors also reported that Irma impeded sales activity for three weeks as the inventory of listed properties declined.

The total number of active listings for houses and condos dropped nine percent in September to 4,608 from 5,044 in the same month last year. Some house and condo owners delayed listing because they evacuated ahead of Hurricane Irma. Others took their homes off the market for cleaning and repairs after the storm.

The board’s September report also showed a 19 percent increase, year over year, in the median sale price of houses to $448,999 and a 3 percent decrease in the median condo sale price to $238,000.

But the number of pending sales in September fell, year over year, to 299 from 661 while the number of closed sales dropped to 398 from 566.