Sales of existing single-family homes in Florida rose 44 percent in fourth quarter 2009 compared to the same period a year earlier, according to the latest housing statistics from Florida Realtors(R). A total of 43,926 existing homes sold statewide in 4Q 2009; during the same period the year before, a total of 30,610 existing homes sold. It marks the sixth consecutive quarter that Florida has seen higher existing year-to-year home sales, according to the state association.

Statewide sales of existing condominiums in the fourth quarter rose 93 percent compared to the same time the previous year. This marks the fifth consecutive quarter for increased statewide sales in both the existing home and condo markets compared to year-ago levels.

To gain insight into current trends in Florida’s real estate industry, the University of Florida’s Bergstrom Center for Real Estate Studies conducts a quarterly survey of industry executives, market research economists, real estate scholars and other experts. The survey noted uncertainty over the tight credit market, foreclosures and the jobs outlook.

On the positive side, private investors – both foreign and domestic – are starting to “kick the tires” in many markets, said Timothy Becker, the center’s director. In addition, investor expectation for returns is starting to fall to more realistic levels, helping to close the spread between bidding and asking prices, he said.

“These developments bode well for the transaction market when quality properties start coming to the marketplace,” Becker added.

Eighteen of Florida’s metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) reported increased sales of existing homes in the fourth quarter compared to the same three-month-period a year earlier, while all of the MSAs showed gains in condo sales.

The statewide existing-home median sales price was $140,000 in the fourth quarter; a year earlier, it was $160,600 for a decrease of 13 percent. According to industry analysts with the National Association of Realtors(R) (NAR), sales of foreclosures and other distressed properties continue to downwardly distort the median price because they generally sell at a discount relative to traditional homes. The median is a typical market price where half the homes sold for more, half for less.

In the year-to-year quarterly comparison for condo sales, 16,255 units sold statewide for the quarter compared to 8,410 in 4Q 2008 for a 93 percent increase. The statewide existing-condo median sales price was $105,500 for the three-month period; in 4Q 2008, it was $136,600 for a decrease of 23 percent.

Low mortgage rates remain another favorable influence on the housing sector. According to Freddie Mac, the national commitment rate for a 30-year conventional fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.92 percent in 4Q 2009; one year earlier, it averaged 5.86 percent.

Two charts showing statistics for Florida and its MSAs are below. One chart compares the volume of existing, single-family home sales and median sales prices in the fourth quarter of 2009 to the fourth quarter of 2008, based on Realtor closed transactions from local Realtor boards/associations within the MSAs. The second chart compares the volume of existing condo sales and median sales prices in fourth quarter 2009 to fourth quarter 2008, based on Realtor closed transactions from local Realtor boards/associations within the MSAs.

TALLAHASSEE — A multibillion-dollar Manhattan development formally unwound this week after costing the state’s pension system $266 million and fueling a debate over oversight of the $113 billion fund.

The formal announcement by a group that includes Tishman Speyer Properties and BlackRock Inc., who made headlines with a $5.4 billion purchase of a sprawling property in Manhattan — at the time the largest real-estate transacting in the nation’s history — won’t have much effect on the state’s pension fund, which already wrote off its $250 million investment in the Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village, a massive apartment complex.

“This should have no bearing on us one way or the other,” said Dennis MacKee, a spokesman for the State Board of Administration, which oversees the retirement fund. “Right now, it looks like what we have on the books is what it’s likely to end up as.”

What the board has on the books is $0, after essentially conceding that the entire investment is gone.

In addition to the quarter of a billion dollars invested in the property, the SBA spent $16 million to cover costs associated with its late entry into the venture. Because the state held an equity position in the project and wasn’t a creditor, it won’t benefit from the group’s decision to turn the property over to its creditors.

MacKee said the investment was part of the state’s strategy to diversify its portfolio generally and within real estate in particular. He said the state invests largely in safe bets, but does take on some high-risk projects in search of the rewards that can follow.

But the investment has also helped fuel a political battle between Attorney General Bill McCollum, a Republican running for governor, and Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink, the likely Democratic nominee for the state’s top office. The two sit with Gov. Charlie Crist, a Republican running for Senate, as trustees of the SBA.

Asked earlier this week about the project’s collapse, Sink called attention to her proposal to expand the trustee group and include more members with financial expertise.

“That’s why I’ve called for pretty serious reforms at the Tallahassee State Board of Administration and I hope that my legislation gets passed,” Sink said.

McCollum has argued that adding members to the board would require a constitutional amendment and has countered with his own proposal to instead overhaul the Investment Advisory Council, which advises the pension fund on its decisions.

“I firmly believe these changes will provide the additional oversight the trustees are seeking, in an effort to protect the financial future of all Tallahassee Florida Pension Fund participants,”