Sarasota County housing market report: September 2026

In September 2026, Sarasota County homes sold for more and went under contract faster than a year earlier, with fewer listings on the market. The median sale price was $485,000 for single-family homes (up 7.8%) and $335,000 for condos and townhouses (up 6.3%), and active listings fell in both groups (Florida Realtors Monthly Market Summary, Sarasota County, September 2026). Most sellers still closed below their original asking price, so pricing matters as much as ever.

If your question is whether prices are falling, start with are Sarasota home prices dropping?, which covers the headline numbers and what they mean for pricing. This post is the full monthly scorecard: pending sales, cash share, distressed sales and days to close, line by line.

How did single-family homes do in September 2026?

Months supply is how long it would take to sell every listed home at the current pace of sales if nothing new came on. Percent of original list price received is the median share of their first asking price that sellers got, before any reductions.

The single-family market tightened on almost every line. More homes came on the market (803 new listings against 754), yet active inventory still fell by about 500 homes, because buyers kept pace. A typical home went under contract in 51 days and closed in 91, down from 105 days a year earlier.

One line moved the other way. New pending sales, the contracts signed during the month, slipped to 619 from 637 (down 2.8%). That’s a small drop, and one month doesn’t make a trend, but pending sales are the closest thing these reports have to a look ahead, so we’ll watch them in the October numbers.

Cash was part of 287 of the 681 sales, about 42%. Distressed sales stayed rare: 12 foreclosure or bank-owned sales and 1 short sale, against 6 and none a year earlier.

How did condos and townhouses do?

Condos had the bigger turn. Closed sales rose by about a third, new pending sales rose 19.3% (291 against 244), and pending inventory, the homes under contract but not yet closed, was up 18.1% to 562. Those three together point to more condo buyers in the pipeline than a year ago.

Condos still move slower than houses. The median condo took 77 days to go under contract and 131 days to close, against 51 and 91 for single-family homes. And at 4.9 months, condo supply is still well above the 3.7 months for houses. Condo buyers weigh things house buyers don’t, like association reserves, milestone inspection results and special assessments, and that slows some sales down.

Cash buyers dominate condos: 195 of 309 sales, about 63%. There were no foreclosure or short sales among condos and townhouses in September 2026.

This report uses medians throughout, because a few very expensive closings can swing the average a long way in a single month.

How do houses and condos compare side by side?

The gap between the two groups is the clearest story in this report. Houses sell faster, closer to asking and with less supply. Condos are catching up quickly from a slower year, but they still give buyers more choice and more time.

Prices also vary widely inside each group. A Gulf-front condo and a garden condo inland share one median, and so do a new home in a gated community and an older ranch house. The county numbers set the mood. Your street, building and condition set the price.

What did we see on the ground this fall?

[NEEDS RICHARD: a real example from September or October 2026 (no names): a listing, showing or offer that matches or breaks from these numbers, in your words]

What this means for sellers, buyers and rental owners

Sellers. Fewer competing listings and shorter days to contract work in your favor, but the typical seller still received about 94% of the original price for a house and 93% for a condo. That gap usually comes from homes that start too high and come down. Price from recent sales near you, not from the county median. Our post on how long it takes to sell a house in Sarasota walks through what to expect from list to close, and you can request a written pricing opinion, usually within 24 hours.

Buyers. Less inventory means less choice than a year ago, especially for single-family homes. You can still negotiate on homes that have sat, and condos give you the most room, with nearly five months of supply and a median of 77 days on the market before a contract. A buyer consultation is the place to set your price range against what’s actually closing.

Rental owners. If you’ve been weighing a sale against renting, a market with rising medians and falling inventory is a reasonable time to get both numbers. Condo owners in particular are seeing more buyer activity than a year ago. Ask for a sale price and a rent range at the same time and compare what each leaves you.

For the full comparison, start with our free rental analysis, or read the Manatee side of the bay in our Manatee County market report.

What’s the next step?

County numbers are context. To see what they mean for your home, fill out our home value form and we’ll send a written pricing opinion based on recent sales near you and what’s under contract now.