Selling a House in Fort Lauderdale

Where the city stands against its 2024 high

All-homes values in Fort Lauderdale peaked in March 2024 near $546,235. Today's figure is about 6.7% below that. Single-family homes, typically $586,503, are flat for the year. Condos sit at $403,495, down 1.5% in a year and about 12% under their late-2023 peak.

That condo decline is milder than in most Florida cities, where condo indexes fell 5% to 8% last year. Fort Lauderdale's beach and downtown condo demand is broad, with a mix of year-round owners, seasonal owners and buyers from abroad. Census data counts 12.5% of the city's homes as seasonal and nearly 20% of residents as 65 or older.

The practical point for a seller: last year's top prices are not this year's comps for most homes, but the drop is small. Price within a few percent of recent closed sales, and you are competing on condition and presentation.

Season still matters more here than in inland cities. Many condo and second-home buyers are in town from roughly November through April, and they like to see a unit in person. A seasonal owner who lists in October, with the unit clean, staged and the documents ready, meets that wave at the start instead of the end. Listing in August means waiting through the slowest months with carrying costs running.

Neighborhood split: water and walkability versus the rest

The Zillow neighborhood list shows where buyers are still paying up:

• Up in a year: Rio Vista ($2,015,117, +5.8%), Coral Ridge ($1,131,350, +4.3%), Victoria Park ($790,211, +2.7%), Poinsettia Heights ($672,970, +2.3%), Downtown ($608,798, +2.2%) and Galt Mile ($509,603, +1.9%).
• Down in a year: Flagler Heights ($457,313, -14.0%), Middle River Terrace ($425,110, -5.5%), Sailboat Bend ($510,523, -4.4%), Riverside Park ($547,944, -3.4%) and South Middle River ($392,659, -3.1%).

Rio Vista and Coral Ridge are waterfront-heavy, and their five-year gains of 49.2% and 40.5% are the strongest on the list. Flagler Heights is the clear exception on the downside, now below where it was five years ago. If you own there, assume buyers know it and plan the price accordingly.

Selling a condo in an older Fort Lauderdale building

The city's median home was built in 1973, and 43.6% of homes are in buildings with ten or more units. Many beachside and Intracoastal towers are therefore well past the age when Florida's milestone inspection rules apply to buildings of three or more stories. Associations also need a structural integrity reserve study, and owners can no longer vote to waive or cut those reserves.

For you as a seller, this shows up as questions about:

• Whether the milestone inspection is done and what it found.
• Current reserves against the study's recommended funding.
• Special assessments already approved or under discussion.
• Master insurance cost and coverage.

Buyers get a review period after receiving the association documents and can cancel inside it. Lenders also screen buildings, and a non-warrantable building limits buyers to cash or portfolio loans. Get the full document package from your manager before you list, and price honestly against recent sales in your own building. The contract usually assigns the estoppel fee to you; Florida capped it in 2024 at $299 base, plus $119 for expedited service and $179 if the account is delinquent.

Waterfront and large homes: what drives price at the top

Price climbs steeply with size here. Typical values run $248,528 for a one-bedroom, $445,144 for two, $647,275 for three, $1,050,246 for four and about $2,972,475 for five or more. The upper third of the market begins near $1,189,004.

On canal homes, buyers pay for specifics, and a listing should state them plainly:

• Water depth at the dock and distance to the Intracoastal or ocean inlet.
• Fixed bridges on the route, which decide whether a sailboat or tall powerboat can get out.
• Seawall age, cap condition and any engineering report.
• Dock and lift permits.
• Flood zone, finished floor elevation and the elevation certificate.

A seawall that needs replacing can turn into a large credit at inspection. Knowing its condition before you list keeps that number in your control.

Broward closing customs and your net

Broward differs from most of Florida in one cost: the buyer customarily pays for the owner's title policy, though the contract can shift it. The seller still covers deed doc stamps at $0.70 per $100, about $3,568 on a $509,743 sale. Add the tax proration (Florida bills property taxes in arrears each November), your payoff, the estoppel fee and the commission you negotiate. Since the August 2024 NAR settlement, offers to pay a buyer's agent are made outside the MLS, if at all.

Seasonal owners selling from abroad should plan for FIRPTA: a buyer must withhold 15% of the price from a foreign seller unless an exception or an IRS withholding certificate (Form 8288-B) applies. Domestic owners may exclude up to $250,000 of gain on a main home, $500,000 for joint filers, and Florida charges no state income tax. Portability can carry up to $500,000 of Save Our Homes savings to a new Florida homestead within three years. This isn't legal or tax advice; a CPA familiar with cross-border sales should review it.