Central Florida’s real estate market is showing promising signs of recovery after a sluggish 2025. Recent data from January indicates a significant uptick in both new home listings and pending sales, suggesting a renewed confidence among buyers and sellers. This shift is attributed to decreasing interest rates and a more balanced market dynamic.
Key Takeaways
- Central Florida’s real estate market is experiencing an increase in new listings and pending sales.
- Interest rates have fallen to approximately six percent, bolstering consumer confidence.
- Realtors are optimistic about sustained momentum heading into the spring season and beyond.
Shifting Market Dynamics
After a period of rapid growth during the pandemic, the metro Orlando real estate market experienced a slowdown in 2025, transitioning into a more balanced environment. While overall sales saw a decrease of 25% from December to January, and homes spent an average of 81 days on the market – the longest in a decade – other indicators point towards a positive turn.
Signs of Momentum
Encouragingly, new listings surged by 59% and homes under contract with pending sales rose by 24% between December and January. Chris Atwell, President of the Orlando Regional Realtor Association (ORRA), views this increase in available properties as a strong signal of returning consumer confidence.
Factors Driving Recovery
A key driver for this emerging momentum is the decline in interest rates, now hovering around six percent. This decrease is encouraging more homeowners to list their properties and more buyers to enter the market. Additionally, buyers are reportedly securing more concessions from sellers, allowing them to bring more capital to the closing table.
Optimism for the Future
Realtors like Tanin Teston, who is assisting Adam Stark in his search for a larger family home, have observed a noticeable acceleration in activity. Stark noted a significant increase in available properties compared to just a few months prior. Atwell expressed optimism, stating that falling rates and rising consumer confidence are the "ingredients for a very successful recipe for this spring market and even into the summer and fall."
ORRA will closely monitor first and second-quarter sales figures to gauge the extent of the real estate market’s momentum in the latter half of 2026.
Sources
- Central Florida’s real estate market building momentum, Spectrum News 13.