The most overlooked real estate statistic is the year-over-year increase in home sales within certain states, the Florida Realtors association said Thursday. The association, which represents real estate agents across Florida, said existing home sales rose 10% to 15,036 in September, up from 13,727 a year earlier. “We’ve seen an upward trend in sales since January 2011, and September’s sales were a full 10% above September 2010,” said John Tuccillo, chief economist at Florida Realtors. Tuccillo said distressed property sales have been spurring market activity to a certain extent. Fifteen of the metropolitan statistical areas surveyed in September saw higher existing home and condo sales. The median sales price for existing homes hit $133,900 last month, a 1% decrease from $135,000 last year. In Broward County, which includes Miami and Fort Lauderdale, single-family home sales jumped 11% from 974 sales in September 2010 to 1,079 last month, the Miami Association of Realtors and the Broward Council of MAR, said. The two associations noted that inventory is dropping in Broward County as more international buyers flood the market, paying cash for condominiums. Write to Kerri Panchuk.

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