MIAMI (CBS4) – On the same day unemployment applications dropped, South Florida realtors revealed that pending home sales in Miami-Dade and Broward County jumped by almost 29 percent in December.

According to the Miami Association of Realtors, pending home sales in Miami-Dade County for the month of December rose 28.8 percent from December 2009 numbers. But, as more government aid dried up, the numbers showed a decrease from November of almost one percent.

Broward County showed a slightly smaller increase in December from December 2009, 8.8 percent. Just like Miami-Dade County, Broward County’s number of pending home sales dropped almost one percent from November 2010.

“Rising pending and closed sales indicate evident demand for local properties,” said Miami Association of Realtors Chairman Jack H. Levine. “We expect the local market to continue to improve as the economy and job markets recover and the inventory of distressed properties continues to be absorbed.”