LA home sales drop, pulling down median prices, report shows

The metro region reported a 12% decline in March year over year

Median home prices fall in LA
Median home prices fall in LA

The housing market in Los Angeles has fallen steadily behind 2018 results, mirroring a nationwide slowdown that has not eased despite lower interest rates.

Sales dropped throughout Southern California, with double-digit declines in the Los Angeles metro and Inland Empire regions, according to a report from the California Association of Realtors.

Meanwhile, in L.A. County, the median home sale price was $525,520 in March, about 3 percent lower than February, and slightly below what it was in March 2018. Statewide, those numbers were a little better. Median home sale price rose 5.9 percent to $565,880 in March, compared to $534,140 in February.

But the number of home sales was far lower last month, compared to the same period a year ago.

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The L.A. metro region posted a year-over-year sales drop of 12 percent, with home sales falling in every county. In the Inland Empire, the decline stood at 10.4 percent from a year ago. Riverside and San Bernardino counties posted annual sales declines of 9.3 percent and 12.2 percent respectively.

While the median number of days it took to sell a single-family home in L.A. fell to 25 in March from 35 in February, that was still more than a year ago. In March 2018, the median number of days it took to sell a home was just 17, according to the survey.

Statewide, homes sales were down 8.2 percent in March compared to the same period last year.