Housing prices were high and sales volumes low across Southern California as 2023 approached its end.
In November, home prices reached all-time highs in four of Southern California’s six counties, according to CoreLogic data released Dec. 21. But the number of home sales across Southern California declined 4 percent. There were 12,416 transactions in November, the lowest total since February 2023.
It also was the smallest total for homes sold during any November since 1988, CoreLogic noted. The data company’s November figures were first reported by the Southern California News Group.
The four counties with record prices were Orange, San Bernardino, San Diego and Ventura. Orange County’s median home price jumped 15 percent in the past year to $1.1 million, the data company found.
San Bernardino County’s median rose 12.9 percent to a record high of $519,500. San Diego County’s median gained 10.9 percent to $850,000 and Ventura County’s median increased 7.7 percent to a record high of $828,500.
Los Angeles County’s median rose 7.1 percent to $840,500.
The research firm also found that the median home price of a Southern California home rose to $740,000 in November 2023, a 7 percent increase compared to the same time in the previous year. The all-time high for this category, $750,000 was reached in spring of 2022.
Home inventory continued to be low across the region, which spurred competition for homes and drove up prices.
Mortgage rates are a key reason for the slow market. A big majority of homeowners have mortgages at 4 percent or less, and homeowners are hanging on to their low-rate loans, Southern California New Group reports. However, a forecast mortgage rate drop is expected to bring more buyers to the market. Lawrence Yun, chief economist of National Association of Realtors, forecast that U.S. homes sales will rise 13.5 percent in 2024.
“The demand for housing will recover from falling mortgage rates and rising income,” Yun said in a statement. “In addition, housing inventory is expected to rise about 30 percent as more sellers begin to list after delaying selling over the past two years.”
– Andrew Asch
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