Home sales in San Diego County fell by 17.5 percent in December from a year ago, while the median home price in the region increased by 14.8 percent, to $420,000, DataQuick, a San Diego-based real estate information service, reported today.
Home sales in December 2013 totaled 3,099 compared to 3,757 sales recorded in December 2012.
The median home price of $420,000 in December 2013 is a drop from the $366,000 recorded in December 2012.
Southern California Totals:
Southern California home sales fell to a six-year low for the month of December as investor activity eased again and buyers struggled with a tight inventory of homes for sale, DataQuick said. The median price paid for a home jumped to the highest level in nearly six years, the result of demand outstripping supply, declining distress sales and a slight increase in the share of sales in mid- to high-end areas, a real estate information service reported.
A total of 18,415 new and resale houses and condos sold in Los Angeles, Riverside, San Diego, Ventura, San Bernardino and Orange counties last month. That was up 6.5 percent from 17,283 sales in November, and down 9.2 percent from 20,274 sales in December 2012.
December’s sales gain from November is normal for the season, though it was weaker than usual. On average, sales have increased 12.4 percent between November and December since 1988, when DataQuick’s statistics begin.
Last month’s sales were 24.1 percent below the average number of sales — 24,254 — in the month of December. Southland sales haven’t been above average for any particular month in more than seven years. December sales have ranged from a low of 13,240 in December 2007 to high of 36,865 in December 2003.
“Sales have fallen short of the same period a year earlier for three consecutive months now, and the pitifully low inventory is the main culprit,” said John Walsh, DataQuick president. “The jump in home values over the last year suggests we’ll eventually see a lot more people interested in selling their homes, which would help ease the inventory crunch. More supply would put downward pressure on prices, as would rising mortgage rates. But there are reasons to believe we’ll continue to see upward pressure on prices, too. Home building has risen but remains at relatively low levels, meaning no major boost to the overall supply of homes for sale. Meanwhile, demand is being fueled by a gradually improving economy. Also, some of the people who lost homes during the foreclosure crisis will be looking to own again.”
The median price paid for all new and resale houses and condos sold in the six-county region last month rose to $395,000 — the peak for 2013 and the highest for any month since the median was $408,000 in February 2008. Last month’s median was up 2.6 percent from $385,000 in November and up 22.3 percent from $323,000 in December 2012. Until last month the median had more or less moved sideways — ranging from $382,000 to $385,000 — since last June.
Foreclosure Resales
Foreclosure resales — homes foreclosed on in the prior 12 months — accounted for 5.8 percent of the Southland resale market in December. That was down from 6.3 percent the prior month and was down from 14.2 percent a year earlier. Last month’s foreclosure resale rate was the lowest since it was 5.4 percent in May 2007. In the current cycle, foreclosure resales hit a high of 56.7 percent in February 2009.
Short Sales:
Short sales — transactions where the sale price fell short of what was owed on the property — made up an estimated 13.2 percent of Southland resales last month. That was up slightly from 12.8 percent the prior month and down from 26.7 percent a year earlier.