DQNews Archived Article

Strong Home Sales in California

by Real Estate Analyst John Karevoll
September, 1996

La Jolla, CA.— California home sales reached their third-highest level of the last five years in August as prices also continued to recover, a real estate information service reported.

A total of 37,503 new and resale houses and condos were sold statewide last month, up 5.6 percent from July's 35,529 and up 6.0 percent from 35,367 for August last year, according to DataQuick Information Systems, an Axciom company.

August's sales total has only been exceeded by 39,836 for May 1996 and 39,213 for June 1994 during the last five years. So far this year 266,607 homes have been sold statewide, up 21.1 percent from 220,153 for the same period last year, and the highest total for the January-to-August period since 319,048 in 1990.

"The state's recovery is moderate, but broad-based and steady. There's an equilibrium to the market we haven't seen since before the run-up in prices and sales of the late '80s. No single home category is fueling the recovery, current price increases are occuring across the board," said Donald L. Cohn, DataQuick CEO.

The median price paid for a California home was $167,000 in August, up 1.2 percent from $165,000 a year ago. There has been a year-over-year increase in median price the last seven months. The low of recent years was reached in February 1995 at $160,000.

DataQuick, an operating unit of Little Rock, Ark.-based Acxiom Corp., monitors all real estate activity in California and most other states and provides information to consumers, lending institutions, title companies and industry analysts.

The current come-back in sales volume and prices was first evident in the Bay Area, especially in San Mateo and Santa Clara counties, and more recently in Orange County.

Lately, sales levels have increased significantly in Castro Valley, San Ramon, Walnut Creek and other East Bay communities. At the other end of the scale, sales are not yet showing increases in the Sacramento area and in other Central Valley communities, DataQuick reported.

Source: DataQuick Information Systems

For more information call John Karevoll (909)867-9534

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