DQNews Archived Article

Southland Home Sales Still Strong

by Real Estate Analyst John Karevoll
December, 1998

La Jolla, CA.— Home sales in Southern California continued to rise in November, the result of a growing economy, reasonable home prices and low mortgage interest rates, a real estate information service reported.

A total of 20,470 new and resale houses and condos were sold in Los Angeles, Orange, Ventura, San Bernardino, San Diego and Riverside counties in November. That was down 14.8 percent from 24,028 for the month before, and up 11.8 percent from 18,305 for November a year ago, according to DataQuick Products Division.

A decline from October to November is normal for the season. The year-over-year increase is the 35th in a row November's sales count was the strongest for any November of the decade. At the current sales pace, the number of Southland homes sold in 1998 will reach 285,000, up 18.4 percent from 240,664 for 1997, and the highest sales count since 342,090 homes were sold in 1989.

"The market is strong in virtually all home categories and in all geographic areas. Yet we are not seeing any of the frenzied activity of the late 1980s. Buyers are motivated, but are willing to walk away from properties they feel are overpriced," said Mike Ela, leader of DataQuick Products Division.

The median price paid for a Southland home was $187,000 in November. That was up 1.6 percent from $184,000 for October and up 8.7 percent from $172,000 for November last year. Prices have been going up on a year-over-year basis for over two years, DataQuick reported.

DataQuick Products Division monitors real estate activity nationwide and provides information to consumers, educational institutions, public agencies, lending institutions, title companies and industry analysts. The sales counts are estimated for San Bernardino County because of late data availability for the last four days of November.

All Homes	No Sold	No Sold	Pct	Median	Median	Pct
	Nov-97	Nov-98	Chng	Nov-97	Nov-98	Chng
Los Angeles	7,020	7,519	7.10%	$171K	$184K	7.60%
Orange County	3,166	3,578	13.00%	$210K	$229K	9.00%
San Diego	3,092	3,426	10.80%	$182K	$207K	13.70%
Riverside	2,036	2,488	22.20%	$133K	$140K	5.30%
San Bernardino	2,049	2,367	15.50%	$124K	$131K	5.60%
Ventura	942	1,092	15.90%	$207K	$230K	11.10%
So. California	18,305	20,470	11.80%	$172K	$187K	8.70%

Source: DataQuick Information Systems

Media Inquiries: John Karevoll (909)867-9534

Copyright © 1998 DataQuick Information Systems.
All rights reserved.

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