DQNews Archived Article

Who Buys California Homes?

by Real Estate Analyst John Karevoll
February, 1999

La Jolla, CA.— A total of 2,630 people named Smith purchased a home in California last year (1998). The second most common homebuyer last name was Garcia with 2,553, followed by Johnson with 2,214, Lee with 2,079 and Hernandez with 2,039 home purchases, a real estate information service reported.

The Smiths paid a median of $165,000 for their homes, the Garcias paid a median $123,000, the Johnsons $159,000, the Lees $210,500 and the median was $117,000 for homebuyers with the last name Hernandez(see chart), according to DataQuick Information Systems.

Surname	Count	$Median
Smith	2,630	$165,000
Garcia	2,553	$123,000
Johnson	2,214	$159,000
Lee	2,079	$210,500
Hernandez	2,039	$117,000
Martinez	1,975	$120,000
Lopez	1,974	$123,500
Rodriguez	1,906	$120,000
Nguyen	1,882	$183,000
Gonzalez	1,793	$118,000
Source: DataQuick

"Generating lists like this from our database may seem a bit frivolous, but when you dip deeper into the well, interesting demographic patterns emerge," said Mike Ela, who heads the DataQuick Products Division. He pointed out that Hispanic surnames have become more common during the last decade, especially in entry-level markets, as have homebuyers with female first names.

While homebuyers named Smith paid a median $165,000, that overall median hides regional differences. In Merced County the median for Smith was $71,500, while it was $380,000 in Marin County. Nationwide, Smiths paid a median $122,000 last year, ranging from $78,000 in Oklahoma to $230,000 in Hawaii.

DataQuick monitors real estate activity nationwide and provides information to consumers, educational institutions, public agencies, lending institutions, title companies and industry analysts.

The most common Bay Area surnames last year were Nguyen, Lee, Smith, Johnson and Wong. In Southern California the most common names were Garcia, Hernandez, Smith, Lopez and Martinez, DataQuick reported.

At a median of $310,000, homebuyers with the last name Stern bought the highest-priced homes, followed by Lo with $308,000 and Chou with $302,000. At the other end of the scale homebuyers with the last name Velazquez and Saldana paid a median $105,000.

Source: DataQuick Information Systems

Media Inquiries: John Karevoll (909)867-9534

Copyright © 1999 DataQuick Information Systems.
All rights reserved.

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