DQNews Archived Article

Southland Home Sales

by Real Estate Analyst John Karevoll
August, 1999

La Jolla, CA.— Prices for homes in Southern California continued to rise in July as sales counts leveled off, a real estate information service reported.

A total of 28,781 new and resale houses and condos were sold in Los Angeles, Ventura, Riverside, San Diego, Orange and San Bernardino counties in July. That was down 1.8 percent from 29,305 for June and down 1.8 percent from 29,303 for July last year, according to DataQuick Products Division.

July's sales count was still the third highest of the decade, exceeded by only by the prior and year-ago months.

"There may have been a bit of a pause in the market because of the rise in interest rates, but it's likely that any deferred buying activity will just get time-shifted forward by a few weeks," said Mike Ela, leader of DataQuick Products Division.

The median price paid for a home was $194,000 in July. That was down 2.0 percent from $198,000 for June, and up 3.2 percent from $188,000 for July a year ago. July's median was the second-highest ever.

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

Because of shifts in market mix, the 3.2 percent year-over-year increase in median understates the current rise in home values. Home values are going up around eight percent annually, DataQuick reported.