DQNews Archived Article

Southland Home Sales Jump

by Real Estate Analyst John Karevoll
June, 2000

La Jolla, CA.— Fueled in large part by a surge of activity in Riverside and San Bernardino counties, home sales in Southern California kicked back into gear in May after April's slowdown, a real estate information service reported.

A total of 27,968 new and resale houses and condos were sold in Los Angeles, Ventura, Orange, San Diego, Riverside and San Bernardino counties last month. That was up 11.3 percent from April's 25,122, and up 10.1 percent from 25,404 for May last year, according to DataQuick Information Systems

The sales count was the strongest for any May since 1989 when 30,820 homes were sold. Sales were up 26.7 percent in Riverside County and 25.7 percent in San Bernardino County (see chart).

"Some of last month's sales activity may have been deferred from April when some buyers were temporarily spooked by rising interest rates and stock market turbulence. Our May numbers indicate that they just waited a week or two and then went ahead with their buying plans," said Mike Ela, DataQuick's president.

The median price paid for a Southland home was $203,000 last month, up 1.0 percent from April's $201,000, and up 5.7 percent from $192,000 for May a year ago. Price increases are strongest in San Diego and Orange counties. Because of an increase in entry-level home buying, the rise in median understates appreciation rates, which are now around 10 percent.

DataQuick, which is now a business unit of Vancouver-based MacDonald Dettwiler and Associates, monitors real estate activity nationwide and provides information to consumers, educational institutions, public agencies, lending institutions, title companies and industry analysts.