Southland Home Prices Up, Sales Flat in December

January 19, 2001

La Jolla,CA---Home prices in Southern California eased their way up to another record as sales counts edged back slightly from year-ago levels, a real estate information service reported.

A total of 25,323 new and resale houses and condos were sold in Los Angeles, Riverside, San Diego, Ventura, San Bernardino and Orange counties last month. That was up 3.4 percent from 24,486 for November, and down 1.5 percent from 25,715 for December last year, according to DataQuick Information Systems.

An increase from November to December is normal for the season. Last month's sales brought the year-end total for the region up to 302,112, an increase of 0.8 percent from 299,624 for 1999. Riverside and San Bernardino counties saw significant sales increases last year, while the 2000 counts were down slightly in other Southern California counties.

"The entry-level markets grew the most last year. Mid- and move-up markets saw a bit of a decline, mostly because of tight inventory. The predicted slowdown in the economy hasn't kicked in yet when it comes to Southland home sales, and we're not sure it will in the near future," said Mike Ela, DataQuick president.

Last month's median was $220,000, a new high. That was up 0.9 percent from $218,000 in November, and up 11.1 percent from $198,000 for December a year ago.

DataQuick, 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.

The typical mortgage payment that Southland buyers committed themselves to paying was $1,151 in December. The year's high was $1,229 in May when interest rates were higher. The all-time peak was April 1989 at $1,360, DataQuick reported.

All Homes	No Sold Dec-99	No Sold Dec-00	Pct. Change	Median Dec-99	Median Dec-00	Pct. Change
Los Angeles	9,456	8,962	-5.2%	$192K	$205K	6.8%
Orange County	4,272	4,147	-2.9%	$258K	$292K	13.2%
San Diego	4,175	4,278	2.5%	$215K	$259K	20.5%
Riverside	3,366	3,453	2.6%	$153K	$170K	11.1%
San Bernardino	3,072	3,007	-2.1%	$139K	$148K	6.5%
Ventura	1,374	1,476	7.4%	$247K	$263K	6.5%
So. California	25,715	25,323	-1.5%	$198K	$220K	11.1%

Source: DataQuick Information Systems

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

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