Strong Southland Home Sales in June

July 22, 2003

La Jolla,CA--Led by record-breaking sales in the Inland Empire, Southern California just had it's strongest June since 1989. Prices continue to reach new peaks.

A total of 31,369 new and resale houses and condos were sold in Los Angeles, Riverside, San Diego, Ventura, San Bernardino and Orange counties last month. That was down 0.1 percent from 31,387 for the month before, and up 4.4 percent from 30,038 for June last year, according to DataQuick Information Systems.

Last month was the strongest June in the region since 1989 when 32,968 homes were sold. In Riverside County 5,303 homes were sold, an all-time high for any month. In San Bernardino County 3,903 homes were sold, slightly off a record 3,940 for the month before.

"Sales would have been even higher if there were enough homes for sale. Right now there are more buyers than sellers. Additionally, escrows have been slowed down by the surge of refinance activity. We expect that to ease back now that interest rates are up a bit," said Marshall Prentice, DataQuick president.

The median price that Southland buyers paid for a home was $321,000 last month, a new record. That was up 2.9 percent from $312,000 for May, and up 17.6 percent from $273,000 for June last year.

DataQuick, a subsidiary 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 monthly mortgage payment that Southland buyers committed themselves to paying was $1,348 in June, up from $1,344 for the previous month and up from $1,347 for June a year ago, DataQuick reported.

Indicators of market distress are still largely absent. Foreclosure rates are low, flipping rates are low, adjustable-rate mortgage usage is low, down payment sizes are stable and there have been no significant shifts in market mix, DataQuick reported.

All Homes	No Sold June-02	No Sold June-03	Pct. Chg	Median June-02	Median June-03	Pct. Chg
Los Angeles	10,753	10,662	-0.8%	$269K	$313K	16.4%
Orange County	4,792	4,755	-0.8%	$359K	$414K	15.3%
San Diego	4,960	5,192	4.7%	$323K	$390K	20.7%
Riverside	4,665	5,303	13.7%	$206K	$255K	23.8%
San Bernardino	3,310	3,903	17.9%	$159K	$195K	22.6%
Ventura	1,558	1,554	-0.3%	$335K	$396K	18.2%
So. California	30,038	31,369	4.4%	$273K	$321K	17.6%

Source: DQNews.com

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