California October 2007 Home Sales

November 15, 2007

A total of 25,832 new and resale houses and condos were sold statewide last month. That's up 5.6 percent from 24,460 for September, and down 40.9 percent from 43,720 for October 2006. Last month's sales made for the slowest October in DataQuick's records, which go back to 1988. On a year-over-year basis, sales have declined the last 25 months.

The median price paid for a home last month was $424,000, down 1.4 percent from $430,000 for the month before, and down 9.2 percent from $467,000 for October a year ago. The median peaked last March/April/May at $484,000.

Price declines are severe in areas that absorbed spillover activity during the frenzy like the Central Valley and Riverside County. Prices in core metro areas are are off by a few percent.

The typical mortgage payment that home buyers committed themselves to paying last month was $2,016. That was down from $2,046 in September, and down from $2,206 for October a year ago. Adjusted for inflation, mortgage payments are 4.4 percent below the spring 1989 peak of the prior real estate cycle. They are 17.5 percent below the current cycle's peak in 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 numbers cover all sales, new and resale, houses and condos.

Indicators of market distress continue to move in different directions. Foreclosure activity is at record levels, financing with adjustable-rate mortgages and with multiple mortgages have dropped sharply. Down payment sizes and flipping rates are stable, non-owner occupied buying activity is edging up, DataQuick reported.

Media calls: Andrew LePage (916)456-7157 or John Karevoll (909) 867-9534

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