Report reveals Southern California housing market improving
Jul 18 2012 4:19PM
A new report from DataQuick shows a number of housing market factors improved in June, including homes sales and prices.
According to the data firm, the number of homes sold in Southern California increased from a year earlier, marking the sixth consecutive month for growth. As the inventory of delinquent homes for sale in Los Angeles county and surrounding areas has decreased, results show significant sales gains for mid- to high-priced homes.
Additionally, the median sale price reached a two-year high in June, as it rose to $300,000 in June, up 1.7 percent from the previous month. The median price paid for a home in Southern California was also 5.3 percent higher than in June last year when it reached $285,000. While this indicates an improving housing market that was previously hit hard, the source notes the June median was 40.6 percent lower than the area's $505,000 peak in 2007.
"Super-low mortgage rates and lower home prices have attracted many buyers and helped compensate for the economy’s lackluster performance, and for not-so-great consumer confidence," said John Walsh, president of DataQuick. "With inventory and foreclosure resales dwindling, more housing markets appear to be entering an early recovery phase."
