Increase in April Home Sales Prices for Long Beach, and Nearby Cities

Based on MLS data, 10K Research&Marketing

Long Beach home sellers may finally take heart at some continuing good news. While the citywide accumulated median and average price for single family home sales continues to decline from last year, the April 2012 comparison to the same time last year actually shows an increase in median and average sales price:  Median - from $374,500 to $381,000;  Average - from $421,796 to $424,441.

The average price from April 2011-April 2012 for condos and townhomes also shows a 10% increase, from $211,280 to $232,676. 

As above, the "rolling" 12-month calculation for both categories still shows a decrease in prices, however.  With the increase shown in pending sales compared to last year, more buyers are buying. But the 50% cut in inventory levels say that many possible sellers have yet to decide to put their properties on the market.  In fact, Long Beach had the highest number of closed sales (226) in April over all the other 60+ cities in this report area.


While it would be very unrealistic for homeowners who have loan balances that are $100,000 higher than the current market level of their area to think that soon, the market will catch up to them, it could mean that they would find a motivated buyer a little faster should their home be on the market as a short sale.  Decreased inventory levels are creating opportunity for motivated sellers, both distressed and non-distressed.  In fact, decreased inventory levels are not just in Long Beach, but are throughout the state and most of the entire country.

And for sellers who are fortunate to have the equity now, they also have opportunity to move on--decreased inventory would make it less likely their home would sit long on the market. The National Association of Realtors reports that pending home sales in the nation increased 4.1% in March to a new 23-month high.  As the above report shows, for Long Beach, pending single family home sales increased 47% compared to April of last year, and condo pending sales increased 63%!!

A similar story in median price increases can be found in other cities, including Los Alamitos, Signal Hill, Seal Beach, Lakewood, Paramount, Carson, La Palma, Newport Beach, Laguna Woods, Santa Ana, Costa Mesa, and Anaheim. 

Dataquick's mid-April report for Southern California (discussing a much larger region of  Los Angeles, Riverside, San Diego, Ventura, San Bernardino and Orange counties for March)  is saying that the median price is "almost" back to the level of one year ago.

Credit is tight, and stories of "shadow inventory" abound along with continuing market distress, but those things do not seem to be stopping buyers who can buy due to their perceived opportunity as they feel the market reached bottom in 2009, combined with low, low interest rates.

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