The Overall Picture for Long Beach Area Real Estate for 2013

The market has increased in price! 2013 saw upward jumps in most areas for the average annual sales price of a single family home:

• Long Beach, increased to $489,000, +18%.
• Cerritos, $605,000, +11%.
• Lakewood, $420,000, +17%.
• Huntington Beach, $803,000, +10%.
• Signal Hill, $600,000, +13%.
• Los Alamitos, $686,000, +9%.
• Seal Beach, $947,000, +25%.
• Cypress, $532,000, +17%.
• Norwalk, $318,000, +17%
• La Palma, $576,000, +18%.
• Bellflower, $356,000, +15%.
• Garden Grove, $443,000, +17%.

Along with price increases, there are: multiple offers as new buyers compete with each other and with investors, all cash purchasers, inventory shortages, sellers reaching for too high a price in some cases, an overall upward movement in mortgage interest rates, new lending rules which may have a tightening effect for some borrowers, and more buyers in the market who are emerging from a past foreclosure or short sale and are looking to buy again. And, appraisals continue to be an issue.

Keep in mind, pricing for condos, and 2-4 unit properties would be different, and should you want to know specific pricing for your city or zip code (south Los Angeles County and north Orange County areas), please contact me. 
This data is current as of January 6, 2014, and all data comes from the MLS.