National Existing Home Sales Snapshot by National and California Association of Realtors May 2022

According to market research by National Association of Realtors, on a national level May 2022 brought 5.41 million in sales, a median sales price of $407,600, and 2.6 months of inventory. The median sales price is up 14.8% year-over-year, and inventory was up 0.1 months from May 2021.

Existing Home Sales May 2022

 

 California Association Realtors snapshot of the Long Beach housing market graphic shows a 14% decrease in existing home sales at a $940,000 median price for single family homes, with only a median 8 days on market overall.

Long Beach May 2022 Report

Per Altos Research:  More inventory now than any time last year. Still 50-70% fewer than normal.

 

Julia Huntsman, REALTOR, Broker | http://www.juliahuntsman.com | 562-896-2609 | California Lic. #01188996

Not All Homes Are Selling Immediately in Long Beach--Opportunity?

Almost every day there is an article posted about the shortage of inventory, and I personally hear stories of fellow Realtors with buyers who are in heavy competition with others to find their next home.  It is very much a time of low inventory overall, and buyers may actually be racing each other to the next home viewing before quickly putting an offer. Many homes in the Long Beach area are going into escrow after just a few days on the market--especially in certain areas such as East Long Beach. 

Long Beach park

But not all sellers are moving as quickly as others.  There could be various reasons for this, but nevertheless, not everything is selling in 8 days.  At the top end of the market, a house on the Peninsula listed for $4,779,500 and facing the ocean has been on the market for 361 days, almost a year, although it's been in escrow 3 times, and is currently back on the market. The next lengthiest listing is a small bungalow house on the market for $469,000 for 208 days in the area between 10th and Anaheim. Another bungalow house near Atlantic Ave and 6th St (downtown area) is on the market for $505,000 for 157 days, another investor or first time buyer opportunity.  Four more homes located in Lakewood Village, Belmont Shore, Belmont Heights, Naples,  and downtown are still waiting for buyers, all having been on the market longer than 106 days.  Another 21 homes in all areas of Long Beach have been on the market between 85 and 32 days as of February 4th, prices ranging between $499,000 and $6.8 million+. The remaining 67 active listings have been on the market less than 30 days, which is indicative of general market conditions.  

In the last 6 months 1,096 single family homes sold at an average price of $981,930 ( in spite of one taking 403 days) in Long Beach with an average of 20 days on the market.  There are currently 169 single family homes in escrow at an average of 25 days on the market, with some areas selling especially quickly:  Stratford Square (1) has 7 average days on market; Los Altos (7) average 17 days; Lakewood Village (3) average 13 days; Ranchos/Lakewood Plaza (10) average 11 days; El Dorado Park Estates (3) average 16 days, and so on.  Practically all areas are selling under 30 days on average.

But for some houses, even though inventory is low and the average time on market is low, there can still be opportunity for some buyers.  Please feel free to use the property search at http://www.juliahuntsman.com, where you will find all the listings as shown on the MLS.  

Market Graphics

Julia Huntsman, REALTOR, Broker | www.juliahuntsman.com | 562-896-2609 | California Lic. #01188996

December Housing Prices in the Local Long Beach Area

First, the inventory for single family homes and condominiums remains low, but now it's "extremely" low.

Long Beach November stats-2021

 In November, the inventory for houses decreased  33% compared to one year ago, 181 homes for sale compared to 272 one year ago; inventory for condos in Long Beach decreased 51% from the prior year, from 276 to 134.  The average sales price for a house in Long Beach was $951,203, and the average price for a condo was $552,356.  Compared to November 2020, prices increased 9% for SFRs, and 17% for condos.  And, it's also obvious that listings do not spend much time on the market before selling. And, over the last 12 months, in spite of decreasing inventory, the sales volume in both categories is up.  (Information data per CRMLS as of December 5th, 2021.)

 Currently, as of December 15th, in Long Beach there are 182 houses and condos listed actively or "coming soon" for sale in the MLS, with 75 of those being condos, or 41% of the current listings in Long Beach are condos--the lowest price condo is a studio listed at $205,000 featuring 343 sq.ft, the highest price condo is $2.699 million (11 Temple Ave) featuring 4300 sq. ft, so a huge price range, but the graph indicates more the condo price norm in Long Beach.  

Overall, the market is still reflecting the price surge that took place after the start of the pandemic, both locallly and nationally.  Nationally, 2021 is the best sales year since 2006.  The conventional and FHA loans amounts have been (or with FHA, will be soon) increased to meet the higher prices in the West.  If you want to sell, where can you move to?  The southern states and cities of Tucson, and Dallas area are two cities that are predicted to be active in the 2022 market, and other  regions in the southern half of the country. The national price increase may rise about 5%, and interest rate hikes may occur 1 or 2 times, per National Association of Realtors. 

If you would like information on where you can fit into the current market, please contact me, and remember you can always search for listed properties on my website listed below.

Julia Huntsman, REALTOR, Broker | www.juliahuntsman.com | 562-896-2609 | California Lic. #01188996

Annual Housing Market Report by California Association of Realtors (October 7, 2021)

California Association of Realtor Annual Market Report was presented at the annual trade conference last week, held online for the 2nd year--and here are some of the highlights.

Takeaways:

As of August 2021, 67% of all sales closed over list price (up from about 50% at beginning of 2021).

Median price of single family home in August was $827,940.

Median down payment by repeat buyers was 20%, and 32% of first time buyers have 20% down or more.

Number of sales down to 414,860 in August.

People are buying larger homes, median is over 1800 sq ft.

Years in home before selling is now over 10 years, due to affordability challenges, relocation questions, low rate on current mortgage, low property taxes, hit on capital gains--not as many people move compared to 2000.

Million dollar home market is now 28% of sales.

23% of Californians can buy a median priced home -- affordability issue for California.

California is not issuing enough new housing permits.

Homeownership rates vary by ethnicity. 

All time low levels of housing inventory in December, 2020.

Technology, iBuyers and corporate consolidations, as well as changes to MLS portals, and other industry legal issues all involve new ways of doing business.

California housing crisis:  In 1986 population was 27 million--in 2020 population was 40 million; number of Realtors in 1986 was 112,000 and in 2020 there were 206,000 Realtors; in 1986 there were 394,000 home sales and in 2020 there were 412,000 home sales; in 1986 256,000 housing permits were issued and in 2020 100,000 housing permits were issued.   So, almost double the number of Realtors, and 13 million more people, but much slower increase in home sales and big decrease in housing permits.

Overall price outlook for 2022 as of August 2021:  in 2021 the median home price increased 6.8% -- the median price for 2022 is projected to be a decrease of 5.2%, putting median home price at $834,000; with the 30-year fixed rate mortgage not over 3.5 for 2022.

For the complete Power Point on this presentation, please contact me.

See:  Investor buyer have contracts too

Julia Huntsman, REALTOR, Broker | www.juliahuntsman.com | 562-896-2609 | California Lic. #01188996

May Housing Report for California

May 2021 Sales and Price Report

The market up until May has been at a dead heat for the buyers, but has been showing signs of a little cooling as some buyers may be taking a break.  However, as the economy is now reopening, how the market may change is yet to be seen.  

The higher end of the market has surged:

"Robust demand of higher-priced properties contributed to the record-setting statewide median price. With million-dollar home sales surging more than 200 percent from May 2020, its market share is nearly double what it was a year ago when it was at 15.6 percent. More million-dollar properties were sold in the past couple of months than homes priced below $500,000."    

Overall, the Southern California market grew by 33.1% increase in median price (surveyed from 90 California MLS systems) compared to May 2020. This was second only to the San Francisco Bay Area.  The unsold inventory statewide still remains under 2 months supply (meaning it would take only 2 months to sell all properties at the current rate of sale--the traditional normal was 6 months before 2012).   49 out of 51 counties dipped more than 20 percent in the number of active listings  compared to one year ago, however active listings were at the highest level in the last 6 months.

The 30-year mortgage interest rate was under 3% in May compared to 3.23 percent average in May, 2020. 

The Los Angeles metro area median single family home price for May was $725,000, compared to $535,000 in May, 2020.

Julia Huntsman, REALTOR, Broker | www.juliahuntsman.com | 562-896-2609 | California Lic. #01188996

California Housing Market Prediction for 2021

The California Association of Realtors with Leslie Appleton-Young presented the annual market outlook (this year it was all online, so we missed our annual Expo and Luncheon as we sat at our laptops), which at the very end always gets to the final price and sales volume predictions for the coming year.  So to break all suspense, I'll show that slide first (there were 100 slides covering the entire state's regional markets and economic conditions, I'm just hitting the highlights), which shows the predicted increase in the California home sales market to be 3.3 percent, at a median price of $690,000+ (up from $476,000 in 2015).

 

California Housing Market 2021 

• The impact of COVID-19 seemed to cause buyers to get out there and buy, rather than stay home, so prices in many areas have jumped considerably as inventory in many areas was still quite low, especially in the affordable range (something under $600,000 in the So Cal metro regions).  
• The lowest mortgage interest rates since long before 1971 allowed more buyers to purchase at the upper end their loan qualifications.  
• By August, sales and prices were up, inventory was down statewide to 2.1 months, but keep in mind inventory has generally been low since 2012, and 1-2 months inventory in some So Cal areas is not uncommon.  
• The total home sales in August was the highest in 10 years, 2005-2006 was the last time California saw a much higher sales volume extending up to 600,000 residential units. 
• The share of first time buyers was the highest in 10 years and investor buyers the lowest since 2001.
• More sellers leaving California, highest since 2005 (hello, Proposition 19); Los Angeles and Bay area sellers are mostly moving to the Inland Empire and other cheaper counties; the Inland Empire and other cheaper counties are moving out of state
  
• Potentially 600,000 foreclosures nationwide, perhaps 60,000 in California, due to job loss, etc.
• California is the 5th largest economy, with $175 billion in annual exports--economy still strong.
  

 

CA worst case scenario 2021

 For the complete presentation which goes into much greater detail, please contact me, very easy to email.  For an market valuation of your residential or income property, please contact me for the latest information in your area.

Julia Huntsman, REALTOR, Broker | www.juliahuntsman.com | 562-896-2609 | California Lic. #01188996

In the Middle of a Pandemic, the Real Estate Market is Healthy

Some astonishing facts about the current market:

Interest Rates, Lowest Ever


• Median home price in California is $700,000 (September), lowest interest rates have led to fastest sales growth in a decade;
  
•  Average U.S. homeowner with a mortgage saw their equity rise over $9800 this year.
• The number of homeowners in forebearance dropped to under 7%, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association (September)
• The So Cal six county region broke a median price of $600,000 in August
• September mortgage demand was up 25% from one year ago.
  

 To see how your opportunity exists, take a look at the sample $500,000 selling price for a house, where a 2.99% rate could be $325 dollars less every month than the next 4.27% rate next to it.  It saves monthly, and it may also help a buyer qualify better to get in a slightly higher priced home.

To find out more, please contact me.  I'll be happy to provide you with a home value report.

Julia Huntsman, REALTOR, Broker | www.juliahuntsman.com | 562-896-2609 | California Lic. #01188996

The April, 2020 Market in Long Beach, Bellflower, Lakewood and Cerritos

In spite of 2020's global health and economic pandemic issues, the Southern California housing market continues to move on. 

As of the end of April, the Long Beach average single family home price increased almost by 9% compared to one year ago.  The Cerritos single family home price increased by over 21%, Bellflower increased over 20%, while Lakewood increased by 4%. 

But what else is happening?  While the price went up, the supply of inventory compared to April 2019 continued downward, as it was already doing for months.  Bellflower's inventory decreased by 50%, Long Beach decreased by 12%,  Lakewood by 37%, and Cerritos decreased by 52%.  Also, houses sold much faster compared to one year ago, the days on market decreased 27%-66% across the four cities.

And, contrary to some buyers' expectations, April selling prices also stayed within 3% of the original list price. 

Not just in April, but actually since 2012, available inventory has been one of the biggest issues for buyers, because a limited supply tends to drive prices upwards.  There are numerous reasons for the limited supply, beyond the purpose of this particular post, which have been discussed elsewhere. 

But it can only be said again, that if you are an interested seller, maybe not even sure at this point because you need to make further decisions, it's still to your advantage to get information now about preparation--it will only help you in the future and perhaps make your path easier.

Please contact me for more assistance.  I have 25 years experience working with both buyers and sellers.

Julia Huntsman, REALTOR, Broker | www.juliahuntsman.com | 562-896-2609 | California Lic. #01188996

2019 End of Year Single Family Home Activity for Los Angeles and Orange Counties

Los Angeles County 2019 Review for SFR

The thing to remember about statistics showing data drawn from December to December (as these diagrams show) is that the market is usually slower, lower, etc., at the end of the year compared to the middle of the year, so comparisons from December to the following August could show a little differently.

Sales volume is up in Los Angeles County, while the number of active listings is down, but the median and average home prices continue up--meaning that there's decreasing inventory with sales prices driven upward.

Closed Volume
  $7,812,678,480 | +27.4%;
Average Price
  $1,004,807 | +9.4%;
Active Listings:
  7,787 | -35.1%; (13,579 in June)

  

Orange County 2019 Review for SFR

In the meantime, in Orange County, sales volume is also up percentage wise, but the total dollar amount is approximately half of Los Angeles County (OC is about one-third the population of LA County).  The average single family home price compare in both counties.


Closed Volume
  $3,307,614,666 | +36.5%
Average Price
  $1,092,343 | +1.9%
Active Listings
  2,963 | -34.6%  (5,846 in June) 

Take note:  In both counties, months supply of inventory dropped over 35%, to less than 2 months, and at the peak in May, inventory supply was not over 4 months supply.  In both counties, houses sold within 2% of the original asking price, so overall housing market prices are holding steadily.

For an evaluation of your home, condo, or residential unit property, please contact me by phone, email or text for for information on your property.

Data provided by InfoSparks, CRMLS.

Julia Huntsman, REALTOR, Broker | www.juliahuntsman.com | 562-896-2609 | California Lic. #01188996

Snapshot Market Review of Long Beach Nov. 2019

Long Beach in November

According to data from CAR, there were fewer active listings in November compared to one year before, but an increase in sales compared to one year before., and an increase in median price.  But there's also one-third of the active listings with reduced prices, suggesting that more sales occur from reduced prices! Although this chart doesn't reflect a breakdown, the higher priced luxury listings are lagging and are more likely to have price reductions,  compared to the non-luxury listings.

The Report for Los Angeles County shows similar trends: increase in home sales, increase in median price, decrease in active listings and similar percentage of inventory with reduced price.

Los Angeles County in November

Julia Huntsman, REALTOR, Broker | www.juliahuntsman.com | 562-896-2609 | California Lic. #01188996

Market Prices for November in Long Beach, Huntington Beach, Lakewood, Cerritos, plus Three Counties

Looking for Remodel ideas?

All these prices are for the month of November, 2019, based on data from CRMLS Infosparks:

Average prices for single family homes in Orange County are still showing a slow downward trend since May, 2019, while Los Angeles County is still up from earlier in 2019, and San Bernardino County's average is continuing to the highest average in the last 5 years! This is a buying opportunity for many right now.

The average days on market for the four cities is between about 20 and 50 days.  However, in the very high end markets in Long Beach, properties over $1 million are now generally on the market longer than those under $1 million.  In comparison, prices for the 236 actively listed Long Beach houses under $1 million are currently at 49 average days on market at an average list price of $657,000.  More buyer opportunity in this range!

Luxury Market:

There are currently 68 active single family homes (as of 12/3) listed over $1,000,000 in Long Beach, the average days on market is currently 91.  There are currently 36 properties in escrow, average of 104 days on market.  If you have a listing over $1,000,000, it might be taking a little longer to sell than earlier in the year, but also not unusual for this time of year.

Average single family home prices vary according to area, and here's what they look like locally:

November, 2019

Long Beach
$734,340 (down from October)       Avg Days on Market :18 (down from Oct.)

Lakewood
$606,335 (down from October)       Avg Days on Market : 22 (down from Oct.)

Cerritos
$811,173 (up from October)            Avg Days on Market :39 (up from Oct, down from July)

Huntington Beach
$1,143,086 (down from 18 month high)   Avg Days on Market : 50 (highest since Feb. 2019)

Los Angeles County
$955,098 (down from July and October)  Avg Days on Market : 37

San Bernardino County
$383, 071 (September was highest avg of last 5 years at $392,195)  Avg DOM : 27 (down from Feb.)

Orange County
$1,040,012 (down from May)                  Avg Days on Market : 29 (up from May)

The above prices are for single family homes, please contact me for condo market prices!

The graphic above may give ideas on remodel projects if you're thinking of selling.

Julia Huntsman, REALTOR, Broker | www.juliahuntsman.com | 562-896-2609 | California Lic. #01188996

California Association of Realtors Housing Market Forecast for 2020

Here is a summary of the 2020 California Association of Realtors Annual Report presented at the annual trade show in September, 2019 in Los Angeles:


Talk of recession:  Housing is not going to be the cause, but it could be due to global economics, trade wars, geo-political crisis, and/or stock market correction.  It could happen sometime in the future, there is no timetable.

According to a 2018/2019 Google Consumer Poll, 46% of 300 people thought it was a good time to sell.

According to CAR's 2019 Housing Survey, though, 47% of properties in escrow fell out because the buyer decided not to buy, the next highest number was 6% representing people who did not qualify for a mortgage on buyer's terms,  down to 1% for seller deciding not to sell.

Unemployment is at the lowest rate in 50 years, with Los Angeles County and Orange County at 4.5% or lower.
Interest rates are at historic lows, will remain lower in 2020, per this report.

Nonfarm job growth in California is lower than 2015, under 2%, unemployment lower than 2015, the population is almost 1 million higher than 2015, and population growth at .5% is lower than in 2015.
The highest sales volume is in the $500k to $749k range in California, with 46% of house sales taking place in Southern California, although sales growth in all regions is down compared to previous year.

The California median single family home price for existing homes was at an all time high in August of 2019, at $617,410.  The SFR inventory supply improved only at the upper end of the market, so prices over $1 million and $3 million increased 4.5% and 10.8%, respectively.   Houses under $299,000 decreased by 17.5%, with inventory decreases in price ranges all the way up to $999,000.

Overall, for the last 15 years California's sales are mostly flat, in spite of a strong economy, low interest rate, and low population growth.

Why?  Well, because fewer permits were issued :  in 1988 over 255,000 permits to build were issued, while in 2018, just over 114,000 permits were issued, while the population grew about 12 million in that time period.  Limited land, density resistance, project review delays are all possible contributors to this condition.

In spite of rates dropping, buyers mortgage applications are down, and the projection is that by 2025 California will be a majority renter state.  Los Angeles and Long Beach already fall into the 60% plus range for renters out of the total population.

The market is not as competitive as in previous years, less than half of sales received multiple offers, compared to 2013 when about 70% of listings received multiple offers. Outmigration to other states continues, 750,000 people have left since 2010, with San Bernardino and Riverside Counties being popular relocation spots, and there are fewer investor flippers in the market, and fewer investors are selling their properties.

Sellers are staying put, average time in a home is now 11 years, much longer than in 2005 when it was about 5 years in the home.

And so where are we in the end for 2020?  Here's the summary chart:  The California median price is predicted to be $607,000 for a single family home (statewide) with a 2.5% increase in price growth, far lower than 2017.

 

For the complete report in pdf format, you may download here: CAR Housing Report  by looking for the link to the report on my Market Trends Page.


Julia Huntsman, REALTOR, Broker | www.juliahuntsman.com | 562-896-2609 | California Lic. #01188996

Average Selling Prices for August, 2019 in Long Beach,Lakewood, Cerritos, Huntington Beach and Three Counties

Alamitos Bay, Long Beach

All these prices are for the month of August, 2019, based on data from CRMLS Infosparks:

Average prices for single family homes in Orange County were showing a slow downward trend since early 2018 but shot upward in May of this year, while Los Angeles County is still trending up from $919,000 in December 2018, and San Bernardino County's average remains solid.
The average days on market for the four cities is about the same as in June.  However, in the very high end markets in Long Beach, properties over $1 million are now generally on the market longer than those under $1 million.  In comparison, prices for the 236 actively listed Long Beach houses under $1 million are currently at 49 average days on market at an average list price of $657,000.  More buyer opportunity in this range!

Luxury Market:

There are currently 87 active single family homes (as of 9/24) listed over $1,000,000 in Long Beach, the average days on market is currently 87; the average days on market for all single family sales over $1,000,000 in the last 6 months was 60 days for 149 properties. There are currently 34 properties in escrow, average of 99 days on market.  If you have a listing over $1,000,000, it might be taking a little longer to sell.
In comparison, in 2018, 241 single family homes sold over $1,000,000 in an average of 63 days.

Average single family home prices vary according to area, and here's what they look like locally:

August, 2019

Long Beach
$743,017 (down 1.2% from July)  Avg Days on Market : 36

Lakewood
$628,684 (up 3.1% from July)       Avg Days on Market : 22

Cerritos
$728,655                                        Avg Days on Market : 42

Huntington Beach
$1,014,446 (18 month high)          Avg Days on Market : 40

Los Angeles County
$966,765 (still down from a high in May, 2018)

San Bernardino County
$377,714

Orange County
$1,087,04

The above prices are for single family homes, please contact me for condo market prices!

Julia Huntsman, REALTOR, Broker | www.juliahuntsman.com | 562-896-2609 | California Lic. #01188996

A Little Random Data About the Long Beach Market in August 2019

As of August 26th, there were 299 active listings for single family homes in the MLS:

Smallest house for sale = 480 sq. ft.
Largest house for sale = 7692 sq. ft.
Lowest list price = $375,000
Highest List price = $11,995,000
Longest days on market = 525
Listings that mention a bomb shelter = 0
Listings that mention walk score = 4
Listings that mention a pool = 30
Listings that mention granite = 77
Listings that mention an ADU = 7

On occasion, there is a listing that describes a bomb shelter (a 1950s era feature); walk score has gotten a lot of talk in the past, but where is it now?; pools are very much in the market, but not desired by everyone; granite couinters hit the big time for over a decade, but may not be desired by all buyers who may decide other material, such as quartz, is more to their liking.  And ADUs (accessory dwelling units) were passed into law in California as an attempt to help ease the affordable housing crunch--if you are thinking of adding one, be sure to check in with the City's requirements first--the upside is they are good way to have a second legal unit without having to be in an R2 zone.

If you are interested in looking into a property with these characteristics (or without) and want to know more, just contact me!

Julia Huntsman, REALTOR, Broker | www.juliahuntsman.com | 562-896-2609 | California Lic. #01188996

July 2019 Market Prices for Houses in Long Beach

No matter what is said about housing affordability up to this point, the house prices continue upward overall.

In January 2014, the average price of a single family home in Long Beach was just under $500,000. Following the peaks and valleys all along since then, the average price in July 2019 was $775,352, while the median (midway point of all SFR's sold) is $660,000, vs $455,000 in January 2014.

Days on Market:  July, 33 average days on market. This is time before an accepted offer, so what does this mean? You can't waiting around forever before making an offer.

List to Sold:  In the last 5 years, houses have sold in the range between 97% of list price to 100% of list price, with the July average at 98.6% of original list price.  So what does this mean? That you have to make your offers strong.

Months Supply:  This is the amount of inventory on the market before it would run out at the current rate of sale, and this has been ranging, since 2014, between 1.5 months and 3.5 months.  It's been a long time since the 6 month supply level, considered the market norm, has been around. So what this this mean? Limited supply helps drive prices up, less inventory,  continued demand.

Closed Sales:  Since 2014, this varied  between monthly lows of 102 and 106 SFR closings a month, to 259 a month.  In July, 212 single family homes sold.  What does this mean?  It's not unusual for low sales in January and more sales in the summer.  Since 2008, the highest number of sales were in August 2012 (260) and June 2017 (259).   Per data on the MLS, just to compare, going further back to January 2000, 183 SFRs were sold; in July of 2001, 350 SFRs were sold.  So our market volume has slowed consideredly since that time, and prices have gone up.

But buyers are still looking to buy, so if you are thinking about selling, even if you're not sure when, whether you have a house, condo, or unit properties, please contact me. I can work with trust and probate properties also!

Julia Huntsman, REALTOR, Broker | www.juliahuntsman.com | 562-896-2609 | California Lic. #01188996

Average Selling Prices for June, 2019 in Long Beach,Lakewood, Cerritos, Huntington Beach and Three Counties

View of downtown Long Beach

All these prices are for the month of June, 2019, based on data from CRMLS Infosparks:

Average prices for single family homes in Orange County were showing a slow downward trend since early 2018 but shot upward in May of this year, while Los Angeles County is trending up from $919,000 in December 2018, and San Bernardino County's average is now up the highest in the last 18 months as homeowners and investors find buying opportunity there.
The average days on market for the four cities is about the same as before.  However, in the very high end markets in Long Beach, properties over $1 million are generally on the market longer than those under $1 million.

Average single family home prices vary according to area, and here's what they look like locally:

June, 2019

Long Beach
$749,502                 Avg Days on Market : 33

Lakewood
$612,286                 Avg Days on Market : 28

Cerritos
$784,959                 Avg Days on Market : 43

Huntington Beach
$1,239,491 (18 month high)   Avg Days on Market : 40

Los Angeles County
$968,802 (still down from a high in May, 2018)

San Bernardino County
$377,243 (highest average price in last 18 months)

Orange County
$1,085,899 (down slightly from May 2019 18-month high)

 

For condo prices, please contact me!

For an online and automated home valuation, try my site at http://www.juliahuntsman.com/home-evaluation.  It probably works more accurately for single family homes than condos in some areas, depending on what properties lie within about a one-mile radius.  Try it!  And I am always happy to do a more customized report to send out via e-mail.  If you're thinking about making a move, do it! It pays to keep an eye on things.

Julia Huntsman, REALTOR, Broker | www.juliahuntsman.com | 562-896-2609 | California Lic. #01188996 Julia Huntsman, REALTOR, Broker | www.juliahuntsman.com | 562-896-2609 | California Lic. #01188996

The State of the Nation's Housing 2019: Harvard University Annual Report

What It Takes to Buy a Home in the U.S.

This forty-four page annual report describes housing issues on a national basis, so this is not the place to look for your local neighborhood or city stats.  Just keep these points in mind for your general knowledge.  The entire report may be viewed at the end of this post.

Housing supply has been discussed constantly, especially in California.  There was actually an oversupply of housing between 2000-2010, but since then builders have been slow to catch up, especially in the last 8 years.  The report goes on to list various reasons for this: builder hesitance, labor shortages, new housing being built for the high end of the market instead of lower end, rising  cost of materials make it difficult to build for the middle market, and objections to high density development in many areas.

But homeownership nationally is up to 64.4 percent, with the largest increase in the 25-39 age group, in spite of worsening affordability.  In California in 2017, homeowners numbered 7,137,000, at 54.9 percent of the population of 13,005,000 households. California ranked the highest of all states in the nation for number of homeowners, but states such as Delaware, Iowa, Michigan, Utah, and others, ranked higher in percent of homeowners, with New York being slightly lower in homeowner percentage compared to California, per the US Census Bureau, 2017 Community Survey.

The millennial and baby-boomer generations will be the two largest groups for housing demand:  "These two large generations will propel growth in 35–44 year-olds and lift the number of older adults to new heights." The 65 and older crowd  will grow by 11.1 million, and 35-44 year olds will grow by 2.9 million, all in the next decade.  This will be an increase of 8.4 million households for baby boomers, who are largely expected to age in place.  The demand for entry level homes will increase for the 35-44 year olds, the group with the most children.

The highest affordability rates are in metro areas where the home values are less than 3 times the income, and the median-income home could afford 84% of recently sold homes.  These markets are primarily in the midwest and northeast, where as the California coastal areas have home values approximately 6 times the income.

Assuming the current housing supply issues, and the continued demand for more housing, house prices and rents are expected to continue an upward trend.  And the constraints on housing development must be addressed.  In 2018, single family starts rose 9 percent in the West.

For the full report, go to the State of the Nation's Housing site.



Julia Huntsman, REALTOR, Broker | www.juliahuntsman.com | 562-896-2609 | California Lic. #01188996

Long Beach April 2019 Monthly Report, Graphics Style

April 2019 Market Report for Long Beach, California

 Median price for Long Beach in April was $633,000 based on 125 home sales (which is really not a lot for a monthly total), but the median days on market is only 20, yet about one-third of the active listings has been reduced. What this doesn't tell you is that the most price reductions are in the high end of the market which are taking longer to sell, because note that the sell-to-list ratio is 100%! As they always used to say in school, there's plenty of room at the top (because the bottom end of the market is and has been selling faster).

For help in this current market, don't be afraid to send me a message.  There are all different reasons for buying and selling, and I can help you with that!


Julia Huntsman, REALTOR, Broker | www.juliahuntsman.com | 562-896-2609 | California Lic. #01188996

A Few Positive Points about the Current California Housing Market

Here's some good news about the California real estate picture, in spite of everything else we hear/read/see:

• California unemployment is the lowest in over 40 years.
• The number of active listings increased in all California regions--highest number is in Southern California as of February, 2019:  over 26,000 single family homes on the market which is 20% more than last year.
•  California home price continues to grow at a modest pace, median price Feb. 2019 was $534,140, growth of 2.2%.
• The Inland Empire (i.e., San Bernardino County, and surrounding areas) price growth increased to 5.7% , compared to 1.4% in Los Angeles area. So what does this say about where it could be a good place to buy?
• Over all increase in owner-occupied single family homes from 2000: from 6,295,466 to 6,669,522 in 2018.
• More than half of California sellers surveyed by CAR think it's a good time to sell in 5 of last 7 months.
• Interest rates are low and may stay low for the rest of 2019! Good time for FHA buyers! The lower the rate, the lower minimum qualifying income for the buyer! Take advantage of low rates!
• Despite tough market conditions, first time buyer share is highest since 2012, at 34.8% in 2018.

Overall, the economy fundamentals are strong, including low national unemployment rates and increased job growt as of December, 2018.

While housing affordability is still an issue in California, prospective buyers do have options. And, a very important fact for buyers to learn is that there are LOW DOWN PAYMENT options, in the CAR survey over 70% did not know that an FHA loan only requires 3.5% down!!  FHA loans also allow for less perfect credit than conventional mortgages.
Please contact me if you are interested in buying or selling and let me put my 24+ years of experience to work for you!


Julia Huntsman, REALTOR, Broker | www.juliahuntsman.com | 562-896-2609 | California Lic. #01188996

Orange County, 2018 Year in Review

OC Single Family Homes 2018

This chart is only for single family homes in Orange County, no condominiums are included. 

This is the overall picture from December 2017 to December 2018; the market in the OC had higher peaks during the summer and fall.  Overall, however, the lower number of pending sales, meaning fewer properties are in escrow, is much less than one year ago and has been on a steady decline since a peak month in May, 2018.
Sales prices overall have not changed significantly, and it's still a good time for sellers to put their properties on the market.

For a confidential valuation of your property, please contact me.  I make it easy for you to get decisive information about putting your property on the market.


Julia Huntsman, REALTOR, Broker | www.juliahuntsman.com | 562-896-2609 | California Lic. #01188996