Just Listed, South Wrigley Charmer in Long Beach

Front porch of Wrigley home

Living Room and fireplace

 

Update:  this property is listed as of 11/22/2022 for $720,000.  Best of this Wrigley neighborhood in Long Beach, this lovely home at 861 W 21st St is ideally located for those who need to commute to nearby Lakewood/Long Beach/

Backyard gazebo

Formal dining room and china cabinet

Los Angeles areas for work, or just want a very comfortable two-bedroom home.  Spacious back yard patio and gazebo with yard is ideal for entertainers or gardeners. Front xeroscaping is suitable for the environment, new driveway gate offers privacy and security. Art Deco styling is typical of the 1935 era, and newer plumbing is a maintenance asset. See it all at the MLS listing. Contact listing agent for more information, or visit my website below to see "featured properties" or open houses tab. List price at $740,000.  Find out more information for a $5000 grant for the buyer and qualifying for a special program.  Such programs may be helpful in buying down an interest rate, and saving money on the monthly mortgage!

 

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

August 2022 State and Los Angeles County Market Reports

Calif August sales and price report

Statewide, California inventory reached highest level since 2019, but at 2.9 months of supply is still well under the norm of 6 months.  Both time on market and median price of a single family home were up, making some sellers who only knew the previous pandemic market ask why it was taking "so long" to sell?  Well, there's nothing wrong with being on the market 19 days before selling. It actually is good to give both buyers and sellers time to think about choice of property and for sellers to review an offer.

Los Angeles County Market Update

 

For the County of Los Angeles, inventory in August was at 3.1 months, with the median price of a single family home at $854,960, a 1% increase from the prior month, and a 3% increase from one year prior.  But total home sales in the County decreased over 29% from this time last year, although they increased about 1% from the previous month.   Median time on market for the County was 16 days, a 77% increase from this time last year.

Interest rate volatility, and upward jumps, have had an impact for many buyers, and with conventional rates around or above the 6% level now, although still low by historical standards, will continue to impact buyers dependent on mortgage financing.  From California Association of Realtors:

“It’s encouraging to see that August’s sales pace rebounded above an annualized 300,000 units sold,” said C.A.R. Vice President and Chief Economist Jordan Levine. “Although we do not expect a rapid bounce-back because the Fed is expected to continue raising interest rates to get inflation under control, the monthly increase in closed and pending sales suggests that the market may have already priced in most of the rate increases to date. Still, buyers will continue to grapple with rising costs of borrowing, which will keep home sales below the 350,000 annualized pace for the remainder of the year.”

 

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

How Much Froth in the Housing Market is There?

Mortgage interest rates have been volatile, going up and down on a daily basis--today's rate (August 17) is at 5.22% per https://thefinancials.com for a 30-year mortgage, but recently it was up past 6%.  This has been affecting buyer behavior a lot for the purchase market, and has been slowing the sales volume for sellers.  However, while market time is longer than it was in the crazy pandemic purchase market, it is still not a buyer's market, just a somewhat longer selling time for sellers. 

Credit: Steven Thomas--Housing Reports

Price reductions in Los Angeles County equals 35% of market listings as of last week; Orange County reductions at 39% of market listings last week, and so on for Southern California counties. 

What counts right now for sellers is really taking stock of how you as a seller compare to your nearby home sales in terms of curb appeal, views, upgrades, remodels, and showing condition, on a more specific level than has been happening since before the pandemic price surge.  There are more listings on the market, but still not at the "normal" 6 month inventory level, and in fact, the Long Beach inventory level for July single family homes and condominiums was still only 1.9 months! On a national basis, it's more like 3 months--so in spite of the media attention given to some kind of housing debacle, there is in fact still a demand for inventory.  Increased interest rates have definitely affected buyers--the super low rates are not around, and the higher rates have pushed up monthly mortgage costs that many people cannot absorb.

 For a more complete weekly analysis of the Southern California real estate market, visit Orange County economist Steven Thomas at his weekly show.

Local market update for average single family home prices in July by zip code: 

Long Beach

90803 - $1,665,375

90815 - $1,008,650

90808 - $1,093,065

90806 - $728,800

Lakewood 

90712 - $817,938 

90713 - $855,535 

Signal Hill

$1,170,000 

Cerritos

$1,022,733

If you are thinking of selling, or would just like to know the market pricing for your home in the next 30-60 days, please contact me, I will be happy to assist you in person or online.  

 

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

Do You Own a California Vacant Home? It Might Be a Housing Crisis Issue.

Should empty homes be taxed?

The City of Los Angeles, and many other cities, have been looking into this issue for years. The Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment (ACCE) issued a report stating the City has more than 46,000 units in "non-market vacancy".  In 2020 another report said there were between 80,000 to 100,000 empty units throughout the city.  Housing advocates are often interested in the issue in order to house the homeless or "unhoused", but regardless of the target market, having so many units off the open market and unavailable to potentially qualified lessees/residents is a housing problem. And now many cities are thinking of taxing those properties. And, the California Association of Realtors estimated that around 1.2 million units, apartments and single-family homes may sit vacant around California. 

This is a kind of proposition that is usually easier said than done, but San Francisco, Santa Cruz, Berkeley have all worked towards a ballot proposition, while West Hollywood may discuss it next year. 

Also, Kate Harrison, Berkeley Vice Mayor, "cited a report in San Francisco finding vacancies are disproportionately in multi-family apartment complexes and in areas with older housing stock and higher rates of new construction. She said this suggests property owners are holding older units vacant to capitalize on new construction, and she wants a tax to send a message to these owners and “out of towners” who let property sit empty in a city they may not live in."

And, "The extraordinary gap between the housing needs of residents and the availability of housing can only be bridged through the use of numerous policy interventions, including a vacancy tax intended to incentivize owners of housing property to bring units back on the market and discourage speculation," Berkeley city staff wrote.

Vacant properties attract nuisance as well. It's better for cities and neighborhoods to have occupied homes, but is forcing property owners via a tax going to achieve the desired result?  In San Francisco, it could bring 4500 units back on the market with their proposed tax scheduled to launch in 2024. If it's successful, it would continue to pave the way for other cities.
 

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

Where is Market Pricing for last 90 days in Long Beach, Cypress, Lakewood?

View toward downtown Long Beach

The following cities sold statistics for single family homes for the last 90 days:

Cypress, average sale price of 56 homes: $1,055,946, 15 days on market.

Long Beach, average sale price of 446 homes:  $1,052,166, 15 days on market

Lakewood, average sale price of 176 homes: $830,722, 14 days on market

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

Housing Update in Los Angeles County and Southern California

Interest rates and inflation are issues right now, not just here but globally.  Older populations in some other countries are problematic, without replacement population the consumer consumption is less. 

In the U.S., the Fed is trying to slow down inflation with rate hikes on many instruments, such as credit cards, but the Fed doesn't control the mortgage interest rates, per se.  Mortgage interest rates were over 6% in June, but are now down to just over 5%, with it being an extremely volatile market.  6.5% is a slight buyer's market, 4.5% is a slight seller's market. 

Do two negative quarters of the GDP indicate a recession?  The National Bureau of Economic Research calls the recession, and doesn't use the model of two negative quarters, but uses several other combined market indicators which it says are not yet flashing red. The jobs statistics came out very strong, and with current consumer consumption, which accounts for 70% of the U.S. economy, keep from calling a complete recession.  And recession doesn't equal a housing crisis, with interest rates going lower there is an increasing demand for housing.

Inventory in Southern California has climbed from 10,000 listings in January to over 30,000 listings in August.  The peak is projected to be in September, which means we are not yet back to pre-COVID market norms. In Los Angeles County, 31% of inventory has reduced its price, due to the current market shift and slow down.   Last year time on market was 33 days, today it's 77 days in Los Angeles County, which is still considered a seller's market, 90-120 days on market is considered a balanced market, and above that is more of a buyer's market.

Sellers:  Rather than reduce your price, offer the buyers a rate buy down.

Thanks to Steven Thomas for his excellent Housing Market Report.

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

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