The Riverside Press-Enterprise
Socal sales, prices take record jumps
Has Southern California’s housing market awoken from its lengthy slumber?
My trusty spreadsheet, peeking at February’s Corelogic sales stats, found these recordsetting nuggets …
Sales: The 12,430 transactions completed in the six-county region — involving existing and new residences, homes and condos — represented a 17% jump from January.
That’s the largest January-to-february increase in a database dating to 1988.
Pricing: The buying binge helped nudge Southern California’s median selling price up 5% to $740,000. This, too, is the biggest January-to-february gain on record.
Timely twist
February may not be seen as a hot month for homebuying, but it has seen noticeable upticks in sales and prices just before the traditional spring rush. Just ponder the previous 36 years.
Southern California sales have increased from January in 21 years. February’s average sales change is a 1.5% gain, making it the sixth-best month.
As for pricing, Southern California’s median has risen 28 times in February since 1988 — with an average price hike of 1.2%, the third-best month.
Now, let’s remember that one month does not make a trend. Still, the sales escalation is eyecatching, considering that Southern California suffered its slowest two-year homebuying pace on record from 2022 to 2023.
Leading this February’s one-month purchasing pop were sales of new homes, up 29%. Southern California builders have succeeded because they have homes to sell, and they’ve been aggressive with concessions to buyers — notably, cut-rate financing. Sales of existing condos were up 23% in February while existing house sales rose 15%.
February’s buying boost can be linked to the bottoming of mortgage rates in late 2023. House hunters may have rushed to close deals as rates rose at the start of 2024.
Plus buyers may have noticed weaker pricing. Southern California’s home prices took their biggest two-month dip in 12 years in December and
January.
And don’t forget that leap year that added a day to conduct business, too.
Also, let’s remember any sales increase isn’t that surprising, considering just how slow Southern California homebuying has been.
Despite the record onemonth sales bump, this was the third-slowest-selling February since 1988 — and 27% below average. Southern California housing remains very unafford