Southern California home sales experienced a strong increase in October, according to new research released by San Diego-based DataQuick.
DataQuick reports that a total of 21,075 new and resale houses and condos sold in Los Angeles, Riverside, San Diego, Ventura, San Bernardino and Orange counties last month. That was up 18% from 17,859 sales in September, and up 25.2% from 16,829 sales in October 2011. Last month's sales were the highest for the month of October since 22,132 homes sold in October 2009, though they were 11.1% below the October average of 23,709 since 1988, when DataQuick's statistics begin.
The median price paid for a home in the six-county region was $315,000 last month, the same as in September and up 16.7% from $270,000 in October 2011. The September and October medians are the highest since the median was $330,000 in August 2008.
However, the region's lower-cost areas continued to post the weakest sales compared with last year. The number of homes that sold below $200,000 fell 11.2% year-over-year, while sales below $300,000 dipped 0.3%.
Foreclosure resales accounted for 16.3% of the resale market last month, down from 16.6% the month before and 32.8% a year earlier. Last month's level was the lowest since it was 16% in October 2007.
‘Watching the market rebalance itself is fascinating,’ says DataQuick President John Walsh. ‘In some categories and in some neighborhoods, demand outstrips supply, pushing up prices. In other areas, the market is still largely dormant. Low interest rates are a huge factor, where mortgages are available, which they aren't for a lot of potential buyers.’