HOME SALES KEEP SOFTENING SOUTHLAND'S MAY TOTALS LOWEST FOR MONTH SINCE 1999.

Byline: GREGORY J. WILCOX Staff Writer

Home sales in Southern California slowed for the sixth consecutive time in May, dipping to the lowest level for that month since 1999, and prices appreciated at their slowest pace in six years, a real estate information service reported Tuesday.

Last month 27,286 new and resale homes sold in the six-county region, down an annual 11.7 percent, said La Jolla-based DataQuick Information systems. Sales did increase 10.3 percent from April and they were above the May average of 24,857 dating back to 1988, the company said.

The strongest May was in 2002 when 32,391 homes sold and the weakest came in 1993 when 15,001 sold.

The median price paid for a home in Los Angeles, Riverside, San Diego, Ventura, San Bernardino and Orange counties was $485,000 last month, an annual increase of 6.4 percent.

That is the slimmest annual gain since a 6.2 percent increase to $205,000 in July 2000.

Even though appreciation is finally tempering, price records fell in Los Angeles, Orange and Riverside counties.

Southern California's record median price was $486,000 in March and that will probably be surpassed this summer, the company said.

These kinds of numbers had been anticipated for months.

``The market stayed stronger longer than we anticipated,'' said DataQuick analyst John Karevoll.

And they represent a more normal market than the one of the past several years that featured exceptional sales counts and rates of appreciation.

``It's sort of middle of the road for sales counts and appreciation,'' he said.

The report showed that:

In Los Angeles County the median price increased an annual 10.9 percent to $509,000 and sales declined an annual 4.7 percent to 9,654 transactions.

In Ventura County the median price increased 3 percent from a year ago to $586,000 and sales fell 24.3 percent to 1,078 transactions. The price increase is the slimmest in six years.

The smallest price increase, 0.3 percent, came in San Diego County. Appreciation rates there have been in single digits for 14 consecutive months. Sales fell 18 percent to 4,217 transactions.

The Van Nuys-based Southland Regional Association of Realtors releases it's May report this morning and it will be similar in tone to DataQuick's.

``I do think that this is the long anticipated correction. Prices went up so fast that eventually things had to stabilize,'' said Jim Link, the association's executive vice president.

Karevoll said that it is possible that some markets might have the median price, the point at which half the houses cost more and half less, fall a bit under year-ago levels at some point.

But a price collapse is not likely at this point.

``We'll have to see what happens six to nine months down the line,'' he said.

DataQuick continues to note that the symptoms of market distress have yet to show up. For example, financing with adjustable-rate mortgages dropped during the last six months and foreclosure activity is increasing but still at low levels. And down-payment sizes remain stable.

The slowdown in sales appears to be most noticeable in the move-up category and that was expected, said DataQuick President Marshall Prentice.

And he and Link agree that the sales softening is less intense at the lower priced end of the market.

greg.wilcox(at)dailynews.com

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