HOUSE INVENTORY AND PRICES HIGHER THREE-MONTH SUPPLY OF HOMES STILL DEEMED TOO LOW.Byline: Gregory J. Wilcox Staff Writer Increasing inventory helped tug the median price of a California home off its record peak in July, but it still soared an annual 21.4 percent to $463,540 and sales continued on a record pace, a trade group reported Tuesday. July saw inventory build to more than a three-month supply for the first time in 17 months but it is still low, said the California Association of Realtors. Even so, sales jumped 7.4 percent from July 2003 to an annualized annualized Of or relating to a variable that has been mathematically converted to a yearly rate. Inflation and interest rates are generally annualized since it is on this basis that these two variables are ordinarily stated and compared. rate of 639,910 previously owned single-family homes. That's the total that will sell if all of this year matched July's pace and tops last year's record total of 601,770 sales. Leslie Appleton-Young, the Los Angeles-based association's vice president and chief economist The Chief Economist is a single position job class having primary responsibility for the development, coordination, and production of economic and financial analysis. It is distinguished from the other economist positions by the broader scope of responsibility encompassing the , said that the inventory increase is good news for buyers but that it still lags behind demand. Since 1988, the state has averaged an eight-month supply of homes for sale. The biggest, a 17.7-month supply, came in February 1993 during a depressed market Depressed market Market in which supply overwhelms demand, leading to weak and lower prices. . In Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. County, the state's biggest market, there was a 3.4-month supply at last month's end, up from a 1.6-month supply a year ago. The tightest market for the county was a 1.1-month supply last December. And as the market soured in the early 1990s, inventory built up to a record high 27.9-month supply in February 1991. Last month's sales increase was the smallest since March and the year- over-year price gain the smallest since February. The inventory run-up, sales trend and price cooling now signal a shift in the market, albeit a small one. ``That's what we've kind of been waiting for. You have to start somewhere,'' said Appleton-Young. ``The market is going from super-strong to strong.'' Across Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, : --In Los Angeles County, the median price soared an annual 25.8 percent to $448,800, increasing 0.8 percent from June. Sales fell an annual 7.3 percent. --In Ventura County, the median price jumped an annual 36.6 percent to $626,510 and it edged up 0.2 percent from June. Sales fell an annual 14.3 percent. --In the Inland Empire In·land Empire A region of the northwest United States between the Cascade Range and the Rocky Mountains, comprising eastern Washington, eastern Oregon, northern Idaho, and western Montana. Farming, lumbering, and mining are important to the area. , the median price jumped 37.4 percent to $317,820 and increased 4.3 percent monthly. Sales increased 3.8 percent. La Canada Flintridge had the state's ninth highest median last month, $1.1 million, one spot ahead of Beverly Hills Beverly Hills, city (1990 pop. 31,971), Los Angeles co., S Calif., completely surrounded by the city of Los Angeles; inc. 1914. The largely residential city is home to many motion-picture and television personalities. , with a median of $1 million. Nima Nattagh, an analyst at FNC FNC - Federal Networking Council , which supplies market information to the mortgage banking industry, said that this trend was expected. ``I think we're seeing signs of potential sellers lowering their expectations and asking price as well. In a sense it's slowing down, but it's still a fairly healthy market,'' he said. Gregory J. Wilcox, (818) 713-3743 greg.wilcox(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): chart Chart: HOME SALES Source: National Association of Realtors The National Association of Realtors (NAR) is made up of residential and commercial realtors who are brokers, salespeople, property managers, appraisers, and counselors, and others working in the real estate industry. Associated Press |
|
||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion