Market Conditions - California – October 4, 2006

RealtyTimes
by Carla L. Davis
October 4, 2006

Los Angeles, California, experts agree, that though the market is still changing -- the volume of homes sold in California was down 30.1 percent in August -- sellers can still walk away from the negotiating tables happy. It all comes down to pricing.

The median price of a California home is $576,360, after dramatic increases from 2000 to 2005, though the last year has seen only a 1.6 percent increase. Los Angeles saw only a slightly higher median price at $580,140, up 2 percent from last month and 11.9 percent from last year. Sales are down 17.8 percent.

One expert reports, "The median number of days it took to sell a single-family home was 46 days in June 2006, compared with 28 days (revised) for the same period a year ago." This is a reflection of the increase in inventory on the market, and buyers' fear of the changing marketplace.

Still some cities have continued to see above average appreciation rates, among them Beverly Hills, up 44.9 percent and Laguna Hills, up 30.6 percent.

Orange County Real Estate