The Desert Sun, 3/26/09
Home sales jumped about 70 percent in the Coachella Valley in February over the same period a year ago, a continuation of a trend that one analyst says might indicate a market stabilization.
The high volume of sales -- while spurred by dismal economic conditions that caused prices to fall drastically -- indicates the market is repairing itself, said Greg Berkemer, executive director of the California Desert Association of Realtors.
“There are good values,'' he said. “Buyers are taking advantage of them in increasing numbers.”
The median price of homes sold was $156,000, down 53.4 percent from $334,900 in February 2008, according to the California Association of Realtors.
“We are now in the third consecutive month in the desert with year-over-year sales increases,'' Berkemer said. “While we still won't say the market is turned around, and is headed back, we see what could be the beginning of a legitimate trend.”
If the trend continues, Berkemer said the association might be able to say with assurance that the market has turned, and that price reductions have bottomed. More...
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Home Affordability Highest Since Start of Decade
Source: California Assn. of Realtors
By Sara Sutachan, Senior Research Analyst & Robert Kleinhenz, Ph.D. Deputy Chief Economist
Home prices in California have declined markedly since peaking in mid-2007. The fourth quarter of 2008 was no exception as the median price of an existing detached single-family home fell 41 percent from the same time a year earlier. The median price in the fourth quarter of 2008 was $291,800 compared to $492,490 for the fourth quarter of 2007.
The unprecedented price declines have dramatically improved affordability in the state. C.A.R.'s Housing Affordability Index for First-Time Buyers, which measures the share of all households that can afford the entry-level home, rose to 59 percent in the fourth quarter of 2008, meaning that nearly six in 10 households in California could afford the entry-level home (defined as 85 percent of the median home price) in the fourth quarter. Affordability has nearly doubled from a year earlier when the affordability index was at 33 percent and now stands at its highest level since the start of the decade. The index is based on an entry-level home price, a 10 percent downpayment, an ARM effective composite rate, and a 40 percent debt-qualifying ratio.
By Sara Sutachan, Senior Research Analyst & Robert Kleinhenz, Ph.D. Deputy Chief Economist
Home prices in California have declined markedly since peaking in mid-2007. The fourth quarter of 2008 was no exception as the median price of an existing detached single-family home fell 41 percent from the same time a year earlier. The median price in the fourth quarter of 2008 was $291,800 compared to $492,490 for the fourth quarter of 2007.
The unprecedented price declines have dramatically improved affordability in the state. C.A.R.'s Housing Affordability Index for First-Time Buyers, which measures the share of all households that can afford the entry-level home, rose to 59 percent in the fourth quarter of 2008, meaning that nearly six in 10 households in California could afford the entry-level home (defined as 85 percent of the median home price) in the fourth quarter. Affordability has nearly doubled from a year earlier when the affordability index was at 33 percent and now stands at its highest level since the start of the decade. The index is based on an entry-level home price, a 10 percent downpayment, an ARM effective composite rate, and a 40 percent debt-qualifying ratio.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
