Friday, September 13, 2013

August California Home Sale Press Release


California August Home Sales


September 13, 2013

An estimated 42,546 new and resale houses and condos sold statewide last month. That was down 1.9 percent from a revised 43,381 in July, and up 3.1 percent from 41,280 sales in August 2012, according to San Diego-based DataQuick.

The sales count was the highest for any August since 51,054 homes sold in August 2006. August sales have varied from a low of 29,764 in 1992 to a high of 73,285 in 2005. Last month's sales were 11.1 percent below the average of 47,849 sales for all the months of August since 1988, when DataQuick's statistics begin.

The median price paid for a home in California last month was $361,000, down 0.6 percent from $363,000 in July and up 28.5 percent from $281,000 in August 2012. August was the 18th consecutive month in which the state's median sale price rose year-over-year. In March/April/May 2007 the median peaked at $484,000. The post-peak trough was $221,000 in April 2009.

Of the existing homes sold last month, 7.8 percent were properties that had been foreclosed on during the past year – the lowest level since foreclosure resales were 7.6 percent of the resale market in July 2007. Last month’s figure was down from a revised 8.3 percent in July and 20.0 percent a year earlier. Foreclosure resales peaked at 58.8 percent in February 2009.

Short sales - transactions where the sale price fell short of what was owed on the property - made up an estimated 13.2 percent of the homes that resold last month. That was down from an estimated 14.4 percent the month before and 26.4 percent a year earlier.

The typical monthly mortgage payment that California buyers committed themselves to paying last month was $1,456. Adjusted for inflation, last month's payment was 37.0 percent below the typical payment in spring 1989, the peak of the prior real estate cycle. It was 48.9 percent below the current cycle's peak in June 2006. It was 58.0 percent above the January 2012 bottom of the current cycle.

DataQuick monitors real estate activity nationwide and provides information to consumers, educational institutions, public agencies, lending institutions, title companies and industry analysts.

Indicators of market distress continue to decline. Foreclosure activity remains well below year-ago and peak levels reached several years ago. Financing with multiple mortgages is low, while down payment sizes are stable, DataQuick reported.

Source: DataQuick; DQNews.com

Copyright DataQuick. All rights reserved.

August Bay Area Home Sale Press Release

Bay Area August Home Sales Dip; Median Price Eases Back From July


September 13, 2013

La Jolla, CA.--Home sales in the Bay Area leveled off last month as prices underwent a modest and seasonal late-summer dip. While there are still imbalances in the sales mix and purchase patterns, indications are that the market continues to normalize incrementally, a real estate information service reported.

A total of 8,616 new and resale houses and condos were sold in the nine-county Bay Area last month. That was down 7.7 percent from 9,339 in July and down 0.6 percent from 8,670 in August last year, according to San Diego-based DataQuick.

Last month’s sales were 10.3 percent behind the long-term August average of 9,601. August sales have ranged from 6,688 in 1992 to 13,940 in 2004. DataQuick’s statistics begin in 1988 and the Bay Area has had below-average sales every month since the fall of 2006.

“As the market pendulum swings back toward normal, trends will be affected by more mundane market factors such as interest rates, employment, economic growth, affordability, mortgage availability, and how fast demand is generated and met. The next few months are going to be interesting, especially when it comes to pricing trends,” said John Walsh, DataQuick president.

The median price paid for a home in the Bay Area last month was $540,000. That was down 3.9 percent from $562,000 in July, and up 31.7 percent from $410,000 in August a year ago. Due to seasonal shifts in sales patterns, the Bay Area median almost always declines from July to August.

When adjusting for changes in market mix, it appears that roughly three-fourths of August’s 31.7 percent year-over-year rise in the median sale price reflects an actual increase in home values.

The Bay Area median peaked at $665,000 in June/July 2007, then dropped as low as $290,000 in March 2009. Last month’s median was 18.8 percent below the peak.

Bay Area home buyers continue to put near-record amounts of their own money into residential real estate. In August they paid a total of $2.3 billion out of pocket in the form of down payments or cash purchases. That was about the same as the month before. The all-time high was $2.6 billion this May.

The number of homes that sold for less than $500,000 last month dropped 23.2 percent year-over-year, while the number that sold for more increased 28.2 percent, DataQuick reported.

Last month distressed property sales – the combination of foreclosure resales and “short sales” – made up about 15 percent of the resale market. That was the same as in July and down from 37.8 percent a year ago.

Foreclosure resales – homes that had been foreclosed on in the prior 12 months – accounted for 4.6 percent of resales in August, the same as July’s revised percentage, and down from 14.5 percent a year ago. The July and August level is the lowest since 4.4 percent in August 2007. Foreclosure resales peaked at 52.0 percent in February 2009. The monthly average for foreclosure resales over the past 17 years is about 10 percent.

Short sales – transactions where the sale price fell short of what was owed on the property – made up an estimated 10.0 percent of Bay Area resales last month. That was down from an estimated 10.6 percent in July and down from 23.3 percent a year earlier.

Lenders provided $3.27 billion in mortgage money to Bay Area home buyers in August, down from $3.46 in July and up from $2.78 in August last year. The most active lenders to Bay Area home buyers last month were Wells Fargo with 14.4 percent of the purchase loan market, Bank of American with 3.9 percent and RPM Mortgage with 3.7 percent.

Jumbo loans, mortgages above the old conforming limit of $417,000, accounted for 47.8 percent of last month’s purchase lending, down from a revised 49.8 percent in July, and up from 38.7 percent a year ago. Jumbo usage dropped to as low as 17.1 percent in January 2009.

Adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs), an important indicator of mortgage availability, accounted for 19.1 percent of the Bay Area’s home purchase loans in August. That was basically the same as the month before, when it was 19.2 percent, and up from 11.5 percent in August last year. Since 2000, ARMs have accounted for 47.5 percent of all purchase loans. ARMs hit a low of 3.0 percent of loans in January 2009.

Government-insured FHA home purchase loans, a popular choice among first-time buyers, accounted for 11.0 percent of all Bay Area home purchase mortgages in August, up from 9.8 percent in July and down from 15.3 percent a year earlier. In recent months the FHA level has been the lowest since summer 2008, reflecting both tougher qualifying standards and the difficulties first-time buyers have competing with investors and other cash buyers.

Last month absentee buyers – mostly investors – purchased 21.0 percent of all Bay Area homes. That was up slightly from 20.5 percent in July, and down from 22.8 percent a year ago. Absentee buyers paid a median $400,000 in August, up 42.9 percent from a year earlier.

Buyers who appear to have paid all cash – meaning no sign of a corresponding purchase loan was found in the public record – accounted for 22.4 percent of sales in August. That was down from a revised 23.5 percent the month before and down from 27.9 percent a year earlier. The monthly average going back to 1988 is 13.2 percent. Cash buyers paid a median $449,000 in August, up 52.2 percent from a year earlier.

San Diego-based DataQuick monitors real estate activity nationwide and provides information to consumers, educational institutions, public agencies, lending institutions, title companies and industry analysts. Because of late data availability, sales were estimated in Alameda, San Francisco and San Mateo counties.

The typical monthly mortgage payment that Bay Area buyers committed themselves to paying last month was $2,179. Adjusted for inflation, last month’s payment was 23.6 percent below the typical payment in spring 1989, the peak of the prior real estate cycle. It was 43.5 percent below the current cycle's peak in July 2007. It was 73.1 percent above the February 2012 bottom of the current cycle.

Indicators of market distress continue to decline. Foreclosure activity remains below year-ago levels and far below peak levels reached over the last five years. Financing with multiple mortgages is low, down payment sizes are stable, DataQuick reported.

To view the county-by-county home sale data, visit DQNews.com.

Source: DataQuick, www.DQNews.com

Media calls: Andrew LePage (916) 456-7157

Copyright 2013 DataQuick. All rights reserved.

Thursday, September 12, 2013

August Southland Home Sale Press Release

Southland Median Sale Price Steady Month-to-Month, Up Sharply Year-Over-Year

September 12, 2013

Southern California home sales were the highest for an August in seven years as strong activity above $300,000 compensated for a dip in sales below that level, as well as fewer cash and investor purchases. The median sale price held steady compared with June and July but rose 24.6 percent from a year earlier, marking the eighth consecutive month with a year-over-year gain over 20 percent, a real estate information service reported.

A total of 23,057 new and resale houses and condos sold in Los Angeles, Riverside, San Diego, Ventura, San Bernardino and Orange counties last month. That was down 0.8 percent from a revised 23,253 sales in July, and up 2.8 percent from 22,438 sales in August 2012, according to San Diego-based DataQuick.

Last month’s sales were 12.8 percent below the average number of sales – 26,452 – in the month of August since 1988, when DataQuick’s statistics begin. Southland sales haven’t been above average for any particular month in more than seven years. August sales have ranged from 16,379 in August 1992 to 39,562 in August 2003.

The median price paid for all new and resale houses and condos sold in the six-county region last month was $385,000, the same as in June and July and up 24.6 percent from $309,000 in August 2012. The $385,000 median over the past three months is the highest since April 2008, when the median was also $385,000.

The median price has risen on a year-over-year basis for 17 consecutive months. Those gains have been double-digit – between 10.8 percent and 28.3 percent – over the past 13 months. Last month’s 24.6 percent annual gain in the Southland median was lower than the 28.3 percent annual increase in June and the 25.8 percent annual gain in July.

Last month’s median remained 23.8 percent below the peak $505,000 median in spring/summer 2007. The median fell by $256,000 from that peak to its $249,000 trough in April 2009, and it has now regained just over half of that peak-to-trough loss.

In a sign of continued market confidence, Southern California home buyers continue to put near-record amounts of their own money into residential real estate. In August they paid a total of $4.68 billion out of their own pockets in the form of down payments or cash purchases. That was down from a revised $5.18 billion in July and up from $4.24 billion a year ago. The out-of-pocket total peaked this May at $5.41 billion.

“There’s something for everyone in today’s housing data. Sellers have seen an amazing price jump from just a year ago, allowing many to finally sell at a profit. Home shoppers have more properties to choose as we begin to see a ‘supply response’ to higher values. Price pressures appear to be easing, though, amid higher mortgage rates, more supply and fewer cash and investor purchases. As we head into fall and winter, a slower time of year, we’ll probably see year-over-year price gains continue to taper,” said John Walsh, DataQuick president.

It appears that most of last month’s 24.6 percent year-over-year increase in the Southland median sale price reflects rising home prices, while a small portion reflects a change in market mix. (This change consists of a big increase in mid- to high-end sales and a big decline in sales of lower-cost distressed properties.)

In August, the lowest-cost third of the region's housing stock saw a 23.3 percent year-over-year rise in the median price paid per square foot for resale houses. The annual gain was 21.2 percent for the middle third of the market and 17.4 percent for the top, most-expensive third.

Sales activity in the middle and upper price ranges continues to far outpace sales in the more affordable markets.

Last month the number of homes that sold from $300,000 through $800,000 – a range that would include many move-up buyers – rose 31.4 percent year-over-year. The number that sold for $500,000 or more jumped 48.7 percent from one year earlier, while $800,000-plus sales rose 48.0 percent.

In August, 32.6 percent of all Southland home sales were for $500,000 or more, down from a revised 33.2 percent of sales the month before and up from 23.3 percent a year earlier.

The number of Southland homes that sold below $200,000 last month dropped 32.8 percent year-over-year, while sales below $300,000 fell 24.9 percent. Low-end sales have been relatively weak largely because of an inadequate supply of homes for sale. Many owners still can’t afford to sell their homes because they owe more than they are worth, and lenders aren’t foreclosing on as many properties, further limiting supply.

In August, foreclosure resales – homes foreclosed on in the prior 12 months – accounted for 7.1 percent of the Southland resale market. That was down from a revised 7.7 percent the month before and down from 19.2 percent a year earlier. Last month’s foreclosure resale rate was the lowest since it was 5.5 percent in June 2007. In the current cycle, foreclosure resales hit a high of 56.7 percent in February 2009.

Short sales – transactions where the sale price fell short of what was owed on the property – made up an estimated 13.6 percent of Southland resales last month. That was the lowest level since it was also 13.6 percent in April 2009. Last month’s short sale figure was down from an estimated 14.6 percent the month before and down from 26.6 percent a year earlier.

Absentee buyers – mostly investors and some second-home purchasers – bought 26.3 percent of the Southland homes sold last month, which is the lowest share for any month since it was 25.1 percent in November 2011. Last month’s level was down from 27.4 percent the month before and down from 27.2 percent a year earlier. The absentee share has ratcheted down gradually each month this year since hitting a record 32.4 percent in January. The monthly average since 2000, when the absentee data begin, is 18.3 percent. Last month’s absentee buyers paid a median $310,000, up 31.4 percent from a year earlier.

After hitting a peak earlier this year, the share of homes flipped has generally trended flat to lower. Last month 6.0 percent of all Southland homes sold on the open market had previously sold in the prior six months. That’s the same as July’s flipping rate and up from 5.1 percent a year earlier. (The figures exclude homes resold after being purchased at public foreclosure auction sales on the courthouse steps).

Buyers paying with cash accounted for 27.6 percent of last month's home sales, down from 30.0 percent the month before and down from 32.3 percent a year earlier. The cash share of purchases has declined each month since hitting an all-time peak of 36.9 percent this February, and in August was at its lowest level since it was 26.2 percent in September 2010. Since 1988 the monthly average for cash buyers is 16.2 percent of all sales. Cash buyers paid a median $325,000 last month, up 31.0 percent from a year ago.

Credit conditions continued to improve modestly.

Last month 11.6 percent of Southland home purchase loans were adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs) – the highest for any month since ARMs were 12.6 percent of the market in July 2008. Last month’s ARM level was up from an ARM share of 10.9 percent the prior month and 5.9 percent a year earlier. Since 2000, a monthly average of about 32 percent of Southland purchase loans have been ARMs.

Jumbo loans, mortgages above the old conforming limit of $417,000, accounted for 27.2 percent of last month’s Southland purchase lending – the third-highest, behind June and July, since August 2007, when jumbos were 36.7 percent of the market. Last month’s figure was down from 27.9 percent the prior month and up from 20.3 percent a year earlier. In the months leading up to the credit crunch that struck in August 2007, jumbos accounted for around 40 percent of the home loan market.

The most active lenders to Southern California home buyers last month were Wells Fargo with 7.8 percent of the purchase loan market, Bank of American with 2.8 percent and IMortgage with 2.6 percent.

All lenders combined provided $6.36 billion in mortgage money to Southern California home buyers in August, down from $6.52 in July and up from $5.45 in July last year.

Government-insured FHA loans, a popular low-down-payment choice among first-time buyers, accounted for 19.1 percent of all purchase mortgages last month. That was up a hair from 19.0 percent the month before and down from 27.1 percent a year earlier. In recent months the FHA share has been the lowest since spring 2008. The decline reflects tighter FHA qualifying standards implemented in recent years as well as the difficulties first-time buyers have competing with investors and cash buyers.

DataQuick monitors real estate activity nationwide and provides information to consumers, educational institutions, public agencies, lending institutions, title companies and industry analysts.

The typical monthly mortgage payment Southland buyers committed themselves to paying last month was $1,545, up from $1,537 the month before and up from $1,124 a year earlier. Adjusted for inflation, last month’s typical payment was 35.5 percent below the typical payment in the spring of 1989, the peak of the prior real estate cycle. It was 47.1 percent below the current cycle’s peak in July 2007.

Indicators of market distress continue to decline. Foreclosure activity remains well below year-ago and far below peak levels. Financing with multiple mortgages is very low, and down payment sizes are stable, DataQuick reported.

To view the county-by-county stats, visit DQNews.com.

Source: DQNews.com Media calls: Andrew LePage (916) 456-7157

Copyright 2013 DataQuick. All rights reserved.

Thursday, September 5, 2013

July Seattle Home Sale Press Release

Seattle Region July Home Sales

Seattle-area home sales were the highest for a July in six years, bolstered by the strongest condo resales for that month since 2005 and robust sales in move-up price ranges. The median price paid for all homes sold in July - $329,000 - neared a five-year high and came within 10 percent of the region's peak median in mid 2007, a real estate information service reported.

A total of 6,308 new and resale houses and condos closed escrow during July in the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metro area encompassing King, Snohomish and Pierce counties. July sales rose 9.3 percent from the month before and jumped 35.5 percent from a year earlier, according to San Diego-based DataQuick. The firm tracks real estate trends nationally via public property records.

The number of homes sold this July was the highest for that month since July 2007, when 6,464 homes sold. This July's total sales were 12.0 percent above the average number of homes sold during all months of July since 1994, when DataQuick's complete Seattle-area statistics begin. Resale single-family house sales were 12.3 percent above the historical average for July, while condo resales were 53.9 percent above average and sales of newly built homes were 21.5 percent below the July average.

The region's mid- to high-priced neighborhoods again posted large sales increases compared with a year ago, while sales in the lower price categories saw more modest gains or declines. The number of homes sold in July for less than $200,000 dropped 4.2 percent year-over-year. Sales of homes priced above $200,000 rose 57.8 percent year-over-year, while $300,000-plus sales rose 63.9 percent. The number of homes that sold for between $200,000 and $600,000, a typical move-up range, rose 52.6 percent from a year earlier. Sales over $700,000 rose 94.8 percent year-over-year, though transactions in that price category represented only about 10 percent of all sales.

Buyers paid a median $329,000 for all new and resale houses and condos sold in the three-county Seattle area in July - the highest median for any month since August 2008, when the median was $335,085. This July's median rose 3.1 percent from the prior month and increased 13.4 percent from a year earlier. The median has risen on a year-over-year basis for 16 consecutive months, and these annual increases have been double-digit for the past 11 months.

July's median was 9.9 percent lower than the Seattle area's peak $365,200 median in June 2007, and it was 37.1 percent higher than the post-peak trough of $240,000 in January 2012. During the housing downturn the median fell 34.3 percent between the peak and the trough, a decline of $125,200. In July the median stood $89,000 above the trough, meaning it had made up nearly three-quarters of its peak-to-trough decline.

Another price measure, the median price paid per square foot for resale single-family detached houses, rose to $186 in July, up 2.8 percent month-to-month and up 14.9 percent year-over-year. However, July's median paid per square foot stood 22.2 percent below the peak of $239 in June 2007.

Other Seattle area July highlights (see two charts at DQNews.com)

Media calls: Andrew LePage (916) 456-7157

Source: DataQuick; DQNews.com

Copyright 2013 DataQuick. All rights reserved.

Tuesday, September 3, 2013

July Las Vegas Home Sale Press Release

Las Vegas Region July Home Sales


Las Vegas-area home sales rose in July as absentee buyers continued to account for over half of all activity and sales above $300,000 more than doubled compared with a year earlier. The median price paid for a home – $173,000 – rose year-over-year for the 16th consecutive month to the highest level in four and a half years, a real estate information service reported.

In July, 4,812 new and resale houses and condos closed escrow in the Las Vegas-Paradise metro area (Clark County). That was up 1.5 percent from the month before and up 12.0 percent from a year earlier, according to San Diego-based DataQuick. The firm tracks real estate trends nationally via public property records.

On average, sales between June and July have declined 8.0 percent since 1994, when DataQuick's complete Las Vegas-area statistics begin. Total home sales have increased year-over-year for the past four months, following 10 consecutive months of year-over-year sales declines.

Total July sales in the Las Vegas region were the highest for that month since 2009 and were 0.3 percent below the average number of homes sold during all months of July since 1994. However, resales of houses and condos combined were 24.4 percent above average for the month of July, while sales of newly built homes were 55.0 percent below average.

The number of mid- to high-end home sales continued to jump from year-ago levels, while low-end activity declined sharply again.

Sales of homes priced below $100,000 dropped 41.5 percent in July compared with a year earlier, while the number of transactions below $200,000 fell 14.0 percent year-over-year. The number that sold for more than $200,000 surged 99.9 percent year-over-year, pushed up by the combination of home price appreciation and strong sales in mid- to high-end markets. July sales of homes priced from $200,000 to $500,000 – a range that would include many move-up purchases – jumped 101.4 percent from a year earlier, while the number sold over $500,000 increased 86.2 percent.

The median price paid for all new and resale houses and condos sold across the Las Vegas region (Clark County) in July was $173,000, which is the highest for any month since the median was $175,000 in December 2008. The July median rose 2.3 percent from the prior month and increased 34.2 percent from a year earlier. The median’s year-over-year gains over the past 16 consecutive months have ranged from 1.7 percent to 35.3 percent. Those gains have been double-digit for the last 13 months.

Recent sharp increases in the median sale price reflect price appreciation triggered by strong demand meeting a relatively low supply of homes for sale, as well as changes in market mix. Fewer of the homes re-selling now are low-cost foreclosed properties, and more are move-up homes in mid- to high-priced neighborhoods.

Despite the median’s year-over-year surge in July, it was still 44.6 percent below its November 2006 peak of $312,000. The median has been rising off a cyclical trough of $110,000 in January 2012, which was the lowest level since the median was also $110,000 in April 1994.

Las Vegas region July highlights (see two charts at DQNews.com)

Media calls: Andrew LePage (916) 456-7157

Copyright 2013 DataQuick. All rights reserved.