Home Sales Nosedive, Price Gains Level Off As SoCal Market Cools

LOS ANGELES, CA — Home sales dropped and the rise in prices steadily slowed in Los Angeles County last month compared to the same month a year ago, according to new analyses. Throughout the Southern California region, home prices actually dipped from October to November.

The median price of a Southern California home was $522,750 in November, down 0.4 percent from $525,000 in October and up 3.5 percent from $505,000 in November 2017.

LA County's year-over-year median home price rose 5.8 percent in November, but sales nose-dived by nearly 16 percent, According to CoreLogic. Notably, the slowdown affected high-end and affordable housing alike.

"Last month's 12 percent year-over-year drop in home sales marked the second largest decline in more than four years, behind a nearly 18 percent decrease this September," said Andrew LePage, research analyst with CoreLogic. "November's slowdown affected all major price categories, including a nearly 10 percent annual drop in $1 million-plus sales, which have fallen on a year- over-year basis for three consecutive months."

LePage tied the decline in sales to higher mortgage rates.

"Higher mortgage rates worsened affordability constraints this year, and in recent months, stock market volatility could have contributed to the high-end pullback," he said. "Market corrections can spook high-end buyers and leave some with inadequate funds to cover downpayment and closing costs."

In Southern California, Los Angeles saw some of the steepest declines.

In Los Angeles County, the median price of a home was $600,000 last month, up from $567,000 in November 2017. A total of 5,462 homes were sold in the county, down 15.8 percent from 6,488 during the same month the previous year.

In Orange County, the median price was $719,000 last month, up 2.7 percent from $700,000 in November 2017. The number of homes sold dropped by 11.7 percent, from 3,022 in November 2017 to 2,669 last month.

A total of 17,170 new and resale houses and condos changed hands in Los Angeles, Riverside, San Diego, Ventura, San Bernardino and Orange counties last month, according to CoreLogic. That was down 10.7 percent from 19,236 in October, and down 12.3 percent from 19,575 in November 2017.

City News Service contributed to this report. Photo: Shutterstock