LOS ANGELES, Jan. 17, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Tight housing inventory tamped down the benefits of the lowest interest rates in years and held back California home sales in December, the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (C.A.R.) said today. Meanwhile, the median home price recorded the second highest price of the year and its largest year-over-year increase since May 2014.
Closed escrow sales of existing, single-family detached homes in California totaled a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 398,880 units in December, according to information collected by C.A.R. from more than 90 local REALTOR® associations and MLSs statewide. The statewide annualized sales figure represents what would be the total number of homes sold during 2019 if sales maintained the December pace throughout the year. It is adjusted to account for seasonal factors that typically influence home sales.
December's sales total was down 1.0 percent from the 402,880 level in November and marked the first time in six months that sales fell below the 400,000 benchmark. Still, sales were up a solid 7.4 percent from December 2018's revised 371,410 figure. For the year 2019, annual home sales fell for the second consecutive year to a preliminary 397,910 closed escrow sales in California, down from 2018's pace of 402,640.
"Despite a sales slowdown at year-end, home sales were up from a year ago as interest rates remained low. It's important to note, however, that the increase was due partly to low housing demand in the prior year," said 2020 C.A.R. President Jeanne Radsick, a second-generation REALTOR® from Bakersfield, Calif. "Looking ahead, low rates should continue to provide support to the market as buyers have become more motivated to get back into the market, and home sales in California should see an improvement at the start of the year."
The median price was up 4.3 percent from November's $589,770 to $615,090 in December and climbed 10.3 percent from $557,740 in December 2018. The year-over-year price increase was the largest since May 2014 and the first double-digit price increase in more than five-and-a-half years. The statewide median home price for the year as a whole was $592,450, an increase of 4.0 percent from a revised $569,480 in 2018.
"With housing supply dropping to the lowest level in nearly seven years, California experienced an unusual jump in its median price at the end of the year when the market is supposed to cool down," said C.A.R. Senior Vice President and Chief Economist Leslie Appleton-Young. "While low rates have been fueling demand in the second half of 2019, supply constraints continued to put a drag on the market and undercut the positive effect of low rates. The surge in price is a byproduct of the imbalance between supply and demand as market competition continues to heat up."
With prices rising faster in recent months while supply continued to shrink, home sellers' optimism improved both month-over-month and year-over-year. According to a monthly Google poll conducted by C.A.R. in December, slightly more than half (56 percent) believe it is a good time to sell, up from 51 percent a month ago, and up from 48 percent a year ago. Many buyers, however, remain uncertain about the current housing market conditions as only one-quarter of respondents (25 percent) believe that it is a good time to buy now, slightly higher than last year (22 percent), when interest rates were more than 100 basis points higher.
Other key points from C.A.R.'s December 2019 resale housing report include:
Note: The County MLS median price and sales data in the tables are generated from a survey of more than 90 associations of REALTORS® throughout the state and represent statistics of existing single-family detached homes only. County sales data are not adjusted to account for seasonal factors that can influence home sales. Movements in sales prices should not be interpreted as changes in the cost of a standard home. The median price is where half sold for more and half sold for less; medians are more typical than average prices, which are skewed by a relatively small share of transactions at either the lower end or the upper end. Median prices can be influenced by changes in cost, as well as changes in the characteristics and the size of homes sold. The change in median prices should not be construed as actual price changes in specific homes.
*Sales-to-list-price ratio is an indicator that reflects the negotiation power of home buyers and home sellers under current market conditions. The ratio is calculated by dividing the final sales price of a property by its last list price and is expressed as a percentage. A sales-to-list ratio with 100 percent or above suggests that the property sold for more than the list price, and a ratio below 100 percent indicates that the price sold below the asking price.
**Price per square foot is a measure commonly used by real estate agents and brokers to determine how much a square foot of space a buyer will pay for a property. It is calculated as the sale price of the home divided by the number of finished square feet. C.A.R. currently tracks price-per-square foot statistics for 50 counties.
Leading the way...® in California real estate for more than 110 years, the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (www.car.org) is one of the largest state trade organizations in the United States with more than 200,000 members dedicated to the advancement of professionalism in real estate. C.A.R. is headquartered in Los Angeles.
December 2019 County Sales and Price Activity | |||||||||
(Regional and condo sales data not seasonally adjusted) | |||||||||
December 2019 | Median Sold Price of Existing Single-Family Homes | Sales | |||||||
State/Region/County | Dec. | Nov. | Dec. | Price | Price | Sales | Sales | ||
Calif. Single-family home | $615,090 | $589,770 | $557,740 | r | 4.3% | 10.3% | -1.0% | 7.4% | |
Calif. Condo/Townhome | $477,000 | $485,110 | $453,740 | r | -1.7% | 5.1% | 7.2% | 29.5% | |
Los Angeles Metro Area | $550,000 | $550,000 | $500,000 | 0.0% | 10.0% | 2.6% | 15.6% | ||
Central Coast | $700,000 | $695,000 | $716,000 | r | 0.7% | -2.2% | 20.0% | 42.4% | |
Central Valley | $342,000 | $340,000 | $317,500 | 0.6% | 7.7% | 2.1% | 11.6% | ||
Inland Empire | $385,000 | $379,000 | $359,000 | 1.6% | 7.2% | 1.2% | 13.3% | ||
San Francisco Bay Area | $908,750 | $925,000 | $850,000 | -1.8% | 6.9% | -2.7% | 16.0% | ||
San Francisco Bay Area | |||||||||
Alameda | $881,500 | $910,000 | $850,000 | -3.1% | 3.7% | 1.8% | 20.5% | ||
Contra Costa | $665,000 | $640,000 | $612,500 | 3.9% | 8.6% | 6.2% | 16.9% | ||
Marin | $1,300,000 | $1,270,000 | $1,270,500 | 2.4% | 2.3% | -17.1% | 19.5% | ||
Napa | $765,000 | $669,000 | $725,000 | 14.3% | 5.5% | 10.7% | 5.1% | ||
San Francisco | $1,450,000 | $1,619,000 | $1,500,000 | -10.4% | -3.3% | -11.7% | 10.2% | ||
San Mateo | $1,475,000 | $1,595,000 | $1,483,000 | -7.5% | -0.5% | -8.4% | 16.1% | ||
Santa Clara | $1,225,000 | $1,259,000 | $1,150,000 | -2.7% | 6.5% | -6.4% | 18.8% | ||
Solano | $455,500 | $462,980 | $425,000 | -1.6% | 7.2% | 3.2% | 14.9% | ||
Sonoma | $647,500 | $650,000 | $639,000 | -0.4% | 1.3% | -13.4% | 4.7% | ||
Southern California | |||||||||
Los Angeles | $641,340 | $594,840 | $588,140 | 7.8% | 9.0% | 3.3% | 11.9% | ||
Orange | $840,000 | $822,000 | $785,000 | 2.2% | 7.0% | 5.0% | 32.8% | ||
Riverside | $420,000 | $425,000 | $398,000 | -1.2% | 5.5% | 2.5% | 12.1% | ||
San Bernardino | $320,000 | $315,000 | $295,000 | 1.6% | 8.5% | -0.9% | 15.2% | ||
San Diego | $655,000 | $659,000 | $618,500 | -0.6% | 5.9% | -1.3% | 17.4% | ||
Ventura | $657,000 | $660,000 | $640,000 | -0.5% | 2.7% | -2.0% | 11.8% | ||
Central Coast | |||||||||
Monterey | $613,250 | $720,000 | $590,000 | -14.8% | 3.9% | 12.2% | 44.2% | ||
San Luis Obispo | $615,500 | $615,000 | $640,000 | 0.1% | -3.8% | 13.2% | 42.5% | ||
Santa Barbara | $770,000 | $661,500 | $840,000 | r | 16.4% | -8.3% | 36.1% | 45.9% | |
Santa Cruz | $889,000 | $875,000 | $926,000 | 1.6% | -4.0% | 18.6% | 34.2% | ||
Central Valley | |||||||||
Fresno | $285,000 | $291,500 | $266,500 | -2.2% | 6.9% | 9.8% | 11.6% | ||
Glenn | $252,000 | $330,000 | $246,500 | -23.6% | 2.2% | -47.8% | -62.5% | ||
Kern | $262,900 | $258,000 | $242,380 | 1.9% | 8.5% | 1.9% | 4.8% | ||
Kings | $255,000 | $258,000 | $243,000 | -1.2% | 4.9% | -18.8% | 0.0% | ||
Madera | $285,100 | $295,500 | $263,000 | -3.5% | 8.4% | 2.3% | 15.4% | ||
Merced | $278,290 | $275,000 | $269,060 | r | 1.2% | 3.4% | 19.5% | 10.7% | |
Placer | $495,000 | $489,800 | $492,990 | r | 1.1% | 0.4% | -2.0% | 16.8% | |
Sacramento | $385,000 | $385,000 | $364,500 | 0.0% | 5.6% | 0.3% | 11.5% | ||
San Benito | $600,000 | $595,000 | $577,000 | 0.8% | 4.0% | 0.0% | 27.0% | ||
San Joaquin | $391,500 | $380,000 | $365,000 | 3.0% | 7.3% | 3.1% | 10.2% | ||
Stanislaus | $335,000 | $326,500 | $309,000 | 2.6% | 8.4% | -2.3% | 8.3% | ||
Tulare | $252,000 | $240,000 | $236,450 | 5.0% | 6.6% | 7.8% | 33.2% | ||
Other CA Counties | |||||||||
Amador | $300,000 | $348,500 | $314,720 | r | -13.9% | -4.7% | -29.6% | 19.0% | |
Butte | $351,720 | $350,000 | $356,560 | r | 0.5% | -1.4% | -13.6% | -54.8% | |
Calaveras | NA | $343,500 | $310,000 | NA | NA | NA | NA | ||
Del Norte | $276,780 | $252,500 | $243,900 | 9.6% | 13.5% | 78.6% | 108.3% | ||
El Dorado | $465,000 | $485,000 | $454,500 | -4.1% | 2.3% | -7.2% | 18.4% | ||
Humboldt | $318,500 | $328,190 | $308,000 | -3.0% | 3.4% | -21.0% | 18.1% | ||
Lake | $271,500 | $297,500 | $269,000 | -8.7% | 0.9% | -5.9% | -12.3% | ||
Lassen | $247,500 | $222,500 | $208,000 | 11.2% | 19.0% | 4.2% | 8.7% | ||
Mariposa | $299,900 | $410,000 | $320,000 | -26.9% | -6.3% | -47.8% | -36.8% | ||
Mendocino | $447,000 | $400,290 | $424,900 | 11.7% | 5.2% | -28.1% | 4.5% | ||
Mono | $400,000 | $556,000 | $541,000 | -28.1% | -26.1% | 66.7% | 275.0% | ||
Nevada | $400,000 | $458,500 | $389,950 | -12.8% | 2.6% | -15.9% | 23.4% | ||
Plumas | $270,500 | $275,000 | $262,950 | -1.6% | 2.9% | 25.0% | 15.4% | ||
Shasta | $275,000 | $285,000 | $267,500 | -3.5% | 2.8% | -9.5% | -11.4% | ||
Siskiyou | $225,000 | $242,500 | $182,500 | -7.2% | 23.3% | 40.0% | 31.3% | ||
Sutter | $308,250 | $325,000 | $320,000 | -5.2% | -3.7% | 4.6% | -16.0% | ||
Tehama | $237,500 | $259,250 | $255,000 | -8.4% | -6.9% | -25.0% | -55.4% | ||
Tuolumne | $292,000 | $275,500 | $258,950 | 6.0% | 12.8% | 10.7% | -22.5% | ||
Yolo | $441,000 | $446,710 | $429,000 | -1.3% | 2.8% | 26.5% | 27.8% | ||
Yuba | $299,850 | $319,500 | $298,000 | -6.2% | 0.6% | -10.3% | -13.6% |
r = revised |
NA = not available |
December 2019 County Unsold Inventory and Days on Market | ||||||||||
(Regional and condo sales data not seasonally adjusted) | ||||||||||
December 2019 | Unsold Inventory Index | Median Time on Market | ||||||||
State/Region/County | Dec. | Nov. | Dec. | Dec. | Nov. | Dec. | ||||
Calif. Single-family homes | 2.5 | 3.1 | 3.5 | 28.0 | 25.0 | 32.0 | ||||
Calif. Condo/Townhomes | 2.1 | 2.9 | 3.2 | 28.0 | 27.0 | 30.0 | r | |||
Los Angeles Metro Area | 2.8 | 3.3 | 4.1 | 31.0 | 29.0 | 36.0 | ||||
Central Coast | 2.7 | 4.1 | 3.8 | r | 38.0 | 30.0 | 35.5 | r | ||
Central Valley | 2.2 | 2.8 | 3.1 | 22.0 | 19.0 | 27.0 | ||||
Inland Empire | 3.3 | 3.9 | 4.7 | 38.0 | 34.0 | 41.5 | ||||
San Francisco Bay Area | 1.4 | 2.1 | 2.1 | 27.0 | 22.0 | 29.0 | ||||
San Francisco Bay Area | ||||||||||
Alameda | 0.9 | 1.6 | 1.7 | 20.0 | 16.0 | 24.0 | ||||
Contra Costa | 1.4 | 2.1 | 1.9 | 23.0 | 17.0 | 23.0 | ||||
Marin | 1.7 | 2.2 | 2.5 | 59.0 | 45.0 | 44.5 | ||||
Napa | 3.6 | 5.8 | 4.5 | 65.0 | 57.0 | 62.0 | ||||
San Francisco | 0.8 | 1.7 | 1.1 | 20.0 | 17.0 | 25.0 | ||||
San Mateo | 1.1 | 1.8 | 1.6 | 23.0 | 13.0 | 20.0 | ||||
Santa Clara | 1.1 | 1.7 | 1.8 | 19.0 | 18.0 | 22.0 | ||||
Solano | 2.2 | 2.8 | 2.9 | 38.5 | 39.0 | 44.5 | ||||
Sonoma | 3.0 | 3.4 | 3.2 | 56.5 | 51.0 | 54.0 | ||||
Southern California | ||||||||||
Los Angeles | 2.4 | 2.9 | 3.5 | 24.0 | 22.0 | 31.0 | ||||
Orange | 2.3 | 3.1 | 4.0 | 29.0 | 29.0 | 29.5 | ||||
Riverside | 3.4 | 3.9 | 4.7 | 36.0 | 33.0 | 41.0 | ||||
San Bernardino | 3.3 | 3.8 | 4.6 | 42.0 | 38.0 | 42.0 | ||||
San Diego | 2.2 | 2.7 | 3.5 | 20.0 | 17.0 | 27.0 | ||||
Ventura | 3.8 | 4.4 | 5.5 | 51.0 | 53.0 | 59.0 | ||||
Central Coast | ||||||||||
Monterey | 3.0 | 4.2 | 5.0 | 28.5 | 30.0 | 28.0 | ||||
San Luis Obispo | 3.3 | 4.2 | 4.9 | 41.5 | 32.0 | 37.5 | ||||
Santa Barbara | 2.6 | 4.4 | 2.2 | r | 35.5 | 29.5 | 38.0 | r | ||
Santa Cruz | 1.7 | 3.2 | 2.8 | 44.0 | 28.0 | 35.0 | ||||
Central Valley | ||||||||||
Fresno | 2.5 | 3.4 | 3.2 | 18.5 | 19.0 | 23.0 | ||||
Glenn | 5.4 | 3.5 | 2.3 | 24.0 | 24.0 | 29.5 | ||||
Kern | 2.3 | 2.9 | 2.8 | 20.0 | 15.5 | 31.0 | ||||
Kings | 2.8 | 2.6 | 3.5 | 20.0 | 22.5 | 37.0 | ||||
Madera | 4.5 | 5.3 | 5.7 | 27.0 | 34.0 | 40.0 | ||||
Merced | 2.7 | 3.5 | 3.6 | 34.0 | 20.0 | 29.0 | ||||
Placer | 1.9 | 2.5 | 2.6 | 27.0 | 24.0 | 29.0 | ||||
Sacramento | 1.6 | 2.2 | 2.5 | 19.0 | 15.0 | 25.0 | ||||
San Benito | 2.5 | 2.9 | 3.1 | 27.0 | 41.0 | 33.0 | ||||
San Joaquin | 2.4 | 3.1 | 2.9 | 25.0 | 26.0 | 29.0 | ||||
Stanislaus | 2.0 | 2.4 | 3.1 | 20.0 | 17.5 | 27.0 | ||||
Tulare | 2.6 | 3.1 | 4.3 | 23.0 | 29.0 | 29.0 | ||||
Other Calif. Counties | ||||||||||
Amador | 5.4 | 4.5 | NA | 58.5 | 48.0 | 39.0 | r | |||
Butte | 2.7 | 2.6 | 1.2 | 42.0 | 20.0 | 25.0 | ||||
Calaveras | NA | 6.5 | 4.8 | NA | 59.0 | 61.5 | ||||
Del Norte | 5.1 | 11.0 | 9.8 | 142.0 | 117.5 | 104.0 | ||||
El Dorado | 3.6 | 4.2 | 4.4 | 57.0 | 52.5 | 42.0 | ||||
Humboldt | 4.2 | 4.0 | 6.0 | 35.5 | 32.0 | 34.0 | ||||
Lake | 5.8 | 6.4 | 5.3 | 64.5 | 54.0 | 54.0 | ||||
Lassen | 4.5 | 5.6 | 4.6 | 148.0 | 90.5 | 111.0 | ||||
Mariposa | 7.4 | 4.3 | 4.8 | 67.0 | 29.0 | 66.0 | r | |||
Mendocino | 6.3 | 5.2 | 8.5 | 68.0 | 74.5 | 68.5 | ||||
Mono | 6.9 | 12.7 | 17.5 | 148.0 | 122.0 | 82.5 | ||||
Nevada | 3.6 | 3.7 | 4.8 | 34.0 | 45.5 | 42.5 | ||||
Plumas | 6.7 | 11.8 | 8.5 | 168.0 | 85.5 | 189.5 | ||||
Shasta | 4.0 | 4.2 | 4.0 | 30.5 | 29.5 | 38.0 | ||||
Siskiyou | 5.5 | 9.4 | 7.9 | 39.0 | 57.0 | 48.0 | ||||
Sutter | 2.2 | 3.0 | 1.9 | 35.0 | 18.0 | 39.0 | ||||
Tehama | 5.3 | 4.8 | 2.8 | 91.0 | 32.5 | 80.5 | ||||
Tuolumne | 5.8 | 8.3 | 3.8 | 60.5 | 44.5 | 65.0 | ||||
Yolo | 2.1 | 3.4 | 3.1 | 29.0 | 18.0 | 34.0 | ||||
Yuba | 2.7 | 2.8 | 2.4 | 26.5 | 28.5 | 30.0 |
r = revised |
NA = not available |
SOURCE CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (C.A.R.)
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