Wednesday, March 01, 2006
U.S. existing-home sales decline again
Here is an article updating the latest in national and state real estate sales ...California has fourth monthly decrease; Inland home prices still growingTuesday, February 28, 2006
By LESLIE BERKMANThe Press-EnterpriseSales of existing homes in January declined for the fifth consecutive month in the United States and for the fourth consecutive month in California, another sign that once-sizzling housing market is cooling, according to reports released Tuesday. The National Association of Realtors said nationwide previously owned homes in January sold at the slowest pace in two years.Also, California's home sales in January were 24 percent fewer than a year earlier, which was a steeper decline than the California Association of Realtors had predicted. The sales pace was the slowest in five years, said Robert Kleinhenz, deputy chief economist.Kleinhenz said because the state's home sales in January 2005 broke records, it was expected sales could fall 18 percent or 19 percent in January 2006.He blamed the larger January sales decline to the fixed-mortgage interest rate edging above 6 percent, which he said was a psychological barrier at which buyers tended to wait in hope interest rates would again retreat. Kleinhenz said he expects sales to pick up significantly in March when the home-buying season typically begins and most buyers tend to accept higher mortgage rates.Still, Kleinhenz said January results show it is possible 2006 home sales in California could decline as much as 8 percent from record sales of last year, instead of the 2 percent dip predicted a couple months ago.Despite weaker sales, in January the median price of a California home was $551,300, which was almost 14 percent higher than a year earlier.In Riverside and San Bernardino counties January sales fell about 19 percent from a year ago and almost 36 percent from December.The value of Inland homes keeps growing, but at slower speeds. The median price of an existing Inland home in January was $391,250, about 1 percent lower than in December but almost 16 percent higher than in January 2005. By contrast, between January 2004, and January 2005 the median price skyrocketed 38 percent."The California real estate market is beginning to experience the soft landing that we expect to be the underlying dynamic driving the housing market this year," CAR Chief Economist Leslie Appleton-Young said in a statement.The unsold inventory of resale homes is also growing, which Appleton-Young said "will translate into a slower rate of appreciation.""There is a ton of inventory out there," said Gary Wunderlich, a Coldwell Banker agent in Murrieta. "Buyers have more choices and are taking their time."Wunderlich said some sellers are moving to areas where housing is cheaper and some are moving up to larger houses. Others, he said, are banking their gains and selling at what they believe is the top of the market. Scott Chappell, of the team of Scott & Brian in Riverside, said some of their clients are investors who regret they didn't put their properties on the market earlier when sales were brisker. He said one client is trying to sell five area properties. For a breakdown on national rates, click here.Labels: Corona, Foreclosure, Home Prices, Inland Empire, Loan Modification, Moreno Valley, Murrieta, Real Estate, Riverside, Short Sales, Statistics, Temecula
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