State of California Report on Housing and breaking down the report into something a bit easier to grasp.
First off, Jordan Levine, a big shot senior economist for the California Association of Realtors, believes things are looking up for the housing market. Thanks to lower inflation and a softer economic outlook, we might see interest rates drop in the upcoming year. That’s good news because lower interest rates usually make it easier for people to buy homes. By late 2023, rates had already fallen to a 7-month low, making folks feel better about the housing market. This could mean more people will start buying and selling houses at this beginning time of the year. But don’t expect a huge change overnight; it’s likely to be a slow and steady improvement, especially since there aren’t a ton of houses available to buy.
Now, let’s dive into some specifics from the report:
- Across different regions in California, house sales went down in December compared to the previous year. The Central Valley had the biggest drop. The San Francisco Bay Area and several other regions also saw fewer sales. But it’s not all doom and gloom – some places like Glenn and Lassen counties actually saw big increases in sales.
- When it comes to house prices, they’re actually going up in many areas. Both the Central Coast and the San Francisco Bay Area saw over a 12% increase from last year. Other regions had smaller increases. In a bunch of counties, prices are higher than they were a year ago, with Lassen County leading the pack. However, a few counties did see prices drop.
- Here’s something interesting about the unsold houses out there. There were fewer homes waiting to be sold in December compared to November. This index they use, called the Unsold Inventory Index, shows that homes are selling faster than they were a year ago.
- In terms of active listings, meaning homes currently up for sale, most counties saw a decrease. Shasta County had the biggest drop. However, some counties like Santa Barbara actually had more homes for sale compared to last year.
- New listings have been on the decline for a while, but the rate of decline is slowing down. With interest rates dipping, there’s hope that more people will put their homes on the market.
- Houses are selling faster too. In December, it took about 26 days to sell a house, which is quicker than the 33 days it took in December of the previous year.
- The price people are paying compared to the list price is pretty close to 100%. So, buyers are paying almost what sellers are asking.
- The average cost per square foot for a house has gone up from last year.
- Lastly, the average interest rate for a 30-year mortgage was a bit higher in December compared to the same time the previous year.
In A Nutshell . . .
while the market is a bit mixed with some ups and downs, the overall outlook seems cautiously optimistic with hope for more activity in the new year. Call, text or email to connect for a time to look at your scenario and answer questions about your neighborhood.
December 2023 County Sales and Price Activity
(Regional and condo sales data not seasonally adjusted)
| December 2023 | Median Sold Price of Existing Single-Family Homes | Sales | |||||||
| State/Region/County | Dec.
2023 |
Nov.
2023 |
Dec.
2022 |
Price MTM% Chg | Price YTY% Chg | Sales MTM% Chg | Sales YTY% Chg | ||
| Calif. Single-family home | $819,740 | $822,200 | $770,490 | r | -0.3% | 6.4% | 0.0% | -7.1% | |
| Calif. Condo/Townhome | $635,000 | $660,000 | $587,000 | r | -3.8% | 8.2% | -3.7% | -0.2% | |
| Los Angeles Metro Area | $760,000 | $785,000 | $716,500 | -3.2% | 6.1% | 2.5% | -3.5% | ||
| Central Coast | $979,500 | $955,000 | $869,860 | 2.6% | 12.6% | -2.7% | -4.0% | ||
| Central Valley | $462,000 | $474,800 | $438,000 | r | -2.7% | 5.5% | 4.0% | -14.8% | |
| Far North | $364,500 | $375,000 | $350,000 | -2.8% | 4.1% | -6.2% | -8.2% | ||
| Inland Empire | $570,000 | $567,500 | $535,000 | 0.4% | 6.5% | 8.0% | 1.3% | ||
| San Francisco Bay Area | $1,182,000 | $1,250,000 | $1,050,000 | r | -5.4% | 12.6% | -14.6% | -11.4% | |
| Southern California | $790,000 | $824,500 | $743,180 | -4.2% | 6.3% | 1.1% | -6.2% | ||
| San Francisco Bay Area | |||||||||
| Alameda | $1,175,000 | $1,230,000 | $1,050,000 | r | -4.5% | 11.9% | -15.9% | -9.1% | |
| Contra Costa | $800,000 | $860,000 | $760,000 | r | -7.0% | 5.3% | -8.3% | -19.4% | |
| Marin | $1,555,000 | $1,649,500 | $1,500,000 | r | -5.7% | 3.7% | -13.0% | -6.0% | |
| Napa | $925,000 | $825,000 | $824,000 | 12.1% | 12.3% | -14.0% | -21.0% | ||
| San Francisco | $1,450,000 | $1,535,000 | $1,564,000 | -5.5% | -7.3% | -39.1% | -22.0% | ||
| San Mateo | $1,800,000 | $1,805,000 | $1,675,000 | -0.3% | 7.5% | -11.2% | 8.3% | ||
| Santa Clara | $1,725,000 | $1,717,500 | $1,478,000 | 0.4% | 16.7% | -17.3% | 0.2% | ||
| Solano | $562,000 | $570,000 | $580,000 | -1.4% | -3.1% | -14.6% | -29.2% | ||
| Sonoma | $812,930 | $793,620 | $785,000 | 2.4% | 3.6% | -3.1% | -7.3% | ||
| Southern California | |||||||||
| Los Angeles | $853,340 | $897,990 | $799,670 | -5.0% | 6.7% | 3.0% | -5.1% | ||
| Orange | $1,300,000 | $1,300,000 | $1,131,760 | 0.0% | 14.9% | -8.1% | -7.6% | ||
| Riverside | $607,500 | $620,000 | $575,000 | -2.0% | 5.7% | 2.9% | -2.4% | ||
| San Bernardino | $506,000 | $475,000 | $466,940 | 6.5% | 8.4% | 16.9% | 7.6% | ||
| San Diego | $911,500 | $952,000 | $850,000 | -4.3% | 7.2% | -5.1% | -17.3% | ||
| Ventura | $882,500 | $902,500 | $818,000 | -2.2% | 7.9% | -1.3% | -8.3% | ||
| Central Coast | |||||||||
| Monterey | $929,000 | $944,000 | $775,000 | -1.6% | 19.9% | -17.6% | -7.2% | ||
| San Luis Obispo | $956,000 | $894,500 | $830,000 | 6.9% | 15.2% | -8.3% | -2.2% | ||
| Santa Barbara | $1,190,000 | $900,000 | $1,055,000 | 32.2% | 12.8% | 6.3% | -4.1% | ||
| Santa Cruz | $1,050,000 | $1,300,000 | $1,175,000 | -19.2% | -10.6% | 22.7% | -2.4% | ||
| Central Valley | |||||||||
| Fresno | $397,000 | $415,000 | $396,000 | -4.3% | 0.3% | 4.4% | -10.2% | ||
| Glenn | $349,500 | $324,000 | $286,750 | 7.9% | 21.9% | 13.3% | ##### | ||
| Kern | $374,180 | $375,000 | $365,000 | -0.2% | 2.5% | -8.3% | -25.7% | ||
| Kings | $380,000 | $355,000 | $337,000 | 7.0% | 12.8% | 51.1% | 22.4% | ||
| Madera | $410,500 | $414,500 | $410,500 | -1.0% | 0.0% | 48.0% | 51.0% | ||
| Merced | $385,000 | $367,500 | $340,000 | 4.8% | 13.2% | -11.7% | -33.8% | ||
| Placer | $633,020 | $659,000 | $620,000 | r | -3.9% | 2.1% | 4.7% | -7.9% | |
| Sacramento | $535,000 | $522,290 | $489,900 | r | 2.4% | 9.2% | -0.7% | -19.0% | |
| San Benito | $789,890 | $782,500 | $765,000 | 0.9% | 3.3% | 3.1% | -8.3% | ||
| San Joaquin | $530,000 | $550,000 | $515,000 | r | -3.6% | 2.9% | 13.0% | -20.8% | |
| Stanislaus | $462,500 | $470,000 | $420,000 | -1.6% | 10.1% | -5.0% | -22.5% | ||
| Tulare | $362,000 | $375,000 | $353,500 | -3.5% | 2.4% | 4.6% | -18.1% | ||
| Far North | |||||||||
| Butte | $418,000 | $428,500 | $408,500 | -2.5% | 2.3% | 6.0% | 2.9% | ||
| Lassen | $272,500 | $170,000 | $170,000 | 60.3% | 60.3% | 69.2% | 69.2% | ||
| Plumas | $360,000 | $400,000 | $395,000 | -10.0% | -8.9% | -26.1% | -26.1% | ||
| Shasta | $355,760 | $367,500 | $348,000 | -3.2% | 2.2% | -15.9% | -15.3% | ||
| Siskiyou | $331,500 | $325,000 | $295,000 | 2.0% | 12.4% | 3.7% | 21.7% | ||
| Tehama | $305,000 | $287,000 | $285,600 | 6.3% | 6.8% | -15.4% | -24.1% | ||
| Trinity | $287,000 | $211,000 | $280,000 | 36.0% | 2.5% | 50.0% | -45.5% | ||
| Other Calif. Counties | |||||||||
| Amador | $415,000 | $403,000 | $400,000 | r | 3.0% | 3.8% | -28.9% | -22.9% | |
| Calaveras | $437,500 | $512,500 | $449,500 | -14.6% | -2.7% | -15.0% | -39.3% | ||
| Del Norte | $487,000 | $420,000 | $331,250 | 16.0% | 47.0% | 9.1% | 20.0% | ||
| El Dorado | $660,000 | $650,000 | $580,000 | r | 1.5% | 13.8% | -16.0% | -14.9% | |
| Humboldt | $425,000 | $430,750 | $392,500 | -1.3% | 8.3% | 27.0% | 10.6% | ||
| Lake | $315,000 | $318,500 | $370,000 | -1.1% | -14.9% | -15.9% | -30.2% | ||
| Mariposa | $442,000 | $320,000 | $359,000 | 38.1% | 23.1% | 77.8% | 6.7% | ||
| Mendocino | $599,000 | $532,000 | $599,000 | 12.6% | 0.0% | -21.9% | -19.4% | ||
| Mono | $1,052,500 | $985,000 | $765,000 | 6.9% | 37.6% | -60.0% | -14.3% | ||
| Nevada | $537,000 | $585,000 | $512,500 | r | -8.2% | 4.8% | 44.8% | 18.3% | |
| Sutter | $429,500 | $397,000 | $383,500 | 8.2% | 12.0% | 5.0% | -4.5% | ||
| Tuolumne | $444,000 | $381,250 | $380,000 | 16.5% | 16.8% | -8.1% | 0.0% | ||
| Yolo | $630,000 | $620,000 | $590,500 | r | 1.6% | 6.7% | -22.1% | 19.6% | |
| Yuba | $440,000 | $461,320 | $414,000 | r | -4.6% | 6.3% | -25.9% | -41.9% | |