Home Sales Experience Slowdown

Southern California’s housing market remained in growth mode but still lost momentum in October, posting sales well below average for that month, according to data released Thursday.

A total of 19,930 new and existing homes were sold in the region last month, a 1.3 percent increase compared with October 2014, Irvine-based CoreLogic reported in its monthly report on the Southern California housing market.

While still growing, home sales in Southern California were 14.5 percent below average for the month of October – 23,303 sales – dating back to 1988, when the monthly report began.

The median price of a single-family home last month – $435,000 – represented a 5.6 percent year-over-year increase, CoreLogic stated.

“After a relatively strong summer, Southern California home sales lost steam in October, dipping more than usual from September and rising only slightly from a year earlier,” said Andrew LePage, CoreLogic research analyst. “Sales remain constrained by a tight inventory of homes for sale and lower affordability.”

The Inland Empire recorded gains in both sales and median prices last month.

Year-over-year, sales were up 3.2 percent in Riverside County and 4.2 percent in San Bernardino County, CoreLogic reported.

Riverside County recorded a median price of $310,000, a 6.3 percent increase, while San Bernardino County’s median price of $260,000 was a seven percent increase compared with October 2014, according to CoreLogic.

Despite the slowdown, the Southern California housing market remains strong and is likely to remain that way, said Jordan Levine, senior economist at the UC Riverside School of Business’ Center for Economic Forecasting.

“The market is still growing, and that’s the important thing,” Levine said. “It’s cooling down, but what it’s really doing is coming back to normal. That should continue through the end of 2015.”