Home sales up as prices decline

Southern California’s housing market continued to get stronger in May.

Sales were up 4.9 percent compared with May 2014, although they were down 1.7 percent from April, according to data released Wednesday by CoreLogic in Irvine.

Year-over-year sales have now been up for four consecutive months, after being down for 11 out of 12 months.

A total of 21,644 new and existing houses and condominiums were sold in the five-county region last month, the strongest figures for May since 2013.

However, last month’s figures were 14.4 percent below the average for the fifth month of the year – nearly 25,300 sales – dating back to 1988, when the monthly report on the Southern California housing market began.

Although they’re fading, the affects of the recession are still having an impact on the housing market.

“It’s slow going, but in many ways the housing market continues to edge back toward normalcy, with fewer distressed property sales and fewer investor and cash purchases,” said Andrew LePage, research analyst with CoreLogic, in a statement. “[Following] years of weak income growth, many would-be home buyers are struggling with affordability and credit hurdles.”

On the price side of equation, conditions definitely favored buyers.

The median price of a single-family home last month was $426,000, up 2.2 percent compared with May 2014 and down 0.7 percent from April.

The 2.2 percent gain was the lowest year-over-over increase in three years, but that was mostly because more sales are occurring in more affordable areas, LaPage said in the statement.

For once, the Inland region posted stronger numbers than Southern California.

Sales were up 9.9 percent in Riverside County and 3.3 percent in San Bernardino County last month, according to CoreLogic.

Median prices were also solid: the median price in Riverside County, $310,000, was a 5.1 percent increase from one year earlier, while San Bernardino County’s median – $255,000 – represented a 5.4 percent jump during that time, CoreLogic stated.