Orange County Housing Report: More of the Same

June 25, 2009
The active inventory dropped slightly along with demand. It seems as if the Orange County marketplace has reached a plateau. The active listing inventory dropped by 125 homes in the past two weeks and now totals 9,188, the lowest level since February of 2006. Today there are 5,652 fewer active listings on the market compared to last year when the inventory totaled 14,840. There are 8,062 fewer active listings compared to two years ago when the inventory totaled 17,250. After reaching its height for 2009, demand, the number of new pending sales over the past month, dropped by 23 homes in the past two weeks and now totals 3,629. There are 623 additional pending sales today compared to last year’s demand level at this time. Compared to two years ago, there are 1,735 additional pending sales today. Typically at this time of year demand reaches a plateau and begins to drop a bit in July before increasing one last time for the year in August. The strongest demand is currently for single family residential homes priced below $500,000. The expected market time is a little over a month, indicating high demand, multiple offers and a seller’s market. If you are a homeowner reading this and think this would be a great time to jump in, a lot of that demand is fueled by distressed properties within that range. For detached homes priced below $250,000, there are only 160 in all of Orange County, 81% are distressed. For homes priced between $250,001 and $500,000, there are 1,004 within the range, 67% are distressed. Distressed homes are priced well and are often priced below the last comparable sale. If a homeowner with equity wants to compete, they better bring a sharp pencil in arriving at the asking price. Yes, there is a lot of demand; however, buyers are very educated and are unwilling to pay much of a premium in the current market.

The expected market time dropped slightly from 2.55 months two weeks ago to 2.53 months today. The expected market time last year was at 4.94 months, and two years ago it was at 8.5 months. The last time the expected market time was at this level dated back to September 2005. Total Orange County pending sales continued its ascent, reaching a record height, totaling 6,457, a 109 home increase over the past two weeks. Compared to last year at this time when total pending sales reached 4,363, there are 2,094 additional pending sales today. Two years ago it was at 2,816, 3,641 fewer compared to today. Total pending count is different than demand because demand tracks new pending sales over the past month. Total pending count takes into account all pending sales, including those that have been pending for longer than 30-days.

There are currently 2,919 distressed homes on the active market, a drop of 143 in two weeks and 51% off of the peak of 5,950 established in August 2008. The number of active foreclosures has dropped to 411 for all of Orange County, a drop of 4 homes in the past two weeks and 71% off of the peak of 1,404 established in November of 2008. With so many buyers looking for a deal, many are turning to foreclosures only to find that they are flying off of the market just as quickly as they are coming on. The number of short sales on the active market has dropped to 2,507, 155 fewer than two years ago and 48% off of the peak of 4,810 established in May of 2008. In the past two weeks, the number of short sales has dropped by 539 homes. Distressed sales account for 32% of the active listing inventory and 52% of demand, a slight drop from two weeks ago. The expected market time for foreclosures is currently 0.62 months. Last year there were 1,171 foreclosures and an expected market time of 1.32 months. For short sales, the expected market time is 2.03 months. Last year there were 4,789 short sales on the market and an expected market time of 7.21 months. It is simple to conclude that short sales have become an acceptable alternative to both buyers and lenders alike. It not only takes demand to move the short sale inventory, it takes lenders’ acceptance of a payoff that is less than the loan amount. One year ago 94% of all distressed listings were at or below $750,000. Today, 89% is found below $750,000. There are more distressed listings found above $750,000 today compared to last year, indicative that the current downturn is not just isolated to the lower ranges.
If you are considering buying or selling a home in South Orange County, call on the experts! Dianna and Brian McGarvin 949-370-2652 or visit our website at http://www.pierbowl.com/

Just Reduced!

25082 Danacoral, Dana Point
$665,000
3 Bedroom, 2 Bath
Single Level

Situated in Danawoods with community pool, park and playgrounds.

Call Dianna and Brian McGarvin of Altera Real Estate for a private showing.
949-370-2652

South Orange County Sees yearly gains

The newest homebuying stats for the 22 business days ending May 20 from DataQuick, a market analyzing tool, show that Dana Point, San Clemente and Laguna Beach ZIP codes saw an increase in sales over last year. Dana Point's 92624 was up 16.7 percent with 7 sales and 92629 was up 50 percent with 33 sales. San Clemente's 92672 saw an increase of 29.2 percent with 31 sales and 92673 increased by 11.47 percent with 39 sales. Laguna Beach's 92651 also increased with 53.8 percent gain from 20 sales.
If you are considering buying or selling a home in South Orange County, call on the experts! Dianna and Brian McGarvin 949-370-2652 or visit our website at http://www.pierbowl.com/

Just Reduced! Open Saturday June 13th 1-4PM

1408 Avenida Tranquilla
San Clemente, CA 92672

5 Bedroom, 3 Baths
3 Car Garage
Gorgeous upgrades throughout]

$785,000