Wednesday, November 19, 2008

October home sales soar in Riverside county Reposted Article From Desert Sun

Home sales in Riverside County skyrocketed by 94.3 percent in October, compared to the same month a year ago, while prices dropped 35.4 percent, a real estate information service reported Tuesday.


A total of 4,619 homes sold in October, up from 2,377 for October 2007.

The median price of a home in Riverside County last month dropped to $230,000 from $356,300 in the same month a year ago, according to La Jolla-based MDA DataQuick.

According to DataQuick, home sales in the six-county Southern California region in October soared by 66.7 percent over the same month last year, reaching their highest level for any month this year.

‘‘You could easily imagine a meaningful decline in sales last month, given the seasonal norm and the dire financial news that potential buyers had to ponder in September,'' said John Walsh, MDA DataQuick president.

‘‘But we have yet to see any big, sudden drop in the number of transactions closing escrow. It tells us there were a lot of very serious buyers in the market during late summer and early fall — buyers who consider housing a relatively good buy or investment.''

A total of 21,532 new and resale homes sold in Los Angeles, Riverside, San Diego, Ventura, San Bernardino and Orange counties last month. That was up 5 percent from 20,497 in September and up 66.7 percent from 12,913 in October 2007.

The median price of a Southern California home was $300,000 in October — a 67-month low. The median price was down 2.8 percent from $308,500 in September and down 32.6 percent from $445,000 in October 2007.

Coachella Valley-specific numbers have yet to be compiled by DataQuick for October. The latest valley figures, reflecting September sales, showed:

A total of 865 homes were sold in the Coachella Valley in September, a 65.4 percent increase from September 2007.

That was the strongest year-over-year showing in nearly two decades.

The valleywide median hit $230,000 in September, down 37.8 percent from September 2007.

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