L.A. real estate news and insights.
The net value of property in Los Angeles County jumped 5.91% from last year to nearly $2 trillion, according to the county assessor's office.
It's the 13th consecutive year that the overall value of all taxable properties included in the more than 4,000-square-mile county has gone up, according to the Los Angeles County Assessor's 2023 Annual Report. The assessor's office estimates that it will collect $20 billion in property taxes to fund public services such as schools and medical care.
This is the cheapest home for sale this week in Highland Park.
Asking price: $399,000
Text me for a private tour at 818-445-7953.
LA County home median sale price jumps $30,000 from July to August.
The average rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage has hit 7.48%, according to Mortgage News Daily.
Mortgage rates jumped, following a rise in bond yields driven by investors’ concerns that high interest rates and inflation will linger longer than expected.
Southern California’s housing market continued rebounding in June, despite below-average sales and the highest mortgage rates in seven months.
With inventory at the lowest level for a June in a dozen years, even this year’s diminished demand exceeds the number of homes for sale, driving up prices.
As a result, the median price of a Southern California home — or price at the midpoint of all sales — was $730,000 in June, CoreLogic reported.
That’s down just 0.7% or $5,000, from a year earlier. It also follows four months of off-and-on price gains that brought the region’s median within $20,000 of the all-time high of $750,000 reached in April 2022.
Baby Boomers have officially taken over! They now represent 39% of all home purchases.
Millennials have dropped down to 28% of home purchases.
The already dizzying Los Angeles housing market is poised to reach new heights, as the latest data from Zillow suggest that the median home listed in the city will soon cost more than $1 million.
As of June 30, the figure was $975,333, more than a 30% increase from five years prior. Statewide, six other cities were even more expensive and had already crossed the million-dollar mark: San Jose, Santa Maria, Santa Cruz, Salinas and San Francisco.
In Santa Cruz and San Diego — the major markets with the largest increases — median listing prices were up more than 40% over the last five years.
Source: Los Angeles Times - By Terry Castleman
When the Writers Guild of America, a relatively small union, went on strike in May, I immediately saw an impact with my showbiz clients who were looking to buy a house. Actors are now also on strike. They command a big presence in Los Angeles. It has 160,000 members. Here is how I am currently seeing the market being affected and how it may potentially be affected in the future:
1) In order to get a home loan, my clients in the entertainment business have to show a paystub dated within the last 30 days. Writers, and those affected by the writer strike, will not be able to show a paystub from their normal writing job for the last 30 days. No paystub means no home loan. As soon as the strike is over, and they get a paycheck, they should qualify to get a mortgage again.
2) If writers, actors, and everyone else affected by these strikes are no longer getting paid, and can't afford to pay their mortgages, will they be forced to sell their homes? Will we see a big jump in LA's for sale housing inventory because of this? It is too early to tell, but this is definitely something to keep an eye on.
I'm hoping the strikes end soon and everyone can happily get back to work!
There was about a 41% drop year-over-year for active listings in LA county (2,096 listings in June 2023 versus 3,531 listings in June 2022).
Source: Douglas Elliman Report
What’s interesting about most data reports is that they are 1 - 2 months behind. For example, the S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Index that was released today discusses sales data for February. There is no mention of what the market has been going through in March and April.
I can personally tell you that in April we are seeing multiple offers on well priced properties. In many cases homes are selling well above asking price. I would imagine that when the April Home Price Index report comes out in 2 months, it will show that the 1.3% price drop experienced in February will be a thing of the past and the numbers will turn positive. I could be wrong, but I doubt it based on what I am seeing.
Here is some data from today’s S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Index report:
Miami’s 10.8% year-over-year gain made it the best-performing city for the seventh consecutive month. Tampa (+7.7%) and Atlanta (+6.6%) continued in second and third place, with Charlotte (+6.0%) close behind.
Results were different in the Pacific and Mountain time zones. Last month, four West Coast cities (San Francisco, Seattle, San Diego, and Portland) were in negative year-over-year territory. In February they were joined by four of their western neighbors, as Las Vegas (-2.6%), Phoenix (-2.1%), Los Angeles (-1.3%), and Denver (-1.2%) all tipped into negative territory.
Today’s homebuyers are exceptionally sensitive to mortgage rates with house prices so high — and they’ve found their tipping point.
The majority of potential homebuyers, 71%, say they will not accept a 30-year fixed mortgage rate over 5.5%, according to a survey done in March by John Burns Research and Consulting. The current rate, however, is around 6.4%.
If so many potential buyers, however, are saying they won’t buy unless they get a rate below 5.5%, they may be sitting on the sidelines for a while. Mortgage rates have been over 6% for nearly a year and are not expected to move much lower this year.
An April survey from U.S. News and World Report seems to corroborate these findings: It found that 66% of Americans who plan to buy a home this year said they are waiting until rates fall.
The U.S. News survey also found that 25% of homebuyers who are holding out for lower rates are waiting until they drop below 5%. Nearly two-thirds of respondents said they’ve had to reduce their housing budgets due to the current level of mortgage rates.
A new state program just launched for first-time homebuyers. The California Dream For All program provides homebuyers with financial assistance equal to 20% of a home’s purchase price. Those funds can be used for a downpayment and closing costs when purchasing your first home. The program offers first-time homebuyers in California a shared appreciation loan of up to 20% of the cost of the home. If you’re buying a $500,000 home, you’d receive 20%, or $100,000, to help with a downpayment and closing costs. Once the homebuyer sells their home at a later date, they would be required to pay back the 20% assistance, plus 20% of the home’s appreciation. If your $500,000 home sells in five years for $700,000, you’d owe 20% of $200,000 appreciation — or $40,000 — in addition to the original loan. If you sell your home and it hasn’t grown in value, you’d only pay back the original 20% loan, according to the California Housing Finance Authority,
This program is open to first-time homebuyers in California — meaning you’ve never owned a home. A first-time homebuyer is also someone who owned a home three or more years ago and sold it, according to the CalHFA. Borrowers must also plan to live in the new property they are buying. The program does not allow for non-occupant co-borrowers or co-signers. In addition to being a first-time homebuyer, borrowers must meet income requirements depending on their county. In Los Angeles County, borrowers must make under $180,000 per year.
Better hurry! The state has allocated about $300 million toward the California Dream For All program, according to State Treasurer Fiona Ma. This will provide assistance for an estimated 2,300 homebuyers in California.
Source: NBC 4 Los Angeles
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Source: Forbes
Here is the cheapest home sold this week in North Hollywood.
Asking price: $899,000
Selling price: $850,000
This home has 2 bed/2 bath, 1,250 sq. ft. of living space, and is on a 6,623 sq. ft. lot.
The home features a remodeled kitchen, double pane windows, an enclosed patio, and original refinished hardwood flooring.
