Home Sales Up Almost 5 Percent in January

The number of homes sold in San Diego County increased 4.9 percent last month over January 2011, and the median price climbed by $1,000, DataQuick has announced.

A total of 2,358 homes changed hands locally last month, compared to 2,248 in the same period last year, according to the real estate information firm. The median price of a home in San Diego County in January was $305,000, up from $304,000 in January 2011.

Throughout Southern California, 14,523 homes were sold last month, compared to 14,458 in January last year, up 0.4 percent. The median price declined 3.7 percent from $270,000 to $260,000 over that same time frame.

DataQuick reported that the share of January sales by absentee buyers – either investors or purchasers of second homes – was a record 26.8 percent in Southern California.

In a separate report from the California Association of Realtors, which only took single-family detached home sales into account, the number of house purchases in San Diego County in January was up 15 percent from the same month in 2011, but down 26.9 percent from December 2011.

The association reported the median price of a single-family home last month was $350,680, down from January 2011's figure of $370,100 and December 2011's $359,930.

Sales totals and median prices of houses declined statewide, according to the CAR report.

“The decline in the January median home (price) is largely a reflection of an increase in the share of distressed home sales,” said CAR Vice President and Chief Economist Leslie Appleton-Young. “Seasonal factors in the non-distressed market also played a role in the softening of the median home price, as prices typically decline in the non-peak home buying season.”

– City News Service