While millions have faced tough economic times throughout 2020, the house market in Southern California tells a different story. Per the L.A. Times, SoCal Counties continue to see record-level home prices and small inventory—even 7+ months into the nation’s COVID struggles.
Looking at the data, home prices are up across the region, with sales gains in nearly every county as well:
- In Los Angeles County, the median home price rose 12.2% from a year earlier to $692,750 in August, while sales fell 3.8% from a year earlier.
- In Orange County, the median home price rose 11.6% to $800,000, while sales climbed 10.9%.
- In Riverside County, the median home price rose 13.1% to $441,000, while sales edged up 0.6%.
- In San Bernardino County, the median home price rose 9.8% to $380,000, while sales climbed 2.8%.
- In San Diego County, the median home price rose 9.4% to $640,000, while sales climbed 7.2%.
- In Ventura County, the median home price rose 8.1% to $647,250, while sales climbed 7%.
Jordan Levine, Deputy Chief Economist at the California Association of Realtors, suggested to the L.A. Times that the country’s economic pain has been felt on a sliding scale, with middle-income households hit less than low-income households, but more so than the wealthy, leading to a shift toward the luxury market.
For example, homes that sold for $1 million+ accounted for 22% of all homes sold in California last month—up from 16 percent in August 2019. The share of homes that sold for less than $500,000 fell to 38 percent of all sales in August—down from 46 percent a year earlier.
Many real estate experts point to pent-up demand from a slow spring as part of the current upswing, as well as low inventory adding to increased competition. Zillow notes that in L.A. and Orange counties, there were 19 percent fewer homes for sale than August 2019. Others note that how the country—and local region—manages the flu season and a possible COVID upswing, will be the real test on our real estate market for the remainder of 2020 and beyond.