SoCal Sees Large Annual Sales Decline Monthly Sales Increase

California appears to have been the bright spot in an otherwise slow December when it comes to real estate across the U.S.

While the Golden State has a whole saw monthly sales increase by 1.1 percent, according to the California Association of Realtors, the annual numbers are a bit harder to swallow.

SoCal, in particular posted the biggest decline of all regions for the third month in a row, down 48.3 percent, when comparing existing-home sales to December 2021. On the monthly basis, however, sales were up in all but one SoCal County.

In Los Angeles, existing-home sales were up 3 percent, while the median sold price dipped back below $800,000 to $799,670. Neighboring Orange County got both a price and sales bump, rising 2.9 percent and 3.1 percent, respectively. The median sold price in the O.C. last month sits at $1,131,760.

Ventura home sales increased by 3 percent compared to November 2022, with prices down 4.9 percent. San Bernardino sales were up 2.6 percent, while San Diego noticed a plus, albeit small, with sales up 0.8 percent.

Riverside was the only SoCal county to see sales decline last month, down 1.7 percent. The median sold price slipped 0.9 percent to $575,000.