Looking to purchase a home in a hot real estate market?
There's no question that 2020 has been a challenging year for a majority of people, but especially for those who were trapped in a city that totally shut down because of COVID-19. In major cities, people fortunate enough to have the means left for homes they owned in the suburbs or rented one.
That's quite the solution in the middle of a pandemic. This has also sparked a surge in home buying in suburban areas across the country and away from dense metros.
However, there are still lots of people throughout the country who are eager in to buy real estate in the city. In California, the Orange County Register discovered a 5.2% home price drop versus 2019 – the largest drop since 2009. Based on a report by Curbed, this is the same decrease with what's occurring throughout the country; CoreLogic, a real estate data company, forecasts a 6.6% year over year price decline across the United States by May 2021.
Current Orange County data is as follows:
3,450 new and existing homes sold — an increase of 6.7% in a year. In the first 8 months of 2020, 16,917 purchases were closed, a reduction of 9.4% vs. 2019.
• $775,000 median selling price in Orange County — increase of 6.3% going back 12 months. The current median home price trumps the record of $765,000 made in June 2020. The only month this year a price record wasn't set was in May.
Home buyers are motivated by historically low mortgage rates. Southern California’s median price made a record high, as well.
Existing single-family houses: 2,312 sold, an increase of 7.8% in a year. Median price of $862,000 — a 7.7% rise over 12 months.
Existing condos: 918 sales, an increase of 5.9% over 12 months. Median price of $545,000 — an 8.5% rise in a year.
Newly built: Builders sold 220 new homes, a decline of 0.5% in a year. Median prices of $972,500 — a 9% rise over 12 months.
