CoreLogic: Low Inventory, High Mortgage Rates Dampen September Southern California Home Sales

Coastal counties post annual price gains, while Inland Empire counties see price decreases

IRVINE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--CoreLogic^®, a leading global property information, analytics and data-enabled solutions provider, released its monthly Southern California home sales report for September 2023. The report includes data for new and resale single-family homes and resale condominiums from six counties in the region: Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego and Ventura.

Key Takeaways:

• Southern California’s median home sales price was $725,000 in September, up by 2.8% year over year.
• Orange County posted both Southern California’s highest home sales price ($1,050,000) and annual growth rate (9.9%). Ventura (5.9%), San Diego (5.1%) and Los Angeles (4.6%) counties also showed year-over-year price appreciation.
• The median sales prices in San Bernardino and Riverside counties declined year over year, by a respective -3% and -2.2%.
• The overall Southern California region saw a -22.5% home sales volume decline on an annual basis in September.
• All six tracked counties posted home sales decreases, ranging from -32.6% in Ventura County to -17.7% in Orange County.

“Southern California housing markets continue to struggle with low inventory and a lack of new construction, both of which have converged to drive home sales in the region to the lowest level since 2007,” said Selma Hepp, chief economist for CoreLogic. “But given that homebuyer demand in Southern California still outpaces the number of homes for sale, pressure on prices persists. The latest US CoreLogic S&P Case-Shiller Index showed that monthly home price gains in both the San Diego and Los Angeles metro areas are still above their seasonal averages, both up by about 9% since the beginning of 2023.”

“Coastal Southern California’s home price growth so far in 2023 partially reflects demand from buyers who are migrating from relatively more expensive markets in the Bay Area,” Hepp continued. “Meanwhile, higher mortgage rates are impacting the housing market in the Inland Empire, where Southern California homebuyers often migrate in search of better affordability. Riverside and San Bernardino counties both posted annual home price declines in September, and this trend is likely to continue as rates increase.”

Note: Data in this release is taken from county records and not from local multiple listing services.

Source: CoreLogic
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