REAL ESTATE NEWS...California Housing Market

California’s housing market softened in October as both statewide sales and median price contracted from the previous month; however, the market is still on target to meet forecast projections, according to the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (C.A.R.).

Making sense of the story

• Home sales exceeded the 400,000 level in October for the seventh consecutive month and posted higher on a year-to-year basis for the ninth straight month.

• Closed escrow sales of existing, single-family detached homes in California totaled a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 403,510 units in October, according to information collected by C.A.R. from more than 90 local REALTOR® associations and MLSs statewide.

• The October figure was down 5.1 percent from the revised 425,120 level in September and up 1.3 percent compared with home sales in October 2014 of a revised 398,510.

• The year-to-year increase was the lowest since January 2015 and was significantly below the six-month average of 9.7 percent observed between April 2015 and September 2015.

• The median price of an existing, single-family detached California home slipped 1.3 percent in October to $475,990 from a revised $482,150 in September.

• October’s median price was 5.7 percent higher than the revised $450,460 recorded in October 2014.

• While sales continued to improve from last year at the state level, the number of active listings continued to drop from the previous year. Active listings for California dropped 5.6 percent from September and decreased 7.6 percent from October 2014.

TALKING POINTS …

• About 0.38 percent of loans went into the foreclosure process during the third quarter, which is the lowest rate since the second quarter of 2005, according to a new report from the Mortgage Bankers Association.

• About 3.57 percent of loans were at least 90 days past due, the lowest rate since the third quarter of 2007. A healthy job market and rising home prices have led to a steady abatement of the foreclosure crisis over the past five years.

• Now, the foreclosure problem is largely isolated to loans made before 2009 and a few intractable markets that have been slow to process them.