Record High for San Diego County Home Prices

Real Estate Tips
January 15, 2014

As numbers for the December home sales in San Diego County dwindled to a record low for the month, the median price for condos and single-family homes increased to a record high.

According to the San Diego Union-Times, the median prices for homes in San Diego County were at an astonishing $699,000 – which is a 48 percent rise to the price in in December. December 2013 had 284 new homes sold, while December 2012 posted 419 homes.

December 2013’s number that was posted as 284 homes sold was the lowest in the month since 1988.

The prior record for the median price in San Diego County was at $553,000 when 330 units closed escrow in February 2008 according to DataQuick’s report on Tuesday. The data apparently may be different because of the closings that will be added to the books from the end of 2013.

“If builders are trying to get their business plan done by the end of the year, they may have phased in construction to close in December,” said President of Shea Homes San Diego and Developer of various properties Paul Barnes to the San Diego Union-Ties. “If a project is extremely high end and there’s not a lot of other competing activity you’ll get those aberrations.”

Of the 3,099 real estate transactions in December 2013, new home sales were only nine percent in San Diego. For the rest of homes in San Diego County – the December median price was 420,000 – an increase of $5,000 from November 2013. The November to December numbers was the first jump from this month period since 2009.

However prices have annually risen at 14.8 percent, but in the year-over-year the highest it sat at 24.1 percent from June 2012-June 2013. At this point, the median price was $416,000. Registering at 17.5 percent below the 3,757 mark posted in December 2012.

“The pitifully low inventory is the main culprit,” said the DataQuick president John Walsh in a statement found in U-T San Diego. “The jump in home values over the last year suggests we’ll eventually see a lot more people interested in selling their homes, which would help ease the inventory crunch.”

“More supply would put downward pressure on prices, as would rising mortgage rates.”

Even with the hike in median price that has already taken place, experts feel as though the price will continue to increase, while the supply will maintain its low stature

The listings in December were at 6,228 which is down from 620 in November 2013, but a higher number than posted in December 2013 according to San Diego Association of Realtors.

Loan officer and real estate professor at San Diego State University will see a slow as the affordability decreases.