18 Jan December home sales and price report

According to the California Association of Realtors, home sales remained stagnant in December.

Existing single-family sales totaled 224,000 in December on a seasonally adjusted annualized rate, flat from November and down 7.1 percent from December 2022.

December’s statewide median home price was $819,740 down 0.3 percent from December 2022.

For the year as a whole, statewide home sales were down 24.8 percent in November

Melanie Barker, California Association of Realtor’s President states, “The housing market had a tough year in 2023 as a shortage of homes for sale and high costs of borrowing continued to have a negative impact on housing inventory and demand.”

She continues, “With mortgage rates expected to come down in the next 12 months, home sales will bounce back as buyers and sellers return to a more favorable housing market. Home prices should see a moderate increase in 2024 as well.”

As Jordan Levine, CAR’s chief economist points out, “Easing inflationary pressure and a soft economic outlook suggest that we will see some interest rate cuts in the upcoming year, which bode well for a housing market recovery.”

In our area, the recent news from the Fed about their 2024 plans to cut rates should increase activity.

As always, pricing is key. homes that are priced right sell,