Blog Post

As summertime hits full stride, real estate experts predict a brighter and sunnier Los Angeles area housing market. New data shows that properties in and around Los Angeles are not only selling at a faster pace, but that the median price of homes is also on the rise.

Several contributing factors are at play behind the encouraging statistics, which confirm that Southern California home sales have gained ground month-to-month for almost an entire year. Interest rates remain affordably low, banks have removed many of their constraints on mortgage lending, and government initiatives to prevent foreclosures are gaining traction. Properties are reasonably priced, and buyers are beginning to take full advantage of unprecedented discounts.

More importantly for many sellers in our particular market is the fact that the increase in sales includes properties in the $500,000 and up price range. While jumbo loans were scarce last year – and the rates and closing costs associated with them were prohibitively high – lenders are now offering them at cheaper prices than we have seen in months. The jumbo mortgages facilitate both buyers and sellers, and that has inspired sales in the upper echelon of the Los Angeles home market.

Posted 10th August 2009 by Sally Forster Jones