April home sales were up 8.6 percent statewide over April 2011, and up 2 percent over March of this year, real estate research firm DataQuick reported this week.
On a year-over-year basis, sales have increased the past nine months, the firm said.
The median price paid for a home in California last month was $264,000, up 5.2 percent from $251,000 in March, and up 6.0 percent from $249,000 for April a year ago.
Last month was the second month in a row to post a year-over-year gain in the state’s median sale price, DataQuick said.
Distressed property sales – foreclosures and short-sales – made up close to half of the state’s resale market last month, the firm reported.
The trends in type of properties somewhat mirror the Santa Clarita Valley. Pulling local numbers Friday, Michael J. Regilio of Realty Executives Santa Clarita found that while 51 percent of homes listed for sale are standard, probate or “flip” properties, 48 percent of the active inventory represents distressed sales.
Despite the near even split in types of properties being listed for sale, 64 percent of closed sales come from distressed properties, Regilio found.
Home affordability is at an all time high reported the Building Industry Association of Southern California Los Angeles/Ventura chapter on Thursday.
Of the homes sold in Los Angeles County, 49.5 percent are affordable to families earning median incomes.
In a sign of a slowly improving market, the average number of days a Santa Clarita home is on the market is 3 percent less than in 2011, Regilio said.
And while local average sales prices are down from 2011, the listing prices in April were 23 percent higher than they were in 2011, he reported.
Looking at market indicators, DataQuick reported that foreclosure activity is not increasing, down payments are stable and investor-backed purchases – while high – are now flat.
“The housing market continued its painfully slow crawl back toward normalcy last month,” said John Walsh, DataQuick president in a news release. “You can see it in the fading role of foreclosures, the uptick in median prices here and there, and the higher levels of sales in coastal counties,” he said.
Farther north of SCV, the Santa Clara County housing market, where the average price for a single family home stood at $843,189, is showing multiple signs of recovery reported the Santa Clara County Association of Realtors. Prices are up, days-on-the-market is shorter, and the number of closed sales is increasing.
Like Santa Clarita, however, the association reported one of the lowest levels of inventory in the past decade and multiple offers on homes.
There are 52 percent fewer homes on the SCV market today than in 2011, Regilio reported.
“We’re consistently seeing offers at or very near list price,” said Barbara Lymberis, president of SCCAR. “Many homes are receiving multiple offers and therefore are selling over the list price.”
jadkins@the-signal.com
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