LAT: Home Price Gains Keep Shrinking

[NVMojo]

L.A. County's median rises 6.6%, the smallest advance in six years, to $520,000. Volume sinks.
By Annette Haddad, Times Staff Writer
August 12, 2006


Los Angeles County's home prices in July rose at their slowest pace in six years while San Diego County's continued to fall, more evidence that the Southland's real estate market is slumping, data released Friday show.

Buyers are not rushing into deals, with sales in Los Angeles County plunging 25% versus year-earlier volumes — the eighth consecutive month of declines, according to La Jolla-based research firm DataQuick Information Systems.

The latest data are likely to intensify the debate over whether widespread predictions of a "soft landing" — in which home prices level off and avoid sharp declines — might be too optimistic. This week, lender Countrywide Financial Corp. and luxury home builder Toll Bros. Inc. said demand nationwide for mortgages and new homes fell more than expected this summer.

"The market isn't exactly falling off a cliff but it is slowing more rapidly than we've seen in a long time," DataQuick analyst Andrew LePage said.

more...

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-homes12aug12,1,7611293.story?track=rss&ctrack=1&cset=true

[Tight_rope]

1. Well there should be no surprise. No jobs to pay new mortgages.

[pooja]

2. exactly... here the avg. take home pay is 30,000...how do you

begin investing in property listed at 250,000.00 and add the high cost of insurance on top. The prices need to come down.

[msongs]

3. 'normal' has returned but it seems like a disaster to speculators

in our area increases were still around 20% compared to last year.

6% a year is still a fair return until you consider 6 and 9 month CDs are paying 5.5% and ya dont have to find a new place to live to get it.

Msongs
www.msongs.com/2007politicalcalendars.htm

[cliss]

4. What really surprises me is that prices are still going...

UP. Note how the article states that; "the median rises 6.6%, the smallest advance in 6 years..."

Prices are still going up! I wonder how this can still be going on. When the ecoonomy lost steam a while back. There are serious rumours about a recession...

Just imagine how much your monthly mortgage would be on a $520,000 house. You would have to be an entire clan moving in to afford that.:smoke:

[Gormy Cuss]

5. That headline is one reason why housing bubble 'burst' imagery

is inaccurate for some of the crazy CA markets. The problem is that our houses aren't appreciating as fast as they have been, not that the market is declining (with the exception of the San Diego metro where the correction has been quite strong.) It will take several years of this soft appreciation before it has an effect on affordability.

[Warpy]

6. I have cousin who would like to know what areas are increasing

She's dropped the price of her house three times and six months and still nobody will come to look at it, much less give her an offer.