Widespread Home Price Surge Encourages Costa Mesa Sellers
The experts seem to have gotten it slightly wrong. Costa Mesa real estate observers always expect a surge in activity when the spring buying season gets underway—an annual phenomenon that’s frequently accompanied by an uptick in prices paid. Because of optimism about the national economy and the ongoing nationwide shortage of homes for sale, a continuation of last year’s gradual rise in residential prices had been what the experts expected. Last week, if CNBC’s Realty Check has it right, those predicted “gradual” price rises took an abrupt lurch upward. “Home prices just took the biggest jump in four years” was the headline, backed up by the new numbers: a surge in March’s U.S. median home prices of 8.9% compared with last year. Costa Mesa homeowners who track national predictions as omens of Costa Mesa market trends expected half that increase. By CNBC’s reckoning, March constituted the biggest annual increase in four years. The reason for the surprisingly sharp increase in home prices is itself no surprise—it’s still the shortage of listings causing a “very very low inventory.” The supply of homes being offered on the market fell 11.9% last month, year over year—which also meant a slight drop in activity. That’s likely to cause a continuing drag on volume for the rest of the year, unless new listing numbers rebound. Since one likely effect of the strong prices should be exactly that—to encourage more sellers to list their own properties during 2018’s peak season—what happens next is anyone’s guess (forecasts are mixed). Buyers must have braced themselves for this year’s home prices, so CNBC could report that “Buyer demand is still strong, despite higher prices.” Buyer activity could be due to reports like those featured on MarketWatch, which calculated that homeowners of median-valued properties in half of the nation’s largest cities saw their homes’ equity increase “more per hour than their local minimum wage!” Calculations like that could make the most hesitant buyer reconsider the value of remaining on the sidelines. If your own Costa Mesa real estate plans are poised for action, I hope you’ll give us a call. Especially if you have been waiting for a seller’s market, your timing looks good!
We are built on a philosophy of Heritage & Hustle L3 is a full service real estate agency with a regional office located in the heart of #CostaMesa, offering a wide-array of custom services to meet their clients’ needs with roots in the community since 1976. It’s L3 mission to provide trusted, convenient, responsive service to ensure clients enjoy their real estate experience. L3 was originally formed to offer personal, concierge-level service as an alternative to the large, nationally based real estate companies. From its small beginnings of only two employees, L3 has grown to a full staff of 20 serving over 300 clients a year. L3 is not limited to serving just its clients; it is also committed to serving the community. Not only has L3 donated hundreds of hours to many area charities, they have also received the prestige of being named one of the #toprealestatecompaniesinCostaMesa If you’re interested in #buyingorsellinginOrangeCounty, turn to the experts. Turn to L3 and let them help you make your real estate buying or selling dreams come true. For more information or to get started on finding or selling your home contact L3 today at 714-444-4663 or email us at info@thel3.com
