San Diego Real Estate Sales Activity for March 2015 Snapshot

  • + 3.2% – One-Year Change in Pending Sales
  • + 3.7% – One-Year Change in Closed Sales
  • + 6.4% – One-Year Change in Median Sales Price
  • – 16.3% – One-Year Change in Homes for Sale Inventory
  • + 2.2% – One-Year Change in New Listings Inventory

Inventory, affordability and mortgage rates. These are going to be the stories of 2015. Will there be enough inventory? Will rates remain low? Will homes be affordable in the the types and price ranges desired? A nation awaits. For the 12-month period spanning April 2014 through March 2015, Pending Sales in San Diego County were down 1.2 percent overall. The price range with the largest gain in sales was the $1,250,001 Or More range, where they increased 14.4 percent.

Quick Facts

  • + 14.4% – Price Range With Strongest Pending Sales: $1,250,001 and Above
  • + 2.1% – Home Size With Strongest Pending Sales: 1,501 Sq Ft to 2,000 Sq Ft
  • – 0.9% – Property Type With Strongest Pending Sales: Single-Family Homes

The overall Median Sales Price was up 6.8 percent to $446,500. The property type with the largest price gain was the Condos – Townhomes segment, where prices increased 10.8 percent to $332,500. The price range that tended to sell the quickest was the $500,001 to $750,000 range at 40 days; the price range that tended to sell the slowest was the $1,250,001 Or More range at 66 days.

Market-wide, inventory levels were down 16.3 percent. The property type that lost the least inventory was the Single-Family Homes segment, where it decreased 15.6 percent. That amounts to 2.5 months supply for Single-Family Homes and 2.2 months supply for Condos – Townhomes.

All expectations in 2015 are for a healthy and energetic selling season. National stories have been highlighting an increase in new construction sales and pending sales, but national stories are not always readily applied to the local scene. All the same, if ever there was a year to list or purchase a home, wider economic factors seem to indicate that this is the one.

Closed Sales increased 3.4 percent for Detached homes and 4.4 percent for Attached homes. Pending Sales increased 27.8 percent for Detached homes and 22.2 percent for Attached homes. Inventory decreased 15.6 percent for Detached homes and 17.9 percent for Attached homes.

The Median Sales Price was up 6.0 percent to $519,540 for Detached homes and 15.4 percent to $348,825 for Attached homes. Days on Market decreased 6.4 percent for Detached homes and 8.7 percent for Attached homes. Supply decreased 13.8 percent for Detached homes and 15.4 percent for Attached homes.

On average, more people are employed and making more money than they were at this time last year. The jobs picture, as a whole, looks promising. Employment drives home-buying activity, so it is ever critical to watch labor statistics as a key indicator for the residential real estate market. Coupled with the mostly positive jobs picture, it is widely expected that mortgage rates will remain as they are for at least the first six months of the year.

Residential real estate activity in San Diego County, comprised of single family properties, townhomes and condominiums. Percent changes are calculated using rounded figures.

Source: San Diego Association of REALTORS® – All data from Sandicor, Inc.