The self-fulfilling prophecies are right again according to the LA Times article “At the luxury end, home prices are falling.” The upper end of the market is feeling some pain. It appears misery loves company. Statistics are in for the month April and indicate some exclusive neighborhoods show decreased sales prices compared to April 2007. Palos Verdes real estate had mixed reviews.
Palos Verdes Estates (zip code 90274 which includes the cities of Palos Verdes Estates, Rolling Hills Estates and Rolling Hills real estate) showed an increase of 18% and Rancho Palos Verdes real estate (zip code 90275) showed a decrease of 18%. If you average those numbers, it shows the entire Peninsula holding. Remember, these are median prices for the month. The statistics for the past 15 months through April are available by clicking here.
Results to date for May show 262 Active listings (254 in April), 71 Pending (31 in April) and 27 Sold (39 for the month of April). Compared to last year, there are fewer number of homes sold but the prices in Palos Verdes continue to be holding (see the Average Price graph in the above link). And Days on Market for the month of April 2008 fell to 6.5% – 6% is considered to be a normal market.
This is still a buyer’s market with a great selection of homes and interest rates for a 30 year fixed jumbo loan at 6.75% and a 5 year fixed interest only loan at 6.125%. We never know when real estate prices have hit the bottom until the market is on the way back up. John Juarez, a realtor in the East Bay asks buyers, “What are you waiting for?…if you buy and hold your house for a few years (either live in it or rent it out), it is very likely that you will experience appreciation in the value of the house. It is highly likely that your real estate will go up in value if you pay attention to the basics of price, location and condition when you make the purchase”.
More good news is the LA Times ‘ article entitled, “Report finds weak economy but no recession” citing a Conference Board report released Monday showing that for the second month in a row, their leading economic indicators index rose 0.1%. “So far it seems as if the recession will be short and shallow” says Harm Bankdholz, economist with Unicredit Markets & Investment Banking in New York. I like that!
