The Huntington Harbor housing market

The Huntington Harbor housing market, a component of the Orange County real estate market, saw signs of strength along with the rest of the region. According to a June 15, 2010 piece from OC Metro, Orange Countys median home price and sales numbers got a welcome boost in May, partly due to government tax credits, low mortgage rates and more activity in higher-priced areas, according to a new report from MDA DataQuick. The median home price rose to $450,000 in the county, up about 10 percent from the same time last year. The article by Kristen Schott continued to note that Sales rose 22 percent in Orange County, compared to the same time last year. Buyers snapped up 3,257 properties, compared to 2,667 in May 2009. Its the second consecutive month of yearly gains, according to MDA DataQuick. The number also increased from 2,669 in April.

The number of bankruptcies in the Orange County area may drag on the eventual recovery of Huntington Harbor real estate. According to a June 14, 2010 article from the Orange County Register, The Orange County bankruptcy filings for May have something for both pessimists and optimists. Bankruptcy filings for Orange County individuals and businesses rose 31.3% in May compared to a year earlier. And the 1,562 filings were the higher for May in at least 11 years, according to the U.S. Bankruptcy Court. The report continued to say that The good news is that in May the number of filings in the Orange County court declined 7.1%. It was the second straight month of fewer filings after the number spiked in March. Bankruptcy activity remains very high by historical standards.

A more negative perspective on the status of the Huntington Harbor housing market was provided by economist Christopher Cagan. Cagan, who was interviewed by the Orange County Register on June 11, 2010, stated that In the short to near term, I expect a double dip. This is the logical aftermath of the sugar shot from the Federal first time buyer tax credit. It borrowed buyers from the future, and we are now going into that future.

Yorba Linda real estate market

The Yorba Linda real estate market, a predominately residential sector of the Orange County housing market, seems poised to continue a recovery despite slumping home sales in Southern California overall. According to a May 18, 2010 article from OCLNN, Orange County saw stronger gains in home sales and price compared to all other Southern California counties during April. The median home price in Orange County jumped 13.2 percent since April 2009, to $430,000, according to DataQuick, a San Diego-based real estate information service. The piece, composed by Mike Reicher, continued to say that Also, the number of sales hiked 11.6 percent to 2,669 sales of new and resale homes during April. And while its another positive sign that the housing market [is] recovering, the median price in April is slightly lower than it was in March – $432,000 and is well below the 2007 peak of $645,000.

This recovery for Yorba Linda homes for sale will likely continue into the next year, according to a Chapman University study. According to a June 3, 2010 report from the Orange County Register, Chapman U. professors are out with their semiannual economic forecast for Orange County! Heres what they said about home prices: After price losses for Orange County single-family homes by their math thats tied to resale medians of 0.9% in 2007; 23.2% in 2008; and 12.3% in 2009O.C. prices will rise 6% in 2010 and 5.3% in 2011.” The piece by Jon Lansner went on to say that Homebuyer earning the median family income and buying a median-priced single-family home in 2009 needed to spend 30.5% of income to pay for the interest, principal and property taxes vs. 51.3% in 2007. Future affordability will be lower as higher mortgage rates will overwhelm weak projected increases in median family income.

The trends of the Yorba Linda housing market were partially reflected in the slightly weaker Southern California market. According to a May 24, 2010 press release from the California Association of Realtors, Home sales decreased 8.1 percent in April in California compared with the same period a year ago, while the median price of an existing home rose 21 percent, the California Association of Realtors (C.A.R.) reported today.