San Diego County's median home price hit a record high in June of $923,080.
After months of a sluggish real estate market, June marked a return to typical summer buying patterns. Attom Data Solutions said the previous record median, which combines sales of single-family homes, townhouses and condos, was $914,000 in June 2024.
San Diego was not alone in an upswing in June, with all Southern California markets seeing significant gains in home sales. It is common for prices to rise this time of year in what is known as the traditional spring-to-summer homebuying season. Yet higher mortgage rates and other issues have thrown off usual patterns for much of the past two years.
There were 3,839 home sales in San Diego County in June, Attom said, which was the most in a single month since September 2021.
Bill McBride, author of the economics blog Calculated Risk, said the market was largely driven by the higher end with wealthier buyers still riding stock market gains. He said June's rise will be short-lived with mortgage rates now north of 7%.
"I think we going to see a really slow end of the year," McBride said.
He noted most closed sales in June came from purchases that started in May. The average 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage was 6.53% at the end of May, said Freddie Mac. As of Monday afternoon, the average rate was 7.20%, said Mortgage News Daily.
There is evidence that wealthier San Diegans may have fueled much of June's increase. There were 232 pending sales for San Diego County homes listed above $2 million at the end of May, said the real estate firm Reports on Housing. That was the most ever for that time period, only getting close in March 2022 (225 sales) when sales were supercharged before mortgage rates rose.
Still, Steven Thomas of Reports on Housing said mortgage rates have proven to be the biggest factor in the local market, regardless of buyers' economic standing. He said data from San Diego County shows an increased demand if mortgage rates fall below 6.5%.
"This is the equivalent of stepping on the gas pedal," Thomas said of rates below 6.5%, "and the housing market speeds up."
Summer homebuying is usually driven by parents who would rather buy while children are out of school, and potentially be ready to start in a new school district before the fall. Real estate firms often prefer the season for other reasons: Extended daylight hours, ideal weather, and trees and plants typically look healthier to increase curb appeal.
There was a good amount of listings in June: Slightly more than 8,000 homes for sale, said the Redfin Data Center, which wasn't far off from this year's high point of roughly 8,300 in April. For context, there were 4,500 homes listed for sale in June 2023.
edfin said 32.3% of San Diego County homes sold above listing price in June, which was higher than last year at the same time when it was 27.6%.
Home prices varied by type in June. The median single-family home price was $1 million, up 2.5% annually. The median townhouse and condo price was $690,603, down 0.6% annually.
San Diego County's home market was one of two in Southern California to see price increases in June. Here's a look at medians — the point where half of the homes sold for more and half sold for less — across the region:
Los Angeles County: Up 1.3% monthly for a median home price of $910,000; down 0.9% annually.
Orange County: Down 0.8% monthly for a median of $1.2 million; down 0.9% annually.
Riverside County: Down 0.3% monthly to a median of $603,401; up 0.6% annually.
San Bernardino County: Unchanged monthly at a median of $545,000; up 3.8% annually.
San Diego County: Up 1.1% monthly for a median of $923,080; up 2.1% annually.
Ventura County: Down 4.1% monthly for a median of $863,991; down 2.9% annually.
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