Southern California home prices fall

The L.A. Times reports:

The Southern California housing market beat a fast retreat in October as the median price plunged 8% to relinquish two years of gains and sales volume slipped to a record low, data released today show.

The median price paid for a Southland home last month was $444,000, down 3.9% from $462,000 in September and off 8% from $482,750 a year earlier, according to DataQuick Information Systems, a La Jolla-based real estate information service that has been tracking sales and prices since 1988.


The October median price was 12% below the peak of $505,000 reached last spring and was the lowest since April 2005, DataQuick said.

As prices continue to slide, said DataQuick President Marshall Prentice, "a lot of potential buyers seem to be waiting this one out."

"It's hard to buy a home when you think it might lose value, especially when you have to borrow money to do it," he said.

Tougher standards for so-called jumbo loans -- those over $417,000 -- are slowing sales, DataQuick reported.

The firm noted in its report that market indicators showed mixed signals: Foreclosure activity is at record levels, but risky financing involving adjustable-rate mortgages and multiple loans has dropped sharply. Down-payment sizes and flipping rates are stable, whereas non-owner-occupied buying is edging up.

Last month, sales of new and existing houses and condominiums was the slowest for any October in DataQuick's database, which goes back to 1988.

T-Bills look pretty good compared to real estate right now.