USA: Spring homebuying season kicked off with encouraging start in California, as sales in April rose on both a monthly and yearly basis, the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (C.A.R.) said. Meanwhile, the statewide median home price exceeded $900,000 for the first time ever, setting a new record-high.
Existing, single-family home sales totaled 275,540 last month on a seasonally adjusted annualized rate, up 3.0 percent from 267,470 in March and up 4.4 percent from 263,960 in April 2023, according to information collected by C.A.R. from more than 90 local REALTOR® associations and MLSs statewide.
“April’s rebound in both home sales and price shows the resilience of California’s housing market and is a signal that buyers and sellers are beginning to adjust to the higher interest rate environment,” said C.A.R. President Melanie Barker, a Yosemite REALTOR®. “Market fundamentals are showing signs of improvement, and competition is on the rise again; homes are selling faster and nearly half the share of homes is selling above asking price ― the highest in nine months.”
April’s statewide median home price was $904,210, up 5.8 percent from March and up 11.4 percent from $811,510 in April 2023. Seasonal factors and tight housing supply conditions will continue to put upward pressure on home prices in the coming months.
Sales of homes priced at or above $1 million dollars in California continue to hold up better than their more affordable counterparts in the Golden State in the last few months. Sales in the $1 million-and-higher market segment surged 39.8 year-over-year in April, while the sub-$500,000 segment declined again moderately (-8.0 percent). The change in the mix of sales of homes priced above $1 million made up more than a third (36.4 percent) of all sales ― the largest share in at least the last five years.
The median number of days it took to sell a California single-family home was 16 days in April 2024 and 20 days in April 2023. The statewide average price per square foot* for an existing single-family home was $440, up from $394 in April a year ago. The 30-year, fixed-mortgage interest rate averaged 6.99 percent in April 2024, up from 6.34 percent in April 2023, according to C.A.R.’s calculations based on Freddie Mac’s weekly mortgage survey data.
“While the market performed solidly in April, we don’t expect to see a rapid recovery as long as inflation remains sticky and mortgage rates continue to fluctuate despite recent dips,” said C.A.R. Senior Vice President and Chief Economist Jordan Levine. “However, housing inventory has also started to increase, which will provide much-needed supply to the market and facilitate a higher level of home sales in the second half of the year.”
Headquartered in Los Angeles, the C.A.R. is one of the largest state trade organizations in the United States with more than 180,000 members dedicated to the advancement of professionalism in real estate.
*Price per square foot is a measure commonly used by real estate agents and brokers to determine how much a square foot of space a buyer will pay for a property. It is calculated as the sale price of the home divided by the number of finished square feet. C.A.R. currently tracks price-per-square foot statistics for 51 counties.
