Current news stories

There are a few news stories in the May 16 Los Angeles Times that might be of interest to South Bay bubble watchers.

First, homebuilder confidence has fallen to an eleven year low, according to the National Association of Homebuilders (NAHB). Even so, the national median price for a resold single family residence has risen to $217,900 from $197,600, an increase of 10%. That is the lowest increase in a year. The number of sales of existing SFRs and condos fell by 1.5% quarter-by-quarter. NAHB anticipates new home sales to fall by 12% this year.

In another story, the growth in median home prices continues to slow. In the six-county region of Ventura, Riverside, San Bernadino, Los Angeles, Orange, and San Diego, the April median home price was $486,000, flat from March, and up 9% YOY. April 2006 sales were down over 21% YOY, making it the fifth straight month of YOY sales declines. In Los Angeles county, the median is $508,000, up over 13% YOY.