The housing market across Southern California continued to slow last month as home sales had its weakest January in 11 years, according to data released Wednesday by CoreLogic.
The real estate research firm reported 12,665 homes and condominiums changed hands in January, a 17.1% decline from 12 months ago and 19.8% fewer sales than December. Last month was the weakest January since 2008 when the housing bubble across the region had just fractured.
Sales have declined year over year for the last six months and in eight of the last 10.
In the four-county area, the steepest sales declines in the last 12 months were in Orange County, at 20.3% and Riverside County, at 16.8%. Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties declined 15.8% and 13.1%, respectively.
CoreLogic analyst Andrew LePage said in a statement that the slowdown likely can be traced to affordability issues, stock market volatility, December's federal government shutdown and concerns the housing market had peaked.
Sales in January tumbled 22.9% in Los Angeles County, 21.4% in Orange County, 20.8% in Riverside County and 7.6% in San Bernardino County.
The glacial pace of new homes sales dragged on January, tumbling 57.9% from the January average spanning the last 31 years.
January's median price of homes for all Southern California homes was $505,000, down 1.9% from December. Prices were up 2% year over year, which is the second-lowest gain — barely ahead of December's 1% increase — in almost seven years.
"The median's smaller annual gains in recent months reflect much slower home sales and rising inventory," LePage wrote.
Prices were flat from December to January in Riverside County, the only county in the region that did not lose ground. Prices fell 0.3% in Los Angeles County, 1.2% in Orange County and 3% in San Bernardino County.
In the last 12 months, sale prices rose 2.7% in Riverside County, 2.6% in Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties and 1.4% in Orange County.
The median Orange County home sold for $700,000 last month; $579,500 in Los Angeles County. The median sales price in the Inland Empire was $380,000 in Riverside County and $320,000 in San Bernardino County.
