California Home Sales Fall but Prices Stabilizing

What goes down and also goes up? Answer: California new home sales. The latest count among new home projects of 10 or more units in the Golden State shows that just 2,203 units were sold in April. That's a 32% decline from April 2009, when 3,218 units were sold, according to the monthly report compiled by the California Building Industry Association and Hanley Wood Market Intelligence. At the same time, the median base price of the houses and condos that were sold was a bit higher than the previous April, rising 2%, from $342,783 to $349,736. In March, though, the median was 4.9% higher at $367,933. Jonathan Dienhart, director of published research for HWMI, said the latest figures don't bode well, at least for the short-term. "With the federal tax credit expiring in April and persistently high unemployment throughout most of the state, we could be in for a rough summer," Dienhart said. "Some areas will fare better than others, however. The long recovery process will be uneven, with the coastal areas faring better than the inland areas where there are still bigger problems with oversupply." But CBIA's president Liz Snow took a more optimistic stance. Noting that California's $10,000 tax credit went into effect on May 1, she said her members are hoping to see a pickup in sales when the May figures are tabulated.