Resale Prices Up 20.1% in California

The median price of an existing home in California was 20.1% higher in August than the level recorded a year earlier, and resales were up 7.0%, according to the California Association of Realtors.The median price of an existing single-family detached home in California totaled $568,890 in August, compared with $473,520 a year earlier, CAR reported. The seasonally adjusted annualized rate of closed escrow sales of existing single-family detached homes totaled 632,240, up from the 591,150-unit rate recorded in August 2004, CAR said. "While fixed mortgage interest rates have not increased, adjustable rates have risen in reaction to the Federal Reserve and a more general increase in short-term rates," said CAR president Jim Hamilton. "Since more buyers are relying on adjustable-rate mortgages to finance the purchase of their homes, buyers may be moving more quickly to make the home purchase decision in anticipation of future rate increases. This is adding more pressure to the price of a home." CAR can be found online at http://www.car.org.