Housing Market Stabilizes in CA

California’s housing market has shown signs of stabilization since early last year. Sales of existing, single-family homes bottomed out in August 2007, and the median home price reached its lowest point in February 2009.

In December 2009, California’s median home price was 25.1 percent above the low for the current cycle and the median price of an existing, single-family home rose to $306,820, an 8.4 percent rise year-over-year. This is the second consecutive year-over-year increase, and the 10th consecutive month-over-month increase.

Although home buyers should not focus solely on future home price appreciation, homeowners who purchase a median-priced house, live in their home for at least five years, and sell it at the then current median price, have averaged an annual rate of return of more than 11 percent, according to data collected by California Association of Realtors over the last 40 years.