Homebuying ’18: Newport Beach, Laguna Beach, Costa Mesa down 8%, countywide sales take largest dip in 11 years

Homebuying in Newport Beach, Laguna Beach and Costa Mesa fell 8 percent in a year with the steepest countywide drop in sales in 11 years.

Last year saw the fewest Orange County homes sold since 2014 and the 8.6 percent drop in sales vs. 2017 was the largest year-over-year percentage decline since 2007. Key culprits in the slowdown include higher mortgage rates; economic uncertainty; not to mention that homeowners seeking a new residences couldn’t unload their old home.

Here’s what my trusty spreadsheet told me when looking at house-hunting patterns at the neighborhood level in 2018 vs. 2017.

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CoreLogic found these 15 trends in 9 ZIP codes covered by the northern edition of the Orange County Register’s The Current weekly …

1. Purchases: Home sales in this period totaled 2,790 vs. 3,048 a year earlier, a decline of 8.5 percent.

2. Who’s up: Prices increased in 6 of the 9 ZIPs as sales rose in only one ZIPs.

3. Countywide: $725,000 median selling price, up 5.8 percent. Orange County sales totaled 35,020 residences, existing and new, vs. 38,310 a year earlier, a decline of 8.6 percent. Prices rose in 75 out of 83 Orange County ZIPs and sales were up in 16 out of 83 ZIPs.

Here is how prices and sales moved at the community level …

4. Laguna Beach 92651: $1,772,500 median, down 1.2 percent. Price rank in Orange County: No. 6 highest of 83. Sales of 399 vs. 458 a year earlier, a decline of 12.9 percent.

5. Costa Mesa 92626: $799,000 median, up 8 percent. Price rank? No. 29 of 83. Sales of 457 vs. 455 a year earlier, a gain of 0.4 percent.

6. Costa Mesa 92627: $840,000 median, up 5 percent. Price rank? No. 22 of 83. Sales of 579 vs. 595 a year earlier, a decline of 2.7 percent.

7. Corona del Mar 92625: $2,450,000 median, up 16.7 percent. Price rank? No. 4 of 83. Sales of 268 vs. 307 a year earlier, a decline of 12.7 percent.

8. Newport Beach 92660: $1,802,500 median, up 6 percent. Price rank? No. 5 of 83. Sales of 453 vs. 453 a year earlier, flat in the period.

9. Newport Beach 92661: $3,200,000 median, up 14.3 percent. Price rank? No. 1 of 83. Sales of 71 vs. 93 a year earlier, a decline of 23.7 percent.

10. Newport Beach 92662: $3,057,500 median, up 19.9 percent. Price rank? No. 2 of 83. Sales of 30 vs. 34 a year earlier, a decline of 11.8 percent.

11. Newport Beach 92663: $1,538,750 median, down 2 percent. Price rank? No. 7 of 83. Sales of 324 vs. 363 a year earlier, a decline of 10.7 percent.

12. Newport Coast 92657: $2,519,500 median, down 14.6 percent. Price rank? No. 3 of 83. Sales of 209 vs. 290 a year earlier, a decline of 27.9 percent.

Plus, three more countywide trends found in 2018 vs. 2017 …

13. Single-family-home resales: 20,934 Orange County sales vs. 23,022 a year earlier, a decline of 9.1 percent in the period. Median: $775,000 — a rise of 4 percent in the period.

14. Condo resales: 9,232 sales vs. 10,265 a year earlier, a decline of 10.1 percent in 12 months. Median: $505,000 — a rise of 6.3 percent in a year.

15. New homes: Builders sold 4,854 residences vs. 5,023 a year earlier, a decline of 3.4 percent in 12 months. Median: $942,000 — a rise of 11 percent in a year. 

Source: Orange County Register