Local : OC: Few Can Buy, Realtors Say

Only 14% of Orange County families could afford the typical house in December, down from 16%, according to the California Assn. of Realtors.

The association said a family needed an income of $75,318 to afford a single-family resale house at the median price of $237,114. The monthly survey excludes new homes, which are even more expensive, on the average.

Heavy demand pushed housing prices through the roof last year in Southern California, until even affluent Orange County now has a severe shortage of affordable housing.

Meanwhile, the trade association estimated that slightly more California families statewide could afford a house in December. That improvement--23% of families compared to 21% in November--was the first in nearly two years.