Sales Active in 4th Quarter at Top 50 Selling Developments

Even in 1992’s fourth quarter, the slowest home-buying season of the year, the Southland’s top 50 best-selling projects still achieved impressive sales figures.

The best-selling projects averaged sales of 2.1 units per week, versus .43 units per week during the third quarter for all 1,728 actively selling projects in Southern California, according to the Meyers Group, an independent market research and consulting firm.

“The sales recorded (at the top 50 selling projects) show the demand for housing that is affordable and within an easy commute to major employment concentrations,” said Ada Chen, a consultant with the Meyers Group.

The average price of the units sold in the top 50 projects was $172,345 for a 1,357 square foot unit, with an average per square foot value of $125.71, Chensaid.

The top five best-selling projects sold a total of 308 units in the fourth quarter of 1992, an average of 4.74 units sold per project on a weekly basis.

Unlike the third quarter when four of the five best sellers were single-family detached developments, all the top five projects in the fourth quarter were attached projects.

The top three selling projects are located in Los Angeles County, while the fourth-ranked project was located in San Diego County and the fifth in Ventura County.

There was an unusually high number of projects with units offered at auction during the fourth quarter, with three of the top five projects and 10 of the top 50 projects selling at auction.

Five builders had more than one project on the best-sellers list, with Kaufman & Broad Home Corp. having the largest number (five projects). Other builders with multiple projects on the list included the Fieldstone Co. (four projects), Pardee Construction (three projects) and Odmark & Thelan and Forecast Corp. with two projects each.

All six of the counties in Southern California are represented on the list, with Los Angeles and San Diego counties having the greatest number of projects (14 in each), followed by Orange County (nine projects), San Bernardino County (six projects), Riverside County (four projects), and Ventura County (three projects).