Home Sales Increase as Prices Stabilize

Home sales in Ventura County increased in July and prices stabilized, according to escrow closings tracked by Dataquick Information Systems of La Jolla.

A total of 580 previously owned single-family houses changed hands in the county last month, compared to 563 in June and 582 a year earlier, the service said.

For the third month in a row, the median price paid for a Ventura County resale house last month was $210,000. This compared to a median of $216,000 in July, 1992.

Condominium resales in the county totaled 136 last month, up from 123 in June but down from 146 in July, 1992. The median condo resale price last month was $145,000, compared to $148,000 in both June, 1993, and July, 1992.

“Prices may come down a little more in Ventura County, but most of the decline in prices as well as sales volume has already taken place,” said John Karevoll, editor of the Southern California Real Estate Observer, a newsletter.

Foreclosures are leveling off in the county and throughout Southern California, but it will take another nine months for most of the distressed properties to work their way through the foreclosure process, Karevoll said.

“These properties are acting as a drag on the entire market. I don’t expect a strong recovery until they’re removed from the picture.”