SIMI VALLEY, MOORPARK : Quake Blamed for Slower Home Sales

Simi Valley and Moorpark realtors are blaming the Northridge earthquake for slow home sales and lower resale prices in recent months, including a modest decline in November sales reported Wednesday.

Last month, 128 homes closed escrow in Simi Valley and Moorpark, a 1.5% drop from the same month in 1993. The average resale price of a single-family house, which was $201,010 in November, was down 3.2% from November, 1993.

Area realtors said the earthquake, along with rising interest rates, accounted for the modest decline.

Still, brokers said they were confident that the numbers would rebound as the economy improves and memory of the earthquake fades. Projections show that despite the decline in November, home sales over the course of 1994 will be up from the previous year.

And, they said, they were banking on first-time buyers--who made up about 60% of the new home buyers in recent months--to help boost sales in 1995.

“Barring further increases in the interest rate or another surprise from Mother Nature, 1995 should be an even more fantastic year of opportunity for first-time home buyers,” said Shanon Wolf, president of the Simi Valley-Moorpark Assn. of Realtors. “There are a lot of good signs out there that, despite these problems, things are picking up.”