O.C. Housing Market Still Booming

Orange County’s housing market continued to sizzle last month, with sales surging 34.8% over September 1996 and the median home price climbing 7.3% to $207,000, its highest in nearly three years, real estate data firm Axciom/DataQuick Information Services reported. A total of 3,953 new and existing homes were sold in Orange County, making September the second-busiest month of the decade, the firm said. The market for higher-priced new homes was especially strong, and sales overall showed only a 1% decline from August, which was the busiest month of the decade.