O.C. Median Home Price Rises 9%

By DARYL STRICKLAND

Feb. 11, 1999 12 AM PT

TIMES STAFF WRITER

Bolstered by a hot economy, Orange County’s housing market continued its torrid pace in January, as the price of a typical home rose 9% over a year ago, to $231,000, according to a report released Wednesday.

Although the median price edged downward from December, prices of both new and resale homes begin the new year well ahead of 1998, when prices streaked to record heights. Last January, the median price--meaning half the homes sold for more, half for less--was $212,000.

A separate report, from the National Assn. of Realtors, showed Orange County posted the second-highest median price in the nation last year--trailing only San Francisco, where the median rose to $325,800.

The previous month marked the 20th consecutive month of year-over-year price gains, which were “spread through all price categories and all areas of Orange County,” said John Karevoll, an analyst at Acxiom/DataQuick Information Systems, the LaJolla research firm that released the report.

“We’re seeing sales not only in the high-end closer to the ocean, but in the entry-level homes in Santa Ana and Garden Grove as well. Sales increases are moving throughout the market.”

The county’s strong economic and income growth boosted consumer confidence, prompting more people to buy homes, said Fred Flick, senior vice president of the National Assn. of Realtors. “They’re paying to get what they want,” he said.

Sales edged up 3.4% in January, to 2,804, marking the 34th time in the past 37 months that the number of transactions increased. Real estate agents said there were large numbers of home seekers in what usually is a period of lower activity. But as values climb, buyers become more price conscious, some recoiling in sticker shock.

Kyra Kirkwood and her husband, Patrick Sturzenacker, have been searching for their first home for five months. But the newlyweds, who have been saving for a down payment for more than two years, never expected it would take this long.

Figuring the most they can afford is $215,000, the Fullerton couple recently bid on a North County home listed at that price. But it doesn’t appear the owners are willing to negotiate, said Kirkwood, 27, a journalist for two Orange County weeklies. She wants to avoid dumping every penny into a home that may require more cash for paint, cleaning and other expenses.

If the sale doesn’t occur, the couple will keep scouring North County, where homes are older and cheaper. They hope to find something by spring.

“We have hope, even if the deal doesn’t go through, that we still will find something,” said Kirkwood, who is renting a house. “But if not,” she said tongue-in-cheek, “we’ll just move in with our parents.”

Indeed, buyers seem to be more aware of escalating prices, real estate agents said. “But there’s not a lot of inventory,” said Chuck Buscemi, who covers Sunset Beach to Huntington Beach for First Team Real Estate Inc.

He said his four listings in January, ranging from $290,000 to $635,000, all sold within 21 days and all before he could prepare brochures advertising the listings. All sold at 15% to 20% higher than previous sales in the area, he said.

Further inland, real estate agents said buyers have more to choose from than a year ago. “We still have strong demand,” said Kathy Windsor, a Tarbell Realtors’ agent in Tustin.

She said one Costa Mesa property received three offers within two days of being listed, and another in Orange elicited an offer within 12 hours of going on the market. Both were four-bedroom houses in the $215,000-$220,000 range, which is what “a lot of people are looking for,” she said.

Higher prices have helped create more repeat buyers in Orange County than anywhere else in the nation, according to a recent survey by Chicago Title Corp. However, that also means the county has a smaller percentage of first-time buyers than anywhere else: 35% of buyers, down from 50% a year ago.

Prices in January rose across the board countywide. The median price of new homes, a sector still short of inventory, bulged to $346,000, or 19% above last year. Resale condos, a once-distressed market that has recovered rapidly over the past six months, swelled 19% to $158,000; and resale homes rose 9%, to $240,000.

Orange County has steadily outpaced the rest of the country over the past year. At the end of 1998, the county’s homes were 102% higher than the national median. At the end of 1997, they were 90% higher. The national median price of resale homes is $131,000.

Still, home prices haven’t fully recovered from the devastating downturn earlier this decade. An estimated 60% of the county’s homes have recouped all of the values lost, but much of that has come in the sale of larger homes in coastal areas. About 40% are close to fully regaining lost values.

Analysts agree that prices will continue to appreciate this year--barring an unforeseen economic calamity--but they differ on the degree. Karevoll of Acxiom/Dataquick believes home prices could rise another 5% to 7%. Anil Puri, an economist at Cal State Fullerton, expects only a 4.5% run-up.

“Going forward, we cannot expect another 9% hike in one year,” Puri said. As the economy winds down, “I think you’ll see a slowdown in the housing market.”

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Orange County Home Sales

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Community Pct. Median Pct. ’97 Med. /Zip Sales Chng. price Chng. Sq.Ft.(1) Aliso Viejo 92656 75 5.6% $210,000 7.7% $108 Anaheim 92801 36 50.0% $155,000 3.2% $114 Anaheim 92802 15 -21.1% $184,000 17.2% $114 Anaheim 92804 41 10.8% $170,000 16.4% $112 Anaheim 92805 31 -6.1% $150,000 3.4% $118 Anaheim 92806 18 12.5% $201,000 17.5% $111 Anaheim 92807 42 -6.7% $249,500 15.0% $118 Anaheim 92808 52 33.3% $189,000 -20.6% $130 Brea 92821 28 -22.2% $238,250 13.5% $125 Buena Park 90620 27 -12.9% $193,000 17.0% $122 Buena Park 90621 22 10.0% $207,750 25.9% $127 Corona del Mar 92625 22 -12.0% $695,000 11.7% $349 Costa Mesa 92626 26 -16.1% $237,750 13.5% $145 Costa Mesa 92627 42 23.5% $230,000 8.5% $150 Cypress 90630 41 2.5% $220,000 15.2% $130 Dana Point 92624 6 -25.0% $292,500 35.4% $130 Dana Point 92629 49 -22.2% $345,000 19.4% $192 Foothill Ranch 92610 16 -15.8% $243,500 3.6% $133 Fountain Valley 92708 45 -10.0% $241,500 0.2% $124 Fullerton 92831 13 -35.0% $168,000 -27.3% $130 Fullerton 92832 15 -28.6% $171,000 23.0% $124 Fullerton 92833 41 17.1% $178,500 11.9% $129 Fullerton 92835 26 52.9% $271,500 26.3% $124 Garden Grove 92840 32 18.5% $164,500 7.2% $121 Garden Grove 92841 25 47.1% $180,000 4.3% $117 Garden Grove 92843 35 45.8% $163,750 26.0% $117 Garden Grove 92844 22 46.7% $138,000 16.9% $85 Garden Grove 92845 11 -15.4% $230,000 27.8% $148 Huntington Beach 92646 46 31.4% $262,909 36.9% $143 Huntington Beach 92647 32 6.7% $232,750 3.0% $141 Huntington Beach 92648 65 -3.0% $320,000 6.7% $166 Huntington Beach 92649 34 13.3% $280,000 31.1% $171 Irvine 92604 42 10.5% $238,000 14.4% $148 Irvine 92606 22 -35.3% $263,250 15.0% $128 Irvine 92612 24 -17.2% $248,500 -10.9% $163 Irvine 92614 40 42.9% $214,500 -6.7% $161 Irvine 92620 43 -14.0% $206,000 -32.7% $137 La Habra 90631 53 43.2% $190,000 37.2% $116 La Palma 90623 12 71.4% $265,000 43.2% $116 Laguna Beach 92651 38 5.6% $458,000 -7.0% $348 Laguna Hills 92653 74 29.8% $204,500 41.0% $152 Laguna Niguel 92677 133 4.7% $277,000 2.6% $161 Lake Forest 92630 74 4.2% $199,750 -6.8% $118 Los Alamitos 90720 15 36.4% $350,000 28.2% $172 Mission Viejo 92691 68 9.7% $233,500 7.1% $125 Mission Viejo 92692 80 -5.9% $216,500 -10.2% $126 Newport Beach 92657 9 -50.0% $555,000 37.1% n/a Newport Beach 92660 42 -14.3% $602,000 16.2% $238 Newport Beach 92661 3 -62.5% $1,500,000 76.5% $398 Newport Beach 92663 28 64.7% $348,000 1.2% $330 Orange 92865 20 25.0% $225,250 39.0% $114 Orange 92866 7 -30.0% $245,000 54.6% $136 Orange 92867 32 -15.8% $236,000 4.0% $126 Orange 92868 13 -31.6% $135,000 -2.2% $119 Orange 92869 48 60.0% $252,000 41.6% $109 Placentia 92870 69 68.3% $219,500 13.1% $115 R. Santa Margarita 92688 71 -45.4% $232,000 27.5% $123 S. Juan Capistrano 92675 42 -23.6% $374,000 46.7% $131 San Clemente 92672 34 -38.2% $313,750 12.1% $162 San Clemente 92673 25 8.7% $398,500 15.5% $144 Santa Ana 92701 22 4.8% $102,500 -13.1% $114 Santa Ana 92703 33 6.5% $148,000 25.4% $123 Santa Ana 92704 60 130.8% $155,000 9.0% $118 Santa Ana* 92705 32 -8.6% $321,000 21.1% $136 Santa Ana 92706 34 112.5% $184,500 17.9% $126 Santa Ana 92707 33 -10.8% $150,000 0.7% $128 Seal Beach 90740 13 -13.3% $335,000 28.4% $151 Stanton 90680 23 15.0% $150,000 33.9% $95 Trabuco/Coto 92679 70 0.0% $400,500 42.0% $125 Tustin 92780 43 34.4% $206,500 17.3% $117 Tustin 92782 29 -23.7% $243,000 -5.8% $126 Villa Park 92861 6 0.0% $515,000 25.0% $152 Westminster 92683 75 29.3% $191,000 8.4% $119 Yorba Linda 92886 42 5.0% $263,500 20.2% $132 Yorba Linda 92887 25 -37.5% $510,000 74.7% $140 Other - 32 - - - - Countywide 2,804 3.4% $231,000 9.0% $130 $146

Community ’98 Med. /Zip Sq.Ft.(1) Aliso Viejo 92656 $151 Anaheim 92801 $131 Anaheim 92802 $126 Anaheim 92804 $132 Anaheim 92805 $138 Anaheim 92806 $123 Anaheim 92807 $139 Anaheim 92808 $158 Brea 92821 $143 Buena Park 90620 $140 Buena Park 90621 $106 Corona del Mar 92625 $341 Costa Mesa 92626 $138 Costa Mesa 92627 $197 Cypress 90630 $140 Dana Point 92624 $232 Dana Point 92629 $199 Foothill Ranch 92610 $140 Fountain Valley 92708 $154 Fullerton 92831 $129 Fullerton 92832 $152 Fullerton 92833 $139 Fullerton 92835 $148 Garden Grove 92840 $140 Garden Grove 92841 $152 Garden Grove 92843 $139 Garden Grove 92844 $123 Garden Grove 92845 $158 Huntington Beach 92646 $168 Huntington Beach 92647 $175 Huntington Beach 92648 $190 Huntington Beach 92649 $192 Irvine 92604 $175 Irvine 92606 $142 Irvine 92612 $163 Irvine 92614 $189 Irvine 92620 $141 La Habra 90631 $126 La Palma 90623 $125 Laguna Beach 92651 $289 Laguna Hills 92653 $169 Laguna Niguel 92677 $177 Lake Forest 92630 $146 Los Alamitos 90720 $223 Mission Viejo 92691 $151 Mission Viejo 92692 $153 Newport Beach 92657 n/a Newport Beach 92660 $274 Newport Beach 92661 n/a Newport Beach 92663 $301 Orange 92865 $134 Orange 92866 $205 Orange 92867 $144 Orange 92868 $117 Orange 92869 $140 Placentia 92870 $133 R. Santa Margarita 92688 $142 S. Juan Capistrano 92675 $142 San Clemente 92672 $180 San Clemente 92673 $198 Santa Ana 92701 $136 Santa Ana 92703 $116 Santa Ana 92704 $130 Santa Ana* 92705 $154 Santa Ana 92706 $140 Santa Ana 92707 $134 Seal Beach 90740 $187 Stanton 90680 $136 Trabuco/Coto 92679 $153 Tustin 92780 $128 Tustin 92782 $177 Villa Park 92861 $168 Westminster 92683 $127 Yorba Linda 92886 $155 Yorba Linda 92887 $151 Other - - Countywide 2,804

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Median resale price per square foot *Includes Lemon/Cowan Heights

Sales, Price Trends

January Sales

1995: 1,707

1996: 2,093

1997: 2,292

1998: 2,711

1999: 2,804

Median price1995: $194,000

1996: $186,000

1997: $185,000