Home Prices in Ventura County See Double-Digit Hike

County homeowners received some good news for the holidays, with the median price for a home here up more than 10% last month. And with 1,274 houses sold, it was also the strongest November in terms of unit sales in 11 years, up 4.7% over November 1999.

November and December are traditionally slower months for home sales, but the figures were of little surprise given the recent strong housing market, some economic forecasters say. And the momentum should continue into 2001, despite predictions of an economic downturn nationwide, they said.

“Ventura County created a lot of jobs this year” and those new workers have to find a place to live, said Mark Schniepp, director of the California Economic Forecast Project.

Last month’s median home price was $266,000, up from $241,000 in November 1999, according to a report by DataQuick Information Systems, a statistical research firm. The sales figures include new and resale homes as well as condominiums. The median is the point at which half the homes sold for more and half sold for less.

Even with the high November numbers, the county’s year-to-date home sales of 13,842 are slightly below last year’s 14,292, but the number is still remarkably strong, said John Karevoll, an analyst at DataQuick.

That might have to do with mortgage rates, which have declined over the last three months, as well as with the job market.

The interest rate for an average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage was at 7.01% Tuesday, according to Bankrate.com, which publishes nightly averages based on its survey of nearly 3,000 banks in 50 states. That is a drop from 7.92% on Sept. 27, according to Bankrate.com.

Robert Flores, an Oxnard shipping clerk and a newlywed, closed escrow on his first home Nov. 30 in Oxnard’s Seabreeze development for about $255,000 after looking for about a month.

Thanks to an introductory adjustable mortgage rate, he is paying less than the $1,400 a month he was paying for a rental in Oxnard Shores.

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The dropping mortgage rates are enticing many new home buyers in the county, said Don Dorsey, vice president of Santa Barbara Bank and Trust, who himself just moved to the county and is in the process of buying a home.

“These rates are probably very attractive,” Dorsey said. “I think it will be a good quarter next year, and I think it will continue to next summer.”

Jack Kyser, chief economist with the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp., said Ventura County is following a regional trend, in which inventory isn’t meeting demand.

“In Southern California, no matter where you go, people are complaining about the lack of inventory,” Kyser said. “Regardless of what goes on, if people find a home that they really like, they will bid on it.”

Small-town pockets such as Fillmore, Moorpark and unincorporated Oak View had the highest increases in both median home price and number of homes sold. Oak View showed the greatest increase of homes sold--13 compared with five last year. Oak View also had the second highest increase in median price--43.4%--just behind Moorpark. Oak View’s median was $229,500, compared with $160,000 in 1999.

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But smaller communities sell far fewer homes than larger ones. In contrast, Thousand Oaks and Oak Park, the most in-demand areas of the county, saw some decreases over last year in the number of homes sold, but that is because of the tight market in that area, Schniepp said.

“That’s to be expected there,” he said.

The median cost of homes rose slightly in Oak Park, from $285,000 to $290,000.