O.C. Property Rises in Value by Nearly 10%
In another sign of Orange County’s strong real estate market, the dollar value of residential and business property rose nearly 10% over the last year--the biggest jump in a decade.
The rising value comes despite the fact that new construction during this period has remained relatively low. It’s the fifth year in a row that real estate values have risen in Orange County after being battered during the recession of the early 1990s.
“In many ways, it’s a return to normalcy,” said Richard Swanson, in charge of management services for the county assessor’s office. Property values have traditionally risen in double digits through the 1970s and 1980s, he said.
“This is a pretty natural condition for California,” Swanson added. “What happened in the mid-1990s, with real estate values going down, was unnatural.”
Total property values have been rising again since 1996. Early on, the increases were due in part to construction. But more recently, the number of new parcels counted by the county has flattened.
This year, 797,000 individual parcels were reported on the assessment rolls, an increase of only 1.52% over the year before. Business and other property parcels rose by about 5% over the previous year.
The county’s newly rising property values reflect a strong economy, good job growth and a demand for housing, analysts say. The local assessment roll lists Orange County value as more than $224 billion, more than $19.7 billion over 1999, according to county numbers.
Three years ago, the county’s property values were $188 billion.
But the numbers aren’t all rosy.
Rising values make buying a home much more difficult for a growing number of people, said Ted Gibson, chief economist for the state Department of Finance.
“It’s a double-edged sword. It’s very good news for sellers, but not-so-good for buyers,” Gibson said. “It’s not an undiluted benefit, and it’s reflective of the fact that there is a greater demand for housing than there is a supply for it.”
Irvine, at about $20.3 billion, is the No. 1 city in terms of property values, according to the assessor’s office. At $19.8 billion, Anaheim was second. None of Orange County’s 31 cities saw a decline in assessed values.
Newport Beach also saw a robust increase in property values, with a boost of an 11.15% over the year before. The highest percentage increase from one year to another was recorded by the small city of Lake Forest, which had its property assessed at 12.26% more than the year before.
