California News Blog

The Mission Viejo real estate market, a part of the larger Orange County and Southern California housing markets, showed strong signs of progress despite a substantial distressed sales market. According to a June 15, 2010 report from OC Metro, “Orange County’s median home price and sales numbers got a welcome boost in May, partly due to government tax credits, low mortgage rates and more activity in higher-priced areas, according to a new report from MDA DataQuick.” The article by Kristen Schott continued to say that “The median home price rose to $450,000 in the county, up about 10 percent from the same time last year. It’s the ninth consecutive year-over-year gain, according to the real estate information service. The price also increased from April when it hit $430,000…Sales rose 22 percent in Orange County, compared to the same time last year. Buyers snapped up 3,257 properties, compared to 2,667 in May 2009.”

The same pattern of growing home sales and increased median prices seen among Mission Viejo homes for sale was repeated across the larger Southern California region. According to a June 15, 2010 article from the Orange County Register, “Dwindling foreclosures and higher sales in pricier, coastal neighborhoods have pushed Southern California home prices to their highest levels in almost two years, according to MDA DataQuick. The median price of a SoCal home, or price at the midpoint of all sales, jumped 22.5 percent in May to $305,000.” The report by Jeff Collins went on to note that “It was the first time since October 2008 that the SoCal median price has been at $300,000 or higher. Meanwhile, home sales were up 7.2 percent, juiced in part by the expiring of a federal tax credit of up to $8,000.”

Despite a decrease in the number of foreclosures in the Mission Viejo housing market, there were still a number of distressed sales in the region. According to a June 15, 2010 article from the Orange County Register, “The distressed inventory continued its slow climb this year, adding an additional 89 homes in the prior two weeks and now totaling 3,080, a 3% increase.”