August 2013 San Diego Real Estate Market Update

US Home Values Seeing Largest Jump In Years

Locally, we've seen big increases in home values over the past year. Now, the rest of the United States is starting to catch up. According to the National Association of Realtors, the second quarter of 2013 brought huge home value increases from coast to coast. Out of 163 metropolitan areas that the NAR follows, 87% saw median home values increasing over the past few months. The growth has been so intense that 31% of these metro areas saw double-digit growth during that same timeframe.

Over the past year, since the second quarter of 2012, the median national home price increased by 12.2%. This is the largest jump the US real estate market has seen since the height of the real estate boom in 2005. Nationally, 68% of consumers surveyed by the NAR feel that home values are still very affordable and that further increases are likely on the way. When asked whether or not now is a great time to purchase a home, over two-thirds of survey participants responded with a resounding yes.

July Brought A Large Increase In Number Of San Diego Homes for Sale

In San Diego, July brought a significant increase to the average number of homes for sale on the market. Over the past month, this figured increased by 14.5% to an average of 5,428. This is the largest percentage rise in years, and likely signifies that more and more local homeowners are finally realizing that they have developed sizeable equity in their properties. In addition to those wanting to cash out equity, many sellers are entering the market because recent price increases mean that they are no longer underwater on their loans.

Along with the number of homes listed for sale, the number of completed sales also increased by over 7% in July with determined buyers taking advantage of the increased inventory. The number of sales may also be on the rise from many sellers who, after selling their home, have upsized and moved into larger properties.

Although interest rates have continued to be on the rise, rates are still so low that is appears to have had little effect on the San Diego real estate market last month. For the second month in a row, average interest rates have risen noticeably. While June saw interest rates go up by half a point from the previous month, July brought another 0.58% increase. The average interest rate for the month of July was at 4.61%. Although this is a full point above what we had been seeing in the mortgage market over the past couple of years, it is still much lower than the historic average, and still one of the lowest rates seen in decades.

San Diego Real Estate Market Statistics

Active Home Listings

The graph below shows the active number of homes for sale for the corresponding month.

Home Sales

This graph shows the number of closed sales for the corresponding month.

Absorption Rate

The absorption rate is the number of months it would take to sell all of the homes that are currently for sale if no new homes were to come on the market.

Interest Rates

Interest rates are based on 30 year fixed mortgage rates.