Happy March! February Real Estate Market Stats for Long Beach & Lakewood, California!

Wow, that went even quicker, that month of February – and here we are, at the beginning of month 3 of the year, March! And on this day, March 1, while normally, inventory would bloom and blossom and spike up from last month significantly, only 449 residential homes are listed active for sale in all of Long Beach and Lakewood, California, down from 483 on February 1. Inventory in our area is still significantly down from 564 at the beginning of the December 2016 and 682 just 4 months ago today, showing tight, tight supply continuing, and strong buyer demand chewing up that supply on a daily basis!

In the month of February 2017, 234 homes sold/closed escrow in Long Beach and Lakewood, California, down from January’s close of 265, December’s 386 closed and November’s 342 closed.

This means we now have only a 1.9 month supply of inventory (close to last month’s 1.8).

A further new statistic I have added to track starting this year is the number of Pending Sales and Homes Under Contract, also called the Absorption Rate. That number today on March 1 for the area Long Beach and Lakewood is 469, up from 416 a month ago.

Wow! That means the absorption rate is at a 1:1 ratio with the number of Active listings – showing that homes are being absorbed very quickly.

Well, that is certainly reflecting in my personal experience for the past 3 weeks – 3 homes that I listed in the past 3 weeks went under contract (got an accepted offer) at or above asking price within 7 days of being listed on the market. Homes are being absorbed quickly!

Let’s see how it breaks down in some different price points:

Of the 449 residential homes listed for sale right now:

• 92 are priced at $800,000+ (97 last month).
• 16 homes sold in the month of February at $800,000+ (23 last month)
• That’s a 5.75 month supply (up from 4.2 month supply last month)
• 28 in this price range are currently under contract & pending (in escrow)

• 171 are priced $600,000+ (185 last month)
• 72 homes sold in the month of February at $600,000+ (75 last month)
• That’s a 2.4 month supply (up from 2.5 months supply last month)
• 127 in this price range are currently under contract & pending sale (in escrow)

• 240 are priced between $300,000 and $600,000 (up from 248 last month)
• 137 homes priced $300,000 to $600,000 sold in the month of February (160 last month)
• That’s a 1.7 month supply of homes in this price range (1.6 last month)
• 276 in this price range are currently under contract & pending sale (in escrow)

• 39 are priced $300,000 and less (53 last month)
• 30 homes priced under $300,000 sold in the month of February (35 last month)
• That’s a 1.3 month supply of homes in this price range (1.5 last month)
• 67 in this price range are currently under contract & pending sale (in escrow)

My observations and comments:

1. A short but very active month in real estate in February this year, lots of closings and even more pending contracts. Buyers are shopping for homes before Spring, in spite of so-so weather. And as we have found in previous months, these shoppers are highly price sensitive, snapping up lower priced condos under $300,000 such that there are hardly any more left, and then chewing up single family homes under $800,000 with fervor. Homes above $800,000 taking much longer to sell, however.
2. Inventory is still about 150 homes below last year’s inventory.
3. Homes being listed today at fair market prices are selling rapidly. If you tried to sell last year or the year before and did not get your price, you will likely get it this year. Why? Some buyers were wary last year, it being an election year in the U.S. Inventory built up and buyer demand slowed. Now that pent up demand is showing itself and making sellers very happy with multiple offers coming in and bidding homes up, when a home is properly marketed by a real estate professional (like myself).
4. It’s the year of the Move Up Buyer – those buyers that bought a starter home – condo or small house the last 3 to 5 years have made some solid equity, that can be pulled out when selling, and make an excellent down payment for that bigger, better home.

Therefore, don’t hesitate – call me today! Have a professional on your side: call/text 310-739-8272 or email me at NancyD@century21masters.com. Spring is effectively here in Southern California… call me about a great move at this perfect time of year.