SAN DIEGO COUNTY – Prices for single-family homes on the resale market dropped slightly in San Diego County in July, while the number of homes sold rose, according to the Greater San Diego Association of Realtors.
The median price in July was $1,058,275, a 2.8% drop from June when the median price was $1,089,000, according to the association.
A year ago, the median price was $945,000.
President
Greater San Diego Association of Realtors
The rise in the number of single-family homes sold was encouraging and could mark the beginning of a trend as San Diego County’s inventory of homes for sale improved, said Association President Spencer Lugash, noting that expectations that interest rates will soon fall has also loosened the market.
With long-awaited interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve looking likely, “We are thrilled to see mortgage rates drop to a 15-month low,” Lugash said.
As of late August, the average interest rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage was 6.53%, according to www.bankrate.com, a mortgage tracking site.
Lugash said that the slight drop in prices “gives buyers a little more confidence and ability” to enter the market, adding that he sees it as a stabilization of home prices.
The uptick in sales also indicates that there are more options for buyers, Lugash said.
“That’s been one of the issues. Even if they (buyers) are out there, either they can’t afford it and if they can afford it, they can’t find a house,” Lugash said.
The most expensive single-family home sold in July was a 14,000-square foot house in Rancho Santa Fe that went for $15.5 million.
Built in 2019 on a 2.7-acre site, the home has five bedrooms, eight bathrooms, and a freestanding cabana between a pool and a par-three golf course.
The median price of condos sold in July rose to $700,000, up from $695,000 in June and from $641,000 in July 2023, according to the association.
Complicating the for-sale housing market is the continuing fallout from a March settlement of an extended legal battle in which the National Association of Realtors agreed to new rules that allow for more negotiation between agents and their clients.
“Both the consumers, buyers and sellers and the industry professionals are still trying to wade through these changes and how they’re going to practically affect your day-to-day routines,” Lugash said.
Rents Rise
Even as housing prices appear to be stabilizing for now, monthly apartment rental rates rose an average of 2.1% in August in San Diego County for a one-bedroom apartment to $2,400 while monthly apartment rents for two-bedroom apartments remained flat at $3,200, according to Zumper, an apartment listing service.
Encinitas had the highest one-bedroom rents at $2,670 and the highest two-bedroom rents at $3,800.
El Cajon had the least expensive monthly rents, at $1,790 for a one-bedroom apartment and $2,250 for a two-bedroom apartment, according to Zumper.
Greater San Diego Association of Realtors
FOUNDED: 1878
Headquarters: Kearny Mesa
President: Spencer Lugash
Business: real estate trade organization
Members: 2,000+
Website: www.sdar.com
Contact: 858-715-8000
Notable: The organization traces its history to 1878.
