A new report from CoreLogic highlights a recent strengthening of California’s housing market, with positive results for both new and existing home sales in June.
California’s housing market picked up steam last month, when it logged its highest June home sales in nine years and the largest year-over-year increase in sales for any month in nearly three years.
An estimated 46,095 new and existing houses and condominiums sold in the Golden State during June 2015, up 10.8% from May and up 16.8% from June 2014. Last month’s sales were the highest for the month of June since June 2006, when 59,018 homes sold, and the highest for any month since September 2006, when 46,464 homes sold, according to CoreLogic public records data.
The increase in sales between this May and June was roughly double the average gain of about 5% between those two months since 1988, when the data for this report begin. Statewide home sales have now increased on a year-over-year basis for four consecutive months, following a yearlong period in which sales fell year over year in 11 out of 12 months. The June 2015 annual sales gain of 16.8% was the highest for any month since October 2012, when sales rose 22.3% year over year. Before June the highest year-over-year gain this year was 12.2% in March.
Why the bigger sales increase last month? California’s job growth has to be high on the list of reasons. The state’s Employment Development Department reports non-farm jobs rose 3% – an increase of nearly 462,000 jobs – between June 2014 and June 2015. In addition, low mortgage interest rates and a growing consumer belief that rates will begin to rise soon may have helped to spur some buyers.
