North Bay home prices dip in October
Mendocino and Solano were the only North Bay counties in positive territory for monthly pricing gains for homes in October, according to industry data released Thursday.
Average pricing for single-family homes in Mendocino County was up 6.8% from September to $534,000 and in Solano County up 1.8% to $580,000, and the number of homes sold went up 5.8% and 6.7%, respectively, according to the California Association of Realtors.
Napa County pricing was down 10.5% to $850,000, and sales increased 4.1%. Lake County homes sold for an average of 6.2% less at $345,000, while unit sales jumped 17.1%.
Statewide, closed escrow sales of existing single-family detached homes were 434,170 in October, according to the trade group.
October's sales pace dipped 0.9% on a monthly basis from 438,190 in September and was down 10.4% from a year ago, when 484,510 homes were sold on an annualized basis. Despite the fourth straight year-over-year sales decrease, statewide home sales maintained a 13.4% increase on a year-to-date basis.
"As the housing market moves from 'frenzied' to 'less frenzied' and price growth comes back to earth, fewer homes are selling above asking price and bidding wars are less prevalent, so more buyers who pushed pause earlier this year will be able to take advantage of still-cheap financing," said association President Otto Catrina, a Bay Area real estate broker. "With their median price being 30% less than that of a single-family home, condominiums and townhomes have been selling particularly well as they are a more affordable option to buyers with a smaller budget."
California home prices continued to level off as the market moved further into the off-season, dipping below the $800,000 benchmark for the first time in seven months. At $798,440 in October, the statewide median price was down 1.3% from September's $808,890 and was up 12.3% from the $711,300 recorded in October 2020. The month-to-month price decline was the second in a row, and the price drop from September was on par with the long run average of -1.5% recorded between a September and an October in the past 42 years.
"Despite a slowdown in sales from last year's robust fall season, the California housing market continues to stabilize and is outperforming the pre-pandemic levels observed in 2017, 2018, and 2019," said association Vice President and Chief Economist Jordan Levine. "Slower sales activity suggests that the market is returning to its typical seasonal pattern and further market normalization can be expected in the upcoming months. While the market is showing signs of cooling off in recent months, 2021 continues to outpace last year's sale level so far and is expected to post a gain at year-end."
