Orange County Housing Prices Sink, Sales Drop
According to MDA DataQuick, the median price of an Orange County home dropped to $438,000 last month. The median price of an Orange County condo fell 11.7% from last year’s levels to $280,000, while the median price of a newly built home decreased 1.1%. Approximately 2,298 Orange County homes were sold in October, which is 9% less than in September and 18% below the October 2009 total.
While low interest rates abound, the banks are not lending because people are not qualifying for loans. This is in part due to multiple facts: unemployment is around 10% nationwide, foreclosures are up, home values are down about 25% from their 2006 peak and 23% of mortgages are underwater.