Housing crunch not bad

The Southern California housing market hit its roughest patch in recent memory in January, but Newport-Mesa finished better than many cities, with most areas showing smaller drops than the regional average and a few even enjoying a boost in home prices.

Across the region that covers Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego and Ventura counties, median home prices fell 14.4% compared with January 2007, while the number of homes sold dropped 44.9%.

The statistical firm DataQuick reported that the 9,983 homes sold were the lowest in any month since the firm began keeping records in 1988. The median home price of $415,000 was also the lowest since January 2005.

Every ZIP code area in Newport-Mesa reported a drop in homes sold last month except for Balboa Island, which stayed level from a year ago, and Newport Coast, which increased 16.7%. Median home prices dropped in all of Costa Mesa, but much of Newport Beach saw a jump in prices, with tiny Balboa Island improving by a whopping 99.1%.

Valerie Torelli, a Costa Mesa Realtor, said she had sold a number of homes in January, but almost entirely to people who intended to live in them. When the market was up, she said, investors often purchased homes with the intent to resell them for an even better price.

“The investors are pretty much gone,” Torelli said. “Everyone else is just looking for a good value.”

The slowdown in the housing market has an effect on cities as well.

Richard Luehrs, the president of the Newport Beach Chamber of Commerce, said when home sales are down, it means less property tax coming into the local government, since older homes tend to increase in value after they’re sold.

He noted, though, that the tight housing market hadn’t caused the city to lose any money because all taxes from home sales were counted as a surplus.

“It’s not a loss,” Luehrs said. “It’s a lack of a bigger gain.”

NEWPORT-MESA HOME SALES FOR JANUARY 2008

ZIP CODE / AREA COVERED / CHANGE IN HOMES SOLD / CHANGE IN MEDIAN HOME PRICE

92625 / Corona del Mar / -18.2% / +30%

92626 / Northern Costa Mesa / -57.1% / -13.7%

92627 / Southern Costa Mesa / -5% / -23.9%

92657 / Newport Coast / +16.7% / +37.2%

92660 / Northern, central Newport Beach / -23.3% / -5%

92661 / Balboa Peninsula / -66.7% / -0.7%

92662 / Balboa Island / 0% / +99.1%

92663 / West Newport / -10.5% / +43.3%

Orange County total / -46.4% / -13.3%

Southern California total / -44.9% / -14.4%

MICHAEL MILLER may be reached at (714) 966-4617 or at [email protected].