Homes sales down, prices up in March

Written by Business Journal staff

California home sales were down in March compared to the month before, although prices were up for the first time in 16 months.

According to data from the California Association of Realtors, sales of single-family detached homes totaled 505,360 units in March, which is down 4.5 percent from February and 2.3 percent from March 2011.

The median price of a home in March was $291,080, up from $266,660 the previous month and $286,550 a year ago.

In Fresno County, home sales were up 19.6 percent in March, but dropped 3.7 percent from March 2011. The median home price of $137,350 for the month reflected a decline of 3.5 percent from February and 0.6 percent from a year ago.

In Kings County, sales improved 12.5 percent in the month and 11 percent over the last year. The median price slipped 2.1 percent over the month to $141,430, which is 3 percent higher than a year ago.

Sales in Madera County were down 2.4 percent from the previous month and 49.4 percent from March 2011. The median price of a home in the county picked up 21 percent in the month to $125,000, which is down 6.4 percent from a year ago.

In Tulare County, sales were up 23.1 percent in February but down 6.6 percent from last year. The median price of $121,280 in March represents an increase of 1.6 percent from February but 0.5 percent drop from a year earlier.

California's unsold inventory index, or number of months needed to deplete the supply of homes at the current sales rate, decreased to 4.1 months in March, down from 5.4 months in both February and March 2011.

The median number of days it took to sell a single-family home fell to 53.1 days in March, down from 58.9 days in February and 57 days in March 2011.

URL to original article: http://www.thebusinessjournal.com/news/real-estate/1522-homes-sales-down-prices-up-in-march

For further information on Fresno Real Estate check: http://www.londonproperties.com