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September, 2012 Real Estate Sales Analysis

Here are the latest sales numbers for all homes sold within the City of La Quinta as well as all Golf Course homes in La Quinta through September, 2012.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The blue lines represent 2008 data, the orange lines represent 2009 data magenta lines represent 2010, green lines represent 2011 data and the purple lines represent 2012 data.

Open escrows in La Quinta on September 30th decreased over June by 14.8%. The decrease in escrows is due to the traditional heat of the summer months. As you can see from the graph, this is a normal trend. The Coachella Valley Inventory has increased by 17.8% over June after both July and August showing decreases. The number of active listings at the end of September rose from 3,095 units at the end of August to 3,996 active listings at the end of September. We feel that this uncharacteristic jump is due to the low number of listings in both July and August. The “Active” inventory of resale homes in the Citrus community, for instance, is up to 3.3% from 2.4% in June where 10% is considered normal for a gated community. The Citrus has always had around 5 -6% of its homes for sale as it is a very desirable community to live in. The number of escrows at the end of June for the more expensive golf course properties decreased by 38.0% over June. The valley’s inventory continues to remain low despite the September increase which results in an increase in demand. The increased demand helps stabilize the market pricing over the lower priced short sales and bank owned properties. The unsold inventory continues to remain low, prices in some areas, like the La Quinta Cove, continue to increase slowly. As we get past the uncertainty of the election and into our “season”, we expect to see prices over the valley start to rise slowly.

The number of monthly unit sales within the city decreased in September by 41.6% over June which may be attributed to declining inventory, the summer season and the heat but we expect that sales will continue to be near or higher than past summers as sales are continuing to pick up in the bigger metro markets allowing people to sell their current homes and purchase a retirement property here in the desert. The number of “short sales” and “bank owned” properties being offered at reduced prices continue to be tapering off. There were only 9 Bank owned homes sold in La Quinta in June. Most lenders seem to be dealing more efficiently with the inventory of distressed properties although short sales and/or foreclosures can still be a challenge and they are still affecting the prices in the entire market as they are included as comparable homes by the buyers.

 

 

 

 

 
Golf Course home sales in La Quinta.

Like the sales trend for the entire city, the sales-volume numbers in the higher-end market (which contains many of the golf properties in the chart above) decreased 50.0% in September over June.

Overall, we continue to see more positive signs in the market place and the media continues to be encouraging. We are anticipating a good finish for the rest of 2012. The mortgage industry is the best it’s been for conventional loans and even the “jumbo” loans, are becoming easier to get..

Coachella Valley Inventory:
On September, 30, there were 3,996 active listings (up 17.7% from June), 2,692 units were in escrow (up 4.5% from June) totaling 6,688 units (Up 12.6% from June) available for sale which makes 40.25% of the total inventory in escrow (down 6.7% from June). If buying property is something on your list (especially golf property), why not take advantage of the incredible prices and seller incentives now, when sellers will work with you, instead of in the future, when the demand starts to catch up with the supply? Especially if you’re buying and planning to hold for 5+ years.

Here are some yearly sales figures (units) for the City of La Quinta from 2002:

Year All LQ Golf Course
2002 1,354 259
2003 1,565 652
2004 1,931 813
2005 1,553 657
2006 1,098 491
2007   935 447
2008 1,063 416
2009 1,155 418
2010 1,355 530
2011 1,446 520
2012 YTD 1,163 470

* Remember that the sales numbers represent “Closed” escrows. Since the average escrow is between 45 and 60 days, the decision to purchase the homes that closed in June was probably made in March to early April.

Source: DesertAreaMLS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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June, 2012 Real Estate Sales Analysis

Here are the latest sales numbers for all homes sold within the City of La Quinta as well as all Golf Course homes in La Quinta through June, 2012.

 

 

 

 

The blue lines represent 2008 data, the orange lines represent 2009 data magenta lines
represent 2010, green lines represent 2011 data and the purple lines represent 2012 data.

Open escrows in La Quinta on June 30th decreased over May by 15.9%. The decrease in escrows is due to the onslought of heat as we move into the summer months. As you can see from the graph, this is a normal trend. The Coachella Valley Inventory has decreased by 7.0% over the past month which is a great sign for our economy. The number of “Active Listings” on the Coachella Valley MLS has dropped 42.4% from January 2011 and 55.9% from January, 2010. The “Active” inventory of resale homes in the Citrus community, for instance, is down to 2.4% where 10% is considered normal for a gated community. The number of escrows at the end of June for the more expensive Golf Properties decreased by 24.6% over May. The valley’s inventory continues to shrink increasing the demand. The increased demand helps stablize the market pricing over the lower priced short sales and bank owned properties. The unsold inventory continues to decline, prices in some areas, like the La Quinta Cove, continue to increase slowly.

The number of unit sales within the city decreased in June by 7.5% over May which may be attributed to declining inventory but we expect that sales will continue to be near or higher than past summers as sales are continuing to pick up in the bigger metro markets allowing people to sell there current homes and purchase a retirement property here in the desert.

The number of “short sales” and “bank owned” properties being offered at reduced prices continue to be tapering off. There were only 22 Bank owned homes sold in La Quinta in June. Most lenders seem to be dealing more efficiently with the inventory of distressed properties although short sales and/or foreclosures can still be a challenge and they are still affecting the prices in the entire market as they are included as comparable homes by the buyers.

 

 

 

 

 

Golf Course home sales in La Quinta.

Like the total sales number for the City, the sales-volume numbers in the higher-end market (which contains many of the golf properties in the chart above) decreased 12.3% in June over May.

Overall, we continue to see more positive signs in the market place and the media continues to be encouraging. We are anticipating a good finish for the rest of 2012. The mortgage industry is the best it’s been for conventional loans and even the “jumbo” loans, are becoming easier to get.. Coachella Valley Inventory: On June, 30, there were 3,393 active listings (down 10.1% from May), 2,575 units were in escrow (down 13.2% from May) totaling 5,968 units (Down 11.5% from May) available for sale which makes 43.15% of the total inventory in escrow (down 2.0% from May). If buying property is something on your list (especially golf property), why not take advantage of the incredible prices and seller incentives now, when sellers will work with you, instead of in the future, when the demand starts to catch up with the supply? Especially if you’re buying and planning to hold for 5+ years.

Here are some yearly sales figures (units) for the City of La Quinta from 2002:

Year All LQ Golf Course
2002 1,354 259
2003 1,565 652
2004 1,931 813
2005 1,553 657
2006 1,098 491
2007   935 447
2008 1,063 416
2009 1,155 418
2010 1,355 530
2011 1,446 520
2012 YTD   849 365

* Remember that the sales numbers represent “Closed” escrows. Since the average escrow is between 45 and 60 days, the decision to purchase the homes that closed in June was probably made in March to early April.

Source: DesertAreaMLS

 

 

 

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April and May 2012 Real Estate Sales Analysis

Here are the latest sales numbers for all homes sold within the City of La Quinta as well as all Golf Course homes in La Quinta through May, 2012.

City of La Quinta home sales by month since January, 2008*

The blue lines represent 2008 data, the orange lines represent 2009 data magenta lines represent 2010, green lines represent 2011 data and the purple lines represent 2012 data.

By the time we got around to writing up the April Sales Analysis, the May numbers were available so this time we will combine the good news from both months.

Open escrows in La Quinta on April 31st increased over March by 1.4% but then decreased by 2.5% in May. The decresae in escrows is due to the season winding down as we move into the summer months. The Coachella Valley Inventory has decreased by 11.5% over the past two months which is a great sign for our economy.  The number of escrows at the end of April for the more expensive Golf Properties increased by 0.8% over March but decreased by 6.2% in May.  The valley’s inventory continues to shrink increasing the demand. The increased demand helps stablize the market pricing over the lower priced short sales and bank owned properties. The unsold inventory has declined 47.2% over the high in January, 2011. Prices in some areas, like the La Quinta Cove, are acutally increasing slowly.

The number of unit sales within the City decreased in April slightly and bounced back in May within 5 units from the record month of February. We expect that sales will continue to outpace past summers as sales are picking up in the bigger metro markets allowing people to sell there current homes and purchase a retirement property here in paradise.

The number of “short sales” and “bank owned” properties being offered at reduced prices seem to be tapering off. There were only 28 Bank owned homes sold in La Quinta in May and the current Inventory according to the MLS is only 9 but that changes almost daily.  Most lenders seem to be dealing more efficiently with the inventory of distressed properties although short sales and/or foreclosures can still be a challenge and they are still affecting the prices in the entire market as they are included as Comparable homes by the buyers.

Closed home sales in La Quinta in May was the second strongest month after March since we started tracking this number in 2008.

 

 

 

 

 

 
Golf Course home sales in La Quinta.

Like the total sales number for the City, the sales-volume numbers in the higher-end market (which contains many of the golf properties in the chart above) decreased in April slightly but bounced back to near record levels in May.

Overall, we are seeing more positive signs in the market place and the media continues to be encouraging. We are anticipating a good finish for the rest of 2012. The mortgage industry is the best it’s been for conventional loans and even the “jumbo” loans, are becoming easier to get..

Coachella Valley Inventory:
On May, 31, there were 3,774 active listings (down 18.8% from March), 2,968 units were in escrow (down 0.2% from March) totaling 6,742 units (Down 11.5% from March) available for sale which makes 44.02% of the total inventory in escrow (up 12.8% from March) –This trend is an indicator of increasing home sales for the months of April and May.

If buying property is something on your list (especially golf property), why not take advantage of the incredible prices and seller incentives now, when sellers will work with you, instead of in the future, when the demand starts to catch up with the supply? Especially if you’re buying and planning to hold for 5+ years.

Here are some yearly sales figures (units) for the City of La Quinta from 2002:

Year All LQ Golf Course
2002 1,354 259
2003 1,565 652
2004 1,931 813
2005 1,553 657
2006 1,098 491
2007   935 447
2008 1,063 416
2009 1,155 418
2010 1,355 530
2011 1,446 520
2012 YTD   699 300

* Remember that the sales numbers represent “Closed” escrows. Since the average escrow is between 45 and 60 days, the decision to purchase the homes that closed in June was probably made in March to early April.

Source: DesertAreaMLS

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March 2012 Real Estate Sales Analysis

Here are the latest sales numbers for all homes sold within the City of La Quinta as well as all Golf Course homes in La Quinta through March, 2012.


City of La Quinta home sales by month since January, 2008*

The blue lines represent 2008 data, the orange lines represent 2009 data magenta lines represent 2010, green lines represent 2011 data and the purple lines represent 2012 data.

Open escrows in La Quinta on March 31st increased over the previous month by 17.3% (same increase as February) . This increase can again be explained by the increase in unit sales activity for the month of March over February, decreasing the inventory. The number of escrows at the end of March for the more expensive Golf Properties increased by 22.9% over February (also the same as February) while that demographics unit sales also increased to the highest monthly sales since 2007. This increase in sales is allowing the valley’s inventory to shrink increasing the demand.  The increased demand helps stablize the market pricing over the lower priced short sales and bank owned properties. The unsold inventory has declined 35% over the high in January, 2011.

The number of unit sales within the City increased in March over February and outpaced every month since we started to track these numbers in 2008. We expect that April sales will be the almost as strong as March but slightly lower.

The number of “short sales” and “bank owned” properties being offered at reduced prices seem to be tapering off and the banks are continuing to improve their ability to handle these transactions. Most lenders seem to be dealing more efficiently with the inventory of distressed properties although short sales and/or foreclosures can still be a challenge and they are still affecting the prices in the entire market.

Closed home sales in La Quinta in March showed a 24.8% increase from the month of February. This increase, as you can see in the charts below, is an annual trend attributed to our “season”.


Golf Course home sales in La Quinta.

The sales-volume numbers in the higher-end market (which contains many of the golf properties in the chart above) increased 33.1% in March over February. The average price per square foot increased 23.8% in March over February. This shows the affect of less short sales and bank owned “deals”.

Overall, we are still seeing positive signs in the market place and the media continues to be encouraged. We are anticipating a strong season and a good year ahead.

The mortgage industry is the best it’s been for conventional loans but the “jumbo” loans, although becoming more available, continue to be a stumbling block in the higher end market.

Coachella Valley Inventory:
On March 31, there were 4,647 active listings (down 10.6% from February), 2,974 units were in escrow (up 9.3% from February) totaling 7,621 units (Down 3.8% from February) available for sale which makes 39.02% of the total in Escrow (up 13.7% from February) –This trend is an indicator of increasing home sales for the month of April. If buying property is something on your list (especially golf property), why not take advantage of the incredible prices and seller incentives now, when sellers will work with you, instead of in the future, when the demand starts to catch up with the supply? Especially if you’re buying and planning to hold for 5+ years.

Here are some yearly sales figures (units) for the City of La Quinta from 2002:

Year All LQ Golf Course
2002 1,354 259
2003 1,565 652
2004 1,931 813
2005 1,553 657
2006 1,098 491
2007   935 447
2008 1,063 416
2009 1,155 418
2010 1,355 530
2011 1,446 520
2012 YTD   391 158

* Remember that the sales numbers represent “Closed” escrows. Since the average escrow is between 45 and 60 days, the decision to purchase the homes that closed in June was probably made in March to early April.

Source: DesertAreaMLS

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La Quinta Cove Sales Analysis

In this market update, we look at the least expensive home community in La Quinta to gain a better understanding of what might happen with the rest of the real estate market.  Below are the graphs referenced in this video.  Please note: All graphs are provided by a 3rd party software tool created by Trend Graphix and use data from the Desert Area MLS system.

 

La Quinta Cove Sales Activity From the past 3 years

 

La Quinta Cove Sales Activity From the past 3 years

 

La Quinta Cove Sales Activity From the past 3 years

 

La Quinta Cove Sales Activity From the past 3 years

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February 2012 Real Estate Sales Analysis

Here are the latest sales numbers for all homes sold within the City of La Quinta as well as all Golf Course homes in La Quinta through February, 2012.


City of La Quinta home sales by month since January, 2008*

The blue lines represent 2008 data, the orange lines represent 2009 data magenta lines represent 2010, green lines represent 2011 data and the purple lines represent 2012 data.

Open escrows in La Quinta on February 29th increased over the previous month by 17.3%. This increase can be explained by the increase in unit sales activity for the month of February over January, decreasing the inventory. The number of escrows for the more expensive Golf Properties increased by 22.9% over the previous month while that demographics unit sales also increased. This increase in sales is allowing the valley’s inventory to shrink slightly decreasing the supply during an increased demand helps offset the overall market pricing over the lower priced short sales and bank owned properties.

The number of unit sales within the City increased in February over January but did not outpace February sales from last year. It appears that March sales will be the strongest single month since we started tracking these numbers in 2008.

The number of “short sales” and “bank owned” properties being offered at reduced prices seem to be remaining at high levels but the banks are improving their ability to handle these transactions and beginning to figure these transactions out. Most lenders seem to be dealing more efficiently with the inventory of distressed properties although short sales and/or foreclosures can still be a challenge and they are still affecting the prices in the entire market.

Closed home sales in La Quinta in February showed a 20.6% increase from the month of January. This increase, as you can see in the charts below, is an annual trend attributed to the beginning of our “season”.


Golf Course home sales in La Quinta.

The sales-volume numbers in the higher-end market (which contains many of the golf properties in the chart above) increased 37.1% in February over January. The average price per square foot decreased 11.8% in February over January. This shows the affect of more short sales and bank owned “deals”.

Overall, we are still seeing positive signs in the market place and the media continues to be encouraged. We are anticipating a strong season and a good year ahead.

The mortgage industry is the best it’s been for conventional loans but the “jumbo” loans, although becoming more available, continue to be a stumbling block in the higher end market.

Coachella Valley Inventory: On February 29, there were 5,199 active listings (down 5.0% from January), 2,720 units were in escrow (up 14.7% from January) totaling 7,919 units (up 0.9% from January) available for sale which makes 34.35% of the total in Escrow (up 13.7% from January) –This trend is an indicator of increasing home sales for the month of March. If buying property is something on your list (especially golf property), why not take advantage of the incredible prices and seller incentives now, when sellers will work with you, instead of in the future, when the demand starts to catch up with the supply? Especially if you’re buying and planning to hold for 5+ years.

Here are some yearly sales figures (units) for the City of La Quinta from 2002:

Year All LQ Golf Course
2002 1,354 259
2003 1,565 652
2004 1,931 813
2005 1,553 657
2006 1,098 491
2007 935 447
2008 1,063 416
2009 1,155 418
2010 1,355 530
2011 1,446 520
2012 YTD 225 83

* Remember that the sales numbers represent “Closed” escrows. Since the average escrow is between 45 and 60 days, the decision to purchase the homes that closed in June was probably made in March to early April.

Source: DesertAreaMLS

 

 

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January 2012 Real Estate Sales Analysis

Here are the latest sales numbers for all homes sold within the City of La Quinta as well as all Golf Course homes in La Quinta through January, 2012.

City of La Quinta home sales by month since January, 2008*

The blue lines represent 2008 data, the orange lines represent 2009 data magenta lines represent 2010, green lines represent 2011 data and the purple lines represent 2012 data.

Open escrows in La Quinta on January 31st increased over the previous month by 17.9%. This increase can be explained by the decrease in unit sales for the month of January over December, increasing the inventory. The number of escrows for the more expensive Golf Properties increased by 10.3% over the previous month while that demographics unit sales decreased. This decrease in sales is allowing the valley’s inventory to grow slightly and helps stabilize the market pricing.

The number of unit sales within the City were less than December but were the strongest “January” since before 2008. This strong January will hopefully be the beginning of a strong season.

The number of “short sales” and “bank owned” properties being offered at reduced prices seem to be remaining at high levels and, athough the banks are very slowly beginning to figure these transactions out, most lenders seem to be dealing more efficiently with the inventory of distressed properties although short sales and/or foreclosures can still be a challenge and they are still affecting the prices in the entire market. Closed home sales in La Quinta in January showed a 25.5% decrease from the month of December. This decrease, as you can see in the charts below, is an annual trend attributed to the beginning of our “season”.


Golf Course home sales in La Quinta.

The sales-volume numbers in the higher-end market (which contains many of the golf properties in the chart above) decreased 32.7% in January over December. The average price per square foot decreased 2.8% in January over December. This shows the affect of fewer short sales and bank owned “deals” that made up a lot of the summer sales.

Overall, we are still seeing positive signs in the market place and the media continues to be encouraged. We are anticipating a strong season and a good year ahead.

The mortgage industry is the best it’s been for conventional loans but the “jumbo” loans, although becoming more available, continue to be a stumbling block in the higher end market.

Coachella Valley Inventory:
On January 31, there were 5,475 active listings (up 0.6% from December), 2,371 units were in escrow (up 14.1% from December) totaling 7,846 units (up 4.4% from December) available for sale which makes 30.22% of the total in Escrow (up 9.3% from December) –This trend is an indicator of increasing home sales for the month of January.

If buying property is something on your list (especially golf property), why not take advantage of the incredible prices and seller incentives now, when sellers will work with you, instead of in the future, when the demand starts to catch up with the supply? Especially if you’re buying and planning to hold for 5+ years.

Here are some yearly sales figures (units) for the City of La Quinta from 2002:

Year All LQ Golf Course
2002 1,354 259
2003 1,565 652
2004 1,931 813
2005 1,553 657
2006 1,098 491
2007 935 447
2008 1,063 416
2009 1,155 418
2010 1,355 530
2011 1,446 520
2012 YTD 102 35

* Remember that the sales numbers represent “Closed” escrows. Since the average escrow is between 45 and 60 days, the decision to purchase the homes that closed in June was probably made in March to early April.

Source: DesertAreaMLS

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December 2011 Real Estate Sales Analysis

Here are the latest sales numbers for all homes sold within the City of La Quinta as well as all Golf Course homes in La Quinta through December, 2011.


City of La Quinta home sales by month since January, 2008*

The blue lines represent 2008 data, the orange lines represent 2009 data magenta lines represent 2010 and the green lines represent 2011 data.

Open escrows in La Quinta on December 31st decreased over the previous month by 13.3%. This decrease can be explained by the 50.5% increase in unit sales for the month of December reducing the inventory. The number of escrows for the more expensive Golf Properties decreased by 8.1% over the previous month while that demographics unit sales increased by 62.5%. This increase in sales is depleating the valley’s inventory and stabilizing the market pricing.

The number of unit sales within the City were the strongest since June and were the strongest “December” since before 2008. The unit sales in 2011 are the strongest since 2008 showing a 26.5% increase.

The number of “short sales” and “bank owned” properties being offered at reduced prices seem to be remaining at high levels and, athough the banks are very slowly beginning to figure these transactions out, most lenders seem to be dealing more efficiently with the inventory of distressed properties although short sales and/or foreclosures can still be a challenge and they are still affecting the prices in the entire market.

Closed home sales in La Quinta in December showed a 50.5% increase over November. This increase, as you can see in the charts below, is an annual trend attributed to the beginning of our “season”.


Golf Course home sales in La Quinta.

The sales-volume numbers in the higher-end market (which contains many of the golf properties in the chart above) increased 33.3% in December over November. The average price per square foot increased 30.4% in December over November. This shows the affect of fewer short sales and bank owned “deals” that made up a lot of the summer sales.

Overall, we are still seeing positive signs in the market place and even the media seems to be encouraged. We are anticipating a strong season and a good year ahead.

The mortgage industry is the best it’s been for conventional loans but the “jumbo” loans, although becoming more available, continue to be a stumbling block in the higher end market.

Coachella Valley Inventory:
On December 31, there were 5,440 active listings (down 1.4% from November), 2,078 units were in escrow (down 13.5% from November) totaling 7,518 units (down 5.1% from November) available for sale which makes 27.64% of the total in Escrow (down 8.9% from November) –This trend is an indicator of increasing home sales.
If buying property is something on your list (especially golf property), why not take advantage of the incredible prices and seller incentives now, when sellers will work with you, instead of in the future, when the demand starts to catch up with the supply? Especially if you’re buying and planning to hold for 5+ years.

Here are some yearly sales figures (units) for the City of La Quinta from 2002:

Year All LQ Golf Course
2002 1,354 259
2003 1,565 652
2004 1,931 813
2005 1,553 657
2006 1,098 491
2007 935 447
2008 1,063 416
2009 1,155 418
2010 1,355 530
2011 YTD 1,446 520

* Remember that the sales numbers represent “Closed” escrows. Since the average escrow is between 45 and 60 days, the decision to purchase the homes that closed in June was probably made in March to early April.

Source: DesertAreaMLS

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November 2011 Real Estate Sales Analysis

Here are the latest sales numbers for all homes sold within the City of La Quinta as well as all Golf Course homes in La Quinta through November, 2011.

Unit sales in La Quinta, California
City of La Quinta home sales by month since January, 2008*

The blue lines represent 2008 data, the orange lines represent 2009 data magenta lines represent 2010 and the green lines represent 2011 data.

Open escrows in La Quinta in November again increased over the previous month by 14.9% while the number of escrows for the more expensive Golf Properties increased by 52.4% over the previous month. This is expected as we start to see activity pick up as we move into our “season”.

The number of unit sales within the City has remained strong although the 13.7% increase over October did not surpass the sales of November, 2010. YTD unit sales in 2011 have been the strongest since 2008.

The number of “short sales” and “bank owned” properties being offered at reduced prices seem to be remaining at higher levels then in the past and this is affecting the prices in the entire market.

Closed home sales in La Quinta in October showed a 13.7% increase over October. This increase is attributed to the beginning of our “season”.

The slightly increasing mortgage interest rates may add some urgency to our industry. Remember that although you “may” get a home at a lower price if you wait, the mortgage interest rate will likely be higher so the purchase will wind up costing you more over time.

Golf Course property sales in La Quinta, California
Golf Course home sales in La Quinta.

The sales-volume numbers in the higher-end market (which contains many of the golf properties in the chart above) increased 33.3% in November over October. The average price per square foot increased 30.4% in November over October. This shows the affect of fewer short sales and bank owned “deals” that made up a lot of the summer sales.

Overall, we are still seeing positive signs in the market place. Although not earth shaking, unit sales through the “Summer” months have been stronger than any “summer” since 2008 as has been the year.

The mortgage industry is the best it’s ever been for conventional loans but the “jumbo” loans, although becoming more available, continue to be a stumbling block in the higher end market. Most lenders seem to be trying to deal more efficiently with the inventory of distressed properties although dealing with a short sale of foreclosure can still be a challenge.

Coachella Valley Inventory:
On November 30, there were 5,517 active listings (up 4.0% from October), 2,402 units were in escrow (up 5.6% from October) totaling 7,919 units (up 4.5% from October) available for sale which makes 30.33% of the total in Escrow (up 1.0% from October) –This trend is an indicator of homes coming on the market for the  season ahead.

If buying property is something on your list (especially golf property), why not take advantage of the incredible prices and seller incentives now, when sellers will work with you, instead of in the future, when the demand starts to catch up with the supply? Especially if you’re buying and planning to hold for 5+ years.

Here are some yearly sales figures (units) for the City of La Quinta from 2002:

Year All LQ Golf Course
2002 1,354 259
2003 1,565 652
2004 1,931 813
2005 1,553 657
2006 1,098 491
2007 935 447
2008 1,063 416
2009 1,155 418
2010 1,355 530
2011 YTD 1,308 468

* Remember that the sales numbers represent “Closed” escrows. Since the average escrow is between 45 and 60 days, the decision to purchase the homes that closed in June was probably made in March to early April.

Source: DesertAreaMLS

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October 2011 Real Estate Sales Analysis

Here are the latest sales numbers for all homes sold within the City of La Quinta as well as all Golf Course homes in La Quinta through October, 2011.


City of La Quinta home sales by month since January, 2008*
The blue lines represent 2008 data, the orange lines represent 2009 data magenta
lines represent 2010 and the green lines represent 2011 data.

Open escrows in La Quinta in October increased over the previous month by 8.8% while the number of escrows for the more expensive Golf Properties increased by 26.1% over the previous month. This being the end of “summer”, the expected downturn should start to turn around and we should start to see activity pick up as we move into our “season”.

The number of unit sales within the City has remained stronger through the summer months then in years past but declined in October. The number of “short sales” and “bank owned” properties being offered at reduced prices seem to be remaining at higher levels then in the past and this is affecting the entire market.

Closed home sales in La Quinta in October showed a 29.2% decrease over September. This could well be attributed to the unusually high sales in the hot, summer months.

The slightly increasing mortgage interest rates may add some urgency to our industry. Remember that although you “may” get a home at a lower price if you wait, the mortgage interest rate will likely be higher so the purchase will wind up costing you more over time.


Golf Course home sales in La Quinta.

The sales-volume numbers in the higher-end market (which contains many of the golf properties in the chart above) decreased 34.4% in October over September. The average price per square foot decreased 16.6% in October over September. This shows the affect of the short sales and bank owned “deals” that made up a lot of those sales.

Overall, we are still seeing positive signs in the market place. Although not earth shaking, unit sales through the “Summer” months have been stronger than any “summer” since 2008.

The mortgage industry is the best it’s ever been for conventional loans but the “jumbo” loans, although becoming more available, continue to be a stumbling block in the higher end market. Most lenders seem to be trying to deal more efficiently with the inventory of distressed properties although dealing with a short sale of foreclosure can still be a challenge.

Coachella Valley Inventory:
On October 31, there were 5,303 active listings (up 5.2% from September), 2,275 units in escrow (up 1.7% from September) totaling 7,578 units (up 4.1% from September) available for sale which makes 30.02% of the total in Escrow (up 2.3% from September) – the reversal of this trend is an indicator of homes coming on the market for the new season ahead.

If buying property is something on your list (especially golf property), why not take advantage of the incredible prices and seller incentives now, when sellers will work with you, instead of in the future, when the demand starts to catch up with the supply? Especially if you’re buying and planning to hold for 5+ years.

Here are some yearly sales figures (units) for the City of La Quinta from 2002:

Year All LQ Golf Course
2002 1,354 259
2003 1,565 652
2004 1,931 813
2005 1,553 657
2006 1,098 491
2007 935 447
2008 1,063 416
2009 1,155 418
2010 1,355 530
2011 YTD 1,215 429

* Remember that the sales numbers represent “Closed” escrows. Since the average escrow is between 45 and 60 days, the decision to purchase the homes that closed in June was probably made in March to early April.

Source: DesertAreaMLS