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, 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 September decreased over the previous month by 18.2% while the number of escrows for the more expensive Golf Properties decreased by 25.8% from the previous month. This being the third “summer” month, the downturn is expected and sales most likely will start to rebound in October. The number of unit sales within the City has remained stronger through the summer months then in years past. 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 September showed a 9.6% decrease over August. We feel that although the general attitude of the majority of people we talk to is that the market has hit the bottom, we are beginning to hear some folks say they’re going to wait a little longer which is representative of the malaise in the consumer confidence level. 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 8.3% in September over August. The average price per square foot decreased 3.5% in September over August. 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 September 30, there were 5,042 active listings (up 1.7% from August), 2,237 units in escrow (down 4.4% from August) totaling 7,279 units (down 0.2% from August) available for sale which makes 30.73% of the total in Escrow (down 4.2% from August) – which means we are working on reducing the supply which will ultimately increase demand and improve the market.
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 | 1,133 | 412 |
* 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