California pending home sales improved from the previous month and year, however, overall market conditions appear to be slowing down and closed transactions plateauing, the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (C.A.R.) said Monday.
Cooling market conditions were reflected in C.A.R.’s September Market Pulse Survey, with most leading indicators showing a decline in growth and REALTORS® becoming less optimistic about market expectations and more concerned with lower housing affordability.
Statewide pending home sales increased in September on a seasonally adjusted basis, with the Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI)* rising 5.3% from 121.3 in August to 127.7 in September, based on signed contracts. On an annual basis, California pending home sales were up 10.5% from the September 2015 index of 115.5 – the sixth consecutive year-to-year increase.
At the regional level, for Southern California as a whole, pending sales dropped 4.6% on a monthly basis, the third month-to-month decline. On an annual basis, pending sales were up 15.3% in the region. Los Angeles, Orange, and San Diego counties posted healthy year-over-year increases of 15.9%, 13.3%, and 15.7%, respectively.
For the Bay Area as a whole, pending sales were 2% higher than August and 8.6% higher than September 2015, driven by strong year-over-year pending sales gains of 20.2% in San Mateo County and 24.2% in Santa Clara County. In San Francisco County, pending sales inched up 1.9%.
Overall pending sales in the Central Valley posted a 5% monthly increase and a 7.5% annual gain. One exception for the region was Kern County, where pending sales declined 4.5% from a year ago, due to a decline in oil prices and the economy’s reliance on the energy sector.
