5 Year Trend of Sales in Long Beach in 3 Different Zip Codes

What is going on in each zip code in Long Beach? You know the saying "Real Estate is local." This is no more apparent then when you start looking at how many homes are sold in a particular zip code over a period of time. The chart in this post represents 5 years worth of sales in 3 different zip codes for the month of April.

There are some questions that may or may not be going through your mind at the moment and I want to add a couple more to the mix.

As they say if we don't learn from history we are doomed to repeat it. Let's see if we can get answers to some of these questions:

• What can we really tell by one month?
• What does this tell us about the future?
• What does this tell us about the areas?

So what Zip Codes and areas are we covering? Well we are covering the following 3 zip codes in this report:

• 90805 - This is referred to primarily as North Long Beach.
• 90802 - This area includes most of downtown long beach and there is a high density of condos to choose from in this zip code.
• 90807 - Known as Bixby Knolls just north of the 405 freeway off of Long Beach Blvd. To be fair there are many sub areas of Bixby Knolls that you should take a look at and you can see those at http://www.lovelybixbyknollshomes.com/.

What does it all mean?

• The 90807 sales are up over 10%! There are construction projects and businesses making moves in Bixby Knolls.
• 90802 - Sales in Downtown are down from 5 years ago. There is more inventory to choose from and buyers have new contruction and resales to choose from. The good news is that the sales from 2007 to 2008 remained flat.
• 90805 - Sales in North Long Beach are up from last year and are on a pace with previous years. This area also has business and city development to assist with growth.

The future is not as bleak as it seems. It is funny how 5 years goes by so quickly. You want to make sure to look to the long term when purchasing a home or a condo. Take a look at the different areas at the MLS to the right or at http://www.lovelylongbeachhomes.com/ to see what you can choose from.

Related Posts

• Bixby Knolls Updates for May 2008

You snooze, You Lose....The House That You Always Wanted

For all of the media attention on the fact that it is a "buyer's market" and there are so many choices, when you get down to it, there might not be as many choices as you anticipate. With just 1,841 home and condo options available as of the end of April (see Long Beach Real Estate Statistics for last month), you need to dig carefully through the Long Beach MLS to find the property that is right for you.

Want a real life example of dissappearing inventory?

If you were looking in the Bixby Village complex just over 4 weeks ago, you had 5 different townhomes to choose from. You could choose from models just over 1,700 sq ft to the largeest ones in the complex that are over 2,000 sq ft. If you searched on May 12th though, you would find that you had 0 to choose from! Now, some of these properties has been on the market over the average days on market of 72, but with fewer choices, buyers have now picked them up. In fact if you searched for townhomes nearby you would find that you could only find them in next door Whaler's Cove.

Don't Miss Out

Although I think a real estate agent would be crazy to say that Long Beach real estate is hot again like it was in 2003 and 2004 it does show you that you need to keep a careful eye on the inventory. With historically low interest rates and inventory that is the best we have seen in years now is the time to keep a careful watch to find the Long Beach home or condo you have been waiting for, just don't wait to long!

Get up to the minute updates on the properties that meet your needs by using the Long Beach MLS.

Belmont Shore & Naples Report for April 2008

So the other day we made sure to let you know what was going on in Belmont Heights and Alamitos Beach. Today we thought we would take that look backward and see what is happening in Belmont Shore & Naples.

So let's see what we have in Belmont Heights and Naples as far as inventory and what has happened.

• Active Properties Available - 83 wonderful properties to choose from
• Total Properties in Escrow - 12 ( 5 in Pending, 7 in Backup)
• Properties Expired - 7

This shows again that the markets close to the water continue to have sufficient buyer demand for the sellers that want to sell. There is a total of 6.9 months of inventory available and this isn't much at all to choose from.

If you look further at the price ranges in this area of Long Beach you see the following of what is available on the market:

• Average Price: $1,434,375
• Max Price : $5,000,000
• Most Affordable In the area $399,900

So the high rent district so to speak of Long Beach hasn't been much affected by the overall real estate market. This is something worth watching and looking into if you desire a home in this area. Go ahead and check out the what is available on the MLS by clicking on the icon to the right.

Belmont Heights & Alamitos Beach Report for May 2008

Wondering how we can tell the future and report on May when it isn't even over? Trust me I completely understand. What I thought I would do today is report on what is currently available in Belmont Heights and Alamitos Beach. That way instead of looking back we can look forward and maybe get the information out to a few people who want to take some action in their lives and either buy or sell their Belmont Heights home or Belmont Heights Condo. We are going to be reporting on Alamitos Beach as well because according to how the MLS breaks up the areas Belmont Heights and Alamitos Beach are in the same area. If you want to see what is available you can always check out the free mls by clicking on the icon in the right hand side bar.

So let's see what we what we have going on so you can make a decision about what you want to do.

Belmont Heights & Alamitos Beach Report for May 2008

• Total Active Properties - 119 Active Homes and Condos
• Total Properties in Escrow (Pending & Backup) - 32 (16 in Backup & 16 in Pending)
• Average Price - $702,000
• Most Expensive: $1,799,900
• Most Affordable: $210,000

So what does this all mean? Let's look at the fact that there are 32 properties in escrow. That means that there are only 3.7 months supply of property. That would be the Belmont Heights & Alamitos Beach market in a buyers market. Remember under 6 months is considered a buyers market. Now the great part is you can still get a place to live for $210,000 in a great area. You may not get to wait to make your decision as a buyer and as long as you are pricing your home competitively you will have a chance at a pool of motivated buyers.

Good luck and happy buying and selling in Belmont Heights and Alamitos Beach.

Long Beach Real Estate Statistics for April 2008

The Long Beach Market Report

It is the first of the month and like payroll checks we list the real estate sales statistics for Long Beach. So let's take a look and see what happened the previous month in Long Beach, CA.

The market is moving. Just this week a buyer purchased a very nice condo in downtown for $150,000!

So let's look at the activity in the Long Beach Real Estate market for April 2008.

• Total Active Listings: 1,841
• Total Expired Listings: 189
• Total Listings Sold (Pending & Backup): 240
• New Listings: 428

So the sales are moving up in the right direction. The fact is homes are selling and people are working together to get deals done. The overall inventory in Long Beach is not increasing at a dramatic level. In fact from March to April the Active inventory has actually decreased. So deals are happening you just have to put an offer across.

We will continue to report on the different areas of Long Beach so that everyone can see what their neighborhood is doing in the stat reports.

Related Posts

• Belmont Heights & Alamitos Beach Report
• Belmont Shore & Naples Report

March 2008 Home Statistics for Long Beach CA

So March has come and gone and what do we have to show for it? Well we still have a few properties on the market and some buyers and sellers still made things happen for themselves.

Let's take a look at the long beach real estate market and see exactly what happened.

Before we get into the actual numbers I thought I would give everyone a few points about what is happening out on the streets with real estate. These things are happening in Long Beach and around so they are affecting the long beach real estate market as well as those of surrounding cities.

• Multiple offers on properties - that's right even in "this" market multiple offers are coming in. It just depends on the price and condition of the property.
• Multiple counters - sellers and buyers are working together to find terms that work for both parties.

These are signs of a very active real estate market in long beach even if the data doesn't show it.

What do the numbers tell us:

• 141 Properties Sold - At this pace we have a 13 month supply of residential properties. This would put us in a "buyers market". Not all areas of Long Beach are a buyers market as we will cover in upcoming posts.
• 404 new listings - a large number of properties are being listed so sellers are out there working to get a buyer for their properties.

The market is tough but doable. There are still properties being sold. You just have to get a little creative with things so keep a watch on the prices in your neighborhood. You can always use the Free MLS tool on this blog to see what is available in your neighborhood.

Year to Date Home Sales for Long Beach CA

March has come and gone and we are in to April. So did March bring us a windfall or a shortfall for sales? Were sales up or down? Well we won't know till we look at the data. So let's take a look at the number of properties sold year to date in Long Beach. I have included all residential sales reported as closed through the MLS. The chart does not reflect sales of properties over 4 units.

Remember that numbers can be made to confess to anything so let's see what they are willing to tell us today.

1. Total Sales Year to Date: 358 (January 1st 2008 to March 31st 2008)
2. Last Years Sales to Date: 813 for the same period.

So the number of sales that took place was over 50% less than the same period as the year before. There are several reasons for this.

• First, the impression has been that it is not a good time to buy real estate which has scared some buyers. Rates are still extremely low when you look at history.
• Loan guidelines have adjusted. This means that while first time home buyers were still able to get homes many move up buyers were not able to as mortgage companies changed the requirements for loans.
• Sellers had not adjusted their prices to reflect the market conditions.

While sales are down the price of residential properties is not down 50%. Certain areas of the city have had pricing pressure but homes are not 50% of what they used to be. We will be covering what else the numbers are telling us in this first week of April.

Belmont Shore Real Estate Sales for March 2008

Belmont Heights Sales for March 2008

OK so the month is not over yet but we thought for St. Patrick's we would give an update on an area that we get tons of questions on and happens to be located close the the water and in high demand.

So what is going on in Belmont Heights in Long Beach this March? Well we currently have 66 active homes listed for sale and 8 properties that are in some stage of escrow. What does all of this mean?

• 12% of the properties are in some stage of escrow. This is quite good for not only the time of year but in comparison to other areas of the city.
• We have a 8.25 months supply of homes. This would put Belmont Heights not quite in a sellers market but in an even market for sure.
• List to sales price ratio continues to stay above 96%. This is the average discount that a buyer is receiving which is just above 4%. This is great for both the buyers and the sellers.

Belmont Heights continues to draw attention as a highly desirable place to live in Long Beach. At a recent open house in the area over 150 people went through a house on Mira mar 3 weeks in a row! Real estate is local to the area not just the city and Belmont Heights continues to be in demand.

Los Angeles County Condo Sales for January 2008

Have all the condo buyers disappeared? Well I don't think so but let's take a look at what is happening across Los Angeles County. The chart to the left represents sales of Los Angeles county condos for January of this year, 2008, and compares it to last years sales in January. So purchases of condos in January of this year was down over 50% from the same period last year.

While we don't have it in the chart condo sales last year were also down from 2006. So what, if anything does all of this actually mean? Well let's discuss a few points and see what others have to say about the values, sales, and number of condos that will or won't be sold this year in Los Angeles County which includes the fine city of Long Beach.

• 2006 was a record year for real estate transactions and condos were no exception to this so the fact that 2007 was down from 2006 should not be a big surprise.
• January is typically a slow month for sales of real estate and there were more market concerns this year than the previous year. In my opinion many over reacted to how bad they felt the market would be.
• Values are not down 50%. That is HUGE news. Many thought things would fall apart but while sales volume is down 50% the prices of the condos in Los Angeles County are not down 50%.
• Condos are still being sold. The number is 1 or 2. We still had 758 homeowners find qualified buyers to sell their condos to.

Condos are going to continue to be sold. Many see them as a first time place to own. Others see condos as a great place to go for retirement. Still others see them as a place that gets them closer to the areas that they work in the downtown's of Los Angeles County. While condos are seeing some pressure on price there is still room for buyers to get a square deal and for sellers to find a buyer for their place.

Long Beach Real Estate Results for November 2007

November has come and gone and Thanksgiving dinner is well behind us. There is still time to report on what happened in Long Beach real estate for November.


So let's take a look at what happened this past month.

• Number of Active properties at the end of the month: 1998
• Number of Expired Properties: 242
• Number of properties that sold: 141
• Number of new listings: 381

So what does all of this mean?

Well the number of properties that are being sold within a month continue to decline. It is the time of year where less properties are being sold overall as some buyers do not want to move during the holidays. However some of the most motivated buyers are around this time of year and that is an important thing to keep in mind.

Our overall inventory declined. This is a good thing. Sellers who were not completely motivated removed their property from the market.

The number of new listings was also down meaning that the number of properties that were newly listed declined from October. This also is a great sign that only sellers who are motivated to work with buyers want to list their homes for sale.

Even though the pace of buying has stopped it still appears that with interest rates staying low and motivated sellers it is a great time to be a buyer.

How many homes are selling in Los Angeles County

Everyone has been reading about what is selling and what is not selling but it is still hard to find out just how many homes have sold. Most cities within Los Angeles county have seen the demand for property drop. Overall rates have not shifted significantly from last year. It is still a great time to purchase when you look at where rates are historically. With that said the number of homes sold across Los Angeles County is down.

We thought we would chart for everyone the sales for the last couple of months of homes sold. This data comes from what has been recorded and does not include condos which we will include tomorrow.

So what does this chart tell us. It tells us a few things for sure.

• August 2007 sales are off slightly more than 42% from the same month as last year.
• September 2007 sales are off 57% from the same period as last year.

These numbers are quite sobering. 2006 was already a year that was down from the previous records and we are off well 2006 pace. The good news in this is that to borrow money and to use first time home buyer programs is still a great opportunity. If you are selling consider your listing price carefully and make sure that you are committed to selling your property. Understand as a seller the easier you make it for the buyer to purchase your property the easier everything will be.

Long Beach Statistics for October 2007

As a seller it is important to know who you are competing against or how many homes and condos that you are competing against when you list your piece of long beach ca real estate.

So what has been happening in Long Beach the past 3 months? Well the chart above shows the last 3 months of new listings compared to sold inventory. Just over 400 homes and condos are listed every month in Long Beach. Less than 200 are sold every month and as we get closer to Christmas the number of sold properties will get to around 150 properties. Also of note is the fact that at the time this is being written there are 2,167 active properties in the city of Long Beach. At the moment Long Beach has about 12 months of inventory available. This is not where we would like to be.

The heavy inventory areas, where buyers have more choices, are North Long Beach and Downtown Long Beach.

They key thing is to know how many homes are listed or available for sale within 1-2 miles of your property as that is where buyers are going to be looking. Also make sure the properties are of similar size and price as those are the ones that buyers will be looking at before deciding their purchase.

Long Beach Real Estate Results for October 2007

Now you might be saying that we haven't finished October yet so how could the results already bee in. Well we have compiled the data through this morning for Active, Sold, and Expired only so we will have more to report tomorrow when things are finished up today.

So what did happen in October and more importantly what has been happening this last 6 months? Well we put together a graph to make things a little easier to see.

Long Beach Results for October 2007

So what is happening. Well other than a slight drop in August more homes are coming on the market. The number of Expired homes has risen slightly. What does this mean? It may mean that some sellers cannot lower their price or they do not want to lower their price. Homes and condos are being sold and while sales are off almost 50% from last year that is the the same across Los Angeles County. So if you are looking to sell you can still do so even as more competition comes onto the market. Long Beach currently has 14.35 months of supply of properties (supply is calculated as Number of active properties\number of sold in the month) as a city although this varies by area which we will cover over the next several days.

North Long Beach Real Estate Results for September

The northern part of Long Beach is referred to as North Long Beach. This is an area of town that borders the cities of Compton, Carson, and Lakewood. This area can be easily reached by the 91 or 710 freeways. So what is happening in this area of town? Well let's take a look at the numbers to see. The chart to the left shows the activity level. The largest bar represents the number of active properties and the second largest bar is the number of new listings that have been taken in the area since the first of September and ending at the end of the month.

North Long Beach Real Estate Statistics for September 2007

• New Listings - 96


• Properties in Escrow - 31 ( 28 Pending, 3 Backup)


• Expired Properties - 57


• Total Active Listings at the end of Setpember - 426

Ok so what does this all mean. Well it means that North Long Beach has over 13 months supply of homes. This would mean that the market is Long Beach is a buyers market. There is certainly plenty of properties to choose from. Some properties are in turnkey condition but many are in need of repair. This represents ample opportunity for first time home buyers looking to buy a property that needs some work or investors who are looking to provide quality housing on a flip. Many properties have lots that could allow expansion of properties creating additional value as well.