This article presents information on buyer expectations and optimism, to be used as a tool for evaluating future sales volume in California real estate.

37,734 new and resale home transactions closed escrow in California during December 2011, up 4% from 36,215 transactions one year ago. December is the fifth consecutive month in which home sales volume surpassed corresponding months in 2010, which could indicate the beginning of a larger trend. Home sales volume was relatively flat from month to [...]

32,669 new and resale home transactions closed escrow in California during November 2011, up 4% from 31,403 transactions one year ago. November is the fourth consecutive month in 2011 in which home sales volume surpassed the corresponding month in 2010. [For more extensive history and analysis of monthly and annual home sales in California, see [...]

38,975 new and resale homes closed escrow in California during June 2011, down 11% from one year ago when 43,964 sales closed escrow. Combined home sales rose 10% from their May 2011 numbers. Little overall change from 2010’s numbers is expected through the end of 2012. Real estate owned (REO) resales accounted for roughly 40% [...]

35,202 new and resale homes closed escrow in California during April 2011, down 6% from one year ago when 37,481 sales closed escrow.  Home sales dropped slightly from their March 2011 numbers in both Northern and Southern California. The first four months of 2011 suggest the upcoming year will be characterized by a bumpy plateau [...]

36,417 new and resale homes closed escrow in California during March 2011, down 2.4% from one year ago when 37,295 sales closed escrow. Single family residence (SFR) sales volume broke its recent downward trend. The Bay Area recorded its highest number of March home sales since 2007. Real estate owned (REO) resales accounted for an [...]

32,669 new and resale homes closed escrow in California during October 2010, down 21% from one year ago when 41,280 sales closed escrow. Statewide, sales volume has continued to show its recent downward trend both in annual and monthly sales: home sales have dropped slowly but consistently since June of this year. Southern California (SoCal) [...]

35,202 new and resale homes closed escrow in California during July 2010, down 22% from one year ago when 45,079 sales closed escrow. Statewide, sales volume is showing a downward trend in recent months. One factor contributing to the sales decline was buyers taking advantage of the state and federal tax credits through the first [...]

Everyone expected home sales to fall once the federal homebuyer tax credit ran out at the end of April, but nobody foresaw a plunge as drastic as May’s sales – a 30% fall of signed sales contracts. According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), the pending home sales index has been increasing steadily but [...]

Statewide, 37,481 new and existing homes were sold in April, up .5 % from March, and down 1.3% from April one year ago. These sales do not include trustee’s sales completing foreclosures. [For more information on trustee’s sales, see the April 2010 first tuesday article, Increase in NODs and NOTS become a buildup of REOs] [...]