La Jolla, Calif.-The Housing segment continues it's recovery as evidenced by homes sales that are assessed at 1 million dollars or more to its highest level since 2007. A leading agency that tracks home sales says this surge is fueled by a recovering economy, rising home prices and a record number of cash purchases. Homes sold for more than 5 million dollars are at an all-time high.
There are 8.66 million houses and condos in California. Of those, 246,318, or 2.8 percent, are assessed for $1 million or more by county assessor offices according to DataQuick.
A total of 26,993 homes sold for $1 million-plus last year, up 26.9 percent from 21,267 in 2011. It was the most sold since 42,502 homes crossed the million-dollar threshold in 2007.
Dataquick President John Walsh commented that "It should go without saying that buyers and sellers in the prestige market tend to respond to different motivations and incentives than the rest of the market." Walsh continued, "Job security, down payment sizes and mortgage interest rates don't play the same role. Returns on investments in a low interest-rate financial environment and safe-haven investing do play a role."
The sales distribution of luxury homes has shifted during the past two years, with record sales at the very high end. Statewide, 697 homes sold for more than $5 million last year, an all-time high and well above the previous high of 491 in 2011. In the $4-$5 million range a record 460 homes sold, well above 344 in 2011 (and 342 in 2005). In the $3-$4 million range, 1,104 homes sold, slightly ahead of 1,046 in 2005.
The million-dollar transactions include home sales where it could be determined from public records that there was a buyer, a seller, that money changed hands, and that there was a legal transfer of property ownership.
The most expensive confirmed purchase last year was an 8,930-square-foot, 4-bedroom, 4 1/2-bathroom home in Woodside built in 2005 on just under nine acres which sold for $117,500,000 in November. The largest was a 20,248 sq.ft. 7-bedroom, 13-bathroom mansion in Bel Air.
The median-sized home that sold for $1 million-plus was 2,641 sq.ft. with 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms. The median price paid per square foot for all million-dollar homes in 2012 was $641, up 5.5 percent from $607 in 2011. For the overall California market, the square-foot median was $162 last year, up 12.5 percent from $144 in 2011, DataQuick reported.
