As the economy opens up, we are seeing the June North County and San Diego real estate markets do the same. Pending sales and new listings are moving back up, although inventory is still very low.

This lack of inventory, low interest rates and high demand from millennials is keeping our market stable. And with the Fed’s recent announcement that they will continue to buy mortgage-backed securities, experts predict that mortgage rates will continue to remain low.

North County and San Diego Real Estate June 2020

Year-over prices were up 2.2 percent countywide and 0.5 percent in North County. Inventory was still down 36 to 37 percent compared to last May, and market times were shorter. There were 26 percent fewer new listings. Pending sales were 6 to 8 percent lower than last year, but that’s a big improvement over April’s 40 percent drop, and an indicator that buyers are coming back to the market more quickly than sellers.

See below for this month’s statistics and daily interest rate updates.

We have seen a significant drop in the number of homes selling in the North County and San Diego real estate markets due to COVID-19, but in April as in March, there was also a large decrease in active and new listings. In addition, the number of homes that are going under contract (pending) has increased quite a bit since the beginning of April as you can see in the chart below.

This is keeping the real estate market very competitive, especially with entry-level homes. Many homes are seeing multiple offers. They are selling more quickly and at a higher sales price to list price ratio than they were at the same time last year.

Does this mean that our real estate market will see no effect from COVID-19? Not necessarily. The Mortgage Bankers Association reports that as of May 10, 2020, slightly over 8 percent of loans nationwide were in forbearance. The San Diego and North County markets could be adversely affected by this, but most likely we won’t know what those effects are until 2021. And because there are so few homes available to purchase, the consequences may be minimal.

North County and San Diego Real Estate Markets

Year-over prices were up 4.3 percent countywide and 6.3 percent in North County. Inventory dropped by about one-third compared to the previous year, and market times were 31 percent shorter. New listings and pending sales all dropped by over 40 percent in both markets.

See below for this month’s statistics and daily interest rate updates.