La Costa real estate housing market

The La Costa real estate market, part of the larger San Diego County housing market, showed a full year’s worth of rising median prices. This is indicative of a strong improvement in the area, although at least a portion of the economic recovery might have been driven by the expiring federal tax credit. According to a June 29, 2010 article from the Voice of San Diego, “San Diego County home prices rose 11.7 percent in April compared to same time last year. And prices were up 0.7 percent between this March and April, the 12th in a string of consecutive monthly price increases since prices hit a low last spring. The numbers out this morning from the Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller home price index show the one of the last months of the scramble for the federal homebuyer's tax credit. The analysts behind the index noted that though many metropolitan areas around the country showed these kinds of increases in April, this morning's report concluded that nationally, "home prices do not yet show signs of sustained recovery." San Diego was the only market out of the 20 the index measures that did not dip negative in the winter months. From the peak in November 2005, prices fell 42 percent to reach the market low in April 2009. Now they've roared back to a slighter 30.62 percent off the peak. San Diego County prices are still 61 percent higher than they were in January 2000.”

This positive trend for La Costa and San Diego County houses for sale has extended to the larger Southern California region. According to a June 15, 2010 report from the San Diego Union-Tribune, “Home prices throughout Southern California rose by 22.5 percent in May, the highest year-over-year jump in five years, MDA DataQuick reported Tuesday. But some housing economists say that pace will not hold up much longer. In fact, they think it could actually reverse course and result in lower prices by year’s end. The reason? Prices have risen only because the housing market is returning to a normal mix of low-, medium- and high-cost sales. From now on, it will be the economy, not interest rates or government stimulus programs, that determines supply, demand and price levels. And the economy is not recovering fast enough to stimulate much demand.”