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Orange County’s new-home median selling price is $1.06 million

by in News

  • New homes at Rancho Mission Viejo (File photo)

  • Homes start selling in the $800,000s at Prado at Cadence Park in Irvine’s Great Park Neighborhoods. (Sketch courtesy: KB Home)

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  • Zephyr, developers of South Cove in Dana Point, is starting work on Phase 4, which will bring 10 luxury condos to market. The condos are designed in two designs: single-story Aliso flats and the multilevel Trestles townhomes. (Courtesy of Zephyr)

  • New Home Co. is building 28 new homes in Ladera Ranch. (Sketch courtesy of New Home Co.)

  • New Home Co. is bring 40 luxury homes to Orange in the Marywood Hills project. (Courtesy: New Home Co.)

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Just HOW much for a new Orange County home?

In the 22 business days ending Aug. 8, CoreLogic found the median selling price of a newly constructed Orange County home was $1.06 million, up 24 percent vs. the year-ago period. If that price held for the full month it would break the record high of $1,014,000 million set in July.

The seven-figure price did not scare off buyers: 326 homes sold in the period, down 2.4 percent in a year.

Orange County’s new home median first hit $250,000 in November 1999. It took 13 years and four months to double past $500,000 in March 2013. Now five years and four months later, new homes have doubled again to surpass $1 million.

Let’s not overlook the fact that Orange County homebuilders are trying to sell their largest supply of completed new homes in 12 years. According to Metrostudy, local builders had 1,022 newly constructed residential units ready for immediate sale in the second quarter, up 340, or 50 percent, in a year.

“Standing inventory is not being absorbed as quickly by the market, due primarily to the growing share of luxury finished vacant inventory,” says Metrostudy analyst Drew Rodenbucher. “There is an enormous amount of pent-up demand below the $500,000 price point. However, there are few new homes below that price.

“In Orange County, finished-vacant inventory priced above $800,000 accounts for 70 percent of the total. As mortgage rates continue to rise and incomes struggle to grow, higher-priced inventory will be absorbed by the market at a slower rate.”

Overall purchases of all Orange County residences in the period totaled 3,217 — down 5.9 percent in a year. Sales were up in just 28 ZIPs of 83 total ZIP codes. Costs were likely a factor: the overall countywide median was $737,500 up 7.1 percent in a year. Prices were up in 64 ZIPs.

Builders’ share of all homes sold was 10.1 percent in the period vs. 9.8 percent a year ago. Single-family home resales were down 3.8 percent in a year. Condo resales fell 12 percent.

For 32 years, Orange County has debated how much growth is too much