Irvine, Tustin homebuying cools, sales tumble 14%

Homebuying in Irvine and Tustin fell 14 percent this summer vs. a year ago.

It was the slowest-selling third quarter in four years for Orange County’s housing market, as buyers balked at high prices and expensive mortgages while homeowners and builders boosted the supply of residences for sale.

Here’s what my trusty spreadsheet told me when looking at house-hunting patterns at the neighborhood level in 2018’s summer quarter vs. the July-to-September period a year earlier.

CoreLogic found these 17 trends in 11 ZIP codes covered by the Orange County Register’s Irvine World News weekly …

1. Purchases: Home sales in this period totaled 1,516 vs. 1,770 a year ago, a decline of 14.3 percent.

2. Who’s up: Prices increased in nine of the 11 ZIPs as sales rose in two ZIPs.

3. Countywide: $734,000 median selling price, up 3.4 percent. Orange County sales totaled 9,160 residences, existing and new, vs. 10,350 a year ago, a decline of 11.5 percent. Prices rose in 50 out of 83 Orange County ZIPs and sales were up in 21 out of 83 ZIPs.

Here is how prices and sales moved at the community level …

4. Irvine 92602: $1,352,000 median, up 10.8 percent. Price rank? 8th of 83. Sales of 146 vs. 126 a year ago, a gain of 15.9 percent.

5. Irvine 92603: $1,237,500 median, up 15.1 percent. Price rank? No. 9 of 83. Sales of 70 vs. 87 a year ago, a decline of 19.5 percent.

6. Irvine 92604: $820,000 median, up 21.3 percent. Price rank? No. 28 of 83. Sales of 80 vs. 74 a year ago, a gain of 8.1 percent.

7. Irvine 92606: $705,000 median, down 13.2 percent. Price rank? No. 46 of 83. Sales of 35 vs. 63 a year ago, a decline of 44.4 percent.

8. Irvine 92612: $720,000 median, up 0.3 percent. Price rank? No. 44 of 83. Sales of 99 vs. 102 a year ago, a decline of 2.9 percent.

9. Irvine 92614: $775,000 median, up 29.3 percent. Price rank? No. 33 of 83. Sales of 69 vs. 89 a year ago, a decline of 22.5 percent.

10. Irvine 92618: $925,000 median, up 14.5 percent. Price rank? No. 19 of 83. Sales of 403 vs. 481 a year ago, a decline of 16.2 percent.

11. Irvine 92620: $990,000 median, up 3.1 percent. Price rank? No. 13 of 83. Sales of 270 vs. 374 a year ago, a decline of 27.8 percent.

12. Tustin 92780: $628,000 median, up 18.5 percent. Price rank? No. 61 of 83. Sales of 121 vs. 130 a year ago, a decline of 6.9 percent.

13. Tustin 92782: $691,000 median, down 24.5 percent. Price rank? No. 48 of 83. Sales of 101 vs. 113 a year ago, a decline of 10.6 percent.

14. Santa Ana/North Tustin 92705: $935,000 median, up 17.6 percent. Price rank? No. 16 of 83. Sales of 122 vs. 131 a year ago, a decline of 6.9 percent.

Plus, three more countywide trends found this summer vs. a year ago. …

15. Single-family-home resales: 5,618 Orange County sales vs. 6,284 a year ago, a decline of 10.6 percent in the period. Median: $785,500 — a rise of 3.4 percent in the period.

16. Condo resales: 2,429 sales vs. 2,802 a year ago, a decline of 13.3 percent in 12 months. Median: $513,000 — a rise of 4.7 percent in a year.

17. New homes: Builders sold 1,113 residences vs. 1,263 a year ago, a decline of 11.9 percent in 12 months. Median: $985,000 — a rise of 11.6 percent in a year.