Let’s see, San Diego is one of two areas in the country (DC the other) where prices are increasing. The time to buy in San Diego was Spring 2008, it has been recovering ever since. I have been trying to buy since then, I won’t over pay, and I won’t do bidding wars so I keep “losing”. There are too many cash buyers here that sellers would rather sell too, even if their offers are lower than mine, they win everytime.
28% of San Diego home sales in Jan. were cash
DataQuick: Slow winter season, lower-than-ever prices were likely factors
By Lily Leung
Tuesday, March 1, 2011 at 6 a.m.
Almost three out of 10 homebuyers in San Diego County in January closed with cash, the highest it’s been in 21 years, according to La Jolla-based DataQuick Information Systems.
Company spokesman Andrew LePage said 28 percent of new and resale homes bought in the county last month had no records of mortgages, matching the percentage of cash purchases one year ago during the same time.
The figures from this year and January 2010 are second to only the peak at May 1989, when 29.1 percent of home purchases were made with cash.
LePage said the historic high is likely due to lower-than-normal home prices and investors capitalizing on less competition during the holiday season, when most buyers are scrambling for presents, not homes. DataQuick numbers, which go back to 1988, show the monthly average of cash buyers is 12.6 percent in San Diego County.
The same upward trend was reflected statewide. In January, 30.9 percent of new and resale homes sold in California were bought with cash, the peak in at least 23 years, LePage said. During the same time in 2010, that number for the state was 29.5 percent.
Much of the West, including Las Vegas and Phoenix, also showed increases in cash purchases.
However, it’s important to note that the absence of recorded mortgages could mean “alternative financing arrangements” or cash buyers taking out mortgages after closing deals, LePage said.
“For the past couple of years all-cash deals have become far more common in lower-cost markets where prices have dropped sharply, luring investors and other buyers who either can’t quality for a traditional mortgage, or simply view housing as a relatively attractive place to park their money,” he added.
Lily Leung: (619)293-1719; lily.leung@uniontrib.com; Twitter @LilyShumLeung
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