All-cash offers push SoCal home prices to new record

Source: Los Angeles Times

Southern California home prices hit a record in March amid sky-high mortgage interest rates. The average for the six-county region reached $869,082 in March, according to Zillow. That’s up 9 percent from a year earlier and 1 percent higher than the previous all-time high in June 2022.

With rates hovering in the upper 6 percent range, the mortgage payment on the average home now tops $5,500 – and that’s with 20 percent down. The lack of existing homes for sale has fueled higher prices. Buyers who can pay all in cash don’t have to worry about interest rates, and others who are selling their old home are benefiting from their considerable equity in order to put down hefty down payments well over 20 percent. Professionals such as architects and Hollywood types who have saved, liquidated stock portfolios, built up equity or received help from family are placing down payments of at least 30 percent with the intention of living in the home. In all, 23 percent of L.A. County homes sold in February were bought with all cash, up from 16 percent in 2021, according to Redfin.