California home sales drop to lowest level in 16 years. These 10 counties had cheapest prices
California home sales dropped to the lowest level since the Great Recession last month, according to to the most recent data collected from the California Association of Realtors.
High interest rates and “a persistent shortage of homes for sale” were a contributing factor in November’s drom, the association’s President Melanie Barker said in the news release.
But, she said, 2024 could bring more buyers to the market.
“With mortgage rates dropping to the lowest level in four months in recent weeks...more prospective homebuyers could reenter the market early next year.”
Data shows that home sales during November were down about 7% compared to October and down by almost 6% compared to November 2022.
From October to November, the median home sales price in California dropped from nearly $840,000 to $822,200.
California’s median home prices for November were up almost 6% from last November, which averaged prices around $774,150 for a single-family home.
Year-to-date home sales across the state were down almost 26% last month — the lowest in 16 years. The Bay Area remains the most expensive region to buy a house with a median home sales price of more than $1.5 million. However, some counties, including six in the Central Valley, have a median below the average.
Here’s how the association ranked California’s counties by their November median home sales prices:
Cheapest California counties to buy a house
1. Lassen County
- Median sold price of existing single-family homes: $170,000
- Region: Northern California
2. Trinity County
3. Tehama County
4. Lake County
5. Mariposa County
6. Glenn County
7. Siskiyou County
8. Kings County
9. Merced County and Shasta County
Merced
Shasta
10. Kern County and Tulare County
Kern
Tulare
The most expensive counties to buy a house last month
In November, these six California counties had the most expensive median home sales prices:
- San Mateo County - $1,805,000
- Santa Clara County - $1,717,500
- Marin County - $1,649,500
- San Francisco County - $1,535,000
- Santa Cruz County and Orange County - $1,300,000
This story was originally published December 22, 2023 at 5:00 AM with the headline "California home sales drop to lowest level in 16 years. These 10 counties had cheapest prices."
