The February 2023 statistics are now available for the Morongo Basin's major keystone cities of Yucca Valley, 29 Palms and Joshua Tree. Substantial takeaways are as follows.
Overall, year over year, there has been about 30% market decline between 2022 and 2023, representing a gradual shift toward higher inventory and lower sales, with price stickiness falling with the sales over list price ratios representing numbers in the teens to twenty percentile in most areas of the basin. Sales numbers statewide have troughed to 2007 levels, CAR economist Jordan Levine reports, which should indicate the market having reached its bottom before numbers again begin to rise. Economic unsteadiness after the bank failures in early March will continue to fuel some negative rhetoric in coming months which may sideline some buyers but bolster investors who wish to buy at the market's lows when competition is reduced and prices are more negotiable.
To that end, February 2023 saw listing supply continue to rise throughout the basin. Single Family Residential listings in 29 Palms were at 103 in February, a 72% increase year over year. Median list price sat fairly steady at $299,900, with 55 median days on market. 42% of listings in 29 Palms saw a reduction during their list period. There were 34 closed SFR sales during the same period, a year over year sales growth of -60%. Sales price dropped to $252,000, with 48 median days on market before closing, and a sales over list price ratio of 18%.
During the reporting period, Yucca Valley had 96 SFR listings, a 104% growth year over year. A median list price of $454,450 (-4% growth since 2022), 59 median days on market, with 49% of those listings being reduced. There were 36 SFR transactions closed (-53% since same period in 2022), at a median sales price of $395,000 (-4%), with a sales over list price percentage of 22%.
Joshua Tree continues to experience the largest margin of change, with 99 SFR listings in February 2023, which represents a 267% increase year over year. Median list price was $539,000 (-2% growth), with a median 63 days on market, with 63% of those listings being reduced. There were only 18 SFR listings, -61% sales growth since the same reporting period in 2022. A median closed listing price of $334,500 (-28% growth), with a sales over list price ratio of 0%--which indicates that all 18 of those closed listings sold below their asking price. Since the percentage of listings sold over listing price statistic is indicative of competition and price stickiness, this shows the market in Joshua Tree is not only highly negotiable at present, but that the market here is likely at its trough. Though, as statistics go, with a data set of only 18 for this month, the true picture may vary. Statistics are, as a rule, merely a tool to help predict system change.
Downloadable reports and infographics for February 2023 are below.
Buyer's Guides:
Seller's Guides:
YTD Report:
County Report:
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