It is quite evident that inventory has been a huge factor in our real estate market this year.    The shortage of homes for sale has made it very difficult for buyers to find and even afford a home they want to move into.  The “catch twenty two” comes into play when you add in the fact that many sellers would sell if only they could find a place to move into.  Thus the conundrum!

And the competition for the homes that are available is so intense that buyers need to bring plenty of cash to the table.  In fact, ‘all-cash’ deals hit a record 43% of homes sales in the first quarter of this year, according to Realty Trac.
(source credit – CNNMoney article dated May 20, 2014)

In fact, here in the Hollywood Riviera, the average sold price of a single family home is actually higher than the average list price for the 1st Quarter of 2014.  $1.289K average sold price compared to the average list price of $1.284K.

Here are the average single family home sold prices vs. their list prices for the first quarter of 2014 for some popular cities in the South Bay of Los Angeles:

1) South Redondo Beach –    Avg List Price = $1051K vs. Avg Sold Price  $1,044K
2) Hermosa Beach –   Avg List Price = $1.350K  vs. Avg Sold Price $1.369K
3) Manhattan Beach – Avg List Price = $2.306K vs. Avg Sold Price $2.352K
4) Rancho Palos Verdes – Avg List Price = $1.616K vs Avg Sold Price $1.540K
5) Palos Verdes Estates/Rolling Hills – Avg List Price = $1.969K vs Avg Sold Price $1.890K

As you can see, the first quarter 2014 South Bay real estate  trend shows “if the house is priced right to start with, most likely it sold over asking price.”