AGENT MLS HOME FINDER

Laguna Beach is notable for being one of the most prestigious and expensive communities in the Southern California area. Unfortunately, the rather high per capita income and home prices in the region did not translate to immunity from the ravages of the national recession that began in the year two thousand eight. To the contrary, local real estate and the local economy have put Laguna Beach real estate through a gauntlet of financial difficulties and assorted other problems. It seemed for a considerable amount of time that Laguna Beach and the rest of Orange County were staging a powerful and nationally recognized recovery, although it seems that this positive notion may no longer hold true.

According to a September 16, 2009 article in Business Week, there are distinctly negative trends on the horizon for real estate in Laguna Beach and the entirety of Southern California. The piece, written by Chris Palmeri, noted that “For months the big story was how fast California home sales were rebounding as investors snapped up cheap, foreclosed homes. Now the sales and price trends are reversing. In August the number of homes sold fell nearly 11% from July. Last month was the 14th in a row with a year-over-year sales increase, however. The median sale price edge up for the fourth month in a row…” Part of the initial problem with Laguna Beach homes for sale was that a large percentage of them were foreclosures – forced sales that otherwise would be on the market for a much higher price. This makes it difficult to assess how much of the market is being driven by actual home buyers, and how much is motivated by investors looking for a quick buck.

A September 15, 2009 article in Reuters reported largely the same figures for real estate in Laguna Beach, although it alluded more strongly to the confusing role of foreclosures in the market. The piece stated that “Southern California housing sales rose in August from year-earlier levels, but were down almost 11 percent from July as the region’s foreclosure inventory thinned and uncertainty rose among potential buyers, a real estate information service said Tuesday.”