The Coachella Valley housing market continues to see a “corrective turn” in home prices, according to the latest Greater Palm Springs Realtors report published Oct. 10.
Over the last two months, the median price for a detached home in the Coachella Valley declined by about $12,000, reaching $670,000 in September.
“Most of this decline is seasonal but it also represents the general corrective turn that is occurring in home prices,” the report states.
In addition to price falls, the three-month average of sales in September was reportedly 581 units a month, 32% lower than in 2021. Compared to the three years leading up to the pandemic when September sales averaged 784 units, the current sales are running 25% below normal. The largest percentage declines in home sales are houses listed less than $500,000.
Every city in the Coachella Valley, except Coachella, reported lower sales in September compared to this time last year. The cities that experienced the largest declines were Rancho Mirage, La Quinta and Cathedral City, where sales are 42-43% lower. Sales in the city of Coachella are 42% higher.
The report notes that there’s not enough data to know if the trend toward lower prices will continue through the end of the year, but it expects inventory to continue to increase over the next few months, possibly reaching 2,500 units by February 2023.
“While this would be an improvement, inventory still has a ways to go before it’s back to past norms,” the report states.
Greater Palm Springs Realtors is a nonprofit organization for real estate agents who sell real estate throughout the Greater Palm Springs area. Its services include education and professional development, legislative representation, networking opportunities, access to tools and resources and access to preferred industry partners, as well as membership in the California Association of Realtors and the National Association of Realtors.