Many homeowners and renters still are curious as to how the real estate market is performing in Yucaipa.  Homeowners are worried they may loose equity and renters are noticing that this is a great time to buy a home.  It is often difficult to interpret the information and statistics as they are confusing.

One number commonly used in the mainstream media is the median home price.  In March of 2007, the median home price in Yucaipa was $377,500; in March of 2008 it was $300,000.  The difference represents an overall change of over 20%.  Many people often have mistaken this as a 20% home price drop for the entire city.  That is not necessarily the case.

The median home price is calculated by determining the middle of the lowest and the highest priced home sold (more or less) during a given month.  The lower median home price indicates that there is a loss in value or only the smaller, less expensive houses are selling.  For the Yucaipa real estate market, it is a combination of both.

For example, the largest selling home in March of 2007 was 4,157 square feet; the largest home sold in March of 2008 was 3,850 square feet.  That represents a difference of over 7.5% in overall home size over the year period.   This indicates smaller, less expensive homes are in-fact adversely affecting the median home price.

On the other hand, examining average three bedroom, 1600 +/- square foot homes on an average size lot, in March of 2007 they would sell for around $351,000; In March of 2008 similar homes would sell for around $300,000.  This calculation would indicate a value loss of about 14.5% for an average home in Yucaipa from March of 2007 to March of 2008.

The number of homes actually selling affects both the median home price as well as the actual value of homes.  In March of 2007, the MLS reported 44 homes sold while only 37 sold in March of 2008.  Year to year, this does not appear to be good news, but month to month the number of homes selling in Yucaipa has improved.  In December of 2007, there were 20 homes sold, in January of this year there were 29, in February 35, in March 37 and in April 34.  The downward turn in April is a concern, but time will tell what the rest of the year will bring.

At this point in time, it is difficult to say whether the data indicates an improvement or not.  The year to year figures would lead to the belief that so far this year is worse than last year.  The month to month data indicates gradual improvement may be occurring.  Maybe we are at the bottom of the market and can expect a slow recovery from this point on or maybe the future will bring something different.

*Statistical information obtained from ‘California Association of Realtor’s Trends in California Real Estate’ and the ‘Multi-Regional Multiple Listing Service’ as of May 3, 2008.