Elevated competition from rising mortgage rates and low inventory is driving up sale prices in popular metros like Los Angeles, where 718 homes sold for at least $100,000 above the asking price from January 1 to February 15, Redfin reports. January was the most competitive month on record, pushing the median home sale price up to $376,200, a 14% year-over-year gain.
Six of the top 10 metros where buyers are offering six figures above list prices are in California. Los Angeles tops the list, followed by Oakland, San Jose, Anaheim, San Francisco, and San Diego.
Los Angeles has the most homes selling for substantially above list price partly because it’s so pricey and partly because it has more home sales than almost all other major metros. Home prices rose 15% year over year in January to a median of $825,000, making it the second-most expensive place in the country to buy a home, after the Bay Area. The rest of the top 10 are also expensive compared to the U.S. as a whole.
Los Angeles, even more than most other parts of the U.S., is grappling with a supply shortage—prompting buyers to pull out all of the stops to win. The number of homes for sale in Los Angeles dropped 29% year over year to an all-time low in January.
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