LOS ANGELES–Credit union members here shopping for a new home increasingly need larger and larger downpayments, as home prices zoom. The median home price in Los Angeles county hit a new high of $560,500 in May, up 6.8% over one year earlier, according to new data from CoreLogic.
That’s above the $550,000 peak home prices in the county hit in the summer of 2007, just prior to the housing crash.
When adjusted for inflation, however, May’s median is approximately 11% below the 2007 figure, CoreLogic added.
And despite the increase, the California Association of Realtors says more people can afford homes in 2017 than could do so a decade ago. At year-end 2006, just 9% of Los Angeles County households could afford a median-priced home, while 29% of today’s residents can, according to the CAR.