A large proportion of Brea homes for sale were distressed or short sales in the month of June, mirroring the trend of the bigger Orange County real estate market, which saw a full 25% of homes sold short. According to an August 2, 2010 article from the Orange County Register, “One out of every four homes sold in Orange County in June went for less than the seller owed on the mortgage, according to the latest figures from the Southern California Multiple Listing Service. SoCal MLS figures show the monthly tally of “short sales” continued its 18-month climb since lenders began easing rules to help underwater homeowners avoid foreclosure. Thanks to falling home prices, about 14% to 19% of all O.C. homeowners owe more for their homes than they’re worth. In a short sale, lenders eat the difference between the amount paid and the amount owed. The latest figures show: Sellers and their lenders completed 714 short sales in June, nearly double the number completed in January 2009, when the SoCal MLS began providing numbers on so-called “distressed” home sales. June’s short sale total was up 78% from June 2009, when there were 493 short sales. Meanwhile, the number of bank-owned homes sold in June rose slightly from the previous month. Banks sold 377 repossessed homes in June, compared to 368 in May. Still, bank-owned home sales were down 51% from January 2009 and were down 45% from June 2009.”
A second article from the Orange County Register, also written by Jeff Collins, seemed to indicate that fewer homes were being sold rapidly. The August 9, 2010 piece noted that “The number of homes for sale on the Orange County housing market has mushroomed to 11,414 in the 30 days ending last Thursday. That’s up 57% since “inventory” began a steady rise at the start of the year, according to the latest report by Altera’s Steven Thomas…By Thomas’ logic, as of last Thursday, it would take: 3.84 months (three months 25 days) for buyers to gobble up all homes for sale at the current pace vs. 3.91 months (three months 25 days) two weeks ago. A year ago, it would have taken 2 1/2 months.”