So. Calif. Home Prices Suffer Biggest Fall In 20 Months

Southern California’s median home price fell more than 8 percent last month to $280,000 from May 2010, its largest year-to-year drop in 20 months.

San Diego-based DataQuick said Monday that buyer uncertainty, tight credit and lackluster hiring were restraining housing demand.

The median in the six-county region was unchanged from April.

Statewide, home sales dropped more than 17 percent from around 22,300 in May 2010 to about 18,400 last month.

Home sales in Riverside County dropped 12.5 percent in May, compared to the same month a year ago, while prices dipped by 6.2 percent.

A total of 3,644 homes changed hands locally last month, compared to 4,164 in May 2010, according to MDA DataQuick. The median price of a home in Riverside County in May was $197,000, down from $210,000 in May 2010.

A total of 18,394 new and resale houses and condos sold in Los Angeles, Riverside, San Diego, Ventura, San Bernardino and Orange counties in May, according to DataQuick. That was up 0.3 percent from 18,344 in April, and down 17.4 percent from 22,270 in May 2010.

According to DataQuick, May home sales were the lowest for the month in three years.

The sales figure at the state-level was largely unchanged from April.

In California, foreclosures accounted for 33.4 percent of last month’s sales, down slightly from 33.8 percent in April and 33.9 percent a year earlier.