DataQuick Information Systems reports that in nearly 70 percent of Orange County ZIP codes, the median home price declined during the first half of 2007.

In an article by Jeff Collins at the Orange County Register, he states that Foothill Ranch and Portola Hills may be bright spots in Orange County's housing market.

The median price of a home in the 92610 ZIP code increased 25.5 percent during the first half of the year, according to a mid-year review of home prices by DataQuick Information Systems.

But homes in Capistrano Beach and Irvine's Northwood areas may have been hit hardest this year by speculators buying properties, only to bail out when the housing slump hit. Median prices there fell about 15 percent, DataQuick reported.

Overall, median home prices fell in almost 70 percent of Orange County's ZIP codes during the first half of the year, DataQuick reported.

The year-to-date median price – or the price at the midpoint of all sales – was $625,000 for Orange County homes of all types, down $4,000 from the first half of 2006.

Nearly 16,000 homes have been sold so far this year, one-fourth fewer than in the first half of 2006.

And while median prices increased in 23 ZIP codes, they accounted for about 28 percent of Orange County's 83 postal zones.

Some local Realtors believe that in most cases, the median was distorted in those areas by a decrease in sales of lower-priced homes.

"There aren't any more of these low teaser-rate, low initial-rate mortgages," said Walter Hahn, an Irvine real estate consultant. "That's what was fueling those sales in those areas in the last few years."

To read the entire article, please click on the link below:

http://www.ocregister.com/money/zip-areas-sales-1781965-price-median

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