It Is Inevitable That The Orange County CA Real Estate Market Will Rebound
The question that seems to be top of everyone’s mind nowadays is “is it possible for the real estate market to 
rebound, and if so, when will it happen?”. And while many people believe that it’s impossible at this point, I have a very different opinion, and believe that it is inevitable that the Orange County, California real estate market will rebound, and that prices will someday surpass the last big wave.
Greed And Short Memories Are As Certain As Death And Taxes
As the saying goes, “there are 2 things in life that are certain… death and taxes”. I think that we need to add some additional items to list… real estate market rebounds, greed, and short memories.
As we saw with the real estate crash in the late 80′s, this cycle will last only so long, and in years to come we will see another new high and low.
3 Predictions About The Orange County CA Real Estate Market
I have 3 predictions about the Orange County, California real estate market. One is that home buyers will eventually grow tired of waiting for the “right time” to buy, and will become weary of renting and paying down someone else’s mortgage. In fact, we’re already seeing some of this, as Orange County, California home buyers have recently been complaining about a lack of “good” inventory.
The second prediction is that investors will forget about the tragic circumstances that led us to this point, and will bring riskier loan products back to the mortgage market once again. They will inevitably reduce interest rates on jumbo home loans and other portfolio products, making it more enticing and affordable for families to purchase high end homes.
My third prediction is that when the previous 2 circumstances begin to unfold, other home buyers will begin to panic, as they see upward pressure on housing prices and a lack of desirable homes on the market. When that happens, we will once again, see news outlets reporting about how buying a home in Orange County, California is out of reach for most home buyers and how home buyers are losing out on their dream home due to multiple offers.
How Long Will It Take For The Orange County CA Real Estate Market To Rebound?
So, how long will the Orange County, California real estate market rebound take, and when can we expect to see some positive movement? Well, that is the real million dollar question, and something that is based on far too many factors to consider in this post. However, it’s important to remember that real estate markets do not rebound overnight; rebounds take much more time than most people realize. Consider the last real estate market rebound and subsequent fall, which took approximately 10 years to come full circle!
Take a look at some data from the last real estate cycle, and how it affected me personally:
- The previous Orange County, California real estate market crash began around 1987.
- In 1994 I purchased my very first home; a 1 bedroom, 1 bath condo in Santa Ana, California, for only $56,000. I believed, at the time, that this was the bottom of the market.
- Only one year later, in 1995, a model match, directly above my condo, sold for only $35,000!
- From 1995 to 1997 prices were stagnant, for the most part, and the condos in that complex did not drop much more.
- Against the advice of many naysayers, who believed that the prices would never come back again (sound familiar), I held onto my condo as a rental, even after my husband and I bought a house.
- In 2005, eleven years after I initially purchased the condo, I sold it for $255,000.
- In 2007 prices began to officially deteriorate in Orange County, California housing market.
- Today, the same 1 bedroom, 1 bath condo is selling for anywhere between $93,000 and $125,000, depending on the circumstances of the sale, location in the development, and condition of the unit.
Obviously, the condo has dropped since its peak price in 2005, or 2006, however, it still hasn’t fallen to the previous low of 1995, which was only $35,000. The moral of the story is that if you can afford to hold onto Orange County, California real estate long enough, you will see it rebound eventually. Also, the lows are never as low as it was before, and the peaks are, historically, higher than the previous peak.
Related Articles:
- What You Need To Know To Sell Your Orange County CA Condo
- The February 2012 Real Estate Market Report For Southern California
- How To Use A Self Directed IRA To Buy Investment Property
- Banks Paying Off Homeowners To Get Them To Walk Away
- Homeowners Beware Of The Brady Bond Mortgage Reduction Scam
About the author, Gina Lemos, and our Orange County, California team of Realtors®
We are members of the Pacific West Association of Realtors®, proudly serving home buyers and home sellers in Orange County, California, and the surrounding areas.
We specialize in homes for sale, and marketing homes to sell in Anaheim Hills, Brea, Corona, Norco, Orange, Orange Park Acres, Placentia, Tustin, Villa Park, and Yorba Linda, California
We hope that you’ll visit our site frequently to search for homes for sale in Orange County, California, and please contact us if we can assist you with any of your Orange County, California real estate needs.
Gina Lemos
Licensed Realtor® and Mortgage Loan Originator
8181 E Kaiser Blvd
Anaheim Hills, CA 92808
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