Sacramento-area new home sales smash records, despite COVID-19 economic concerns
Sales of newly constructed homes in the Sacramento region set an all-time record in October, continuing a hot streak since late spring, despite COVID-19 economic slow downs.
Officials with the North State Building Industry Association said builders sold 730 new homes last month, the most in the group’s recorded history, dating back to 1997.
It’s part of a notable surge in home building and buying in 2020 in the six-county Sacramento area, as well as other areas of the state.
With two months remaining, this year’s total of 5,890 sales in the Sacramento region already is the most since 2006, when the market was booming.
The sales have been fueled by pent-up demand among local buyers and an increase in the number of buyers migrating here from the higher-priced Bay Area, real estate officials said. Some new residents are cashing out record-high home equity.
The majority of the October sales have been in the $400,000 to $550,000 price range. No new homes sold for less than $301,000. Twenty-one new homes sold for more than $1 million.
BIA President Michael Strech said in a press statement Tuesday that low interest rates and an increase in teleworking from home are among the prime drivers of the surge in new-home sales.
Strech said builders believe this year’s hot sales and construction market will continue into 2021.
“If the market remains strong in the first quarter of the year, the momentum should continue into 2022 and even 2023,” he said.
In total, there are 167 new-home communities under construction in the region. The October sales includes 392 new homes in Sacramento County and 220 in Placer County. The other sales were in El Dorado, Sutter, Yolo and Yuba counties.
This story was originally published November 10, 2020 at 9:34 AM.