Inland Empire Home Sales Tank as Mortgage Rates Rise

With mortgage interest rates hovering near 7%, combined with high home prices and spiking inflation, potential home buyers have been sitting on the sidelines in recent months. According to the Press-Enterprise, the slump has pushed home sales in Riverside and San Bernardino Counties down 40% in October as house payments have jumped to unaffordable levels.

Riverside County saw 2,670 residential transactions in October, down 16% from September and off 40% from a year ago. San Bernardino county closed 2,099 homes, down 15% monthly and off 39% from 2021. Meanwhile, home prices have dropped a bit, but not enough to jumpstart the home buying.

And here’s why: monthly mortgage bills are skyrocketing. In Riverside County, for a median $545,000 mortgage, the estimated monthly cost is now $2,871, a whopping 60% higher than the $1,793 payment from a year ago. Meanwhile, in San Bernardino County, the monthly mortgage is now $2,582 compared to $1,537 in 2021, a 68% increase.