CA Home Sales Down 29 Percent Over Course Of Interest Rate Hikes

CALIFORNIA — The number of California homes sold in an average month dropped 29 percent in the three years since the Federal Reserve increased home financing to battle inflation, Southern California News Group business columnist Jonathan Lansner recently reported.

From 2019-2022, a typical month yielded 39,049 homes sold compared to 27,703 per month on average during the last three years, according to Lansner, citing Attom’s March homebuying report and noting that in March 2025, the state had a mere 26,454 sales, the third-slowest month since 2005.

“The Fed’s efforts to cool an overheated economy with pricier financing began in March 2022,” Lansner wrote. “It totally iced home sales.”

Meanwhile, home prices are up 54 percent in the last six years, and a mere 17 percent of California households can afford a home as of first quarter 2025 vs. 32 percent six years ago, Lansner noted, citing the California Association of Realtors.

“Rising home prices aren’t a sign of market strength,” he wrote. “They’re the reason why homebuying is frozen.”

Read more from Jonathan Lansner.