The value of existing homes sold in Manteca shot up a record 22.5 percent during 2021.
At the same time the number of homes available for sale dropped 15 percent.
The median value of a resale home closing escrow at the close of 2021 was $592,750, the highest ever in Manteca.
Those numbers exceed the national trend.
The Standard & Poor CoreLogic Case-Shiller National Home Price Index that measures housing prices in major metropolitan areas indicated nationally home prices sold rose 18.8 percent during 2021 while the available number of homes available dropped. The 18.8 percent increase is the largest since the index was started in 1987.
Economists and Realtors predict the demand for housing will remain strong despite fixed rate mortgages for 30-year loans hitting 3.92 percent. That is the highest rate since May 2019.
Experts anticipate prices will continue to increase through 2022 although not at the record level of last year.
A quick look at existing Manteca homes for sale under the $592,750 mark underscores the strength of the housing market as outlined by experts.
Among the resale homes $592,750 or under that are not mobile homes there were 71 properties listed with 51 having accepted pending offers.
The least expensive home in that grouping — a two-bedroom, one-bathroom home with 984 square feet on a 6,500 square-foot lot at 316 Sycamore Avenue near downtown — has an accepted offer of $299,999.
The home last sold in December of 2014 for $190,00.
The new home market is even brisker.
Bay Area buyers armed with 30 to 40 percent down payments are snapping up new homes as lots become available.
They are also creating situations in the Manteca resale market where asking prices are often exceeded when it comes to newer houses with larger footprints that are loaded with upgrades and ready to move in.
Coupled with what are still historically low interest rates and Bay Area buyers armed with proceeds from older homes similar to ones selling for $400,000 currently in Manteca that they are selling for close to $1 million in San Jose, buyers can purchase houses that reflect the lifestyle they want in Manteca.
The key is putting down upwards of 40 percent on a $700,000 new home that ends up reducing their monthly payments given they are only financing $420,000.
In terms of buyers getting the most bang out of their dollars relatively newer resales in Manteca work to their advantage for two reasons. While prices tend to gte lower as you move farther east of the Altamont Pass, the larger Manteca homes built since 1999 have lower effective tax rates.
The add-ons to the basic tax rate are lower given the existence of less and/or lower cost Mello-Roos districts in place for schools and purposes such as landscape and park maintenance than in surrounding areas.
That often makes the effective tax rate in Manteca 1.22 percent as opposed to 1.7 to 1.9 percent in River Islands and sections of Tracy and other nearby cities.
Agents indicate sellers are using their windfall to move out of state to areas that have a lower cost of living.
There are those that also cash in on significant equity that move elsewhere in California where housing costs are lower.
To contact Dennis Wyatt, email dwyatt@mantecabulletin.com
