From abc7: “In Orange County, there was a 101.9 percent jump in default notices sent to homeowners over the same quarter last year, according to DataQuick Information Systems.”

“It was much the same story across Southern California, with foreclosure notices increasing 104.8 percent in the six-county region in the third quarter, DataQuick reported. San Diego County saw a nearly 160 percent jump in foreclosure notices over the same quarter last year, while Riverside saw a 140 percent rise.”

From the OC Register: “Leslie Appleton-Young, chief economist for the California Association of Realtors, is projecting a ‘modest’ price decline following years of price gains in the double digits.”

“Young projected that the median California home price will fall to $550,000 next year from this year’s projected median of 561,000. Sales will tumble to 447,500 homes changing hands in 2007, compared to 481,200 home sales expected this year.”

UPDATE #1 – Here’s the link to the foreclosure info from DataQuick

UPDATE #2 – Some nice charts from the OC Register

From CBS 2: “The unsold inventory of new homes in Orange County is at the highest level since 1996, according to an economic forecast released Friday in Irvine.”

“The report noted that what usually happens when a real estate market bubble bursts “is that sales just dry up” because buyers won’t buy homes at the listed price and sellers are unwilling to cut their prices. It described the result as “the economic equivalent of Chinese water torture” — with the decline in prices starting slowly but lasting a long time.”

“The economists said they do not expect a major decline in home prices this year.”

From the OC Register: “Orange County’s home prices continued to soften last month as sellers weathered the slowest September in 14 years, new housing figures released Thursday show.”

“The median price of an Orange County home sold last month was $626,000, according to DataQuick Information Systems.”

“Although the median price is up $16,000, or 2.6 percent, from 12 months ago, it’s the third monthly decline in a row.”

“In addition, the median price of an existing condominium fell from year-ago levels for the first time since June 1997. Last month, the median condo price was $440,000, down 3.3 percent from September 2005.”

From the LA Times: “Sellers who aren’t keeping pace with buyers’ expectations are growing discouraged and withdrawing their listings.”

“That’s exactly what Kurt Freck did. His Anaheim Hills home was on the market at the same price of $849,000 for three months. But after no nibbles, and seeing price reductions at comparable homes for sale in his neighborhood, he decided to cancel his listing agreement when it expired Tuesday.”

“‘I’m fortunate because I don’t have to sell,” said Freck, who purchased his home three years ago and believes that it has since doubled in value. “But as a homeowner, you got so used to watching homes sell quickly in the last couple of years.'”

“‘The market hasn’t gone into that desperation mode yet, but we see it as in the earliest stage of the downward pressure on prices,’ said Adibi, director of the A. Gary Anderson Center for Economic Research at Chapman University in Orange.”