New price peak for Bay Area homes

December 18, 2003

La Jolla, CA.--Bay Area homes continued to sell at their fastest pace in fifteen years, the result of continued demand and relatively low mortgage interest rates. The median sales price reached a new peak last month, a real estate information service reported.

A total of 9,594 new and resale houses and condos were sold in the nine-county region last month. That was down 18.2 percent from 11,728 for the month before, and up 16.1 percent from 8,265 for November last year, according to DataQuick Information Systems.

A decline from October to November is normal for the season. Last month's sales count was the highest for any November since 10,067 homes were sold in that month in 1988. So far this year 110,795 homes have been sold in the Bay Area, the highest number for the eleven- month period in DataQuick's statistics, which go back to 1988.

"In addition to demand and affordable mortgage financing, owning property is seen as a good investment. There are tax advantages and also the perception is that property is a relatively safe place to be compared to other investments," said Marshall Prentice, DataQuick president.

The median price paid for a Bay Area home was $455,000 last month, a new record. The median was up 2.0 percent from $446,000 for October and up 9.4 percent from $416,000 for November a year ago.

DataQuick, a subsidiary of Vancouver-based MacDonald Dettwiler and Associates, monitors real estate activity nationwide and provides information to consumers, educational institutions, public agencies, lending institutions, title companies and industry analysts.

The typical monthly mortgage payment that Bay Area buyers committed themselves to paying was $2,076 in November. A year ago it was $1,915. The peak was in May 2000 at $2,124.

Indicators of market distress are still largely absent. Foreclosure rates are low, flipping rates are low, down payment sizes are stable and there have been no significant shifts in market mix, DataQuick reported.

All Homes	No Sold Nov-02	No Sold Nov-03	Pct. Chg	Median Nov-02	Median Nov-03	Pct. Chg
Alameda	1,771	1,886	6.5%	$407K	$423K	3.9%
Contra Costa	1,599	1,898	18.7%	$352K	$404K	14.8%
Marin	334	366	9.6%	$602K	$633K	5.1%
Napa	171	199	16.4%	$398K	$480K	20.6%
San Francisco	493	612	24.1%	$568K	$573K	0.9%
San Mateo	620	725	16.9%	$522K	$553K	5.9%
Santa Clara	1,894	2,425	28.0%	$446K	$487K	9.2%
Solano	733	712	-2.9%	$291K	$322K	10.7%
Sonoma	650	771	18.6%	$342K	$412K	20.5%
Bay Area	8,265	9,594	16.1%	$416K	$455K	9.4%

Source: DataQuick Information Systems, www.DQNews.com

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