Bay Area: Near Record Sales, New Price Peak

July 19, 2005

La Jolla, CA.----Home sales in the Bay Area hit their second- highest level ever in June as the median sales price passed $600,000 for the first time, a real estate information service reported.

A total of 13,014 new and resale houses and condos were sold in the nine-county region last month. That was up 2.5 percent from 11,308 for May, and down 7.7 percent from 14,104 for June last year, according to DataQuick Information Systems.

The year-ago June sales count was the highest in DataQuick's statistics, which go back to 1988.

"Robust demand, unchanging mortgage interest rates and a few more homes on the market are the likely factors behind the strong June numbers. We expect the rest of the summer to be like this," said Marshall Prentice, DataQuick president.

The median price paid for a Bay Area home was $610,000, a new record. That was up 2.5 percent from $595,000 in May, and up 18.2 percent from $516,000 for June a year ago.

The median went through the $500K range in 13 months, it was in the $400K range for 25 months before that.

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 $2,651 in June, up slightly from $2,646 in June. A year ago it was $2,450.

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

All Homes	No Sold June-04	No Sold June-05	Pct. Chg	Median June-04	Median June-05	Pct. Chg
Alameda	2,922	2,730	-6.6%	$489K	$581K	18.8%
Contra Costa	2,772	2,640	-4.8%	$458K	$558K	21.8%
Marin	544	454	-16.5%	$690K	$815K	18.1%
Napa	233	209	-10.3%	$501K	$608K	21.4%
San Francisco	847	723	-14.6%	$653K	$760K	16.4%
San Mateo	1,122	917	-18.3%	$646K	$752K	16.4%
Santa Clara	3,543	3,220	-9.1%	$549K	$645K	17.5%
Solano	1,055	1,147	8.7%	$358K	$449K	25.4%
Sonoma	1,066	974	-8.6%	$449K	$557K	24.1%
Bay Area	14,104	13,014	-7.7%	$516K	$610K	18.2%

Source: DataQuick Information Systems, www.DQNews.com

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