Bay Area Home Prices Steady, Slow Sales

Bay Area homes continued to sell at their slowest pace since 1995 last month as buyers and sellers continued to eye each other across a perceptual divide. DataQuick says median prices rose 2.1% while sales fell 12.4%. It was the slowest July since 1995 but the sales drop looks good vs. SoCal's 27.4%. Except for Solano and Sonoma counties, median prices remain stable at near-record highs. . . full story

Southland home sales slowest since 1995
In SoCal in July, DataQuick reports that median sales prices rose in a year 3.7%, while buying activity fell 27.4%. It was the slowest July for purchases since '95.

Says DataQuick:

"These are interesting times because the slowdown in home sales isn't part of a broader economic slowdown, it's a post-frenzy re-balancing act. The last time we had sales this slow, Southern California had been in recession for a few years. Jobs were being lost in droves, people were leaving the area and home prices fell significantly. This time around we haven't seen that, sellers are holding out and we can only assume demand is building up."

The real-estate downturn has hit much of the U.S., but certain segments and regions of the market continue to perform well, according to a Zillow.com quarterly home value report. According to the Web site's findings, "small" homes (less than 1,200 square feet) showed the smallest declines in home value -- 1% -- between the second quarters of 2006 and 2007, "midsize" homes (1,200 to 1,900 square feet) fell 3.1% and large homes (more than 1,900 square feet) dropped 2.8% in value. Condo values decreased 5.2% over the same period, Zillow.com says. - source: WSJ

Housing Bubble and Real Estate Market Tracker from SA for 8/15