Strong sales, new price peak for Bay Area homes
September 14, 2005

La Jolla, CA.----Bay Area home prices continued their steady upward climb in August as sales remained at near-record levels, the result of continued demand and unchanging mortgage interest rates, a real estate information service reported.

A total of 12,154 new and resale houses and condos were sold in the nine-county region last month. That was up 6.0 percent from 11,470 for July, and down 4.1 percent from 12,674 for August last year, according to DataQuick Information Systems.

The year-ago sales count was the strongest for any August in DataQuick's statistics, which go back to 1988.

"We're a bit surprised at how stable the market is in all categories. Usually one segment of the market will be outperforming the others. Right now, though, the same trends apply to all parts of the market from entry-level on up to the prestige market. This stability means that the market will probably stay strong at least through the end of the year," said Marshall Prentice, DataQuick president.

The median price paid for a Bay Area home was $619,000 last month, a new record. That was up 2.1 percent from $606,000 in July, and up 19.0 percent from $520,000 for August a year ago. Annual price increases have been in the upper teens for a year-and-a-half.

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 $2,761 in August. That was up from $2,652 in July. A year ago it was $2,341.

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.