Citing increased demand, strained inventory, record-low mortgage
rates and robust investor interest, a real estate information service
reported this month that Santa Clara County continued its rise in this
fall.
DataQuick reported
that the median home price in Santa Clara County rose to $550,000 in
November, up 21.7 percent from $452,000 a year earlier. A total of 1,478
homes were sold in November, up 15.5 percent from 1,707 in November
2011.
The rise of the median home price in Santa Clara County had some individual cities showing remarkable spikes, according to DataQuick’s city data for October. In Palo Alto,
for instance, the median home price jumped from $1,058,000 in October
2011 to $1,605,000 in October 2012, a more than 51 percent increase.
Los Gatos, Gilroy, Milpitas, Saratoga and Mountain View all had
double-digit, year-over-year percentage increases in their median home
price.
The month of strong sales and rising sale prices in Santa Clara
County was on part with most of the Bay Area housing market, which
“continued its march toward normalcy in November,” DataQuick reported.
A total of 7,296 new and resale homes were sold in the nine-county
Bay Area last month. That was up 15.5 percent from 6,317 for November
2011, according to DataQuick.
“Current trends are likely to stay with us well into spring, at
least,” John Walsh, DataQuick president, said in a statement. “One of
the variables that could really impact the market would be supply—how
many homes are put up for sale. There are still mortgage finance issues.
Some loan categories are not active. But right now, low mortgage
interest rates make up for that.”
The median price paid for a home in the Bay Area was $438,000 in
November. That was up 5.3 percent from $416,000 in October and up 20.5
percent from $363,500 in November a year ago. Last month’s median was
the highest since August 2008, when it was $447,000.
Here’s a Bay Area breakdown of home sales and median price:
| All Homes | #Sold | #Sold | % Change | Median | Median | % Change |
| Nov. 2011 | Nov. 2012 | Nov. 2011 | Nov. 2012 | |||
| Marin | 239 | 272 | 13.8% | $629,000 | $682,000 | 8.4% |
| Alameda | 1,334 | 1,525 | 23.7% | $340,000 | $415,000 | 22.1% |
| Contra Costa | 1,225 | 1,394 | 13.8% | $255,000 | $322,000 | 26.3% |
| Napa | 99 | 133 | 34.3% | $297,000 | $360,000 | 21.2% |
| Santa Clara | 1,478 | 1,707 | 15.5% | $452,000 | $550,000 | 13% |
| San Francisco | 422 | 524 | 24.2% | $644,500 | $728,000 | 25.1% |
| San Mateo | 513 | 612 | 19.3% | $542,500 | $618,000 | 13.9% |
| Solano | 522 | 584 | 11.9% | $190,000 | $221,500 | 16.6% |
| Sonoma | 485 | 545 | 12.4% | $285,000 | $349,000 | 22.5% |
| Bay Area | 6,317 | 7,296 | 15.5% | $363,500 | $438,000 | 20.5% |
Last month distressed property sales—the
combination of foreclosure resales and “short sales”—made up 35.0
percent of the resale market. Foreclosure resales—homes that had been
foreclosed on in the prior 12 months—accounted for 11.5 percent of
resales in November.
Absentee buyers, mostly investors, purchased 24.4 percent of all Bay
Area homes in November, up from 23.7 percent in October, and up from
21.7 percent a year ago.
Here’s a breakdown of Los Gatos home sales and median price:
| Palo Alto Zip Code |
Homes sold Oct. 2012 |
% Change from Oct. 2011 |
Median Price Oct. 2012 |
|
| 94301 | 15 | 168.3% | $2,415,000 | |
| 94303 | 36 | 205.3% | $870,000 | |
| 94306 | 26 | 41.2% | $1,624,000 |