Bay Area Home Price

If you conduct a comparative study, you will find that bay area home price grew slowly in the first quarter even as prices in several of the region's peripheral counties climbed at a more rapid clip. San Jose, San Francisco and Oakland have always been among the most expensive housing markets in the nation. But they also experienced only modest single-digit bay area home price increases in the first three months of 2004 compared with the same period a year ago. The only silver lining is Vallejo- Napa corridor and Santa Rosa. There prices surged 12 and 9.9 percent, respectively. The Bay Area also faced a severe drubbing at the hands of Southern California and the Central Valley, where prices in several metropolitan areas leaped by 20 percent or more.

The natural consequence of the reduction in the bay area home price is apparent. The housing appreciation rates have also taken a nosedive. But despite the failure of the bay area home price to keep pace with the national average, prices in the nine counties still are out of reach for most residents. The affordability factor that measures how many area residents can afford a median-priced home hovers around 21 percent in the Bay Area. A recent study conducted by a government agency says it all. According to the study, 'while bay area home prices rose 7.7 percent nationally, San Jose's bay area home prices increased only 2.3 percent year over year, placing it 205th on the list of 220 cities'. In the San Francisco metropolitan area, the bay area home price grew 5.2 percent, placing it 116th.

Experts have ascribed the discrepancy to several factors. According to them bay area home price in Southern California and the Central Valley have congenial climate to grow because they have historically lagged prices in the Bay Area. This opinion has been echoed by some other firms also. The survey has shown that the bay area home price for a home or condo in the nine counties in April was $492,000. In Southern California, the April median was $386,000. The variation is clear. On the other hand, another school of thought has cited the economic prosperity for the rise in bay area home price in Southern California. Because of its dependence on advanced technology, Southern California economy is thriving and it has been fully reflected in the home prices.