Pricing trends in San Francisco - ALL TIME HIGH

March numbers appeared to be off in San Francisco, but then April went up quite a bit.

In March 2006 median prices were $769,500 and dropped to $753,000 this March.
Then April shot up to $790,000.

$790,000 is actually the highest Median Price for San Francisco EVER!

That is - at least according to DataQuick. Originally it was believed that the market peaked in the Summer & Fall of 2005. In fact, October 2005's $778,000 Median price remained tied for the highest with April 2006 and June 2006. Now, April 2007 is 1.5% higher than all previous peaks.

What does this mean for the market? Well, this is not a significant over all price appreciation, so this isn't necessarily an "investors" market. I personally know several investors who do quite well within San Francisco. But they focus on multi-unit fix and flips. For residential real estate - it simply means that San Francisco is on what appears to be a never ending upward climb.

San Francisco is a unique city. There is virtually no foreclosure activity, and the sub-prime mess is a blip on San Francisco's radar. All-cash buyers, and wealthy buyers abound. New York City with price per square foot well into the $1,000's with HOA dues nearly 2 to 3 times higher than San Francisco continues, in my opinion, to be the my measurement for where San Francisco prices are likely to go.

Today in San Francisco buyers are beginning to see $1,000 per SqFt prices and complain. Soon, it may be that anything below that number is considered a bargain, not the norm.

Where to find the Bay Area real estate bargains

If anyone is looking for a Wine Country home... this year appears to be the year. Prices keep falling off and For-Sale signs seem to be everywhere. Median prices in Napa and Sonoma are $563,000 and $519,000 respectively compared to well into the $600's in Napa and the high $500's for Sonoma last year. And for those looking for Foreclosures and sheer investment properties Solono Country appears to be suffering the most with Contra Costa finally seeing some signs of strengthening.

Scroll down to the bottom of this page to see the numbers for yourself: http://www.dqnews.com/RRBay0507.shtm