While the U.S. housing market as a a whole saw a drop of 2.4% in home sales in March, the Bay Area saw a dramatic 6.5% increase lead by 13% increase in San Francisco, 11.7% in Oakland and San José at 4.9%
A major factor was the sharp increase in new listings in the Bay Area – up 35% from a year ago.
The increase in inventory has essentially kept home prices stable, up just 1% with a median listing price of $1.4 million.
While interest rates remain high – 6.91% – many buyers are just accepting this as a fact of life. Also, a number of buyers are buying all in cash, including 26.5% in San Francisco and 18% in San José.