Watch CBS News

Bay Area Sets Record For Million-Dollar Home Sales

SAN FRANCISCO (CBS/AP) - A record number of million-dollar homes were sold in the San Francisco Bay Area during the second quarter, a research firm said Thursday, another sign that affording a place to live is a growing challenge for anyone who isn't tied to the booming technology economy.

There were 5,734 homes sold for at least $1 million in the nine-county region from April through June, nearly double the 3,162 sales that hit the threshold in the first quarter and up 19 percent from 4,821 sales during the same period of 2013, CoreLogic DataQuick said. There were 1,117 homes sold for at least $2 million, also a record and nearly double what fetched that amount during the previous three months.

Million-dollar homes are not just for the region's wealthiest elite. The median sales price in the city of San Francisco was $1 million in June, up 13 percent from $883,000 a year earlier. The median price for the region was $618,000 last month, the highest since November 2007 and not far off its peak of $665,000 during the previous housing cycle.

San Francisco set a record for million-dollar sales, as did Santa Clara County, in the heart of Silicon Valley. Six of the Bay Area's nine counties set records for sales of at least $2 million.

The region's home sales, like in many parts of the country, have been sluggish overall largely because prices have soared out of reach for many potential buyers and inventories are thin. The California Association of Realtors reported a 2.4-month supply of unsold homes in the Bay Area in June, well below a normal supply of five to seven months. Price increases have moderated since a torrid climb during the first half of 2013.

In California, there were 12,826 million-dollar sales from April through June, the state's highest quarterly mark in seven years due to purchases in the Bay Area, according to Irvine-based CoreLogic DataQuick. There were 6,418 sales of at least $1 million in Southern California, an increase from the previous quarter and from last year but still 30 percent off that region's peak.

© Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.