Inman

San Francisco real estate craze continues

San Francisco Bay Area home sales surged last month to their highest level in more than 16 years and prices also hit new peaks, according to real estate information service DataQuick.

A total of 14,104 new and resale houses and condos were sold in the nine-county region in June. That was up 17.3 percent from 12,028 in May and up 34.4 percent from 10,492 for June last year, according to DataQuick.

Last month’s sales count was the highest for any month in DataQuick’s statistics, which go back to 1988. The previous sales peak was 12,488 in August last year.

“There was a lack of homes for sale until a month or two ago, so there was a lot of pent up demand. As homes came on the market, buyers jumped in, getting their financing locked in before interest rates and prices rise any further,” said Marshall Prentice, DataQuick president.

The median price paid for a San Francisco Bay Area home was $516,000 last month, a new record. That was up 2 percent from $506,000 in May and up 16.5 percent from $443,000 for June last year.

DataQuick, a subsidiary of Vancouver-based MacDonald Dettwiler and Associates, monitors real estate activity nationwide and provides information to consumers, educational institutions, public agencies, lending institutions, title companies and industry analysts.

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