San Francisco Bay Area Home Prices Dip Below $300,000

Bloomberg reports:

The median home price in San Francisco Bay Area last month dropped below $300,000 for the first time in almost a decade, spurring an increase in sales, MDA DataQuick said today.

The median price fell to $295,000, down a record 46 percent from $548,000 a year earlier and reaching the lowest level since 1999, the San Diego-based real estate research company said in a statement. A total of 5,032 new and existing houses and condominiums sold last month in the nine-county region, up 26 percent from a year earlier.

Northern California prices are being driven down by a rise in foreclosures, with properties in default typically selling at a discount. Stricter lending standards for more expensive properties are affecting the market as well, MDA DataQuick said. Less than 18 percent of Bay Area homes were purchased with loans of more than $417,000 last month, down from 62 percent before credit tightening began in August 2007.

With lower prices to come.