Despite a decrease in sales volume, the Millbrae real estate market is showing mostly signs of strength, such as a fall in foreclosures and a higher median sales price. According to a May 20, 2010 article from Reuters, “Home sales in the nine-county San Francisco region continued to shift toward its more expensive markets in April, reducing overall sales and lifting the area’s median sales price from year-earlier levels, a report by MDA DataQuick said on Thursday.” The piece went on to state that “The region posted 7,003 sales of houses and condominiums in April, up 0.2 percent from March and down 1.9 percent from a year earlier, while the area’s median home price last month of $370,000 marked a decline of 2.6 percent from March and an increase of 21.7 percent from a year earlier, the report by the real estate information service said.”

The average purchase price of a Millbrae home for sale jumped in the month of April, along with the median price in the rest of the Bay Area. According to a May 21, 2010 article from the San Francisco Chronicle, “Median resale home prices in the Bay Area rose 30 percent in April compared with the prior year, in a market that featured fewer foreclosures and more activity in higher end neighborhoods, according to a real estate report released Thursday.” The piece, written by Robert Selna, went on to say that “Meanwhile, the total number of homes resold in the Bay area – that is, not newly constructed – fell slightly year-over-year as the higher-priced sales activity could not offset declines in the more affordable areas, according to data analyzed by MDA DataQuick, a San Diego real estate research firm that produces monthly market updates.”

The number of distressed mortgages in nearby markets such as East Bay declined in the month of May, a development that should decrease negative pressure on Millbrae real estate. According to a June 10, 2010 article from the Contra Costa Times, “Default notices – the first step in the foreclosure process – fell by about half in the East Bay during May from a year ago as more homeowners opted for short sales…In the Bay Area – which RealtyTrac.com defines as Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco, and San Mateo counties – a total of 2,230 homeowners received a notice of default, down 38.9 percent from a year ago.”

The Palo Alto real estate market is very closely related to the greater Bay Area real estate market, and seems to be showing some signs of improvement. According to a March 11, 2010 article from ABC 7 News, “For the first time in a long time, some of the Bay Area’s hardest hit counties are seeing their foreclosure numbers drop compared with last year. In San Joaquin County, foreclosure filings have dropped 42 percent since February 2009; in Alameda, foreclosure filings are down 16 percent and in Contra Costa County, filings are down 3 percent.” In the words of Elaine Brooks-Cox, a foreclosure contractor with Pacific Community Services, “Just recently we’ve seen a small slowdown. Our inventory for foreclosure inventory and short-sale inventory and a short-sale inventory in the local 680 corridor is down; we’re seeing probably a decrease by as much as 60 percent over what it was last year.”

Home prices are another bright spot for Palo Alto homes for sale, according to a  March 18, 2010 online article from the Los Angeles Times. The article stated that “The median price paid for a Bay Area home jumped 20% in February as fewer foreclosures were on the market, the San Diego research firm MDA DataQuick said Thrusday. Sales fell for the second month in a row. Potential buyers had trouble securing financing, were concerned about job security or had a difficult time competing for a home as inventory tightened, DataQuick said.” According to John Walsh, the President of DataQuick, “The market remains fundamentally off kilter. There’s still relatively little lending going on in the upper price ranges, and little adjustable-rate financing, which have been vital to the Bay Area.”

One possible negative influence on Palo Alto real estate for sale was negative news regarding home sales. According to a March 19, 2010 article in the San Francisco Chronicle, “The volume of Bay Area home sales dipped in February compared with a year ago, while the median price continued to rise, according to a real estate report released on Thursday…A total of 3,582 existing single-family homes changed hands in the nine-county region in February…”