Saratoga Home Prices Have Risen 3.5 Percent In The Past Year

The housing market continues to heat up in the Silicon Valley.

Home prices rose again in April as did the number of building permits being issued by cities. In addition, foreclosures are on the decline.

The website DataQuick reports the median price for all types of dwellings in the Bay Area was above $500,000 for the first time since 2008. That’s a 17 percent increase since March and a 30 percent hike from a year ago.

In Santa Clara County, the median sale price is now $645,000, a 25.6 percent increase from April 2012.

In Saratoga, the median sales price in March was $1.501 million, a 3.5 percent increase from a year ago.

Due to a lack of inventory, home sales have declined  slightly—0.6 percent—in the nine-county Bay Area. In Santa Clara County, the decline was 4 percent. 

In Saratoga, there were 37 homes sold in March, a 9.8 percent decrease from March 2012.

Meanwhile, RealtyTrac reports the number of single-family building permits nationwide increased 27 percent in the first quarter of 2013 to the highest level since 2008.

At the same, the number of foreclosure starts nationwide declined 27 percent to their lowest level since 2006.

In fact, the number of building permits issued and foreclosure starts were roughly the same for the first time since 2007.

In Saratoga, 13 building permits was issued during the first three months of this year, compared to two during the same time period last year. There were five foreclosure starts, compared to eight in the first quarter of 2012.