Bay Area Housing Market

Single-family home prices continued to jump in the Bay Area in September, with the numbers suggesting the "move-up" buyer is back

The region saw double-digit price increases, according to a report Monday from a real estate information company. The biggest surge -- 21 percent -- came in homes costing $500,000 or more, partly because homeowners appear to be selling their houses to move up to more expensive ones.

Move-up buyers are a key segment of the housing market, but they have been missing since the crash, and they're still missing from some parts of the region.

Overall, Bay Area single family home prices climbed 16 percent. Alameda County's median sales price was up 12.6 percent to $422,250 from September 2011. Contra Costa County was up 25 percent to $325,000. Santa Clara County was 13 percent above last September at $610,500. San Mateo County's median sales price of was $688,000, an 18 percent increase.

Resale condominiums also saw large yearly price increases, according to DataQuick. The median price of a condo sold in September in Alameda County was up more than 21 percent to $261,500; 48 percent in Contra Costa County; 22.5 percent in Santa Clara County and 7 percent in San Mateo County.

Sale numbers for all types of homes in the nine-county Bay Area rose for the 12th consecutive month. Sales below $500,000 fell 12.4 percent from a year earlier while sales above that jumped almost 21 percent.

More stunning pictures of Bay Area below, 

Bay Area