San Fran's First

Home prices in the Bay Area posted an annual decline for the first time in seven years, per CoreLogic's most recent data. The median price in March fell 0.1 percent to $830,000.

Of the change, CoreLogic analyst Andrew LePage wrote in a release, “It reflects a trend that began in mid-2018 when home sales slowed and inventory grew, forcing sellers to be more competitive,” adding, “The year-over-year increase in the region’s median sale price was 16.2 percent in March last year. But after that, the gains in the median gradually decreased each month and fell to the 2 to 3 percent range early this year and then disappeared this March.” CNBC reports that the median sale price in San Francisco increased for 83 months in a row since April 2012.

“Those factors bode well for stronger sales than we’ve seen in recent months, but any impending upswing in activity wasn’t evident in the March data,” LePage said. “Beginning in late spring last year, some potential buyers got priced out and others simply stepped out of the market amid concerns prices were near a peak.”

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