A total of 7,998 new and resale houses and condos sold in the nine-county Bay Area last month. That was up 14.5% from 6,988 in May but down 4.5% from 8,373 in June 2010, according to San Diego-based DataQuick. .

On average, Bay Area sales have risen 4.9% between May and June since 1988, when DataQuick’s statistics begin.

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Last month’s sales were the lowest for the month of June since 2008, when 7,178 homes sold. June sales have ranged from a low of 7,118 in 1993 to a high of 15,735 in 2004, while the average is 10,129. Sales last month fell 21.0% below the June average. June is normally a strong month and, among all months, it’s had the highest number of sales most often – seven of the past 23 years.

In June last year – the peak month for 2010 – sales were bolstered by state and federal efforts to stimulate the housing market via homebuyer tax credits. Those credits had expired or been largely depleted by July 2010, when sales plunged 19% from the month before and 23% from the previous July.

While the 14.5% jump in sales last month from May was nearly triple the normal increase, higher May-to-June gains were recorded as recently as 2008 and 2009, which logged 15.5% and 16.1% gains, respectively.

“It’s difficult to point to one specific thing that caused last month’s sales to jump more than usual from May. It wasn’t just in the Bay Area – we saw it across much of the state. June likely benefitted from a combination of factors, such as price reductions, low mortgage rates and perhaps a batch of short sale transactions from spring that took months to close. Bargain hunters, mainly investors and first-time buyers, remain very active,” said John Walsh, DataQuick president.

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A total of 6,988 new and resale houses and condos sold in the nine-county Bay Area last month. That was up 2.9% from 6,789 in April but down 15.4% from 8,264 in May 2010, according to San Diego-based DataQuick.. Last month’s year-over-year drop was the sharpest since sales fell 22.8% last October.

On average, Bay Area sales have risen 6.6% – about double last month’s gain – between April and May since 1988, when DataQuick’s statistics begin.

If you are looking to buy a home, TheStreet’s sister site BankingMyWay can help you find the lowest mortgage rates in your area.

Last month’s sales were the lowest for the month of May since 2008, when 6,216 homes sold, and the third-lowest on record, behind May 1995 and 2008. May sales have ranged from a low of 6,216 in 2008 to a high of 13,567 in 2004, while the average is 9,693. Last month’s sales fell 27.9% below the May average.

Builders sold 370 newly built homes last month in the Bay Area, down 47.1% from a year earlier and the lowest number for a May since at least 1988. Builders have struggled with the weak economy and competition from the resale market, especially distressed properties.

“Given the sluggish start to this spring’s home-buying season, with sales 20 to 30% below average, it’s no surprise we’re logging sharper declines from 2010. Sales got a big shot in the arm a year ago, when people rushed to take advantage of expiring homebuyer tax credits. Today the market must stand on its own, and it’s having a hard time doing that in the absence of stronger job growth and consumer confidence. So far, low mortgage rates and lower home prices aren’t enough to overcome the concern some potential buyers have that prices could fall more. Other would-be buyers are unemployed or underemployed, or can’t qualify for a loan. Scores of would-be move-up buyers owe more than their homes are worth; so they’re stuck,” said John Walsh, DataQuick president.

Article source: http://www.thestreet.com/story/11154938/1/san-francisco-home-sales-volley-like-a-trolley.html