San Francisco, CA (PRWEB) January 26, 2013

The Real Estate Marketing Insider announced this week’s recipient of the “Toby’s Choice” award for the best market for middle-income homes and properties. Following news from SFGate of a surge in home sales and a price spike in late 2012, the winner of this week’s award was the San Francisco Bay Area.

Over the course of 2012, the Bay Area saw its home sales accelerate steadily with prices keeping pace. By the end of 2012, according to research firm DataQuick, the market looked completely different from one year earlier. The price median among the nine counties of the Bay Area ended the year at $442,750. That marks a 32 percent increase from 2011, a record-setting spike. The total sales of homes and condos touched 7,800 in December, a 4.5 percent year-over-year increase. Meanwhile, home sales that resulted from foreclosures and short sales decreased from over 50 percent, to about a third.

These new numbers are great news for home sellers in the Bay Area. The numbers show that the area is popular with buyers, with high turnover for new properties. Sellers that arm themselves with online marketing campaigns can easily uncover real estate buyer leads and find high demand for Bay Area listings. The market in the Bay Area represents a great opportunity for real estate agents. Realtors looking for new mid-range listings should take a close look at this week’s “Toby’s Choice”.

The Real Estate Marketing Insider named its “Toby’s Choice” Market of the Week, an award that recognizes outstanding real estate markets for mid-range homes. REMI chose the San Francisco Bay Area as the Market of the Week, after DataQuick released figures showing record sales and price increases in 2012.

About Real Estate Marketing Insider:

The Real Estate Marketing Insider provides up-to-the-minute news, real estate tips, and insider analysis of the real estate market. An invaluable resource for home buyers, home sellers, and real estate professionals, REMI is based in La Jolla, Calif.

For the original version on PRWeb visit: http://www.prweb.com/releases/prwebreal-estate-market/bay-area-san-francisco/prweb10365181.htm

Article source: http://www.virtual-strategy.com/2013/01/26/remi-announces-bay-area-%E2%80%9Ctoby%E2%80%99s-choice%E2%80%9D-market-week

The sales pace of newly built homes is now at the lowest on record.

Sales dropped nearly 17 percent in February after a big drop in January. Put that on top of the nearly 10 percent February drop in existing home sales reported earlier this week and the incredibly low level of mortgage purchase applications, and you get a clear case for a double dip in housing.

Remember, this number from the Census is based on contracts signed in February, not closings, like the existing home sales number from the Realtors. That means it is a real indicator of how the Spring market is starting.

“Further, the plunge in new home prices [down 8.9% year over year] does not bode well for existing sales prices in February, which will close in March and April and be reported by NAR in April and May,” notes analyst Mark Hanson.

I really don’t have to tell you that, since the vast majority of you voting on the blog cast the double-dip vote yourselves. The question now is: How long will it last? As I noted yesterday, more than a hundred economist and housing types surveyed by MacroMarkets said there would not be real recovery in housing until 2013.

I want to talk pros and cons.

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