California Home Sales Rise, Prices Fall

San Diego - Home sales rose in California last month, but prices fell sharply as fewer high-end properties sold.

Market researcher DataQuick said Wednesday that 34,087 homes and condos were sold in the state in October, up 4.3 percent from the same month last year but down nearly 4 percent from September.

By comparison, October sales have averaged about 43,500 since 1988. They peaked at more than 70,000 in 2003 and plunged to fewer than 26,000 in 2007.

The median sale price was $240,000, down more than 6 percent from October 2010. It was the 13th straight month that prices have declined from year-ago levels.

More than half of the existing homes sold were foreclosures or were "short sales" that were sold for less than the debt owed on them.

San Diego-based DataQuick said sales for more expensive homes were weak after caps on federally guaranteed loans were reduced. In Southern California and the San Francisco Bay area, sales of homes costing at least a half-million dollars fell at least 20 percent.

Home buyers last month committed themselves to a monthly mortgage of $924, on average, down from $964 in September. When adjusted for inflation, that was the lowest amount on record.