Median sales prices for existing California homes climbed another 4.2 percent in May, marking a third straight month of rising prices, according to new statistics released by the California Association of Realtors.
The association called May's rise the largest for the month since it began keeping records in 1979.
In Sacramento County, median sales prices rose 8.1 percent from April. Only Orange and Napa counties were higher, CAR said.
The association reported a $180,940 median price in Sacramento County, up from $167,340 in April. Statewide, the median sales price climbed to $267,570 in May from $256,700 in April. The median is the point where half sell for more and half for less.
CAR officials attributed rising prices to a dwindling number of the cheapest bank repos and improved sales in the higher-end market.
--Call The Sacramento Bee's Jim Wasserman, (916) 321-1102 or email him at [email protected]. Read his blog on real estate, Home Front, at www.sacbee.com/blogs.