Remember how I wrote the last couple of years that reports of drastic price declines were largely a product (at least in the South Bay) of a statistical anomaly whereby the lower end of the market was very hot due mostly to Fed-subsidized interest rates, while the upper end was ice cold.  Well, interest rates for loans over $729,750 have come waaaay down to around 5.5% and, while you still have to qualify for them, they're much easier to get now than, say, 2 years ago.

This has caused the upper end of the market to experience a rebirth.  Sales over $1.5 million are up 52% over last year, year to date, while the market below that is holding steady.  So get ready for media reports of increases in the average price of homes in Southern California.  They're not going up, but a relatively small number of high end sales can have the effect of dragging up the average.

If you're on my mailing list, my July 2010 newsletter will get into this in some depth, separating out various market segments in an attempt to see what prices are really doing.  Unfortunately for the numbers-oriented, there really is no absolutely objective way to present this and, even if there were, the only way to see how it all applies to your house is to have a Realtor active in your area give you his estimate of the fair market value for your house. 

If you'd like to be added to my mailing list, shoot me an email at:  DanaHGraham@cs.com.