South Bay homes increasingly out of reach as median price hits $2M in Santa Clara County
SAN JOSE – Houses have long been more expensive in the Bay Area, especially in Santa Clara County. But new data shows how dire the housing affordability crisis is becoming in the South Bay.
According to the Santa Clara County Association of Realtors, the median price for a single-family home in the county was exactly $2 million in the month of April, up 13% over the last year.
The median price per square foot in a single-family home was $1,200, and the average time on the market was just 13 days. Condos and townhomes are also increasingly less affordable, with the median price now $1.08 million.
With the median price well into the seven-figures, it just means that that dream of home ownership is becoming less and less attainable for many.
By just about any measure, Sandra Contreras is a success story. At 29-years-old, she owns who own business and product lines. This month she opened a store front with two other retailers in downtown San Jose.
With the median home price in Santa Clara County now at $2 million, she says her hopes of ever affording a home here are all but gone.
"For myself, as a 29-year-old entrepreneur, very unrealistic to be able to put a down payment on a $2 million home. With two kids, surviving. Groceries, gas, commute everything" Contreras told CBS News Bay Area. "In my life, I don't feel like there's a way to save enough money to put a down payment for that, or even get close to it."
Prices are getting higher almost by the day said Association of Realtors President Michelle Perry.
"About 50% of the homes for sale are $2 million and above. We do have some homes that are below. But even homes at are priced right at the $2 million mark are going for more. Almost every home that's on the market in Santa Clara County gets multiple offers at this time," Perry said.
Tony Ramirez is the listing agent for a home that just went on the market in San Jose's Almaden Valley. It's a four bedroom with 2 1/2 baths, 2,000 square feet and a pool.
The home is priced just under that $2 million mark.
"We've had good activity. We've been on the market for five days, we've received multiple offers and over the weekend, we had over 40 groups through," Ramirez told CBS News Bay Area.
When asked who could afford the prices, Ramirez said, "High tech. It's definitely the people working for Apple, Google, it's their stocks. They're utilizing their stocks, they're cashing them out and they're buying homes."
Perry said there are also non-tech buyers who are pooling their money with their parents and or siblings.
Either way, it's a long-term strategy for potential buyers.
Contreras is commuting from her home in Sonoma County because she can save more money that way.
"We have to push ahead and we have to keep trying and set up a future for my kids," she said.
Maybe to buy a home someday, somewhere.
Along with sky-high prices, high mortgage rates continue to be a burden for potential homebuyers. According to the Mortgage Banker's Association, the average interest rate for a 30-year-fixed rate mortgage is a little over 7%.