California's unsold inventory index for homes in March hits 11.6 months

The California Association of Realtors reported Friday that the unsold inventory index -- the number of months needed to deplete the supply of homes on the market at the current sales rate -- for single-family homes in March was 11.6 months, compared to 7.6 months a year ago.

The median price of an existing, single-family detached home in California during March 2008 was $413,980, a 29 percent decrease from the revised $582,930 median for March 2007, C.A.R. reported. The March 2008 median price fell 1.3 percent compared with February's revised $419,640 median price.

In the Sacramento area, the median price for a single-family home sold in March was $258,460, 28.8 percent below the sales price of a year ago, but just one-tenth of 1 percent below what it was in February.

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Mountain View led California communities with the greatest median home price increases in March compared with the same period a year ago at 25.8 percent. Next, in order, were Sunnyvale, 15.2 percent; Redwood City, 12.9 percent; Yorba Linda, 10.4 percent; San Ramon, 7.6 percent; Ridgecrest, 7.6 percent; Claremont, 6.7 percent; West Hollywood, 3.6 percent; Laguna Niguel, 3.3 percent; San Francisco, 0.7 percent.

Statewide, the 10 cities and communities with the highest median home prices in California during March were Newport Beach, $1.19 million; Danville, $990,000; Santa Barbara, $977,500; Redwood City, $872,500; Mountain View, $862,000; San Clemente, $842,000; Sunnyvale, $806,500; San Ramon, $790,000; Redondo Beach, $774,000; San Francisco, $755,000.