Report: Bay Area housing a spooky challenge

From scary high prices to vanishing listings, there are a chilling number of challenges facing homebuyers this year, according to a new report from Point2Homes.

California tops the list of expensive U.S. housing markets, with smaller cities Sunnyvale ($1,744,250) and Fremont ($1,429,000) leading the surge. They are more expensive than expensive big cities like San Francisco ($1,380,000), San Jose ($1,350,000) and even Manhattan ($1,140,440), according to the report.

California factoids:

• California Nightmare: Nine of the top 10 scariest housing markets in the country are in the state. While Los Angeles and San Francisco are often associated with greater home-seeking challenges, the analysis shows that smaller cities like Sunnyvale and Escondido can be even more challenging
• Home Prices on the Rise: California homes come with a hefty price tag and, in some of the state's bigger cities, there have been notable increases over the past year. Escondido witnessed the highest surge (18.4%) since August 2022, with homes jumping from $693k to over $800k. Meanwhile, Chula Vista and Corona also saw median prices rise by nearly $100k
• Fast Sales and Low Inventory: In Sunnyvale and Fremont, homes are flying off the market in just 10 days or less, while inventory is shrinking by more than 60% compared to the previous year. Similarly, 19 other large cities in the state are experiencing staggering drops of at least 50% since 2022
• The Bright Side: Despite the grim data, there is a glimmer of hope for budget-conscious buyers. Nine cities in California display home prices of $500k and under, providing a somewhat more manageable entry point into the market. Fresno and Visalia have the lowest price marks for home buyers: $390k and $395k, respectively.