Sonoma County home prices fall

<p>Bay Area home prices rose in July, pulled up by sales in higher-priced areas, but Sonoma was one of two counties where prices fell, according to a report released today.</p><p>The median price for all new and resale houses and condominiums across the nine-county region was $665,000 in July, a 4.1 percent increase from a year ago, according to DataQuick Information Systems. Sonoma County’s median fell 4.1 percent to $520,000 in July, according to the report.</p><p>Home sales have fallen across the Bay Area the past 30 months in year-over-year comparisons. The market continues retreating from record levels with the downturn driven by sellers reluctant to cut price and buyers wary of making purchases.</p><p>Tighter lending standards in the wake of soaring loan defaults in recent months have contributed to the slowdown by pushing more buyers out of the market, particularly in lower priced markets.</p><p>Sonoma and Solano counties registered the only median price declines in July. But prices have turned back up in the other seven counties, led by Marin, Contra Costa and San Mateo counties in July.</p><p>More detailed information about Sonoma County’s housing market will be available in Thursday’s editions of The Press Democrat.</p>