Forecast: Santa Rosa housing prices will see biggest increase in U.S.

<p>Santa Rosa home prices will rise 6 percent this year, an increase that is greater than any other city in the country, according to new real estate projections for 2010 by Money Magazine.</p><p>Money Magazine forecasts that the decline in Santa Rosa home prices — 45 percent since 2006 — is over.</p><p>The prediction contrasts with a recent study that estimates Sonoma County has more than 7,000 houses and condos that will be lost to foreclosures or other distressed sales in the next few years.</p><p>Since 2006, Sonoma County's median home price has plummeted 43 percent, to $353,000. While home prices have leveled off since last summer, the downturn has left nearly a third of the county's homeowners under water, according to a new estimate by First American CoreLogic.</p><p>Money Magazine's projections released Saturday identify eight cities in California that will see home price gains this year. Santa Rosa is at the top, ahead of such cities as Merced (4.4 percent), Modesto (3.2 percent) and Napa (2.3 percent).</p><p>Money Magazine's forecasts show that Los Angeles, Oakland, San Jose and San Francisco will all see a drop in home prices this year.</p>