A mid-sized city on the San Francisco Peninsula located about midway between San Francisco and San Jose, the city of San Carlos, California, is situated in San Mateo County and is home to a population of around 30,000 residents. It is a rather affluent community, with residents having a median annual income of $99,000, much higher than the state average, and accordingly, San Carlos real estate can be quite expensive, though there are more affordable neighborhoods as well. Its homes are among the top 10 most expensive cities in San Mateo County. Based on a viewing of the statistics of the San Carlos housing market available from the San Mateo County Association of Realtors, the market still is climbing out of the recession-fueled struggles, as both average and median prices of both homes and condos in the city have fallen year-over-year.

In the first quarter of 2010, the community saw 86 new San Carlos homes for sale in addition to its current inventory of 59 single-family homes for sale, both of which are lower figures than the first quarter of 2009, showing that inventory has begun to clear out a bit. There were 36 single-family homes sold in San Carlos in the first quarter, up by three from last year, and homes spent an average of 59 days on the market before selling in Q1, up from just 40 days in 2009′s first quarter. Prices of sold homes actually fell on an annual basis in terms of both average and median prices. The average price for a single-family home sold in the first three months of 2010 was around $913,500, down by more than $60,000 year-over year. The median price was $862,500, down by around $90,000 annually.

The condo market in San Carlos showed similar trends, with both median and average prices falling year-over-year in the first quarters. There were 23 new condos listed in the first quarter on top of the inventory of 31 condos for sale, down slightly from 2009. Sales plummeted in the first quarter of this year, with only five condos sold in the first quarter, down by nearly two-thirds from last year, when there were 14 condos sold in Q1.  The number of days condos spend on the market before selling has fallen too, to 35 days from 64, showing the inventory is not just sitting still on the market. The average sales price of a condo in San Carlos was $614,000 in the first quarter of 2010, down by around $20,000 from a year prior, while the median price stood at $545,000, down by just under $100,000 annually.

A community in the northeastern area of San Diego, Scripps Ranch, California, is a smaller community with over 30,000 residents. The community is a highly desirable neighborhood and its residents tend to be mostly affluent — its median household income was estimated at nearly $123,000, with nearly half of the city’s households bringing in $100,000 or more annually, with only 7% of the population making less than $30,000. Thus, Scripps Ranch real estate tends to be quite high-priced, and has therefore suffered some large drops and setbacks since the economy began to slide in the U.S.

According to the San Diego Union Tribune‘s zip code chart for the month of March, Scripps Ranch saw 26 single-family homes sold in March at a median price of $287 per square foot, an increase of 6% year-over-year. In March, there were also 29 condos sold in Scripps Ranch at a median price per square foot of $291, up more than 20% annually. The year-end totals for 2009 saw Scripps Ranch homes for sale saw 288 single-family homes sold for a median price per square foot of $282, down 3% annually, according to the San Diego Union Tribune Annual Chart. Meanwhile, there were 168 Scripps Ranch condos sold in 2009 at a median price of $252, down almost 9% year-over-year.

Over the past year, the median price for single-family homes for sale has not shifted too dramatically, seeing only slight rises and falls off and on throughout the 18 months. In September 2009, the median was around $725,000, and it took a gradual downslide , hitting a low of around $660,000 in May 2009 before picking back up again. As of February, the median was around $675,000. Sales of single-family homes have taken a mostly upward-trending slope through the past 18 months, picking up around May 2009 and rising thereafter.

The median price for condos in Scripps Ranch have fluctuated a bit more than home prices over the past 18 months. In September of 2009, the median was over $350,000, and since then, the prices began to fall, hitting a low of around $300,000 in August before slowly picking back up again. As of February, the median price for condos was in the $320,000 range. Condo sales have remained at between 10 and 15 per month for most of the 18 months, and just recently hit their highest point in February.