Real Estate: The Price of Living in Paradise

Many out-of-towners I've talked to can't believe that multiple offers and cash bids above the asking price are still common in SF. The headlines about incredible housing deals just don't apply to us, unfortunately. Last month, 536 homes were sold in the city, with a median price of $650,000--only a tad less than the median of $675,000 in September 2008, according to real estate reporting service MDA DataQuick.

For the Bay Area as a whole, the median price paid in September was $365,000, about 9 percent lower than the price a year earlier, MDA DataQuick says. State-wide, the median price was $251,000, down 11.3 percent from September 2008.

Rent continues to decline. San Francisco rent--which averages $2,270 a month--has dropped 5.6 percent during the past year, says the SF Chronicle, citing a real estate report.

That's of little solace to tenants, though, who've faced a 26.4 percent surge in rent over the last four years.