Berkeley Home Sales and Value Increased in 2011

More house buyers called Berkeley home in 2011 and paid more for the privilege, according to statistics from local real estate sources.

DataQuick, a San Diego based real estate information service released a report showing that sales of more than 7,400 homes in the nine county Bay Area increased by 4.4 percent last December, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

The median sales price for all Bay Area homes was $351,000, a 3.5 percent slump from December of 2010, the paper reported.

And home buyers still chose Berkeley as the place to hang their hats. Forty four single family homes were sold here in December 2011, compared to 38 during the same month of 2010, said Aman Daro, director of media and business development for .

The average home price went up as well from $587,268 in 2010 to $658,489 in the last month of 2011.

Berkeley was the only city in Alameda County where sales increased from year to year, Daro said.

Demand is likely driven by the desirability of the Berkeley schools, he added.  

Did you buy or sell a house in Berkeley last year? What do you think makes Berkeley real estate desirable? Share your experience in the comments.