Home sales bump up, and prices too in the valley

A news report has good news about home sales in the valley. It says: "The Coachella Valley's median home price in March climbed above $200,000 for the first time in nearly a year amid robust sales, a new report shows. The valley's median price — half sold for more, half for less — was $210,000 last month, up from $195,000 in February and about $205,000 in March 2011, San Diego-based real estate information provider DataQuick reported. The valley's median price hovered around $168,000 for much of the fall, inching forward in fits and starts in recent months. Some 1,152 homes sold last month, a 3.3 percent increase from March 2011. It's also up from 876 in February. Nearly 60 newly built homes sold last month, still a relatively low number but almost twice as many as in February. March was the ninth consecutive month of year-over-year home sales increases in the valley, DataQuick reported. With home inventories particularly low in some communities, buyers increasingly find they must compete to get the homes they want." Miss Penny Lane says: She's going to enjoy her own home today, starting with having morning tea in the yard.