SUNNYVALE, CA--(Marketwire - November 20, 2012) -  In the four years since the last great fiscal cliff, Silicon Valley has weathered its share of ups and downs like the rest of the nation. San Jose homes and neighboring markets show the characteristic drop and slow rise that mirrored stocks, jobs and other economic indicators. But as the industry is waiting for housing to return to "pre-recession highs," and thoughts turn to the potential for rougher times ahead, a look farther back to the years just preceding the height of the market shows a more accurate assessment of the value of home investments.

Northern California's Multiple Listing Service (MLS), MLSListings Inc, reviewed four residential Silicon Valley real estate markets from 2005 forward. On a macro level, median single family home prices have adjusted back to 2005 levels, but some neighborhoods within just a few miles show a far broader range of activity.

"Comparing San Jose real estate with the Los Gatos, Saratoga and Campbell real estate markets, it becomes evident that for the most part, we have returned to 2005 home value levels," said James Harrison, president and CEO of MLSListings Inc. "This demonstrates the inherent ability of homes, like many investments, to weather short-term volatility, as long as a long-term strategy is in place. While the MLS is the most accurate and reliable source of data for any trustworthy housing analysis, it's important to work with a licensed real estate professional with hyper-local knowledge and insight to compete in today's market."

With a current median sale price of $585,000 in October 2012, single family San Jose home prices have dropped a total of seven percent since January of 2005, when the median sale price was $630,000. In comparison, Campbell homes have dropped in price just one percent from the January 2005 median of $697,000, to $692,000, while homes in Los Gatos have increased eight percent from $1,380,000 in January 2005 to a median price of $1,487,500 in October 2012. And in Saratoga, median home prices have jumped 23 percent, to a median of $1,741,500 from $1,416,000 in January 2005.

About MLSListings Inc
MLSListings Inc (www.mlslistings.com) is the premier MLS and real estate search website in northern California, representing more than 16,000 real estate professionals.

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