Rosewater

A sharp fall in new home prices in several Bay Area counties may be the long-awaited signal that the price appreciation boom in California homes may come to an end next year... The steepest drop was in Alameda County where median new home prices fell 25.9 percent to $453,250 in October 2003 compared to the same period a year ago, says Alexis McGee, president of Foreclosures.com. Prices of new homes fell 15.5 percent in San Mateo County, 14.1 percent in San Francisco, and 11.2 percent in Santa Clara County year over year.