The Case-Shiller home price index for San Diego was up a mild .4 percent overall in June. Hidden in that increase, however, was a drop in the high-priced tier (composed of the most expensive one-third of homes sold during the April-through-June measurement period).
This continues the general (though recently dormant) trend in which the rebound has been far stronger in the low-priced than the high-priced tier, with the mid-priced tier splitting the difference:
However, the performance during the price rally is a mirror image of what’s happened since the housing bust began:
As of June, despite having risen 17 percent off their April 2009 trough, low-tier home prices were still down 45 percent from their 2005 peak. The high tier was down “only” 28 percent, with the middle tier and the aggregate index both down in the 34 percent range.
— RICH TOSCANO