Searching through my desk, I found a copy of an article entitled, Here are the Buyers, Where are the NICE Homes? Today's environment feels very similar to that of March 2007:  "I have several buyers wondering why there is no inventory that fits their criteria. They aren't being picky.  Many of them are able to afford what they are lookiing for in their desired neighborhoods in the city.  In fact, they are quite realistic.  The problem seems to be a real lack of inventory.  Every Thursday and Friday, as most of the new listings come onto the market, my clients patiently watch to see what new listings will arrive for them to go see over the weekend.  Often they are disappointed with the lack of listings coming onto the market.  When they do find a place they really love and hope to call home, they often face bidding wars against other interested buyers."  It sounds a bit too familiar. 

For the last few years, when someone asks me "How's the market?" I often respond by making the distinctions between neighborhoods, types of property (houses v. condos v. TICs), luxury, etc. because there hasn't been any one behavior pattern that has been one size fits all for the city of San Francisco.

A look at the data:  For all single family homes in San Francisco, the median price has gone up 17% from Jan 09 to Jan 10 from $600,000 to $702,500.  The number of homes sold has also increased by 20% (volume), and the number of homes for sale has declined by 15%.