This from the recent San Francisco Business Times Online:

Median prices for homes in the Bay Area collapsed in the first quarter, losing 42.7 percent, the fourth worst drop for metropolitan areas in the country behind Fort Myers, Fla.; Saginaw, Mich.; and Akron, Ohio.

The median price for a home in San Francisco and the East Bay was $402,000 in the first quarter, compared with $701,700 in the first quarter of 2008, according to the National Association of Realtors.

South bay home prices fell 42.3 percent to $450,000 in the same period.

Median prices for homes across the country fell 14 percent. The national median home price fell to $169,000, and distressed properties sold for 20 percent less than others listed for sale.

Lower prices drove more sales in California and other states hard hit by the real estate downturn.

Nevada had the largest gain – first quarter sales volume rose 116.8 percent from a year earlier — followed by California, with a sales volume increase of 80.6 percent.

Charles McMillan, president of the National Association of Realtors and a broker with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Dallas-Fort Worth, said there are two levels of pricing in the current market.

“Traditional homes in good condition have held their value much better, so owners shouldn’t be overly concerned about median prices,” he said. “Most sellers can expect a good return if they’ve been in their home for a normal period of homeownership and haven’t excessively tapped their equity.”

Ouch…