Median List Prices Bounce Back

The median national list price of for-sale homes is inching upward, increasing 3.17 percent last month compared to May 2011, according to newly released data from May of 146 markets tracked by Realtor.com.

“Signs of recovery are evident in a growing number of markets that were once the epicenter of the housing crisis,” Realtor.com reports. “For example, the recovery process that began in Florida approximately one year ago has since spread to Phoenix and most recently California.”

The following are the metro areas that have seen the largest month-over-month increases in median list prices in May:

1. Santa Barbara-Santa Maria-Lompoc, Calif.: 19.08 percent increase in May over April
2. Oakland, Calif.: 10.15 percent
3. South Bend, Ind.: 7.01 percent
4. Detroit: 5.56 percent
5. San Jose, Calif.: 5.20 percent
6. Washington, D.C.-Md.-Va.-W.Va.: 5 percent
7. Salt Lake City-Ogden, Utah: 4.55 percent
8. Sacramento, Calif.: 4.50 percent
9. Wilmington-Newark, Del.-Md.: 4.25 percent
10. Reno, Nev.: 4.17 percent

By Melissa Dittmann Tracey, REALTOR® Magazine Daily News