Home sales across California are now at the highest level they've been in eight months.
While the numbers look promising, analysts say the market is still rebounding, and home sales overall are still down compared to this time last year.
Statewide from April to May, homes sales were up 10%, according to the latest report from the California Association of Realtors. In the Bay Area, they were up 30%.
"What I’m seeing in this data is a pretty strong rebound in home sales," Zillow senior economist Jeff Tucker said.
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Tucker said the biggest jump in sales is happening in suburban areas. In Santa Clara and San Mateo counties, sales are up 40%.
Tucker believes a combination of factors helped trigger the jump in numbers, including things starting to stabilize in the tech industry, leaving workers feeling more comfortable about purchasing homes by cashing in stock options. Also, he says higher interest rates aren't scaring as many buyers as people predicted.
"I think folks are saying, 'Well, I want to buy a house, so I'm going to find a way to make it work and I'm going to forge ahead,'" he said.
Renee White, a realtor in Contra Costa County, agrees that interest rates haven't been a huge issue. Overall, the county saw a double-digit jump in single family home sales between April and May.
"The interest rate will change eventually for them," she said. "What they need to make sure is that they can make the payment today but they do see that it's probably not going to be forever."
All in all, the housing industry still has a hole to climb out of, but experts say the latest jump could be a positive sign of things to come, at least in the short term.
"I think it’s part of a broader story of the housing market bouncing back with really surprising strength after a pretty dismal second half of 2022," Tucker said.
