Sales of single-family, re-sale homes in September were down 25.1%, year-over-year.

There were 128 homes sold. The average number of homes sold monthly since January 2003 is 160.

Inventory was up 8.9% compared to last September. The number of homes for sale as of the fifth of October was 366. The average is 691.

The sales price to list price ratio, or what buyers are paying over what

sellers are asking, slipped below 100% for the first time since January: 99.1%.

The time it takes to sell a home, meaning from when homes are listed for sale until they go into contract, jumped from 29 days in August to 45 days in September. The average since January 2003 is 64 days.

Inventory continues to be problematic. Although inventory has been higher than the year before for the past three months, it is still far below the norm. Since January 2003, Santa Cruz County has averaged 720 days of inventory. Last month it was 366.

The median price for condos hit a new, all-time high of $638,000. It was up 17.1% year-over-year. The average price was up 13.5%.

Condo sales were down 26.2%. There were 31 condos sold last month.

Condos have averaged 224 days of inventory since 2003. Last month it was 102. The number of condos for sale as of the fifth of October was 109. The average is 147.

Condos are averaging fifty-seven days on market. The average is sixty- five days.