Affluent bay area buyers dropping sizable down payments

Even with sky-high home prices, Bay Area buyers are making some of the largest down payments in the U.S., with five of our local markets landing in the top 15.

Down payments of 30% of purchase price

According to data from RealtyTrac, the average San Francisco homebuyer put down 30 percent — $305,467 – of the purchase price in 2014, the second most of any county in the nation. San Mateo County ranked No. 3, with an average down payment of 28.5 percent, followed by Marin County at No. 5 (27.8 percent), Santa Clara County at No. 7 (25.5 percent), and Sonoma County at No. 13 (22.6 percent).

RealtyTrac says that markets where buyers can afford to make large down payments are those with the strongest economies – certainly the case in the Bay Area, where eight of nine counties were at full employment in March.

Contact Keith Katzman: 925.376.7776

Looking to buy or sell a home in the Lamorinda community? Contact Keith Katzman–a Moraga native with more than 30 years of industry experience.