As real estate prices have skyrocketed in San Francisco, it’s no surprise that more residents there who are looking to buy homes have switched their search to the East Bay.

The great majority of homes in many areas of Oakland and the East Bay are still selling for over the asking price with some eye-popping over-asking offers for some properties.

The great majority of homes in many areas of Oakland and the East Bay are still selling for over the asking price with some eye-popping over-asking offers for some properties.

Buyers in today’s hot real estate market are dealing with seller strategies that may sometimes seem puzzling and frustrating.

Buyers in today’s hot real estate market are dealing with seller strategies that may sometimes seem puzzling and frustrating.

Eliot Peper, 27, and his fiancée Drea Castillo, 30, moved to the Bay Area from San Diego last year when Castillo accepted a job with an architecture firm in San Francisco. At first, the couple considered renting an apartment but were surprised to find it was cheaper to buy a condo.

As we roll into summer here in the East Bay, one thing is certain: We’ll all be spending lots of time outdoors. That makes this the perfect time to update your home’s exterior. No need to undertake a major renovation, though. Just concentrate your efforts on the entrance. A few quick changes there are enough to make the whole place feel refreshed.

Anytime a blog post or news story appears that cites the skyrocketing cost of Bay Area real estate, some readers in the online comments section point to signs of a housing bubble such as the one that burst in late 2008. What are the chances that the current run-up in prices will end in another crash, sending prices in many parts of the Bay Area plummeting, with some values in outlying areas dropping by one-half or more?

Anytime a blog post or news story appears that cites the skyrocketing cost of Bay Area real estate, some readers in the online comments section point to signs of a housing bubble such as the one that burst in late 2008. What are the chances that the current run-up in prices will end in another crash, sending prices in many parts of the Bay Area plummeting, with some values in outlying areas dropping by one-half or more?

During the last boom, financing a home loan was pretty easy, with buyers needing little or no money down to qualify for conventional loans. Then came the bust, and with it tightened regulations that required a down payment of 20 percent. Today the going rate is 10 percent down—still hardly chump change where Bay Area housing is concerned.