After a down year in 2001, sales and prices posted solid gains in 2002. This year is also expected to be good with the National Association of Realtors® estimating a sixth straight year of sales over 5 million units. Orange County Real Estate Market Update The year ended strongly with prices up sharply in most cities. The median home price in Irvine rose 27% over last December while in Mission Viejo the rise was 14%. Home sales were strong also strong in Irvine, up 26%, and Mission Viejo, up 31%. The following graph shows the median home price, the average home price and unit sales for the past year and a half for Irvine. We are using a 3-month moving average to eliminate month-to-month variations yet retain seasonal trends.