Petaluma is the southern gateway into Sonoma County from Marin and San Francisco. The proximity to the big city makes Petaluma a great commute center. Thousands of people commute south every morning along Highway 101. Before the advent of commuting, however, Petaluma was (and still is) a real town in its own right. From the early days as an agricultural center to today's broadband and networking strengths, Petaluma has been an important contributor to the economic vitality of Sonoma County.

You can see in the chart below (live chart with continual updates) that the downturn in real estate prices is still in force near the end of May 2008.  One of the factors to note is that the four quartiles don't share the same trajectory. The lower two lines representing the more affordable half of the market are still trending downward. On the other hand, the third and fourth quartiles are showing either a leveling off or slight increase in median price within their ranges. These are small moves, but are a sign that some buyers are back in the market.