"The high-end market seems to be coming back," said Jeff Barnett, vice president of Alain Pinel Realtors in Los Gatos. "There were three homes that recently went under contract or closed in the last month in the $8 to $9 million price range."

Realtor Stefan Walker, also with Alain Pinel Realtors in Los Gatos, agreed. "We have seen quite a few high-end sales just in the last month or so, which could indicate that those with the money to spend are feeling that the upper-end market has finally bottomed out and are now taking the plunge. Many of them are still insisting on bargains when they do buy, but the activity is certainly encouraging," Walker said.

According to a report from DataQuick Information Systems, sales of million-dollar homes in California set a new record during the second quarter, the result of sustained demand and strong appreciation rates, especially in Southern California.

A total of 4,847 homes sold for a million dollars or more during the April-to-June period, an all-time high. That was up 55.8 percent from 3,111 for the prior quarter and up 15.5 percent from 4,195 for last year's second quarter.

Bay Area sales were down 3.5 percent from 1,776 to 1,714, while sales in Southern California were up 29.2 percent from 2,203 a year ago to 2,846.

"While most of the sales increase is due to appreciation rates that are lifting many homes up into the million-dollar category, we're still seeing an active prestige-home market. We do expect sales to ease back a notch this quarter as the real estate market adjusts to today's somewhat higher mortgage interest rates and other economic trends," said Marshall Prentice, DataQuick president.

Statewide, there were 24 sales for more than $5 million last quarter, 28 sales were in the $4 to $5 million range, 111 in the $3 million range, 350 sales in the $2 million range, and the rest between $1 million and $2 million.

According to a National Association of Home Builders analysis of 2000 Census data, more than one out of every three homes in the United States valued at a million dollars or more could be found in California at the start of this decade.

"It's no surprise that California has cornered the market on million-dollar homes," said Jerry Howard, CEO and executive vice president of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). "However, the sheer concentration of million-dollar residences in just a few states may be greater than most people had realized."

In fact, the California million-dollar-home market share was 41 percent or 128,600 out of the 314,000 homes worth a million dollars as of the 2000 Census. New York had the second-highest number of million-dollar residences, with 22,300 or 7.1 percent of the nation's total. North Dakota with only 51 million-dollar homes as of the latest Census and South Dakota with 129 million-dollar homes were at the bottom of the list.

Some experts believe California's million-dollar-home market share has inched upwards in the last couple of years since the latest Census data was recorded.

"In light of our state's strong rate of home appreciation, ever-increasing demand, and rising land and regulatory costs, I'd venture that the number of million-dollar homes here has probably doubled since the 2000 Census," said Bob Rivinius, CEO of the California Building Industry Association (CBIA).

Million-dollar homes in one area may not compare at all to homes in another area. In California, the median million-dollar home was 2,904 square feet, with four bedrooms and three bathrooms. A million-dollar home in South Dakota, for instance, would compare more favorably to a multimillion-dollar home in California.

According to the National Home Builders Association, growth controls and regulatory barriers have been on a collision path with an unrelenting demand for housing in high-cost markets like California. Consequently, the underlying costs of building new homes have soared, which also pushes existing-home values up across the board. Therefore, a million-dollar home in California may be comparably equipped to a high six-figure home in some other market, with the difference being entirely in land and regulatory costs.

Since the average price of a home in Los Gatos is $1,022,180 and $1,356,710 in Saratoga, the high-end market here would have to be defined as multimillion dollars homes. In this category, Realtors use different strategies when selling a high-end property.

"The higher the price tag, the smaller the buyer pool, so you have to be more creative in finding buyers," said Stefan Walker. "These buyers can be a little more elusive, so we advertise in some unique ways."

Walker creates individual websites for every high-end listing that contains a virtual tour, numerous photos and detailed text descriptions of the unique features of a particular property. One of the houses that has its own website at www.WagnerEstate.com is described as a "Grand Tuscany Inspired Villa" and is listed for $6,975,000, which includes a 7,000-square-foot estate and a 15-acre parcel.

For such high-end properties, Walker also uses electronic advertising and posts listings on hundreds of websites. Extensive print advertising is also used, with ads going into a variety of high-end publications, in addition to regular newspaper advertising.

Finding the right buyer for a multimillion-dollar home is a bit different than working with first-time home buyers. Realtors specialize in both ends of the spectrum. To find a local Realtor, visit the Silicon Valley Association of Realtors website at http://www.silvar.org.