Median list home prices rise

December 2011 real-estate search results are in, and Santa Fe was the 136th most-searched market in the country that month, based on data released by Realtor.com, the largest homes-for-sale website.

Median list prices for homes in Santa Fe hit $409,000 in December, a 4.9 percent increase from December 2010, and a 2.51 percent increase from November 2011. The national median list price in December was $188,000, a 5 percent increase compared with December 2010.

Active for-sale inventory of homes in Santa Fe in December leveled out at 1,641, a 21 percent decrease compared with December 2010. National inventory counts for December 2011 were 1,893,528, a 22 percent decrease as compared with a year ago.

The median age of inventory in Santa Fe in December was 171 days, a 5.56 percent increase compared with November 2011. Nationally, the median age of inventory was 122 days, a 7 percent increase compared with November.

Steroid hormone testing

Elva Gurule, a certified pharmacy technician, and Jack Martinez, a licensed pharmacist, have started a new business called Serenity Hormone Balance, which, among other services, offers a new way to test for steroid hormones in the blood.

Saliva collection is painless, noninvasive and more convenient than serum testing, an email said.

Martinez has extensive experience with personal training, diet and nutrition, as well as respiratory therapy. Gurule and Martinez said they will help patients using hormone replacement therapy and balanced nutrition.

For more information, call 982-6199 or email serenityhormonebalance@gmail.com. The business is at 2205 Miguel Chavez Road, Suite F.

Valdez, Jaramillo appointed

The New Mexico Community Foundation has appointed two new board members.

They are Robert Otto Valdez, who conducts policy analyses and research at The University of New Mexico, where he serves as the executive director of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation; and Matthew A. Jaramillo, director of government affairs for the New Mexico Finance Authority.

The two new members join an eight-member board that oversees New Mexico Community Foundation finances, grant-making policies and practices, strategic planning and statewide outreach.

Business people

* John Barraclough of Santa Fe has been chosen as a Fellow of the American College of Forensic Examiners Institute.

* Santa Fe attorney Larry Montaño was one of 15 at the Holland & Hart law firm who were recently welcomed into the partnership.

* Five attorneys at the Rothstein law firm have been named Lawyers of the Year for 2012. They are Mark Donatelli, Richard W. Hughes, Robert R. Rothstein, Sarah E. Bennett and John C. Bienvenu.