Berkeley and Oakland are two places that have outrageous transfer taxes when you buy/sell your house. Its 15x what it is in most other cities in California. Basically more impediment to owning a home.

1.5% is definitely high, but I have a difficult time believing that it's a larger impediment to owning than the generally high price of property due to lack of supply.

Its a lot to come up with with when you are struggling for a downpayment on your first house.

It is a lot in some ways (it’s a remodel, or repair, etc.) but you’re not going to buy your fist home in Berkeley if you’re working with a tight budget. People are paying cash in some instances.