Sales and prices of homes in Southern California may be showing signs of life, with an increase in sales and prices last month from the same time last year and an unexpected jump in new-home sales, a tracking firm said Tuesday.

San Diego-based MDA DataQuick said the sales have been stoked in recent months by several factors: The federal tax credit for first-time buyers, which would have expired last month before it was extended and expanded; robust investor activity, especially inland; record-low mortgage rates; the availability of government-insured, low-down-payment mortgages for first-time buyers; and the allure of “deals” for distressed properties.

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