The number of home sales in the Bronx soared in the first quarter of this year by 35 percent, far outpacing Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens.



In Staten Island, sales also jumped 35 percent, but activity there has been inconsistent over the past several years, whereas the Bronx has experienced a steady climb.

Although the number of transactions in the Bronx compared with the rest of the city is still relatively small, the increase in deals may indicate that the borough is at last living down its rough-and-tumble reputation. Brokers say the sales were not only to buyers moving within the Bronx, but also to people who had been priced out of Manhattan and other areas.

Peter Segalla, an associate broker with Houlihan Lawrence, last summer traded one address in the Bronx, a riverfront condo in Riverdale, for another, a co-op on Pelham Parkway. Transplants from “elsewhere,” Mr. Segalla said, referring to Brooklyn, Queens and Manhattan, are increasingly common, although getting people from outside the borough to consider the Bronx is “a slow educational process,” he said.