San Francisco Real Estate

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics – last week in review

SFResidence is part of the TRI Coldwell Banker office at 1699 Van Ness in San Francisco which is one of the premier offices in the City and has the market share numbers to prove it. We have some of the top agents selling real estate in the San Francisco Bay Area. As a result, our office posts some impressive numbers.

This week looks a lot like the last couple of weeks, sales-wise. But the weather! We are having extremely warm weather for this time of year when we are usually socked in with fog. Even the Giants won a game against the Dodgers in extra innings with a walk-off home run!

See the report on our website.

- Janis Stone
DRE# 00517072

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week ending August 8, 2009

Last week we had great housing news with the announcement that May home prices posted their first monthly increase since the summer of 2006 (based on the Standard & Poor’s/Case-Schiller 20-city index).

We also learned that sales of newly built and existing homes rose in June for the third consecutive month. New home construction, though still weak, is the best it has been since the fall.

This week the good news continued. As announced by the Mortgage Bankers Association, Mortgage loan application volume increased 4.4 percent compared to the previous week. On an adjusted basis, the Index increased 4.1 percent compared with the previous week and 18 percent compared with the same week one year earlier. In addition, the Refinance Index increased 7.2 percent from the previous week. The Index has climbed about 35 percent above its recent low at the end of June. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index increased 0.9 percent from one week earlier.

Also interesting to note is this week’s release of the National Association of Realtors’ Pending Home Sales Index revealed an increase of 3.6% during the month. That was 6.7% higher than June 2008. It was the fifth straight month of increases, the first time that has happened since July 2003. The jump was much higher than expected with a consensus of industry experts put together by Briefing.com forecasting an increase of just 0.7%.

NAR’s Chief Economist Lawrence Yun had this to say, “Historically low mortgage interest rates, affordable home prices and large selection are encouraging buyers who’ve been on the sidelines.” It seems all of these incentives, much like the Cash for Clunkers program in the auto industry, is finally pushing people off of the fence.

Read the entire article here.

Mortgage Weekly Update – Last Week in Review

Foster Weeks publishes a weekly mortgage report which is updated every Monday morning. How is this affecting the San Francisco real estate market? Read our weekly and monthly market reports. Here’s what Mr. Weeks says about last week’s activity:

If ever there was a week to sing that old Disney® song, it was last week when Americans received some good employment news. Despite a worse-than-expected ADP National Employment report – which isn’t known for its accuracy – the Initial Jobless Claims report came in on Thursday with some good news. According to the report, Americans filing for unemployment benefits came in at 550,000, versus the 580,000 expected. In addition, the four-week moving average declined for the sixth consecutive week.

The markets received more evidence of an improving job market on Friday. The Labor Department reported 247,000 jobs lost in July versus economists’ expectations of 328,000 jobs lost. As you can see in the chart below, this is down pretty sharply from June’s lower, revised 443,000 jobs lost and the smallest loss since August 2008. Even better, the Unemployment Rate dropped to 9.4%, from the prior month’s reading of 9.5%. This reading broke a streak of 9 straight monthly increases and gave a lot of credibility to the good news in the job market.

Read the entire article here.

Condo Buyers Find It Tough To Get Mortgages

San Francisco Chronicle reported this on Wednesday. We report on our website at www.sfresidence.com.

Janis Stone
DRE# 00517072

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics – last week in review

Even with summer here, the San Francisco market does not seem to be letting up. Our office has been staying consistent and office reports are that August could be one of our record months.

See the report on our website.

- Janis Stone
DRE# 00517072

Help Build Hope for Humanity!

We at Coldwell Banker in Northern California have a great story to share with our friends, family and clients about our partnership with Habitat for Humanity.

Over the past 10 years that we have supported Habitat for Humanity, we have raised $1.9 million, helped build 95 homes, volunteered more than 41,000 hours of labor to home construction projects and most importantly, brought so many local families and homes together.

Read more here.

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week ending July 31, 2009

There was no new report for this week from Rick Turley, however we released our market statistics for July's activity as well as our monthly newsletter.

- Janis Stone
DRE# 00517072

The Goldman Report for July 7, 2009

Note: While Avram Goldman is no longer with Coldwell Banker, he is a friend and associate at Pacific Union with an excellent handle on San Francisco Real Estate:

Across the Great Divide

Although average sales price has been increasing since the beginning of summer, it is once again showing a decreasing trend with the vast majority of sales under the million dollar mark.
The deep divide is reflected in Marin, which is one of the highest priced counties in the Bay Area. In July there were 1210 single family listings—621 under a million of which 38% of them were in escrow, 359 in the one to two million dollar range of which 19% were in escrow, and 230 over two million of which only 7% were in escrow. If you looked at all of the listings over one million, only 14.6% are in escrow or about one in seven listings.

There are many reasons why this could be occurring. Loans over the conforming limits are still more difficult to obtain, as lenders continue to require larger down payments, interest rates continue to be higher than conforming loans, and lender appraisals make for more challenging negotiations. Many sellers on the market are still testing the waters because either lower asking prices would put them under water or they think that their homes are unique and unusual, believing that buyers would be willing to overlook comparable homes that have sold for less. Today’s WSJ article confirms these observations.

Read the entire report here.

Mortgage Weekly Update – Last Week in Review

Foster Weeks publishes a weekly mortgage report which is updated every Monday morning. How is this affecting the San Francisco real estate market? Read our weekly and monthly market reports. Here’s what Mr. Weeks says about last week’s activity:

“ENERGY AND PERSISTENCE CONQUER ALL THINGS.” Benjamin Franklin. And indeed, Bonds and home loan rates definitely showed some serious energy and persistence this week, despite some serious headwinds, including additional supply flooding the market from this week’s big Treasury auctions.

The Treasury unloaded an enormous supply of paper onto the markets this week…and remember, anytime there is more supply than demand, it means prices will naturally decline. And when Bonds are concerned, when prices decline, home loan rates go up. The heavy supply hitting the market caused some wild volatility for rates midweek, but overall home loan rates managed to find some improvement by the end of the week. However, it won’t be long before another enormous supply of Treasuries comes on the market. In just two weeks, we’ll be looking at a fresh round of auctions…and the size of those auctions will be announced on August 5th. This announcement date of August 5th, and the following week’s auction dates of the 11th, 12th and 13th will probably have high volatility and provide a headwind for Bonds. It used to be that the dates of economic news would be circled on the calendar as the ones to watch for greater movement in Bond prices…but right now, the supply issue has become so important that it now may be the most dominant current factor in Bond pricing and home loan rates.

In other news, Advanced Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for the 2nd Quarter came in better than expected, while the 1st Quarter GDP was revised lower. GDP measures the total market value of all final goods and services produced in a country in a given year. Overall, GDP has fallen four quarters in a row for the first time since government records started in 1947. The report also showed consumer spending is down, as consumer savings increased to the highest level since 1998.

Read the entire article here.

August 2009 Report San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for July 2009

Our July San Francisco real estate market statistics are now online.

- Janis Stone
DRE# 00517072

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week ending July 19, 2009

YOU’VE GOT TO GO THROUGH “LESS BAD” TO GET TO GOOD

It seemed everywhere you looked this week, the media was reporting on some sort of positive indicator relating to the real estate market. For starters, Good Morning America ran a story on Tuesday about the state of the housing market. You can see the interview here: http://abcnews.go.com/video/playerIndex?id=8190034

Liz Ann Sanders, the Chief Investment Strategist for Charles Schwab, and Mike Santoli, Assoc Editor of Barron’s were interviewed. Essentially they both indicated there are enough cumulative signs from indicators to say that things are not only “less bad”, but we are starting to see some pockets of improvement in the housing market. Among the vital signs they said to watch for in calling a recovery are; Index of Leading Economic Indicators, currently up three months in a row; drop in new unemployment claims (the four week average is down 93,000 from the peak, and never before has there been this large of a drop while still being in a recession); and the spread between short term (set by Fed) and long term (driven by the market) interest rates, which is widening. Additionally an opinion was shared that if the Dow stays above 8,000 – this would be a good indicator that we’re on the road to recovery. This week we danced over the 9,000 mark, closing today at 9,171; making it the best July for the Dow in over 20 years.

Our industry was the first to be hit by the economic downturn and if all continues on this path, we will be the first out. We probably won’t see housing numbers start to appreciate across the board anytime soon. What we are seeing right now are signs we typically see at the bottoming-out of a down market. Speculators and investors are competing with first time home buyers. Those individuals are going to continue to gobble up the inventory—both REOs and non-bank sellers at the entry price level. In many metros across the country, there are very low levels of inventory at the low end. I was on the phone this afternoon with the Coldwell Banker president for Arizona. They were hit hard, and early, with foreclosures. He told me that today the Phoenix Metro area has under 2 months supply at their entry level, <$250k – yet a 7 years supply of inventory at their estate home level of $2M+.

Also this week the Standard & Poor’s/Case-Schiller 20-city index was released and in it, home prices in May posted their first monthly increase since the summer of 2006. Prices rose from April in 13 of the metro areas tracked, notably Cleveland, Dallas, Boston and the Bay Area. The news followed reports showing sales of newly built and existing homes rising in June for the third consecutive month. New home construction, though still weak, is the best it’s been since the fall.

Read the entire article here.

Fast Facts from CAR and Freddie Mac – June 2009

New statistics for California real estate activity for May are now online at our website. Read the report here.

- Janis StoneDRE 00517072

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics – last week in review

Our office is kicking butt and taking names. During the summer we are normally on a slow down in sales, but this last week was phenomenal. SFResidence alone closed 4 deals this month and put a couple more into escrow. Things seem to be picking up for the San Francisco market as buyers see opportunity and sellers are becoming more realistic!

See the report on our website.

- Janis Stone DRE 00517072

Mortgage Weekly Update – Last Week in Review

Foster Weeks publishes a weekly mortgage report which is updated every Monday morning. How is this affecting the San Francisco real estate market? Read our weekly and monthly market reports. Here’s what Mr. Weeks says about last week’s activity:

IT’S THE THOUGHT THAT COUNTS…OR IS IT? As we look back at last week, think about this for starters – the housing industry received some welcome good news, as Existing Home Sales came in better than anticipated, and marking the third straight month that Existing Home Sales have increased. And perhaps even better, the supply of unsold homes on the market dropped from the prior reading of 9.8 months down to 9.4 months – which is the best level seen in over a year. With home loan rates still at low levels and homes priced to sell – this is a great time for potential homebuyers to stop thinking, and go ahead and take some action.

Despite that bright spot of news, last week’s Consumer Sentiment report – which measures consumers’ attitudes and expectations concerning both present and future economic conditions – showed that consumers still think the economy has a ways to go, as the report did come in a bit weaker than anticipated. According to the report last week, Consumer Sentiment came in at 66 for the month of July, down from June’s reading of 70.8. Take a look at the chart below for an interesting historical perspective on this report.

And one of the major reasons for the decline in Consumer Sentiment was ongoing concern over unemployment – and last week, Initial Jobless Claims reportedly rose by 554,000. While this number was high, it was essentially in-line with expectations of 557,000.

The big news that many headlines featured was the number of Continuing Claims, which fell from 6.31 million the prior week to 6.22 million. And although this drop was reported as positive news, we need to remember that a large number of people are still unable to find jobs, but are no longer being counted in Continuing Claims because their unemployment benefits have expired. The bottom line is that it will be hard for the economy to really turn higher with momentum until the labor market starts to turn around.

Stocks had a good week, with the Dow closing above 9,000 on Thursday for the first time since January 6th, as well as finishing the week with its strongest two-week span for blue chips since 2000. Since Stocks moving higher can drain money away from Bonds, the rally in Stocks – combined with the announcement of next week’s Treasury’s auction of $115 Billion in Notes – put selling pressure on Bonds toward the end of the week. Despite some volatile mid-week action, home loan rates closed out the week near the level where they had begun the week.

Read the entire article here.

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics – last week in review

As summer chugs along, so does the market. We are seeing a lot of steady activity which is a pretty good sign, though prices are not at the level they were several years ago.

See the report on our website.

- Janis Stone DRE 00517072

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week ending July 12, 2009

Data Quick Releases Its June Figures With Promising Results

DataQuick Information Systems released its June monthly report on the Bay Area Thursday (http://www.dqnews.com/Articles/2009/News/California/Bay-Area/RRBay090716.aspx) to some interesting month-end figures, including increases in sales and median home prices. In fact, the company reported; “Home sales in the Bay Area jumped to their highest level in almost three years, the result of improved mortgage availability and a perception among potential buyers that prices have bottomed out. The median price paid for a home increased month-to-month for the third month in a row.”

Among the highlights of the story:

A total of 8,644 new and resale houses and condos sold across the nine-county Bay Area in June.
That was up 16.1 percent from 7,447 in May and up 20.4 percent from 7,178 in June 2008.
Home sales have increased on a year-over-year basis the last ten months.
The median price paid for all new and resale houses and condos sold in the nine-county Bay Area was up 3.1 percent from May, although down 27.4 percent from June 2008. It was the highest since last October.
The current median is 47.1 percent below the $665,000 peak reached in June 2007. It hit a low of $290,000 in March this year. About half the downturn appears to be price declines, the other half is the absence of high-end home sales in the statistics, which pulls the median down.

Read the rest of the report here.

Mortgage Weekly Update - Last Week in Review

Foster Weeks publishes a weekly mortgage report which is updated every Monday morning. How is this affecting the San Francisco real estate market? Read our weekly and monthly market reports. Here’s what Mr. Weeks says about last week’s activity:

INFLATION, ALL WE NEVER WANTED…! Or so the Go-Go’s song “Vacation – All I Ever Wanted” could have been re-written this week, as whispers and glimmers of future inflation as well as some positive economic news roiled the Bond market. Overall, home loan rates worsened by about .25% across the board.

Inflation at both the wholesale and consumer level came in hotter than expected via the Producer Price Index (PPI) and Consumer Price Index (CPI) reports, the latter shown in the chart below. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose by more than expected, and was the biggest increase in a year, mostly due to higher gasoline prices.

However, a look back over the past year shows a drop in overall CPI of 1.4%…why is this? It was a year ago that a barrel of oil was $147, and today that barrel stands at $60, up from the $30 range seen earlier this year. But even when stripping out food and energy, the most recent Core CPI rose 0.2%, higher than the 0.1% anticipated – and year-over-year, Core CPI prices were up 1.7% after rising 1.8% in the 12 months ended in May. On the wholesale side, even excluding volatile food and fuel prices, Core PPI rose quite a bit more than anticipated as well. And remember, inflation is bad for Bonds and home loan rates. If this trend continues, it could have a big impact on rates later this year.

Read the entire article here.

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics - last week in review

It gets old repeating the same thing over and over every week. The good news is, the news is good! We all know the real estate market is having its challenges and San Francisco is no different. Unlike the market several years ago where multiple offers meant over asking price sales, now they mean just the opposite. Most often multiple offers are close to each other and almost always under the listing price. The challenge is for the listing agent to get the best price he or she can for their client. That's the importance of having a successful agent with experience. See the report on our website.

- Janis Stone DRE 00517072

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week ending July 5, 2009

Realtor.com Survey Tells A Lot About Today’s Housing Market

Earlier this week Realtor.com released a survey discussing some of the key factors which are motivating buyers in today’s market. It was an interesting read and I thought I’d share the highlights:

“Price declines and low interest rates are motivating millions of home buyers to shop for bargains in the most affordable housing market in 28 years, yet at the same time only one in ten of today’s home owners say they have delayed selling their home due to those same market conditions.”
“Affordability is clearly driving more than two thirds (65.2%) of potential buyers back into today’s housing market. Nearly one of five prospective buyers (19.6%) say foreclosure bargains in their communities would motivate them to purchase a home, the most important reason they’re interested in buying in the near future.”
“An additional 15.5 percent said they’re motivated to buy soon because they think prices are as low as they will go and another 15.5 percent said they were motivated to buy before interest rates rise. For 14.6 percent of first time home buyers, the Federal $8,000 tax credit is the impetus to purchase a new home in the future.”
“In the past year, the Housing Affordability Index maintained by the National Association of Realtors has increased 29 percent overall and 19 percent for first-time homebuyers, and is higher now than at any time in the 28 year history of the index.”
“Value is clearly motivating potential home buyers, and today’s new level of affordability is still an under-appreciated reality that needs to be explored,” said REALTOR.com President, Errol Samuelson. “The variety and quality of homes currently within reach of the average American family is much greater than most people realize. Making credit available to responsible borrowers and building consumer confidence in the economy are now key factors in restoring vitality to the nation’s housing market.”

Now, let’s take a look at this week in real estate: The key takeaways—inventory is low with multiple offers in the lower price ranges, and improved activity in the higher priced markets.

Read the rest of the report here.

Mortgage Weekly Update - Last Week in Review

Foster Weeks publishes a weekly mortgage report which is updated every Monday morning. How is this affecting the San Francisco real estate market? Read our weekly and monthly market reports. Here’s what Mr. Weeks says about last week’s activity:

"EVERY DARK CLOUD HAS A SILVER LINING...BUT LIGHTNING KILLS HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE EACH YEAR WHO ARE TRYING TO FIND IT." Larry Kersten. Now that's pessimism! Interestingly enough, in recent weeks - Traders have been searching to find a silver lining or at least a glimmer of light in the dark economic reports - trying to find something to be optimistic about. Last week - the economic report calendar was lean but volatile, as Traders sought for morsels of good news amidst the gloom. All in all - home loan rates improved slightly in the early part of the week, but then worsened towards the end of the week.

Remember first that when Stocks move lower, some of that money can move over into the Bond market, helping Bond prices move higher and home loan rates move lower. Last week, Bonds benefitted early on from Stocks trading sluggishly, partially due to other world equity markets being pressured lower under concerns for the overall global economic recovery - but the economic news calendar was thin. However, things really heated up mid-week, as earnings season kicked into gear, big Treasury auctions hit the stage, and an interesting look at the job market arrived via the Initial Jobless Claims numbers.

According to that report, the number of initial unemployment claims last week dropped off by 52,000 to come in at 565,000 new claims, better than expected and the lowest level since January. Initially, Stocks reacted with some euphoria - but then reversed lower. Why? Think about it for a minute. Is the fact that 565,000 people applying for unemployment benefits for the first time, over the course of a holiday shortened week, really such terrific news? It's like when someone is starving, and manages to find a crust of bread in the trashcan it seems great at first, until the overall reality sets back in. And so seems to go the Trader mindset lately. Starving for any morsel of good news and looking hard for a silver lining amongst the clouds, sometimes news that is really pretty bad - like 565,000 people applying for first time unemployment benefits - is initially overblown with euphoria...that then quickly wears off.

The real story is that continuing unemployment claims - which measures the number of people who still receive jobless aid after their initial week - rose by 12,000. When you add it all up, the number of Americans receiving unemployment benefits total 6.88 million, which is a new record high and more than double what it was this same time last year. The underlying problem is that companies still aren't hiring, which means the jobless rate will continue to rise. In turn, unemployment will continue to curb consumer spending and, in the big picture, will slow economic recovery.

Read the entire article on our blog.

HOA President is Paid Manager

From time to time we post educational information regarding HOA rules and regulations. This is because we represent a lot of condo buyers and sellers and want them to be informed. Read the most recent post on our website.

- Janis Stone
DRE 00517072

Reality Check – From Rick Turley

Presented by Janis Stone and SFResidence - San Francisco Real Estate:

This is a new column we will be featuring every week in a message from our President of Coldwell Banker, San Francisco Bay Area, Rick Turley.

The Rise and Fall of Interest Rates

As I’ve been in the offices over the past few weeks, I have received many positive comments on Reality Check and how impactful it has been with your clients. It is my goal to provide you with timely and pertinent information on key factors which affect our local real estate market. Hopefully these topics bring some clarity to Buyers and Sellers, especially when today’s consumers need it most.

One of the key elements that makes buying in today’s market so attractive is the relatively low interest rates available in our marketplace. But recently, as you know, interest rates have begun to fluctuate leaving many would-be buyers confused and wondering if they should wait.

That leads me to this month’s topic—interest rates. We met with Princeton Capital to get their view on the changing financial market. In collaboration with Brendon Riordan of Princeton Capital, we have created a Mortgage Q & A to share with your clients. This FAQ addresses today’s attractive interest rates and what the recent fluctuations may mean for a buyer...

Read the entire column here.

Fast Facts from CAR and Freddie Mac - May 2009

New statistics for California real estate activity for May are now online at our website. Read the report here.

- Janis Stone
DRE 00517072

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics - last week in review

This week showed continued improvement in the housing market for San Francisco. Surprisingly even though listings were down, our office ratified 16 deals meaning if we weren’t selling it, then we were representing the buyers. That’s good news since this is officially a buyers’ market and deals can be made.See the report on our website.

- Janis Stone
DRE 00517072

The Goldman Report for July 7, 2009

He's back! After a long absence, Avram Goldman is back online with a new blog! While Avram Goldman is no longer with Coldwell Banker, he is a friend and associate at Pacific Union with an excellent handle on San Francisco Real Estate:

Can You See the Bottom Yet?

I am consistently being asked, “have we reached bottom yet?” Whether it is buyers, sellers, the press or agents, everyone wants to know is the worst behind us.

The current Bay Area data reflects that the watermark in the under $500K market has been set. Median price has either been flat or rising in all counties in that price range over the last 90 days and depending on the county, we are beginning to see price stabilization in properties up to $700K. Last week you might have thought is was 2005, our SF Sunset 2 bedr. 1ba. listings priced at $545K received 53 offers. A new record for this market. Now some may say the property was a bit under priced, maybe, however it went well above the asking price. This listing demonstrates that there is certainly strong demand for that neighborhood and that buyer’s confidence is rising.

These price ranges are steadying because of diminishing inventories and sellers, which includes both banks and individuals, now coming to a more realistic view of pricing. Buyers have done their homework and know values. There is no “greater fool theory” operating. More and more buyers are evaluating based on dollar per sq. foot...

Read the entire article on our blog.

- Janis Stone - DRE 00517072

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week ending June 28, 2009

There is no market report for this week because of the Fourth of July weekend. Rick will be back next week. Read our other market reports on the SFResidence.com website.

- Janis Stone

Mortgage Weekly Update - Last Week in Review

Foster Weeks publishes a weekly mortgage report which is updated every Monday morning. How is this affecting the San Francisco real estate market? Read our weekly and monthly market reports. Here’s what Mr. Weeks says about last week’s activity:

I hope you and your family enjoyed the Independence Day holiday weekend. And, I sincerely hope you have been enjoying your complimentary subscription to the MORTGAGE MARKET GUIDE WEEKLY.

Due to the July 4th holiday, the next full issue will arrive on Monday, July 13. In the meantime, check out the article below on one of our nation’s most powerful symbols this time of year: the Stars and Stripes.

The MORTGAGE MARKET GUIDE WEEKLY is the industry’s leading publication of this type, and I am pleased to provide this valuable resource to you. If you feel any of your clients, friends, family members, or associates would benefit from keeping up-to-date on market and economic trends in this easy-to-read format, please let me know and I will be more than happy to add them free of charge.

Best wishes to you, and please do not hesitate to contact me if you need assistance at this time!

- Foster Weeks

July Newsletter Now Online!

Our July newsletter is now online. If you would like to subscribe to the e-mail newsletter go here.

- Janis Stone

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week ending June 21, 2009

Existing Home Sales Rise For Second Straight Month

The National Association of Realtors released its existing home sales report which noted that existing home sales rose for the second straight month in May, signaling low prices and incentives are attracting buyers.

NAR says existing home sales, including single family homes, condos and coops rose 2.4 percent in May. It was the first back-to-back monthly gain in existing home sales since September 2005.

NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun had this to say, “Historically low mortgage rates clearly drew buyers into the market, and housing remains very affordable even with a recent uptick in rates. First time buyers are also being drawn off the sidelines by the $8,000 tax credit which is helping to absorb inventory.” The numbers could be even better if it weren’t for appraisal issues. While pending sales of existing homes—those with signed contracts but not yet closed—indicate stronger activity, some contracts are falling through from faulty valuations that keep buyers from getting a loan, said Yun.

We’re starting to experience more challenges with low appraisals here in the Bay Area, most often from out-of-area appraisers who have no experience and limited knowledge of local markets. The pendulum could be swinging a little too aggressively in some cases as regulatory controls meet market demand. You’ll find quite a few references to appraisal issues as you look through our activity for the last two weeks from our branches:

Read the rest of the report here.

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics - last week in review

This week showed continued improvement in the housing market for San Francisco. Surprisingly even though listings were down, our office ratified 16 deals meaning if we weren’t selling it, then we were representing the buyers. That’s good news since this is officially a buyers’ market and deals can be made.

See the report on our website.

- Janis Stone
DRE 00517072

Mortgage Weekly Update - Last Week in Review

Foster Weeks publishes a weekly mortgage report which is updated every Monday morning. How is this affecting the San Francisco real estate market? Read our weekly and monthly market reports. Here’s what Mr. Weeks says about last week’s activity:

They say no news is good news. But perhaps the more important question this week is will the Fed’s news from their latest Federal Open Market Committee Meeting be good news for rates and the economy? Here’s what you need to know.

Last week, the Fed released their Interest Rate and Policy Statement after their latest regularly-scheduled meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee. While there was speculation ahead of time that the Fed may decide to buy more longer-term Treasuries, which could jumpstart the cycle needed to eventually bring home loan rates down, the Fed did not make any changes to the Fed Funds Rate or their Bond purchase program. The one change from the prior meeting’s statement was that the Fed now does not see deflation as a risk. While this is good news, it also means that there could be a real threat of inflation down the road. And remember, inflation is bad for Bonds and home loan rates, so this could have a big impact on rates in the longer term!

There was good news in the Personal Income Report as personal income rose in June by its biggest gain in over a year. The increase in income led to higher consumer spending and savings in June. Spending rose for the first time in three months, while the savings rate climbed to its highest level since December 1993 as the chart shows…

Read the entire report here.

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics - last week in review

As summer arrives, we are seeing our market level off. Although this week new listings were not the story, our office continues to put deals in escrow which is why we are the number one office in San Francisco. If something is sold in the City, there is usually a TRI Agent involved, whether it is representing the buyer or the seller. See the report on our website.

- Janis Stone

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week ending June 14, 2009

There is no report from Rick Turley this week.

- Janis Stone

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics - last week in review

The real story of our office was the number of listings that had prices reduced. It might indicate that sellers are still having a problem accepting the market decline and agents being afraid to tell them the true worth of their property. Our belated report is now online at our website.

- Janis Stone

First Republic Publishes California Luxury Home Report for Q1 2009

Read the California Luxury Home Index report from First Republic Bank for the San Francisco Bay Area here.

- Janis Stone

Mortgage Weekly Update - Last Week in Review

Foster Weeks publishes a weekly mortgage report which is updated every Monday morning. How is this affecting the San Francisco real estate market? Read our weekly and monthly market reports. Here’s what Mr. Weeks says about last week’s activity:

“THE WORLD IS BUT A PERPETUAL SEE-SAW.” Michel de Montaigne. And that sentiment was especially true in the world of Stocks and Bonds last week, as money see-sawed back and forth between the two markets, halting the improvement that Bonds and home loan rates mustered up in the first part of the week.

Bonds and home loan rates began the week looking good - and remembering that inflation is bad news for both Bonds and rates, they were helped along by good news on the inflation front. Inflation at the wholesale or producer level remained tame in May, and at a consumer level, inflation readings came in lower than expected, with a year-over-year reading at its lowest level since 1950. These are good signs that inflation hasn’t become an issue yet. However, inflation will be a concern down the road, due to the massive stimulus being injected into the economy. It is said that rates are like a boat floating atop the sea of inflation…as inflation rises, so will home loan rates. If you or someone you know should be acting on today’s still low home loan rates, please get in touch soon.

Also helping Bonds rally in the early part of last week was the fact that the New York State manufacturing index came in weaker than estimates, indicating that the US economy is still very weak. And since bad economic news often causes money to flow from Stocks into Bonds, this piece of news helped Bonds start the week on an improving trend.

However, Bonds and home loan rates reversed course midweek and worsened, as money see-sawed back over to Stocks. They were also pressured to worsen by the enormous amount of Bond supply hitting the markets - as too much supply of anything will naturally cause the price to move lower…and in this case, has caused home loan rates to move higher. As you can see in the chart below, Bonds have worsened when additional supply has been announced, causing home loan rates to climb.

Read the entire report here.

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week ending June 7, 2009

This week Realogy (Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage’s parent company) President Richard Smith met with legislators regarding the need for policy initiatives concerning the real estate industry and the economy as a whole. Specifically, the Business Roundtable (an association of chief executive officers of leading U.S. corporations)— of which Richard is the chair—issued a set of recommendations for the White House and Congress that are aimed at jump starting the housing market in order to stimulate a broader economic recovery.

The Business Roundtable’s recommendations are as follows:

Keep mortgage interest rates at historically low levels (below 5 percent) for at least one year;
Expand the current First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit incentive from the lesser of 10 percent of the purchase price of the home or $8,000 to a higher limit of either 10 percent or $15,000 for all homebuyers, remove the income restrictions and include all primary residence purchases for one full year;
Conduct a thorough review of current foreclosure mitigation and loan-modification programs in light of rising loan-modification re-default rates;
Make permanent the current temporary conforming loan limits; and
Continue to review and strengthen government efforts already underway to review and refine mortgage lending practices.

We believe targeted, demand-side solutions—such as the ones Business Roundtable is recommending—will provide a critical next step for a housing recovery that will help create jobs and boost the economy as a whole. To obtain a copy of the Business Roundtable press release and its Housing Working Group’s detailed recommendations, click here. To read an article that appeared in today’s online edition of The Wall Street Journal containing an interview about the Business Roundtable’s recommendations and why they are crucial to jumpstarting the housing market, click here. We will communicate with you as any legislative opportunities occur for you to contact members of Congress and voice your support—but for now, just know that we appreciate your support and are proud to be part of this initiative.

In other news this week, RealtyTrac released its foreclosure findings with positive news that foreclosure filings dipped 6% in May compared with April. But the news wasn’t all positive as the number is still 18% above this time last year. In California, the picture continues to be a bit more bleak. We are ranked No. 2 out of 50 states in foreclosure filings with 92,249 total filings or one in every 144 households. While the last two months showed a decline with a 4.5% drop from April 2009 to May 2009, the year-over-year number is still a 22.8% increase. For a complete look at the USA Today story that ran on the figures, click here: http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/housing/2009-06-10-may-home-foreclosures_N.htm#chart.

While none of us are happy to hear about more homes in the foreclosure process, our local markets are telling us that there is sufficient demand for bank-owned properties – most are still receiving multiple offers when they hit the market.

Read the rest of the article here.

Mortgage Weekly Update - Last Week in Review

Foster Weeks publishes a weekly mortgage report which is updated every Monday morning. How is this affecting the San Francisco real estate market? Read our weekly and monthly market reports. Here’s what Mr. Weeks says about last week’s activity:

“DON’T TOUCH THAT DIAL.” That familiar broadcasting statement certainly applied to the markets last week, as the volatility continued and the markets changed direction quickly.

Take a look at the chart below (chart may be seen on our blog), which shows how home loan rates have climbed dramatically over the last several weeks. In fact, home loan rates are at their highest levels since the Federal Reserve announced their Mortgage Backed Security purchase plan at the end of 2008. While the chart below is just a rough indicator of present rates that require points and fees to be paid, it’s clear to see the dramatic climb rates have taken in recent days.

Read the entire report on our website.

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics - last week in review

Day after day, the market seems to be picking up steam. Let’s hope our legislators don’t do something to derail the recovery. Real estate is sensitive to mortgage rates which are beginning to creep up. Also lending guidelines are becoming somewhat unreasonable. After some of the shenanigans that went on which caused the last bust, it makes sense that the government would want to keep an eye on corruption. But let’s not go crazy and deny loans to people who deserve them. After all, aren’t they supposed to stand up for the little guy? With that said, things are looking rosy for a good summer market. Read the report here.

- Janis Stone

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week ending May 31, 2009

Showing Activity In the Entry Level and Mid-Level Markets Continues to Rise

Now that school is almost out, we’re finding many families are starting to look at homes in anticipation of getting settled prior to next school year. Showing activity in many markets has increased considerably.

Sellers are getting their homes on the market and, in general, seem to be quite receptive to staging and pricing strategies. The homes in the entry-level market are moving well if they are in good condition, and if fairly and competitively priced. We are seeing multiple offer situations in most of our first time home buyer markets. The price point for this activity is of course different by county, and by specific MLS zones, but this week as I visited several Santa Clara County and Marin County offices – I was told about numerous multiple offer situations garnering 10 to 20 offers in the $400,000 to $500,000 range. One property listed at $399,000 (in a mid-$400’s neighborhood, I believe) received over 50 offers.

Though we have seen sporadic new activity in the upper end market, it is still relatively slow for properties over $2M. The month’s supply of inventory for high end properties is more than triple that of homes listed under $800,000. Having said that, we also need to make note of the current momentum we’re starting to see in our offices in the high end. Just looking at one particular day this week, among many other sales, we closed escrow on homes ranging from $1.7M to $2.7M in Palo Alto, Carmel, and Mill Valley, and a home in Los Altos Hills just shy of $3M.

This week LORE Magazine and the Wall Street Journal released their 2008 Top 400 Realtor list. You may view it online at http://online.wsj.com/ad/top400-articlecontinued.html. I’m very proud that we have an impressive number of SF Bay Area Coldwell Banker sales associates who were recognized within this coveted ranking, and for that—along with all of their hard work and dedication, we salute them.

Read the rest of the article here.

Mortgage Weekly Update - Last Week in Review

Foster Weeks publishes a weekly mortgage report which is updated every Monday morning. How is this affecting the San Francisco real estate market? Read our weekly and monthly market reports. Here’s what Mr. Weeks says about last week’s activity:

“IT’S A RECESSION WHEN YOUR NEIGHBOR LOSES HIS JOB; IT’S A DEPRESSION WHEN YOU LOSE YOURS.” Harry S. Truman. The big headlines of the week had everything to do with job losses…and some surprising twists within the monthly Jobs Report that arrived on Friday, and caused home loan rates to worsen yet once again. Despite their efforts to improve early in the week, Bonds and rates ended the week .375% to .5% worse than where they began.

Friday’s Jobs Report showed that 345,000 jobs were lost in May, far better than expectations for 520,000 jobs lost. And adding to the positive tone were revisions to the two prior months, showing 82,000 fewer jobs lost than previously reported. So all in all, about 260,000 fewer jobs lost than had been forecast. But let’s take a closer look.

Read the entire report on our website.

Fast Facts from CAR and Freddie Mac - April 2009

New statistics for California real estate activity for April are now online at our website. Read the report here.

- Janis Stone

June 2009 Monthly Market Update for May Real Estate Sales

Our June report for May 2009 sales is now online here.

- Janis Stone

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics - last week in review

Once again, numbers show The market is heating up. Buyers beware! If you are thinking about buying, NOW is the time to get in the market! Read the report here.

- Janis Stone

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week ending May 24, 2009

Memorial Day is Over…but will it be a typical Summer Real Estate Season?

Memorial Day is behind us and the traditionally moderate summer selling season has begun. Some of our offices are saying that it’s feeling more like a late Spring season right now. Activity is fairly brisk – it goes without saying that the entry level is hot – short on listing inventory and high on Buyer demand, but there is also good activity to report in the mid-to- high end in most communities.

This week NAR announced that existing home sales rose in April with strong buyer activity, as expected, in the lower price ranges. Nationally, existing home sales increased 2.9% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.68 million units in April from a downwardly revised pace of 4.55 million units in March, but were 3.5 percent below that 4.85 million-unit level in April 2008.

While most of the sales are taking place in lower price ranges, we are seeing increased activity in the mid-priced markets. This is a domino effect; a turnaround begins with the lower price range homes and once that sector of the market is stabilized, we begin to see changes in the mid and upper price ranges. The upper end, while most recently seeing increased activity, still is considered a Buyer’s market. This seems to be fairly consistent in major Metros on both coasts.
Across most of our local MLS’s, there is approximately an average of 14+ month’s supply of homes over $2 million. This is about twice the inventory for the same period last year. Just the opposite has occurred in the <$800k market. Estimating the average month’s supply of homes across several MLS’s in this price range, we are seeing about 3 months or less – which is half of what we had this time last year – and is considered to be a Seller’s market. If you look at the same months where inventory has shrunk in the entry level – you’ll see stabilizing prices, and in some areas, increasing home values. And of course the higher end has seen declining median price as inventory has been building. This appears to be the perfect opportunity for the move up Buyer – they have a fairly captive audience for selling, and are coming from a better position to negotiate on the buying side.

It’s also important to note that investors reacted to concerns about the mounting size of our national debt this week. The yield on the 10 year T-bill increased mid-week as stocks took a hit, and interest rates for mortgages were affected by a ½ to full one percent increase. Since purchasing power decreases with a rise in interest rates, some Buyers will have an increased sense of urgency to get a signed contract on their new home.

Read the rest of the article here.

Mortgage Weekly Update - Last Week in Review

Foster Weeks publishes a weekly mortgage report which is updated every Monday morning. How is this affecting the San Francisco real estate market? Read our weekly and monthly market reports. Here’s what Mr. Weeks says about last week’s activity:

“I’M FREE…FREE FALLIN’.” Tom Petty. And a free fall indeed was the case last Wednesday, as Bonds had their worst one-day performance since last October, losing an astounding 206bp. So what caused this free fall…and what helped Bonds and home loan rates rally back and improve later in the week? Here’s what you need to know.

The main culprit for Wednesday’s sell off was supply. The Treasury auctions and the increased number of refinance transactions closing have added hundreds of Billions of dollars of new Bond supply to the market. Economics 101 tells us that anytime supply vastly exceeds demand, prices will move lower, and that’s exactly what we saw last week…and as Bond prices move lower, home loan rates move higher. And the trend isn’t likely to end anytime soon, as the Treasury will have to continue to pump out major supply of Bonds, in order to pay for the massive government stimulus plans…and the Fed buying plan simply won’t be enough to balance out supply and demand - it’s like trying to sop up a flood with a sponge. Bottom line - rates are likely on the rise, but still near historic lows. Let’s talk and make sure you have taken necessary actions for your own financial situation.

Read the entire report on our website.

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics - last week in review

Once again, our numbers show why we are the number one office in San Francisco. Read the report here.

- Janis Stone

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week ending May 17, 2009

NAR Announces Housing Affordability Highest in 18 Years – And Many Offices Report Increased Activity in High End Sales

For months I’ve been sharing that this is one of the best times to purchase a home in decades. This week the National Association of Realtors underscored that fact –stating that nationwide housing affordability jumped 10 percentage points during the first quarter of 2009 to its highest level since the series began 18 years ago, according to the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index (HOI). The HOI showed that 72.5% of all new and existing US homes sold in the first quarter of 2009 were affordable to families earning the national median income of $64,000, up from 62.4% during the previous quarter and up from 53.8% during the first quarter of 2008.

Locally, the story is much more dramatic. In the San Francisco-Peninsula area, 32% of all new and existing homes sold in the first quarter of 2009 were considered affordable to families earning the area’s median income of $96,800. That’s up 60% from the previous quarter and up an incredible 146% from a year ago, when the index was a paltry 13%, one of the lowest affordability ratios in the United States.

Follow the link below to get the historical charts and details on North Bay, East Bay, Silicon Valley, and Santa Cruz, as well as many other Metros in the US.

http://www.nahb.org/page.aspx/category/sectionID=135

Below you’ll find a few more news stories of interest from the week:

Many of you have asked me questions about the potential changes in the $8,000 first time buyer tax credit (http://www.realtor.org/RMODaily.nsf/pages/News2009051202?OpenDocument). Essentially the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban development announced on May 12th that the Federal Housing Administration would permit its lenders to allow home buyers to use the $8,000 first-time homebuyer tax credit as a down payment. FHA’s approved lenders would be permitted to “monetize” the tax credit through short-term bridge loans. This would allow eligible buyers to access the funds immediately at the closing table. Here is a CNN Money article which explains some of the details:

http://money.cnn.com/2009/05/18/real_estate/tax_credit_as_downpayment/index.htm?postversion=2009051912

I must caution that the execution of this is quite complicated and it may take some time before it becomes a reality. By late this week, there were already comments coming out of Washington that this may have been released a bit prematurely, and there is no guarantee that it will be successfully implemented. HUD would need to authorize lenders, non-profits and certain agencies to provide a bridge loan which would then be reimbursed at the time of tax refund. These players are not yet identified. Again, an encouraging and useful tool, but the execution and timing of it have yet to be fully outlined. Watch for more to come.

Read the rest of the article here.

FNMA Condo Guideline Update

New guidelines are now available on our website.

- Janis Stone

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics - last week in review

As noted in President Rick Turley’s weekly address, our office did an outstanding job so far this month compared to the rest of the companies representing San Francisco real estate. Look at the numbers below and realize that our marking is recovering. If you are a buyer sitting on the fence, don’t miss your window of opportunity. It won’t be long before we will probably see multiple offer situations once again.

View the report here.

- Janis Stone

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week ending May 10, 2009

Recent Housing Stats Are Showing Encouraging Signs for Market

This week I thought I’d share some positive stories that continue to permeate not only our local news but on a national level as well.

The National Association of Realtors® said its Pending Home Sales Index, based on contracts signed in March, rose 3.2% as first-time buyers waded into the market to take advantage of favorable prices and mortgage rates.

A report from the U.S. Commerce Department showed construction spending rose 0.3% in March, the first increase in six months.

The pending home sales report added evidence that sales have reached a bottom. “That’s critical because once sales bottom, it’s only a matter of time before you work off excess inventories. That’s the key to stabilization in the financial system and the economy at large. We’re closer to that than people thought just a few months ago.”

– Michael Darda, chief economist at MKM Partners in Greenwich, Conn., “Sales and Construction Data Lift Hopes for Housing,” by Lucia Mutikani, Reuters, May 4, 2009.

On a national basis, the forces driving real estate right now are increasingly turning positive and encouraging.

Home sales in major markets around the country have shown dramatic gains in the past month.
In Florida, statewide sales jumped by 30% in March over year-earlier levels, and were up 33% over the previous month. Even condo sales were up by 25%.
In California, statewide sales rose 64% in March compared with March 2008. Unsold inventory is now just five months — that’s down from 12 months the previous March.
Median house prices may be bottoming out. The California Association of Realtors® reports the median price of homes sold was up by 2.2% for the past month.”

– “Real Estate Outlook: Sales Rising in Some Areas,” by Kenneth R. Harney, Realty Times, May 5, 2009.

Also interesting to note:

The current price level of homes seems to be drawing more buyers into the market, according to Jim Gillespie, president and CEO of Coldwell Banker Real Estate. “We are seeing a lot of activity across the nation. Of course we’re in the spring market, but we’ve seen more buyers in the market now than at this same time last year.”
“Home prices are where they should be. Sellers are accepting the current reality and are pricing more realistically,” said Robert Abbott, co-owner and VP of a northern New Jersey brokerage. “More people are not only ‘kicking the tires’ but actually buying right now. We are showing significant activity when it comes to sales. The number of days for a house on the market is going down.”

– “More Homes Get Multiple Offers; Downturn May be Nearing End,” by Julie Schmit, USA Today, May 6, 2009.

Multiple bids have picked up in recent months in California and other states hit hard by foreclosures and steep price drops, real estate executives say. “If a house is in a good neighborhood, is maintained and is a good value, it’ll get multiple offers. One in 10 homes now draw multiple offers, up from one in 30 last fall.”

– Julie Holt, owner of a title services company in Florida, “Is Now the Time for Some Home Buyers to Make a Deal?,” by Mark Koba, CNBC, April 28, 2009.

And with that news in tow, let’s take a look at this week in real estate:

Go to our website for the local market reports.

- Rick Turley

Mortgage Weekly Update - Last Week in Review

Foster Weeks publishes a weekly mortgage report which is updated every Monday morning. How is this affecting the San Francisco real estate market? Read our weekly and monthly market reports. Here’s what Mr. Weeks says about last week’s activity:

“I WILL ACT NOW. I WILL ACT NOW. I WILL ACT NOW.” Og Mandino. The markets took those words to heart last week, with plenty of timely action ranging from telling economic reports to interesting announcements from the government, related to homebuyers.

On the economic news front, the headlines were mixed. On the disappointing side was a worse than expected Retail Sales Report, which showed that consumers are continuing to tighten their purse strings. Not entirely surprising, but it did mark the eighth decline in the past ten months for Retail Sales. Initial Unemployment Claims were also reported worse than expected - which some said were due to massive Chrysler layoffs - but still was disappointing after there had been some recent signs of improvement in the labor markets.

However, there was positive economic news as well, including improved readings from the manufacturing sector, as the New York Empire State Manufacturing Index improved for the third month straight. Consumer Sentiment was also better than the previous reading and the best since September of last year. So although the consumer isn’t out spending money with abandon just yet, this report shows that most folks are indeed starting to feel better about the economic outlook, likely due in part to the values of their investment accounts improving as Stock values move higher.

Read the entire report on our website.

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics - last week in review

The latest office statistics are now on our website.

- Janis Stone

Carole Rodoni Seminar at TRI Coldwell Banker

Information on this timely FREE seminar may be found on our website.

May 27th, 2009
6-8 PM
RSVP at 415-474-1750 by May 20th
Topic: The REAL Scoop on the Real Estate Market
Refreshments

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week ending May 3, 2009

Stress Test Reveals More Work to Be Done By Banks- While Entry Level Local Real Estate Market Heats Up!

This week the results of the long-awaited Stress Test on US banks were released. What the government hoped to accomplish through this Stress Test was to determine how much capital the banking sector currently has, and what level they deem appropriate to withstand the recession. The result was that 10 of the nation’s 19 largest banks will need to raise a total of $74.6 billion in capital. The Stress Test revealed that banks like Goldman Sachs and J.P. Morgan seemed to be better positioned than Citigroup and Bank of America.

At this point, according to Kiplinger, “The stronger banks will actively do what they can to return any money borrowed from the government to get out from under restrictions on dividends and executive compensation. Their ability to sell common stock to the public is far better than their weaker counterparts, who may have to privately sell stock to investors or raise capital with so-called mandatory convertible preferred shares.”

According to industry analysts, it seems that until the banks get back on their feet, credit will continue to be tight. That leaves the Federal Reserve responsible for filling in the gaps with its own programs aimed at jump-starting lending.

On a brighter note, however, the real estate sector of our economy continues to show some positive signs. USA Today reported earlier this week that “More homes for sale are attracting multiple offers as buyers pursue lower-price homes and banks low-ball asking prices to attract competing bids on foreclosures.” It’s exactly what we’ve seen locally, the entry level home buyer market is fueling this recovery. We forecasted this, and now that multiple offers are the norm in the majority of our entry level markets, some frustrated buyers are scratching their heads and wondering what happened to the buyer’s market. We warned that things could turn on a dime, and it seems in many starter home markets, prices are already on the rise.

Read the entire report here.

Weekly Mortgage Update - Last Week in Review

Foster Weeks publishes a weekly mortgage report which is updated every Monday morning. How is this affecting the San Francisco real estate market? Read our weekly and monthly market reports. Here’s what Mr. Weeks says about last week’s activity:

“REALITY IS THE LEADING CAUSE OF STRESS AMONGST THOSE IN TOUCH WITH IT.” Lily Tomlin. The reality of the recession has been stressful for many of us, but various pieces of news this week show things may be starting to turn around.

Friday’s important Jobs Report showed there were 539,000 jobs lost in April versus expectations of a 610,000 loss, representing the smallest job loss since October. Even though the Unemployment Rate moved higher and hit a 26-year high of 8.9%, this is a lagging indicator, and many other data points hint that the worst could be over for the job market, and could lead to lessening stress in this area during the months ahead.

Speaking of stress, last week’s “stress test” results showed the banking system is on the mend, and in better shape than it was a few months back. 10 of the 19 largest banks will need additional capital to cope with potential future challenges, but as a whole the banking system is solvent and regaining health. A crucial point to remember is that almost all of the institutions under scrutiny elected to choose the cash flow method of asset valuation, as opposed to the mark-to-market method. This would not have been possible without the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) allowing for this change last month.

Positive news came from Wal-Mart, saying that their sales for April were better than forecast. And they say, “As goes Wal-Mart, so goes the entire retail sector”, so this may mean health is also coming back to retailers at large.

Bonds attempted to regain some ground in the early part of the week, but the good news from Thursday’s bank stress test, the better than expected Jobs Report on Friday, and the rally in Stocks caused Bonds to fall below key support levels. As a result, Bonds and home loan rates ended the week slightly worse than where they began.

Read the entire report here.

C.A.R. OPPOSES Point-of-Sale Mandate!!

This is another way to hurt real estate sales. Read the recommendation on our website.

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics - last week in review

The latest office statistics are now on our website.

- Janis Stone

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week ending April 26, 2009

Last week I reported on positive indicators in the first-time homebuyer market. New mortgage applications for home purchases and refinances were up 77 percent from the same week in April 2008. Mortgage rates continue to average well below 5 percent – 4.7 percent last week on average for 30-year fixed rate loans and 4.5 percent for 15 year loans. Rates like these are a major factor pushing applications. Nearly 600,000 home buyers have already claimed either the $7,500 tax credit from last year or the $8,000 credit for this year, according to IRS data cited by the National Association of Home Builders.

Statewide, CAR reported improvement in both sales numbers and median price. March existing home sales were up 64% from prior year, and median price had the first month-over-month increase since August of 2007. California’s inventory of unsold homes also fell in March to five months, down from 12.2 months in March 2008, making March ‘09 a three year low for existing inventory.

Locally, I want share what’s going on in the East Bay (Alameda and Contra Costa Counties) which has been one of the markets hardest hit by foreclosures and price declines. We are starting to see some real positive news in this market. Specifically (as displayed in the graph below), when comparing accepted offers to new listings, we are currently at 112% which is a 69% increase year over year and an 86% increase from this time two years ago. The graph tells the story:

Read the entire report here.

Monthly Market Update

Once we moved the blog over to our website, it seemed redundant to post monthly reports on the blog and on our market page. So to see the latest report go to www.sfresidence.com/market.htm

- Janis Stone

May Newsletter is Now Online!

Our May newsletter is now online and may be seen here.

- Janis Stone

Weekly Mortgage Update - Last Week in Review

Foster Weeks publishes a weekly mortgage report which is updated every Monday morning. How is this affecting the San Francisco real estate market? Read our weekly and monthly market reports. Here’s what Mr. Weeks says about last week’s activity:

“YOU’RE MOTORING.WHAT’S YOUR PRICE FOR FLIGHT?” 80’s band Night Ranger’s ballad “Sister Christian” perhaps describes the question some spring break travelers are asking travel agents as they reschedule plans to visit Mexico, in light of last week’s sudden swine flu outbreak.

And while the quickly spreading illness has made this Spring’s travel season especially challenging, there are some bright spots on the horizon for the economy.

Last week, the Fed signaled that the recession may be easing, and this news was echoed by the
Economic Cycle Research Institute (ECRI), who also said that the recession would probably end by the time Summer is over. The ECRI, whose leading indicators have a solid track record of predicting turns in the business cycle, said that enough of its key gauges have turned upward to indicate with certainty that a recovery is coming.

The beleaguered auto industry has been big news of late, and while Chrysler struggled to find “Mr. Right” in Fiat, the price for their flight ended up to be bankruptcy.while on the other hand, it looks like Ford will be all right tonight, as their Stock is up big from just one week ago. What’s more, as you can see in the chart below, Stocks in general had a great April. In fact, the S&P 500 had its best month in nine years, gaining 9.4%, led by the financial sector. This is further evidence that the changes in mark-to-market accounting were a great decision.

In addition, there were several good economic reports to note as Consumer Confidence for April came in at its fourth largest gain in the history of the survey, while Consumer Sentiment also came in better than expected. The improvement in the way consumers are feeling is likely influenced by the improvement in Stock prices.

Read the entire report here.

Monthly San Francisco Real Estate Market Update Now Online!

See the latest market report on our website!

- Janis Stone

Fast Facts from CAR and Freddie Mac - March 2009

New statistics for California real estate activity for March are now online at our website. Read the report here.

- Janis Stone

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics - last week in review

The latest office statistics are now on our website.

- Janis Stone

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week ending April 19, 2009

Time Home Buyers Are Fueling the Come Back

It’s finally happening. In my August 2008 Reality Check message I discussed our market’s need for the revival of the first-time home buyer. Because as we know, first time home buyers are a critical force that will help jump start our market rebound, creating that important domino effect that will ultimately benefit all price points. When first time home buyers purchase entry level homes, that allows the entry-level homeowners to sell and move-up to a mid-level, move-up market. By purchasing those homes, the move-up market is able to sell and ultimately purchase homes in the luxury arena. It’s a much-needed domino effect that will have significance in our market’s rebound. The numbers released over the last two weeks are showing that the process has already begun.

First, let’s look at NAR’s release this week of its March existing home sales. Now of course some media did use the nationwide month-over-month decrease in sales as an opportunity to take a negative spin but there were a lot of positives in this news. First, nationally, prices rose from February to March by 4.2 percent which is much higher than the typical 1.8 percent seasonal increase between those two months.

Second, housing inventory at the end of March fell 1.6 percent to 3.74 million existing homes available for sale, representing a 9.8 month supply at the current sales pace. This is important to note because March is frequently a strong listing month and more often than not, inventory grows in March.

In the West, existing home sales declined 4.2 percent to an annual rate of 1.13 million in March; however, of great significance is the fact that this number is 18.9 percent higher than last year at this time.

The fact is, the share of lower priced home sales have trended up, indicating a return of many first-time buyers. Sales in the upper price ranges remain stalled, but the last two weeks have produced more $1M+ pending sales than we’ve seen in a while as Buyers are taking advantage of two things in the upper end. One is the luxury of choice. Buyers can actually shop and compare.

When they find what they want at an attractive list price- they are making offers. The second fact is that although Jumbo loans still have practically no secondary market (which increases competition and lowers interest rates), the Jumbo rate appears to be currently within one percent of the conforming; and buyers are seeing that it’s still a very attractive rate. For example, Princeton Capital’s rate sheet on April 20 showed a 5/1 Conforming at 4.625 –I point, and the 5/1 Jumbo at 5.3% - 1 point. FICO scores and down payment are of course key, but the market is beginning to get used to the new requirements.

Another interesting note, the Mortgage Bankers Association this week released its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending April 17. The index showed an increase of 5.3 percent from the previous week and that was a 76.9 percent increase compared with the same week a year ago. Yes, a 76.9% increase in mortgage applications, that’s not a typo.
While there is some criticism of certain steps our administration has taken to revive our economy, it seems some of the early work like the first time home buyer tax credit is effective. Earlier this week Inman News reported that the preliminary numbers from the IRS suggest 1.4 million taxpayers will claim the federal first-time home buyer tax credit on their 2008 tax returns, meaning the program is likely to meet or exceed the 2 million target set by lawmakers before it ends November 30, 2009.

Finally and I think this is probably most notable, the Wall Street Journal reported this week that prices have fallen back into line with what the typical household can afford to pay in most of the U.S. The report showed that home prices are dubbed “fairly” valued in 202 of the 330 markets studied. That means the average price level is within a band 14% above or below the historical norm. Twenty-one markets are “overvalued” or between 14% and 34% above the norm. And 106 markets are considered “undervalued” or more than 14% below the norm. Take a look at this graph which showcases where we were in the early part of the decade as compared to today:

I know it’s difficult to view the drop in property value a positive thing. But the fact is that though the ride was nice in the big real estate boom of the early 2000s, we couldn’t sustain those types of record appreciation levels without eliminating certain consumer niches, including first time home buyers. Now that levels are back within range, the first time home buyers are once again able to reenter the market which is why we are seeing such a strong surge in sales in that level.

Locally, we had further news this week that symbolized the first-time buyer pick-up. Rather than summarize them, I’ll simply share the links for your own reading:

It’s just a matter of time before we weed through the remaining banked owned inventory and we should begin to see prices stabilize. Once we see that, the remaining areas of the market should begin to see an upswing, too.

Read the entire report here.

SFAR Launches NEW San Francisco Open House Website

If you are looking for open houses on Sunday, don't waste money on a newspaper. Just go to:

www.sfopenhomes.com for the latest in open house information! The information will also be on our website at www.sfresidence.com.

- Janis Stone

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics - last week in review

The latest office statistics are now on our website.

- Janis Stone

Weekly Mortgage Update - Last Week in Review

Foster Weeks publishes a weekly mortgage report which is updated every Monday morning. How is this affecting the San Francisco real estate market? Read our weekly and monthly market reports. Read what Mr. Weeks says about last week’s activity.

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics - last week in review

The latest office statistics are out on our website.

- Janis Stone

Weekly Mortgage Update - Last Week in Review

Foster Weeks publishes a weekly mortgage report which is updated every Monday morning. How is this affecting the San Francisco real estate market? Read our weekly and monthly market reports. Read what Mr. Weeks says about last week’s activity.

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics - last week in review

The latest office statistics are out on our website.

- Janis Stone

Weekly Mortgage Update - Last Week in Review

Foster Weeks publishes a weekly mortgage report which is updated every Monday morning. How is this affecting the San Francisco real estate market? Read our weekly and monthly market reports. Read what Mr. Weeks says about last week’s activity.

Monthly San Francisco Real Estate Market Update Now Online!

See the latest market report on our website!

- Janis Stone

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics - last week in review

The latest office statistics are out on our website.

- Janis Stone

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week ending March 22, 2009

I heard someone earlier this week say that the housing market has gone from a slow crawl to a brisk walk. I think that is the perfect metaphor to explain the recent changes in the real estate market. The market is coming back. It’s not roaring, but it’s coming back.

This week, according to Reuters.com, U.S. mortgage applications jumped as record low interest rates spurred a surge in demand for home refinancing loans. The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted index of mortgage applications, which includes both purchase and refinance loans, increased 32.2 percent to 1,159.4 for the week ended March 20. Refinancing accounted for 78.5 percent of all applications.

Furthermore, interest rates on mortgages fell after the Federal Reserve last week said it would buy Treasury securities for the first time in more than four decades as well as more than double its planned purchases of mortgage-related securities. Reuters.com reported that “Borrowing costs on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages, excluding fees, averaged 4.63 percent, down 0.26 percentage point from the previous week, reaching a record low….Interest rates were well below year-ago levels of 5.74 percent.”

Read the rest of the article here.

Mortgage Weekly Update - Last Week in Review

Foster Weeks publishes a weekly mortgage report which is updated every Monday morning. How is this affecting the San Francisco real estate market? Read our weekly and monthly market reports. Read what Mr. Weeks says about last week’s activity.

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics - last week in review

The latest office statistics are out on our website.

Janis Stone

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week ending March 15, 2009

Read what Rick Turley, President of Coldwell Banker, San Francisco/Peninsula says in his latest weekly report:

It Was a Week of Surprises…And Best of All, Spring Has Sprung!

First, CNNMoney.com reported a sudden, unexpected surge in U.S. housing starts. According to the Commerce Department, housing starts rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 583,000 last month, up 22% from a revised 477,000 in January. The big surprise: Economists were expecting starts to decline to 450,000, according to consensus estimates by Briefing.com.

Furthermore, applications for building permits, considered a reliable sign of future construction activity, rose 3% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 547,000 last month. The other big surprise: Economists were expecting permits to fall to 500,000.

Also interesting this week, retail sales figures fell much less than expected in February, and surprisingly strong January sales were revised even higher. According to CNNMoney.com, “U.S. store sales showed a smaller-than-expected decline in February after an unexpected surge in January that was bigger than originally reported…The Commerce Department said total retail sales fell 0.1% last month, compared with January’s revised increase of 1.8%. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com had been expecting a decrease of 0.5% for February.”

So, is it safe to call this a trend? Are we out of the woods yet? It’s tough to say. In all honesty, you don’t know whether or not you’ve hit bottom until you’re on your way back up but it seems some of the critical signs are starting to show signs of life which is welcome relief for our wounded economy.

Also in the news this week, the Federal Reserve announced plans to purchase up to $750 billion in mortgage-backed securities and up to $300 billion in longer term Treasury securities. Our representatives at the National Association of Realtors applauded the plans noting “This is great news for American home buyers and homeowners because mortgage interest rates will continue at historic lows.”

What this means for Americans is that a greater number of home buyers will be able to purchase a home and some homeowners facing challenges will be able to refinance into better terms. As NAR noted, “We already are experiencing a great improvement in housing affordability due to historically low interest rates and the Fed’s move will push affordability conditions to the best levels in 40 years. In addition, continued low rates will lessen foreclosure pressure and help stabilize home prices sooner, as more Americans buy homes and draw down inventory.”

Along the lines of mortgage relief, the Treasury Department this week launched a new website for consumers seeking information about the Obama Administration’s Making Home Affordable loan modification and refinancing program. The site, www.MakingHomeAffordable.gov, offers features including interactive self-assessment tools that will empower borrowers to determine if they are eligible to participate and calculate the monthly mortgage payment reductions they could stand to realize under the Making Home Affordable program. This is a helpful site that we should all be sharing with our friends, families and clients alike.

Finally, on Friday, Jim Gillespie, president and CEO of Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC, participated in a discussion about the state of the housing market, live from the New York Stock Exchange on CNBC, on the “Roadmap to Rebound” segment hosted by Maria Bartiromo. Yale economist Dr. Robert Schiller and Sanjiy Das, CEO of CitiMortgage, also participated. I am proud of Coldwell Banker and really pleased with Jim’s part of the discussion –sticking to the facts of what is still needed to make a significant difference for the housing recovery. Jim calls upon government leaders to enact a $15,000 non-refundable tax credit to ALL buyers and also a mortgage buy down that would bring rates to the 4-4.5% range. This, NAR reports, could generate an additional 840,000 home sales over 12 months. This home buying activity would have major implications in stimulating the overall US economy since NAR also reports that each home sold generates more than $60,000 in economic activity. The proposal would also have a greater impact on foreclosures than the current stimulus package. Take a look: http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?play=1&video=1067527935

Read the entire report here.

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics - last week in review

View the report here.

New Buyer Seminar!

E-mail Janis@SFResidence.com if you have questions.

Mortgage Weekly Update - Last Week in Review

Foster Weeks publishes a weekly mortgage report which is updated every Monday morning. How is this affecting the San Francisco real estate market? Read our weekly and monthly market reports. Here’s what Mr. Weeks says about last week’s activity:

“I DO NOT THINK MUCH OF A MAN WHO IS NOT WISER TODAY THAN HE WAS YESTERDAY.” Abraham Lincoln. Now more than ever, it’s important for our country’s leaders to heed yesterday’s lessons and make wise choices today for our banking system and the economy. There were several key developments that happened on this front last week - here are some highlights.

On Thursday, the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) Chief Accountant, the Financial Accounting Standards Board’s (FASB) Chairman and the Deputy Comptroller for Regulatory Policy in the Treasury Department testified in front of the House Financial Services committee on the “Mark-to-Market” accounting rule. This rule was created so that there would be more transparency in business dealings, but fell prey to the law of “unintended consequences”, and has played a major part in our current financial crisis. If you’ve been receiving this newsletter for awhile, you know this has been discussed several times - and we’ve even sent you a great explanatory video that breaks down what it all means, and why it has been such a major issue.

Because so many of you have been asking about this topic and great video - I am including the information and video once again in this week’s issue - keep reading for the full scoop in the Mortgage Market View article below.

During Thursday’s hearing, Congress demanded an answer for repairing this situation within the next three weeks, so right now, it looks like we will see some sort of coordinated action by both the FASB and the SEC to address the Mark-to-Market situation soon. Stocks certainly reacted positively to this news last week, as well as to Citigroup’s announcement that it will not need more TARP money from the government. Stocks also liked the remarks from Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke that the recession would be over by year-end if the banking situation is stabilized, and that major financial institutions would not be allowed to fail.

Read the entire article here.

Fast Facts from CAR and Freddie Mac - January 2009

Statistics from California Association of Realtors has just released its January 2009 home buyer statistics. Read the report on my blog.

- Janis Stone

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics - last week in review

Statistics have just been released for our office on my blog!

- Janis Stone

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week of March 1, 2009

Read what Rick Turley, President of Coldwell Banker, San Francisco/Peninsula says in his latest weekly report:

Foreclosure Prevention Plan Guidelines Revealed

Earlier this week, the Obama administration released the guidelines which enable lenders to begin modifications of eligible mortgages under the administration’s Homeowner Affordability and Stability Plan. Here is a summary of the guidelines, direct from the Department of Treasury:

Read the entire article here.

Mortgage Weekly Update - Last Week in Review

Foster Weeks publishes a weekly mortgage report which is updated every Monday morning. How is this affecting the San Francisco real estate market? Read our weekly and monthly market reports. Here’s what Mr. Weeks says about last week’s activity:

“A good objective of leadership is to help those who are doing poorly to do well…And to help those who are doing well to do even better.” — Jim Rohn. Let’s hope that some of the actions that the Obama Administration took last week — intended to help millions of US homeowners — will show that kind of leadership for our country, as last week’s Jobs Report and Stock Market losses showed that help is certainly needed.

Read the entire report here.

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics - last week in review

SFResidence is part of the TRI Coldwell Banker office at 1699 Van Ness in San Francisco which is one of the premier offices in the City and has the market share numbers to prove it. We have some of the top agents selling real estate in the San Francisco Bay Area. As a result, our office posts some impressive numbers.

We had another pretty good week. The real estate market in San Francisco is active despite the rainy weather and state of the economy. Apparently some people still have money. In fact, it may be that investors have more confidence in real estate than they have in the stock market. There are deals to be had and buyers have more negotiating power than they’ve had in a long time.

Go to our website and get the statistics for our office.

- Janis Stone

San Francisco Real Estate - Residential

Thursday, August 13, 2009

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics – last week in review

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week ending August 8, 2009

Monday, August 10, 2009

Mortgage Weekly Update – Last Week in Review

Thursday, August 06, 2009

Condo Buyers Find It Tough To Get Mortgages

Wednesday, August 05, 2009

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics – last week in review

Tuesday, August 04, 2009

Help Build Hope for Humanity!

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week ending July 31, 2009

Monday, August 03, 2009

The Goldman Report for July 7, 2009

Mortgage Weekly Update – Last Week in Review

Saturday, August 01, 2009

August 2009 Report San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for July 2009

Friday, July 31, 2009

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week ending July 19, 2009

Thursday, July 30, 2009

Fast Facts from CAR and Freddie Mac – June 2009

Wednesday, July 29, 2009

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics – last week in review

Monday, July 27, 2009

Mortgage Weekly Update – Last Week in Review

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics – last week in review

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week ending July 12, 2009

Monday, July 20, 2009

Mortgage Weekly Update - Last Week in Review

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics - last week in review

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week ending July 5, 2009

Monday, July 13, 2009

Mortgage Weekly Update - Last Week in Review

Sunday, July 12, 2009

HOA President is Paid Manager

Friday, July 10, 2009

Reality Check – From Rick Turley

Wednesday, July 08, 2009

Fast Facts from CAR and Freddie Mac - May 2009

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics - last week in review

Tuesday, July 07, 2009

The Goldman Report for July 7, 2009

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week ending June 28, 2009

Monday, July 06, 2009

Mortgage Weekly Update - Last Week in Review

Sunday, July 05, 2009

July Newsletter Now Online!

Wednesday, July 01, 2009

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week ending June 21, 2009

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics - last week in review

Monday, June 29, 2009

Mortgage Weekly Update - Last Week in Review

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics - last week in review

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week ending June 14, 2009

Monday, June 22, 2009

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics - last week in review

First Republic Publishes California Luxury Home Report for Q1 2009

Mortgage Weekly Update - Last Week in Review

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week ending June 7, 2009

Monday, June 15, 2009

Mortgage Weekly Update - Last Week in Review

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

TRI Coldwell Banker San Francisco real estate statistics - last week in review

Tuesday, June 09, 2009

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week ending May 31, 2009

Monday, June 08, 2009

Mortgage Weekly Update - Last Week in Review

Thursday, June 04, 2009

Fast Facts from CAR and Freddie Mac - April 2009

Wednesday, June 03, 2009

June 2009 Monthly Market Update for May Real Estate Sales