San Francisco Real Estate - Residential

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week of December 16 - Final 2007 Report!

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

The past week was like a snapshot of the entire year as far as San Francisco Bay Area real estate is concerned. I’ve mentioned before that our market is like a patchwork quilt – it’s often stitched together by definition into one large market area, but it’s actually made up of a multitude of different textures and patterns that shift and swirl. There is not only significant variation geographically among cities and communities, but also just a few days make a significant difference in the activity a particular branch experiences. Last week saw some areas entrenched in the end-of-the-year holiday slowdown. Others are seeing a surprisingly heightened level of buyer activity, including some fierce competition with multiple offers in the Peninsula.

San Francisco Van Ness still saw double-digit number of sales for the week, while commenting that activity felt slower. Another office in the City states fewer sales occurring, but prices holding firm. Most offices seem to be gearing up their new listings for January. The Peninsula still has pent-up demand for $1.5 to $1.9 homes in Palo Alto, parts of Menlo Park, Burlingame, and San Mateo. Well-written and presented offers with sound strategy are critical, as witnessed by our Redwood City/San Carlos office - the winner of multiple offers did not go to the Buyer with the highest priced offer. Half Moon Bay saw activity pick up as Buyers are recognizing the value our coastal community has to offer.

Read the entire report here.

- Rick Turley

* For an e-mail alert when this report is updated, send an e-mail to info@SFResidence.com with "weekly market report" in the subject line.

posted by SFResidence.com @ 3:48 PM 0 comments

Fast Facts from CAR and Freddie Mac - November 2007

As California home prices keep dropping, it makes us realize how lucky we are to live in the San Francisco Bay Area! Properties continue to sell for over the asking price and may times with multiple offers!

- Janis Stone

Calif. median home price - November 07: $488,640 (Source: C.A.R.) (note: compared to $497,110 last month)

Calif. highest median home price by C.A.R. region October 07: Santa Barbara So. Coast $1,075,000 (Source: C.A.R.) (note: compared to $1,325,000 last month)

Calif. lowest median home price by C.A.R. region October 07: High Desert $262,650 (Source: C.A.R.) (note: compared to $265,880 last month)

Calif. First-time Buyer Affordability Index - Third Quarter 07: 24 percent (Source: C.A.R.) (note: compared to 07:25 first quarter and 7:24 second quarter)

Mortgage rates - week ending 12/20:

• 30-yr. fixed: 6.14%; Fees/points: 0.4% (note: compared to 6.2% and 0.5% points last report)
• 15-yr. fixed: 5.79%; Fees/points: 0.4% (note: compared to 5.83% and 0.5% points last report)
• 1-yr. adjustable: 5.51%; Fees/points: 0.6% (note: compared to 5.42% and 0.6% points last report)

- California Association of Realtors & Freddie Mac

posted by SFResidence.com @ 8:46 AM 0 comments

Happy Holidays from SFResidence!

posted by SFResidence.com @ 10:38 AM 0 comments

Things to do in San Francisco - Part 45 - Barbary Coast Trail Self-Guided Walking Tour

posted by SFResidence.com @ 9:49 AM 0 comments

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week of December 9

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

From Castro Valley to San Francisco, Menlo Park to Walnut Creek, we’re hearing that buyer activity is surprisingly busy for this traditionally slower time of year. In some areas, this can be attributed partly to the great selection of value-priced homes, in other areas it can be due the lack of new inventory on the market combined with strong demand. There are fewer buyers and fewer sellers around during the holiday season – and the ones that are in the market are very serious about buying or selling a home. In San Francisco and the Peninsula, a continued short supply of $1.5M+ new listings are keeping Buyers moving quickly to see the latest new properties in their desired neighborhood. I am hearing our agents comment that December is proving to be an excellent month to bring on a new listing. In areas with more inventory, negotiations between buyers and sellers remain fierce – one office reports that up to five and six counter offers are not uncommon before a deal can be struck. Fortunately, skilled negotiators are commonplace among Coldwell Banker agents and deals are successfully closing.

Attendance at open houses was as scattered as our micro-markets are. Sebastopol reports light attendance at opens, but lots of sales activity on properties near $1 million and over. Buyers haven’t slowed down in the Peninsula. Menlo Park reports that many agents are as busy now as they usually are during more traditionally busy months, and that open houses were “surprisingly well attended.” One listing in Palo Alto had 10 offers and was ratified at approximately 20% over the asking price. “Above average” to brisk open house attendance is also being seen in Half Moon Bay and in San Francisco...

Read the entire report here.

- Rick Turley

* For an e-mail alert when this report is updated, send an e-mail to info@SFResidence.com with "weekly market report" in the subject line.

posted by SFResidence.com @ 11:48 AM 0 comments

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.

As the New Year nears, many buyers and sellers are heading out on vacation and preparing for the holidays. TRI Coldwell Banker will not be holding an office meeting for the next couple of weeks, but we are expecting that many of the homes that have been withdrawn for the holiday season will come back on the market and Buyers will bring their focus back into the San Francisco market.

Here are the numbers for this week: 12/19/07:

• 3 new listings (average price $1,593,333)

• 5 ratified sales (pending) (average price $1,428,800 - low $775,000, high $2,475,000)

• 7 closed sales (sold) (average price $1,943,571 - low $1,031,000, high $2,800,000)

- Christine Serventi

posted by SFResidence.com @ 10:52 AM 0 comments

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for week of December 9, 2007

Read what Avram Goldman, says in his latest weekly report:

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

The combination of the natural slow down for the holiday market and little positive news on the economic front has down shifted activity both on the listing and selling side of transactions. Multiple offers have disappeared except for San Francisco and a few areas in the East Bay. Many buyers and sellers have gone into hibernation and are waiting for the New Year. Open home activity is dwindling, although first time open homes in the most desirable areas are still attracting good traffic as the four unit TIC in the Marina area of San Francisco had 90 groups through. These open homes are the exceptions rather than the rule.

Most economists are leaning toward recession. However many of them are baffled by strength in some segments of the economy and that unemployment remains steady while we are still experiencing some, albeit small, job growth. The stock market is still behaving like a patient that is trying to stabilize its pulse. Uncertainty is creating unsure times that are creating reluctance on buyers purchasing patterns.

For most Bay Area locations we have now settled into a buyers market. There is a sliver lining certainly for the buyers who have waited until now. Many stories have appeared of buyers who have negotiated very attractive sales. For many years the sellers have been in control and now the buyers are having their day.

Surprisingly prices have held in about half our counties while others have declined. Alameda, Marin, San Francisco, San Mateo, and Santa Clara counties have held or increased their median prices year to date, while Contra Costa, Napa, Solano and Sonoma have declined...

Read the entire report here.

- Avram Goldman

* For an e-mail alert when this report is updated, send an e-mail to info@SFResidence.com with "weekly market report" in the subject line.

posted by SFResidence.com @ 7:11 PM 0 comments

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.

"LIFE IS NEVER BORING...BUT SOME PEOPLE CHOOSE TO BE BORED." Wayne Dyer Yet even if Traders had wanted to be bored last week, the financial markets had other plans. Volatility reigned supreme, with large swings throughout the week in Stocks, Bonds, and home loan rates — and once the smoke cleared, home loan rates were slightly worse than where they began the week.

What caused all the volatility? You name it — continuing concerns on the liquidity and stability of the financial markets; the Federal Reserve at work, cutting the Fed Funds and Discount Rates by .25% and the opening of a new auction facility; a red hot Retail Sales Report; and last but certainly not least, the Producer and Consumer Price Indices both showing inflation to be much higher than expected.

The big mover was the Fed rate cut of .25%, which was a disappointment to the financial markets, as a deeper cut was hoped for. The reaction was very negative for stocks, as the fear of a recession amidst the current credit crunch grows. There are increasing concerns that the Fed is not getting ahead of this problem.

But it is not an easy job for the Fed because they may be fighting a possible recession with a hand tied behind their back...this is due to higher levels of inflation. Surely inflation is still at reasonable levels, but even a little stronger inflation can take a major toll on our lifestyle over time. High levels of inflation have caused unrest, revolt, poverty and wars. It is possible that the Great Inflation of 1920 in Germany eventually led to WWII. During that time, prices rose over an almost unimaginable 1000 times a year! Savings were wiped out and imagine this...the cost of a loaf of bread went from 20 Marks to 20,000 to 20,000,000. And in Mexico, hyperinflation caused a crisis in the peso that has led to extreme levels of poverty. Of course, the US is nowhere close to this type of problem, but inflation is a very serious issue. And with the current rate of inflation in the US ticking higher and towards the upper range of acceptable limits, additional Fed cuts would push inflation even higher. So should the Fed risk a recession to protect against inflation or move to avoid recession and risk inflation? This will likely be one of the hotter economic topics of 2008...

Read the entire report here.

- Foster Weeks

posted by SFResidence.com @ 10:06 AM 0 comments

Things to do in San Francisco - Part 44 - Moscone Center

posted by SFResidence.com @ 10:29 AM 0 comments

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.

Sellers seem to be waiting until the New Year to put their home on the market. The inventory is low, but these numbers show that sales are still happening.

Here are the numbers for this week: 12/05/07:

• 1 new listing (average price $4,495,000)

• 9 ratified sales (pending) (average price $1,394,889 - low $749,000, high $3,750,000)

• 5 closed sales (sold) (average price $1,200,500 - low $637,500, high $2,210,000)

- Christine Serventi

posted by SFResidence.com @ 10:06 AM 0 comments

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week of December 2

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

How many different economic reports came out this week? It seems that every day, another dozen or so indices, studies, surveys and reports about the housing industry make the headlines. Perhaps too many, as we are seeing many buyers finally decide not to listen to all of these numbers, and are instead getting financing approved, making offers, signing contracts and moving into the home of their dreams.

We traditionally experience a slow down during the holidays, this time of year many home sellers are focused on selling their home before the New Year. There is a lot of negotiating still going on out there and buyer activity continues to increase with a sense of urgency that may be attributable to a holiday decrease in inventory in many areas, and the desire to buy or sell before the end of the year.

Many areas of the Peninsula continue to suffer from a shortage of inventory. Burlingame and Woodside/Portola Valley also report an increase of off market listings – homes selling before they ever hit the MLS - especially in the $2-4 million range. There’s a different story in northern San Mateo County, where more REO properties and short sales are showing up. In San Francisco, well-priced listings continue to garner multiple offers, and though our offices report a lot of negotiating and counteroffers, activity is robust for many properties. Several offices have reported an increase in escrows falling out, and one office reported each fall out was quickly replaced with a new sale.

Read the entire report here.

- Rick Turley

* For an e-mail alert when this report is updated, send an e-mail to info@SFResidence.com with "weekly market report" in the subject line.

posted by SFResidence.com @ 10:27 AM 0 comments

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.

SURVEY SAYS...?" Richard Dawson's classic line on Family Feud is exactly the question that was on many minds at 8:29am ET last Friday morning, awaiting the official results of the November Jobs Report. After Automatic Data Processing (ADP) had released their hot numbers earlier in the week, indicating well over 200,000 new jobs created - traders and analysts began to wonder if Friday's official number might not come in far higher than the expectations of 70,000.

So when the results came in, it did show 94,000 new jobs created during November - but prior month's revisions took back 48,000 jobs previously counted in September and October. So...given this overall tame to semi-weak Jobs number - which generally would cause Bonds and home loan rates to improve - what happened that caused Bond pricing to worsen, and home loan rates to increase by .25%?

First, Bonds and home loan rates had recently improved to levels not seen in well over two years - so Bonds were almost looking for a reason to correct - and a few strong elements inside the Jobs Report were all the reason they needed. The Unemployment Rate stayed at a low 4.7%, which was better than expected. Additionally, the closely watched Hourly Earnings number was up 0.5%, higher than anticipated, and the largest read in over two years. Higher wages and a tight job market are both inflationary...inflation is bad news for Bonds and home loan rates...hence the large worsening in Bond prices and home loan rates. And the action isn't likely to let up soon - read on for a look at what's in store during the action packed week ahead!

Read the entire report here.

- Foster Weeks

posted by SFResidence.com @ 10:23 AM 0 comments

Things to do in San Francisco - Part 43 - Camera Obscura and Holographic Gallery

Yahoo Travel says this about the Camera Obscura and Holographic Gallery:

This San Francisco landmark was built to resemble a vintage camera, but the origins of the camera obscura are far older than modern photography. Leonardo da Vinci outlined the principles governing it in the 16th century. You enter a darkened, hushed room where the walls are lined in black velvet and holograms. In the center is a bowl-shaped screen, 3 1/2 feet in diameter. Using mirrors and lenses, a living image of the surrounding ocean and beach are projected onto the screen. The difference between seeing that scene outside or seeing it on the camera obscura is the difference between reality and a dream.

Neighborhood: Richmond District

1096 Point Lobos AvenueSan Francisco, CA 94121-1449

+1 415 750 0415

Open Hours 11am-sunset Mon-Sun

- Christine Serventi

Previous things to do:

Parts 1 - 20, Part 21 - Yerba Buena Ice Skating & Bowling Center, Part 22 - 49-mile Scenic Drive, Part 23 - Segway San Francisco Electric Tour, Part 24 - Vesuvio, Part 25 - Haight-Ashbury Street Fair, Part 26 - Wyland Galleries, Part 27 - Metreon, Part 28 - Angel Island, Part 29 - San Francisco Fire Engine Tours & Adventures, Part 30 - Aquarium of the Bay, Part 31 - Haas-Lilienthal House, Part 32 - San Francisco Zoo, Part 33 - Stow Lake Boat & Bike Rentals, Part 34 - Ghirardelli Square Chocolate Festival, Part 35 - Kertesz Fine Art Gallery, Part 36 - City Hall, Part 37 - SS Jeremiah O'Brien, Part 38 - Saints Peter and Paul Church, Part 39 - San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, Part 40 - GoCar Rentals, Part 41 - Cable Car Museum, Part 42 - Transamerica Pyramid

posted by SFResidence.com @ 11:24 AM 0 comments

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.

The numbers we see below reflect the typical holiday slow down, but we do expect to see the numbers change as the holidays pass and Buyers and Sellers refocus on getting back into the market.

Here are the numbers for this week: 12/05/07:

• 3 new listings (average price $3,984,667 - low $789,000, high $8,975,000)

• 3 ratified sales (pending) (average price $2,848,000 - low $1,699,000, high $3,595,000)

• 6 closed sales (sold) (average price $1,639,833 - low $439,000, high $4,250,000)

- Christine Serventi

posted by SFResidence.com @ 11:09 AM 0 comments

San Francisco Real Estate Market Update for the week of November 25

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

While we are experiencing the traditional seasonal slowdown in our real estate market, we continue to see pockets filled with activity. San Francisco and the Peninsula especially continue to defy negative headlines and supposed housing market trends. For example, in Palo Alto there were 20 offers on a $1.4M house. As the Menlo Park El Camino manager points out, this left 19 buyers disappointed. Between Menlo Park and Palo Alto there are only 13 homes on the market between $1.2 and $1.M7 – not enough for 19 buyers in that price range. In the City, a “fixer” in the Sunset district was listed at $629,000, received 29 offers and sold for more than $125,000 over the asking price.

Other areas are seeing increased buyer activity as well, but note that buyers are also negotiating heavily to get prices and terms into alignment with what they are reading in the headlines. While C.A.R. reported that the state’s median resale home price fell 9.9% in October, the report also stated that many communities saw increases during the same time period including Redwood City (20.6%), San Carlos (9.5%) and San Ramon (14.4%) among the top ten in the state. The same report indicates that year-over-year prices in the San Francisco Bay Area as a whole have increased 8.9%. It is important for consumers to make informed decisions based on individual needs and the actual local market and timeliness in a given area, community, neighborhood or street.

Read the entire report here.

- Rick Turley

* For an e-mail alert when this report is updated, send an e-mail to info@SFResidence.com with "weekly market report" in the subject line.

posted by SFResidence.com @ 11:11 AM 0 comments

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.

"WE'RE SO BUSY WATCHING OUT FOR WHAT'S JUST AHEAD OF US...THAT WE DON'T TAKE TIME TO ENJOY WHERE WE ARE." Bill Watterson in the comic strip, Calvin & Hobbes And while these are certainly wise words for the upcoming holiday season - they also aptly describe the mood in the markets, as Bond Traders look ahead to the end of the coming week, with the arrival of the important Jobs Report. But maybe they should take a moment to enjoy where they are, as despite massive volatility, Bonds saw nice gains last week with home loan rates improving by about .125%.

Bond prices improved on a number of factors, including a tame read on inflation via the Personal Consumption Expenditure (PCE) index. Why? Look at it this way - if Bonds were Superman, inflation would be its Kryptonite, because of inflation's ability to erode and weaken the buying power of the fixed return provided by a Bond. So when news arrives indicating that inflation appears to be under control, Bond prices and home loan rates improve on the favorable news.

Read the entire report here.

- Foster Weeks

posted by SFResidence.com @ 7:50 AM 0 comments

Fast Facts from CAR and Freddie Mac - October 2007

If anything can be concluded from the numbers below, it is that California real estate as a whole is taking a hit. Fortunately for us, San Francisco has been protected from what the rest of the state has experienced.

- Janis Stone

Calif. median home price - October 07: $497,110 (Source: C.A.R.) (note: compared to $530,830 last month)

Calif. highest median home price by C.A.R. region October 07: Santa Barbara So. Coast $1,325,000 (Source: C.A.R.) (note: compared to $1,667,500 last month)

Calif. lowest median home price by C.A.R. region October 07: High Desert $265,880 (Source: C.A.R.) (note: compared to $271,940 last month)

Calif. First-time Buyer Affordability Index - Second Quarter 07: 24 percent (Source: C.A.R.) (note: compared to 07:25 first quarter)

Mortgage rates - week ending 11/21:

• 30-yr. fixed: 6.2%; Fees/points: 0.5% (note: compared to 6.4% and 0.5% points last report)
• 15-yr. fixed: 5.83%; Fees/points: 0.5% (note: compared to 6.08% and 0.6% points last report)
• 1-yr. adjustable: 5.42%; Fees/points: 0.6% (note: compared to 5.76% and 0.6% points last report)

- California Association of Realtors & Freddie Mac

posted by SFResidence.com @ 6:15 PM 0 comments