December 29, 2011
It’s time for our monthly check-in of the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices (HPI). The Case-Shiller data is generally considered to be the most reliable measure of overall home price changes for a region, since they only consider repeat sales of homes when calculating their index, instead of looking at all the homes that sold in a given month.
For the full source data behind this post, hit the S&P/Case-Shiller website. For a more detailed explanation of how the Case-Shiller Home Price Index is calculated, check out their methodology pdf. Also remember that the data released on the last Tuesday of a given month is for the period two months prior (i.e. – October data is released in December).
Here are the basic Case-Shiller stats for San Diego County as of October:
October 2011
Month to Month: Down 0.6%
Year to Year: Down 4.5%
Prices at this level in: October 2002
Peak month: November 2005
Change from Peak: Down 38.9% in 71 months
Low Tier: Under $305,028
Mid Tier: $305,028 to $453,843
Hi Tier: Over $453,843
Nineteen of the twenty metro areas tracked by Case-Shiller saw a decrease in their HPI between September and October (vs. eighteen from August to September): Only Phoenix saw an increase. Wait, Phoenix? Yup, Phoenix. Atlanta fell the most in October (again), falling a whopping 5.0% in a single month.
Here’s a look at the latest local tiered data, back through 2000:
And here’s a closer look at the recent changes, with the vertical and horizontal axes zoomed in to show just the last year:
All three of San Diego’s tiers fell in October, with the middle and low tiers tying for the biggest hit. Month to month, the low tier was down 0.6%, the middle tier fell 0.6%, and the high tier decreased 0.2%.
In this next chart, I’ve visualized the month to month trends of all twenty Case-Shiller-tracked cities. Green and above the horizontal axis if they were increasing in the month charted, red and below the axis if they were decreasing. I’ve excluded 2000 through 2004 since they looked largely the same as 2005 (mostly green).
Just four months ago, all twenty cities saw month to month gains. Now just one is not the red.
Read the rest of this entry »
December 13, 2011
Big news, San Diego! We’re upgrading our service here. Now, whenever you sign up to tour a home or meet an agent, the agent you meet will also be the one who sees you through the whole process: They’ll meet you on the first tour, see the home, negotiate your deal and hand you your keys once closed. The commission refund we offer buyers will, as a result, change from a flat 50% of our commission (with Redfin’s minimum $6,000 fee) to a range between 15% and 50%, depending on the price of the home, with no minimum fee.
Customers Love the Personal Service
We keep hearing how important it is to have an agent that’s 100% on your side, working for your best interest and not for a commission. It’s how Redfin has always done business, and that’s not changing. With our new service in San Diego, you get that same level of service, using tools that keep you in the loop at every step. But now, your agent can really get to know you personally and determine your needs along the way.
A 15-50% Refund
Our fee for selling a home is still 1.5% of the home price. But our refund for home-buyers will now depend on the list price of the home, so you’ll know up front exactly how much you’ll get back. For a $500,000 home in San Diego, the typical refund would be $4,311. Our website has all the details on the new commission refund. The estimated refund, based on the list price, will always be displayed on the listing page in the upper-right corner.
Since there is no longer a minimum with our new pricing plan in San Diego, your refund will actually be bigger on homes with list prices $287,000 and under, and more people will get a refund.
Existing Customers Are Eligible for Whichever Refund is More
If you’ve already contacted us to tour a home, talk to an agent or write an offer, you’ll receive the refund option that’s highest. If you close on a home by Feb. 29, 2012, we’ll either honor the old refund pricing, or give you the new pricing, depending on which gives you more money back.
This new level of service is limited to a few cities now, but it looks like it’s catching on. Turns out people love it when you combine full-service agents who aren’t paid on commission with access to the best information available about the homes and the agents.
A Redfin agent can show you how the whole process works, and give you insight on how the housing market is doing in your area, even down to the neighborhood level. Check out the reviews of our San Diego-area agents and find the right agent for you.
December 6, 2011
Over on the national blog, we just posted another big analysis of hundreds of thousands of listings and sales. Here are the numbers for San Diego County, where winter is still a winning time to list your home for a quick sale, a better chance of selling, and a better price:
November 30, 2011
It’s time for our monthly check-in of the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices (HPI). The Case-Shiller data is generally considered to be the most reliable measure of overall home price changes for a region, since they only consider repeat sales of homes when calculating their index, instead of looking at all the homes that sold in a given month.
For the full source data behind this post, hit the S&P/Case-Shiller website. For a more detailed explanation of how the Case-Shiller Home Price Index is calculated, check out their methodology pdf. Also remember that the data released on the last Tuesday of a given month is for the period two months prior (i.e. – September data is released in November).
Here are the basic Case-Shiller stats for San Diego County as of September:
September 2011
Month to Month: Down 0.8%
Year to Year: Down 5.4%
Prices at this level in: November 2002
Peak month: November 2005
Change from Peak: Down 38.6% in 70 months
Low Tier: Under $307,040
Mid Tier: $307,040 to $456,259
Hi Tier: Over $456,259
Seventeen of the twenty metro areas tracked by Case-Shiller saw a decrease in their HPI between August and September (vs. eleven from July to August): Only Washington DC, New York, and Portland rose. Atlanta fell the most in September, falling a whopping 5.9% in a single month.
Here’s a look at the latest local tiered data, back through 2000:
And here’s a closer look at the recent changes, with the vertical and horizontal axes zoomed in to show just the last year:
All three of San Diego’s tiers fell in September, with the low tier losing the most ground. Month to month, the low tier was down 1.6%, the middle tier fell 1.1%, and the high tier decreased 0.1%.
In this next chart, I’ve visualized the month to month trends of all twenty Case-Shiller-tracked cities. Green and above the horizontal axis if they were increasing in the month charted, red and below the axis if they were decreasing. I’ve excluded 2000 through 2004 since they looked largely the same as 2005 (mostly green).
Just three months ago, all twenty cities saw month to month gains. Now only three have avoided falling into the red.
Read the rest of this entry »
October 25, 2011
It’s time for our monthly check-in of the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices (HPI). The Case-Shiller data is generally considered to be the most reliable measure of overall home price changes for a region, since they only consider repeat sales of homes when calculating their index, instead of looking at all the homes that sold in a given month.
For the full source data behind this post, hit the S&P/Case-Shiller website. For a more detailed explanation of how the Case-Shiller Home Price Index is calculated, check out their methodology pdf. Also remember that the data released on the last Tuesday of a given month is for the period two months prior (i.e. – August data is released in October).
Here are the basic Case-Shiller stats for San Diego County as of August:
August 2011
Month to Month: Down 0.2%
Year to Year: Down 5.5%
Prices at this level in: December 2002
Peak month: November 2005
Change from Peak: Down 38.1% in 69 months
Low Tier: Under $308,529
Mid Tier: $308,529 to $458,544
Hi Tier: Over $458,544
Ten of the twenty metro areas tracked by Case-Shiller saw a decrease in their HPI between July and August (vs. two from June to July): Phoenix and Las Vegas. Washington DC. saw the biggest increase this month, followed closely behind by Detroit and Chicago.
Here’s a look at the latest local tiered data, back through 2000:
And here’s a closer look at the recent changes, with the vertical and horizontal axes zoomed in to show just the last year:
All three of San Diego’s tiers fell in August. Month to month, the low tier was down 0.6%, the middle tier fell 0.5%, and the high tier decreased 0.3%.
Here’s a new chart for you. In this one, I’ve visualized the month to month trends of all twenty Case-Shiller-tracked cities. Green and above the horizontal axis if they were increasing in the month charted, red and below the axis if they were decreasing. I’ve excluded 2000 through 2004 since they looked largely the same as 2005 (mostly green).
The effects of 2009′s homebuyer tax credit are dramatically visible in this chart, as is the fairly strong spring we had this year, hitting 20 cities increasing for the first time since July 2005. However, the sudden drop-off of month-over-month gains in August’s data is interesting, since during a “normal” year we wouldn’t expect to see this many cities in the red until December or January. I think this indicates that there is still quite a bit of weakness in home prices.
Read the rest of this entry »
September 27, 2011
Before we get going with this month’s Case-Shiller post, I’d like to apologize for the lack of an update last month. Long story short, this particular duty slipped through the cracks while I was out on leave. We heard from a number of readers who were lamenting the missing post. Rest assured, we have heard you and it will not happen again!
It’s time for our monthly check-in of the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices (HPI). The Case-Shiller data is generally considered to be the most reliable measure of overall home price changes for a region, since they only consider repeat sales of homes when calculating their index, instead of looking at all the homes that sold in a given month.
For the full source data behind this post, hit the S&P/Case-Shiller website. For a more detailed explanation of how the Case-Shiller Home Price Index is calculated, check out their methodology pdf. Also remember that the data released on the last Tuesday of a given month is for the period two months prior (i.e. – July data is released in September).
Here are the basic Case-Shiller stats for San Diego County as of July:
July 2011
Month to Month: Up 0.1%
Year to Year: Down 5.9%
Prices at this level in: December 2002
Peak month: November 2005
Change from Peak: Down 38.0% in 68 months
Low Tier: Under $307,929
Mid Tier: $307,929 to $458,387
Hi Tier: Over $458,387
Only two of the twenty metro areas tracked by Case-Shiller saw a decrease in their HPI between June and July (vs. none from May to June): Phoenix and Las Vegas. Weirdly, Detroit saw the biggest increase, followed by Minneapolis.
Here’s a look at the latest local tiered data, back through 2000:
And here’s a closer look at the recent changes, with the vertical and horizontal axes zoomed in to show just the last year:
Las Vegas’ low and middle tiers rose in July, while the high tier lost a bit of ground. Month to month, the low tier was up 0.4%, the middle tier rose 0.5%, and the high tier decreased 0.5%.
Read the rest of this entry »
July 29, 2011
It’s time for our monthly check-in of the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices (HPI). The Case-Shiller data is generally considered to be the most reliable measure of overall home price changes for a region, since they only consider repeat sales of homes when calculating their index, instead of looking at all the homes that sold in a given month.
For the full source data behind this post, hit the S&P/Case-Shiller website. For a more detailed explanation of how the Case-Shiller Home Price Index is calculated, check out their methodology pdf. Also remember that the data released on the last Tuesday of a given month is for the period two months prior (i.e. – May data is released in July).
Here are the basic Case-Shiller stats for San Diego County as of May:
May 2011
Month to Month: Up 0.2%
Year to Year: Down 5.1%
Prices at this level in: December 2002
Peak month: November 2005
Change from Peak: Down 38.2% in 66 months
Low Tier: Under $306,480
Mid Tier: $306,480 to $458,209
Hi Tier: Over $458,209
Only three of the twenty metro areas tracked by Case-Shiller saw a decrease in their HPI between April and May (down from 7 in April and 18 in March). Boston ousted DC for the biggest increase, gaining 2.7% on the month. Only Tampa, Las Vegas, and Detroit continued to fall.
Here’s a look at the latest local tiered data, back through 2000:
And here’s a closer look at the recent changes, with the vertical and horizontal axes zoomed in to show just the last year:
The overall index rose slightly in May, but the high tier actually fell a bit. Month to month, the low tier was up 0.7%, the middle tier rose 1.0%, and the high tier decreased 0.4%.
Read the rest of this entry »
July 14, 2011
In case you missed it over on the corporate blog, Redfin has just launched our Android app!
(And there was much rejoicing.)
Android fans have been very, very vocal about wanting their own Redfin app, and thanks to the hard work of a crack team of engineers, the day has arrived.
Go find out more! Go! Go you crazy kids! Be free!
Photo courtesy Stéfan via Flickr.
July 8, 2011
I hope everyone had a great holiday weekend. I spent mine lying on the couch, mewling like a sick kitten, but that’s neither here nor there.
I was a Redfin addict before I was an employee, and sometimes I forget that there’s a lot of stuff on our site that not everybody knows about. Some of these are big things, like the fact that we’re a real live brokerage with real live agents. Others are a bit nittier and grittier, like the sheer number of different ways we try to slice and dice data to share with anyone who wants it.
Example: Our San Diego neighborhoods and zip codes page (or see other cities in SoCal). This page doesn’t get an awful lot of traffic, but it should, because it’s just obscenely useful. It basically shows you the median list price, median price per square foot, sale-to-list percentage, and number of homes for sale in the entire local area, broken down both by neighborhood name and by zip code.
You can also sort this information by any of the above columns; if you want to see every neighborhood sorted by sale-to-list percentage, just click on that column header and the data will re-sort.
And if you click on any of the neighborhood names or zip codes, we’ll show you another page with information specific to that area, including:
- New homes for sale
- Upcoming open houses
- Price-reduced homes
- Recently-sold homes
- Most expensive homes
- Least expensive homes
- And most popular (on Redfin) homes
This neighborhood/zip code profile page also gives you trend charts and graphs that you can customize and even import to your own website or blog, links to related forums posts, comparisons with other nearby areas, and profiles of area schools.
If you haven’t seen these pages, you should check them out. And if you’re already using them, you should drop us a line below to let us know what you think of them. Ideas and suggestions are always welcome! (Cruel, cutting remarks are not particularly welcome, but are taken with a stiff upper lip.)
June 29, 2011
It’s time for our monthly check-in of the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices (HPI). The Case-Shiller data is generally considered to be the most reliable measure of overall home price changes for a region, since they only consider repeat sales of homes when calculating their index, instead of looking at all the homes that sold in a given month.
For the full source data behind this post, hit the S&P/Case-Shiller website. For a more detailed explanation of how the Case-Shiller Home Price Index is calculated, check out their methodology pdf. Also remember that the data released on the last Tuesday of a given month is for the period two months prior (i.e. – April data is released in June).
Here are the basic Case-Shiller stats for San Diego County as of April:
April 2011
Month to Month: Up 0.4%
Year to Year: Down 4.3%
Prices at this level in: December 2002
Peak month: November 2005
Change from Peak: Down 38.3% in 65 months
Low Tier: Under $305,507
Mid Tier: $305,507 to $459,514
Hi Tier: Over $459,514
Only seven of the twenty metro areas tracked by Case-Shiller saw a decrease in their HPI between March and April (down from eighteen the previous month). The biggest increase was in Washington DC again with a solid 3.0% gain. Other markets that saw increases above 1% were San Francisco (+1.7%), Atlanta (+1.6%), Seattle (+1.6%), Denver (+1.5%), and Cleveland (+1.2%).
Here’s a look at the latest local tiered data, back through 2000:
And here’s a closer look at the recent changes, with the vertical and horizontal axes zoomed in to show just the last year:
The low and middle tiers in San Diego were pretty flat in April, with the high tier grabbing the lion’s share of the gains. Month to month, the low tier was up 0.1%, the middle tier fell 0.2%, and the high tier increased 1.1%.
Read the rest of this entry »
