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November 20, 2009
Let’s take at look at some October numbers for single-family houses and condos that sold in the Bay Area and see how they compare to a year ago.
San Francisco County
- 529 homes sold in October
- The median sales price was $690,000, down from $699,000 in October 2008
San Mateo County
- 294 homes sold (through October 20th)
- The median sales price was $580,000, down from $640,000 in October 2008
Santa Clara County
- 1,845 homes sold in October
- The median sales price was $495,000, up from $489,000 in October 2008
Alameda County
- 1,385 homes sold in October
- The median sales price was $371,000, down from $373,500 in October 2008
Contra Costa County
- 1,613 homes sold in October
- The median sales price was $275,000, down from $281,250 in October 2008
Marin County
- 245 homes sold in October
- The median sales price was $648,000, up from $599,750 in October 2008
We got these numbers from DQNews.
Dig Deeper Into the Trends
These numbers are for county-level trends in the Bay Area. To see what’s happening in your neighborhood, check out our stats & trends pages.
November 6, 2009
Earlier today, President Obama signed new legislation extending the deadline for the home buyer tax credit into 2010 and expanding it to include current home owners who are looking to buy a primary residence.
The Basic Requirements
You qualify for the tax credit if the:
- Home you’re buying will be your primary residence
- Purchase price isn’t more than $800,000
This credit is not a loan; it’s yours, but keep in mind you have to live in your new home for three years. If you sell the home in less than three years, you’ll have to pay back the money.
What’s Changed?
With the new legislation, buyers have more time to find a home and more buyers are eligible for the tax credit:
- New deadline: To qualify, you need to be in contract with a seller by April 30th & close on the home by June 30th (The previous deadline was November 30, 2009).
- Not just for first-time buyers anymore: Home buyers who’ve owned and occupied a home for at least five consecutive years during the past eight years are eligible for a credit up to $6,500.
- Increased income limits: Individuals making less than $125,000 and couples making less than $225,000 are eligible (The limits used to be $75K & $150K).
First-time buyers are eligible for a credit up to $8,000 on homes purchased between January 1, 2009 and June 30, 2010. Qualified homeowners can a credit up to $6,500 on homes purchased between November 7, 2009 and June 30, 2010.
Bonus Link
You can check out the full text of the bill. Scroll about halfway down to sections 11 & 12:
- Sec. 11. Extension and Modification of First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit.
- Sec. 12. Provisions to Enhance the Administration of the First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit.
October 28, 2009
Let’s take at look at some September numbers for single-family houses and condos that sold in the Bay Area and see how they compare to a year ago.
San Francisco County
- 535 homes sold in September
- The median sales price was $662,000, down from $700,000 in September 2008
San Mateo County
- 499 homes sold in September
- The median sales price was $570,000, down from $639,500 in September 2008
Santa Clara County
- 1,693 homes sold in September
- The median sales price was $450,000, down from $521,250 in September 2008
Alameda County
- 1,555 homes sold in September
- The median sales price was $357,000, down from $385,000 in September 2008
Contra Costa County
- 1,525 homes sold in September
- The median sales price was $259,500, down from $300,000 in September 2008
Marin County
- 208 homes sold in September
- The median sales price was $635,500, down from $692,000 in September 2008
We got these numbers from DQNews.
Dig Deeper Into the Trends
These numbers are for county-level trends in the Bay Area. To see what’s happening in your neighborhood, check out our stats & trends pages.
September 23, 2009
Let’s take at look at some August numbers for single-family houses and condos that sold in the Bay Area and see how they compare to a year ago.
San Francisco
- 514 homes sold, down from 529 in August 2008
- The median sales price was $635,000, down from $725,000 in August 2008
San Mateo County
- 606 homes sold, up from 560 in August 2008
- The median sales price was $559,000, down from $632,000 in August 2008
Santa Clara County
- 1,736 homes sold, up from 1,648 in August 2008
- The median sales price was $451,000, down from $555,500 in August 2008
Alameda County
- 1,538 homes sold, up from 1,271 in August 2008
- The median sales price was $340,000, down from $440,000 in August 2008
Contra Costa County
- 1,587 homes sold, down from 1,733 in August 2008
- The median sales price was $261,500, down from $330,000 in August 2008
Marin County
- 235 homes sold, down from 247 in August 2008
- The median sales price was $713,000, up from $675,000 in August 2008
We got these numbers from DQNews.
Dig Deeper Into the Trends
These numbers are for county-level trends in the Bay Area. To see what’s happening in your neighborhood, check out our stats & trends pages.
What trends did you see in August?
September 16, 2009
In August, our Bay Area agents presented 89 bids on homes for sales and 62 of the offers, or 70%, were on homes with at least one other bid, up from 62% in July. For Jim Holt, our agent on the Peninsula, the percentage is even higher: 90% of the offers (19 out of the 21) he presented were on homes with multiple offers:
August was really busy and competitive. Homes were getting lots of offers and selling for more than expected. Right now, we’re seeing a lot of buyer activity at a time when things usually slow down: we still have a lot of buyers touring homes and making offers.
Two Extreme Examples From The Peninsula
One of Jim’s clients has bid on four homes listed around $600,000 all with multiple offers in the last four weeks. He hasn’t gone under contract with any of them and all of them sold for more than list price. One house, listed around $530,000, received close to 20 offers and sold for $650,000.
Another of Jim’s clients recently bid on a $800,000 home in Silicon Valley. The listing agent told Jim there were 24 offers and the home sold for way more than she was expecting.
3 Tips For Buyers
Jim has three tips for buyers looking on the Peninsula:
- Determine your maximum price: Know how high you can go before you bid so you don’t have to figure this out during negotiations
- Know what’s for sale: Be ready to make an offer as soon as you see something you like
- Lead with your best offer: Try to put least 20% down and have a quick closing period
For more numbers, download the spreadsheet with the data on what happened in August.
Where are you seeing homes with multiple offers?
September 8, 2009
The federal government is offering first-time home-buyers a tax credit of 10% of a home’s sales price up to $8,000. To qualify, you must close on a home by November 30th; if you close on December 1st, you’re out of luck.
If you’re a first-time buyer in the Bay Area, you have a month left to find a home, make an offer and negotiate terms if you hope to close in time to get the $8,000 tax credit.
Close By November 13th
In a normal month, about 20% of closings slip from the last week of a month to the next. This number will almost certainly be higher in November due to the expected rush of buyers trying to get the tax credit and because November 30th falls on the Monday after Thanksgiving.
If you’re hoping to get the tax credit, you want to make sure you’ve closed before the week of Thanksgiving because it’s not a full work week:
- Wednesday, November 25th: A furlough day in Contra Costa County, the county offices will be closed.
- Thursday, November 26th: Turkey day. A day to give thanks and watch the Detroit Lions go for six Thanksgiving Day losses in a row.
- Friday , November 27th: San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Alameda (.pdf), Contra Costa & Marin county offices are closed.
- Saturday & Sunday, November 28th & 29th: The banks aren’t open so you can’t close.
- Monday, November 30th: The last day to close and qualify for the first-time buyer tax credit. It’s going to be a goat rodeo.
To give yourself the best chance of getting the tax credit, plan on closing by November 13th. If you run into any problems during closing, you’ll have more than a week to work things out and still qualify for the tax credit.
Get An Offer Accepted By October 9th
Right now, it’s taking our Bay Area clients an average of 35 days to close once they reach initial agreement on terms. It’s taking 57 days for clients who purchased their homes with FHA loans. This means if you want to close by November 13th, you need to get an offer accepted by October 9th if you have a conventional loan or September 17th if you have a FHA loan.
For more information, check out the Home Buyer Tax Credit FAQ from the IRS and get all the details about the tax credit from the agency giving the credit. Also, check out the report that this program may be extended.
Find A Home You Like
Don’t rush into a purchase. Make sure you’re buying because you’ve found a home you want to live in, not because you want the $8,000. You don’t want to end up in the wrong house in the wrong neighborhood with the wrong commute just for a few thousand dollars.
August 25, 2009
Jim Holt, our all-star agent on the Peninsula, has seen of lot of multiple offer situations over the last few weeks.
Recently, there haven’t been a lot of new listings and a lot of buyers have seen everything that’s for sale. So when a nice home comes on the market with a good price, it’s going to get multiple offers and probably sell over list price. This is especially true for entry- and mid-level homes in Palo Alto, Menlo Park and Mountain View.
If you’re bidding on a home with multiple offers, Jim says it’s critical that you lead with your best offer:
You need to approach the offer with the mindset that this is your only shot. It’s likely the sellers will counter only the strongest offers and ignore the rest. Make sure you’re comfortable with the offer price because if you offer is accepted, you don’t want to question if you overpaid. At the same time, you don’t want to be kicking yourself if you lose by only $5,000 – $10,000.
Ignore List Price
Jim’s advice to anyone looking on the Penninsula right now is to forget about the list price:
List price is a meaningless number. If a home is overpriced, it will sit on the market for a while, then sell below list price. If a home is underpriced, it will get multiple offers and sell over list price. Remember, market value is based on what people paid, not what sellers asked. You need to look at sales prices for comparable homes that sold in the last three months. Anything older is too stale to be useful.
What are you seeing in the housing market on the Peninsula?
August 21, 2009
Let’s take at look at some July numbers for single-family houses and condos that sold in the Bay Area and see how they compare to a year ago.
San Francisco
- 454 homes sold in July
- The median sales price was $642,426, down from $770,000 in July 2008
San Mateo County
- 581 homes sold in July
- The median sales price was $575,000, down from $701,000 in July 2008
Santa Clara County
- 2,028 homes sold in July
- The median sales price was $487,000, down from $615,000 in July 2008
Alameda County
- 1,699 homes sold in July
- The median sales price was $340,000, down from $445,000 in July 2008
Contra Costa County
- 1,816 homes sold in July
- The median sales price was $260,000, down from $350,000 in July 2008
Marin County
- 241 homes sold in July
- The median sales price was $650,000, down from $777,500 in July 2008
We got these numbers from DQNews.
Dig Deeper Into the Trends
These numbers are for county-level trends in the Bay Area. To see what’s happening in your neighborhood, check out our stats & trends pages.
This is our first monthly report on the inventory trends in the Bay Area. What numbers would you like to see in our August wrap-up?
July 29, 2009
Last week we reported that in June, 84% of the homes our clients bid on in the Bay Area had multiple offers.
To shed some light on what’s going on in the Bay Area real estate market right now, let’s take a look at three homes with multiple offers that Redfin clients bid on:
Berkeley: Single-Family House
- 2 beds, 1 bath
- Listed on July 14th at $495,000
- Regular sale: not bank-owned, not a short sale
- Sellers reviewed 15 offers on July 23rd
Our client offered $525,000 with a 10% down payment.
The Result
The property went to another buyer for over $545,000 within 10 days of going on the market.
Union City: Single-Family House
- 3 beds, 2 baths
- 1,250 sq. ft.
- Listed on June 25th for $289,000
- Bank-owned property, listed with no reports or disclosures and “as-is,” meaning the buyer is responsible for any repairs
- The bank received 17 offers by June 29th
Our client offered $350,000 with a 10% down payment.
The Result
Our client won the property, but just barely. There were two other offers around $350,000.
San Jose: Condo
- 2 beds, 2.5 baths
- 1,100 sq. ft.
- Listed on June 19th for $192,000
- Bank-owned property, listed “as-is”
- The bank received 16 offers by June 28th
Our client offered $222,000 in cash with a 10-day closing period and no contingencies.
The Result
The bank accepted a higher cash offer from another buyer.
Things Are “Stressful And Frustrating” For Buyers
In the rejection letter the bank sent our client who bid on the condo in San Jose, the bank wrote:
[Y]ou undoubtedly have been experiencing this type of ‘Bidding Frenzy’ that has been stressful and frustrating for all concerned. As long as demand exceeds supply, this frenzy will continue and your clients will continue to be in a stressful situation […]
Generally, the most competitive offer is not restricted only to the highest price offered. There are various factors that the bank will consider in making their selection. These include price, terms, deposit, down payment, type of loan, and the various contingencies involved.
Have you had similar experiences?
July 21, 2009
We were surprised to see that only 84% of the homes our clients bid on in June had multiple offers. Our agents say it feels like every home for sale has multiple offers on it. In June, our Bay Area agents presented 73 offers to listing agents and 61 of those, or 84%, were on homes with at least one other offer, up from 69% in May.
In the East Bay, many of the homes with multiple offers are bank-owned properties that have been priced way below market value to attract a lot of offers and create a biddingwar to drive the price up. Now individual home sellers are catching on to this strategy. According to one of our East Bay agents Charmaine Frank:
Sellers have begun to realize if they want their homes to sell, they have to compete with the bank-owned homes. Any home that looks like a deal is going to have multiple bidders and will sell for much more than the list price.
In San Francisco, good homes with competitive prices are getting a lot of attention from buyers. Redfin’s agent in San Francisco Gina Pio Roda says:
Listing agents in the city know the summer is key and they’re making sure homes are well priced. Over the last few weeks, I’ve seen a lot of multiple offers in Noe Valley, Glen Park, Outer & Inner Sunset and Parkside.
On the Peninsula, the jump in listings with multiple offers is due to families trying to buy in between school years. According to our Peninsula specialist Jim Holt:
The summer market is competitive. For parents with school-age kids, it’s much easier to move when school’s out. Right now, I’m seeing lot of competitive offers in areas with well-regarded school districts.
When bidding on a home with multiple offers, buyers need to put their best foot forward and make every part of their offer competitive, not just the price. Jim advises his clients to “show the seller you’re serious right from the start because sellers often counter only the best offer.”
If you’re bidding on a bank-owned home with multiple offers, here’s some advice from Miawand Bayan, our agent who covers the East and South Bay:
You may have to get pre-approved with the bank that owns the home. Bank-owned homes, especially in the East Bay are getting a lot of attention from buyers — in some extreme cases, there have been over 70 offers on the same bank-owned home. It’s easier for the bank selling the home to evaluate all the offers if the bidders have been pre-approved through their own mortgage department. You don’t have to use the bank for your mortgage, but they often offer some incentives worth considering.
What are your experiences bidding on homes with multiple offers?
