Danielle Lazier
November 2009 Market Report: San Francisco Single Family Home Sales Increase in Number and Sales Price
As a San Francisco Realtor, I maintain access to Clean Offer, a client portal for easy, accurate MLS searches. Each month, they publish a pretty good Market Report on the state of both the local San Francisco housing market as well as Mortgage Interest Rates and other issues relevant to SF Home Buyers and Sellers.
Highlights from the November 2009 Market Report:
- # of home sales increased from last month
- median home sales price also increased
- pending home sales increase for 8th month in a row (signaling a continuation of increased home sales in the coming months and a recovery in the local real estate market)
Detail-oriented, are ya? Get the full skinny (as oxymoronic as that sounds), here: November 2009 SF Market Report
Hiking Yoga in and around Telegraph Hill/Duboce Park
View of Coit Tower on Hiking Yoga trek
I have discovered something new, and I love it……Hiking Yoga! I wanted to share it with all of you. Not only is it a great way to exercise but you get to explore San Francisco as well.
Now, I am not a Yoga chick. I cannot do an hour straight of Yoga, ever. Too stagnant and to be frank, boring. But hiking yoga is fun and a great workout. The instructor, Eric, is a great motivator and moonlights as a SF tour guide so you may learn a thing or to while on your urban trek.
I highly encourage you to try it out. Most classes start/stop at the Ferry Building. Come Saturday morning to check out the farmers market afterward. Replenish those lost calories at Primavera; great tamales!
Keep you energy up through the winter months! Hope to see you out there 
Featured Property: 899 27th Ave. @ Fulton; Richmond District Home For Sale
899 27th Ave.
Brand New Listing: Major Renovation and Major Room to Grow
899 27th Ave. @ Fulton San Francisco, CA 94121
6-7 bedrooms. 5 baths, one-car garage parking.
Welcome to 899 27th Avenue. Using only the best quality materials, this house has been meticulously renovated and expanded from the ground-up. It features 6 bedrooms (1 master suite and 2 bedrooms with en-suite bathrooms), 5 bathrooms, a study on the main floor that can be used a smaller 7th bedroom, a gourmet chef’s kitchen, 1-car garage parking, abundant storage, and a flat yard.
For more information check out the website here: http://899-27thave.com/
Holiday Real Estate Slowdown Less Likely This Season
Wondering if you should sell your home this winter? Considering taking the plunge into home ownership? Not sure if you should wait for the Spring?
Typically, the winter & holiday season is a slower time for real estate. Of course, this depends on your local housing market and frankly, in large part, due to weather. Our local San Francisco real estate market (and temperate climate) isn’t usually as affected as, say, the Minnesota market but you’ll still see some seasonal drop-off.
Will this year be different?
As the Wall St. Journal reports, some experts argue that this year may be different because of the extended Home Buyer Tax Credit.
The credit caps your qualifying purchase to $800,000 or less so not all of San Francisco housing will be affected. Of course, for many home buyers, the current low interest rates are a major draw at any price point. We don’t know when they’ll go up but we do know that it is inevitable.
“House hunting usually slows down this time of year, as people put their searches on hold during the holidays.
This winter could be different, however, thanks to the extension — and expansion — of the first-time home-buyer tax credit.
“We’re going to see far more interest in the fourth quarter than we generally do because of the tax credit,” says Heather Fernandez, vice president of Trulia.com, a real-estate search engine. Traffic surged on the site on Nov. 5, the day Congress approved the credit extension, she says…”
“Interest rates are low right now, but will likely rise next year, Ms. Warren says. Higher rates will affect your monthly mortgage payments, thus the affordability of the house you are buying.
“It’s pretty universally accepted that rates will be higher next year,” she says. “What is unknown is how fast and by how much.”
Average rates on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages have been hovering around 5%. But when the Federal Reserve stops buying large amounts of mortgage-backed securities next year, interest rates could rise, Ms. Warren points out. The Fed plans to end its purchase program in March.”
Personally, I always recommend on this SF real estate blog that you make your real estate decisions based on your own life and not what the so-called experts say.
If it makes sense for you to buy a home now, go for it. Take advantage of the relatively lower home prices, the low interest rates, and maybe even the tax credit.
The same goes for those of you considering selling your home. If it makes sense in the overall picture of your life, what are you waiting for? It may be a long time before prices are back at the steroid-enhanced levels of 2005/2006.
Dine! Shop! Drink! All for a good cause!
Dine Around, Shop Around, Drink Around
On Wednesday, November 18, 2009 thousands of friends, neighbors and associates in San Francisco will support loved ones and friends living with HIV/AIDS and battling breast cancer by supporting local participating restaurants, merchants and bars. They will join hundreds of Zephyr Real Estate agents by simply spending a day and/or night out in their neighborhood dining, shopping and drinking with friends, family and colleagues.
- Spend a night out for AIDS and Breast Cancer
- Participation is affordable and fun!
- Dine Around at neighborhood restaurants
- Shop Around at local merchants
- Drink Around at your favorite bars
- And much more!
Check the site here for further details. Below are the list of participants:
Free Healing Party with Robin Springer
Our friend & recommended Chinese Medical Massage Therapist, Robin Springer, is hosting a FREE healing party at her offices.
Come renew and unwind before the hectic holidays! This will be the last event for 2009, so come celebrate and enjoy tasty healthy treat and treat yourself to FREE massage, chiropractic, cranio-sacral, shiatsu and acupuncture!
- When: Sunday November 22nd 2009 2pm
- Where: Essential Wellness – 129 Fillmore St. San Francisco, CA
- Why: Because you deserve it!
Please join us and bring a friend – they will thank you for it!
New listing! Mission Dolores 1 bedroom, 1 bath condo with parking asking $539,000
Brand-new listing:
Dolores Plaza Condos @ 1839 15th Street between Guerrero & Dolores
1 Bedroom, 1 Bath, Balcony, Pkg, FHA-approved
View Larger Map
Open Sunday 2-4pm
Welcome to Dolores Plaza, where the sun is (almost) always shining! This well-managed condominium complex is resort-style living in Mission Dolores, one of San Francisco’s hippest neighborhoods. Tucked behind 15th St and facing the greenway, this condo is serene, sunny and peaceful. Shared HOA amenities include a gym, sauna, recreation room, and greenway.
For more info, visit http://doloresplazacondos.com/.
What goes down must come up. Then down again. Then up even more. SF real estate is rebounding.
Sometimes, it is nice to be included. Yahoo Real Estate posted an article: 10 Cities Experiencing Home Price Rebounds, and San Francisco real estate is #2 on the list!
Personally, I think these indexes are a little misleading whether they’re used to support the bulls or the bears but nonetheless, I’ll take the good news where I can get it. Just remember that real estate is VERY local. If you really want to know what your home is worth (or what the home you want is worth), you need to talk to a local Realtor and get the facts.
Here’s what they have to say about us:
2. San Francisco, CA.
San Francisco home prices increased 2.8% from July to August this year. Home prices there will drop 8.3% by next June, but will increase 14.3% by 2011. After the area works though its supply of foreclosures, it will be prepared to recover, according to First American Core Logic.
For neighborhood info, fill out the neighborhood report request on our right sidebar. For current MLS listings, check out Clean Offer.
Federal Home Buyer Tax Credit Extended and Improved! Will More SF Buyers Qualify?
The Federal Home Buyer Tax Credit has been extended and improved. This may mean that more San Francisco home buyers will qualify which is good news for both buyers and sellers.
Many clients have asked me what sort of impact the tax credit has had on our local SF real estate market. Given the income caps, I would have to say not too much of one. But now, this should be improved a little… I stress, a little, because the limitations continue to make the tax credit irrelevant for a large part of our market. For example, the limitation on the cost of a home is $800,000.
What are the major changes?
- The timeline has been extended. You must go into contract on your home purchase before April 30, 2010 and close escrow by July 1, 2010.
- Current homeowners now qualify. This is to help assist the “move-up” market. My readers know how great a time I believe it is to “trade-up” from your starter home into something more long-term (assuming you have relative job security and equity). (”Move-up” home buyers must have used their property as their “principal residence” for 5 out of the past 8 years.)
- Income brackets to qualify have increased. Now, up to $125,000 for a single person and $225,000 for a married couple.
- Purchase price limited to $800,000 or less.
For a complete chart of the home buyer tax credit both old and new, click here.
What is new in the Inner Sunset?
Here is this week’s real estate report for the Inner Sunset in San Francisco, CA.
- Number of active properties: 13
- Average list price: $983,079
- Average days on market: 48
- Number of sold: 7
- Average sold price: $909,000
Any changes from the last post?
Want to know how much your Inner Sunset home is worth? Just send us a request.
Make sure to look back here to get acurate and up-to-date real estate news and activity.
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