Twice The Price After Two Years In Pac Heights (Again)
July 17, 2015

Foreclosed upon in 2009 with nearly $3 million owed at the time, the Pacific Heights home at 2523 Steiner returned to the market listed for $1,450,000 in March of 2011, was repainted three times in quick succession, and then sold for $1,260,000 that May.

A little over two years later in August 2013, the three-bedroom home with a rather challenging floor plan returned to the market listed for $2,450,000, was reduced to $2,195,000 and sold for $2,010,000 that November, nearly 60 percent more than the price which was paid in 2011.

And now, 2523 Steiner has just been listed anew for $3,995,000, a sale at which would be 99 percent more than was paid in August of 2013 and 217 percent more than in 2011.

Articles and photos sourced from: www.socketsite.com

Gay, Lesbian Neighborhoods Lead Home Price Increases
June 26, 2015 by Pacific Union • Posted in Home Price Conditions

Home prices are higher and grow faster in neighborhoods with large concentrations of gay and lesbian couples, according to researchers at Trulia.com.San Francisco's Castro neighborhood

In a nod to the upcoming gay and lesbian pride celebrations in San Francisco and across the nation, Trulia combined U.S. census and local real estate data to examine price differences between gay and lesbian neighborhoods, measured by ZIP codes, and their surrounding communities. Results from 2015 were then compared with similar data from 2012.

Researchers found that home prices in neighborhoods where gay couples live rose 23 percent, on average, over the past three years. Prices in lesbian neighborhoods rose 18 percent.

Price increases were even more dramatic in the Bay Area.

The median price per square foot for homes in San Francisco‘s Castro neighborhood (ZIP code 94114) rose 36 percent from 2012 to 2013, to $948, a premium of 34 percent above the median for the surrounding metro area. In the Noe Valley, Glen Park, and Diamond Heights neighborhoods (ZIP code 94131), the median price rose 47 percent, to $768, a 9 percent premium.

In Oakland‘s Redwood Heights and Skyline neighborhoods (ZIP code 94619), the median price per square foot jumped 64 percent, to $389, from 2012 to 2013, a 4 percent premium above the metro area median. In Sonoma County‘s Guerneville community (ZIP code 95446), the median price per square foot rose 24 percent, to $335, 2 percent below the median.

Trulia also noted that, overall, neighborhoods with large populations of lesbian couples outperformed neighborhoods with mostly gay couples when comparing price growth to metro areas.

Why the discrepancy in price growth? Trulia noted that the top gay neighborhoods are places where prices were already high relative to their metro areas, so they were not hit as hard during the housing crash as less-expensive neighborhoods nearby.

Also, lesbian couples are more than two times as likely to have children than gay couples. Trulia suggested that lesbians may seek up-and-coming neighborhoods with good schools to raise their children.

(Photo: Flickr/Torbakhopper)

Bay Area Home Sales, Price Growth Lead Golden State

June 16, 2015 by Pacific Union • Posted in Home Price Conditions
Bay Area home sales continued to set the pace for all of California in May, posting solid sales growth and home prices that rose on a yearly basis at more than twice the rate of any other region.
The latest figures from the California Association of Realtors also show that the Bay Area, with more buyers than sellers, was the only region in the Golden State where homes sold at a premium, with final sales prices an average of 7.3 percent above asking prices.

Statewide, single-family home sales in May were down 1.1 percent from April but up 8.9 percent from a year earlier. The median home price rose 0.8 percent from April, and 4.4 percent from May 2014, to $485,830 — the highest price since November 2007.

In the Bay Area, meanwhile, home sales in May were up 2.2 percent from April and 1.8 percent from a year earlier. The median sale price, $846,900, was up 0.2 percent from April and 9.9 percent year over year.

San Francisco and San Mateo counties recorded the highest median sale prices in the state in May: $1,375,000 in San Francisco, up 22.8 percent year over year, and $1,330,000 in San Mateo, up 16.7 percent. They were followed in the Bay Area by Marin County ($1,153,120, up 11.6 percent), Santa Clara County ($993,000, up 13.1 percent), Contra Costa County ($829,640, up 9.2 percent), Alameda County ($814,930, up 8.8 percent), Napa County ($610,120, up 1.2 percent), Sonoma County ($566,040, up 15.4 percent), and Solano County ($360,490, up 13.8 percent).

In the Lake Tahoe/Truckee area, the median sale price was $403,420 in Placer County (up 5.3 percent) and $340,620 in Nevada County (up 22.6 percent).

Looking at home sales, Solano County posted the biggest gain in the Bay Area, up 18.6 percent year over year, followed by Alameda County (up 6.5 percent), Napa County (up 6.3 percent), Contra Costa County (up 2.7 percent), Santa Clara County (up 2 percent), and Sonoma County (up 1.1 percent). Sales declined by 13 percent in San Francisco, followed by San Mateo County (down 9 percent), and Marin County (down 5.8 percent). Further north, Placer County sales rose 10.5 percent, and Nevada County sales rose 8 percent.

The average price per square foot for an existing single-family home in California was $226 in May, up 3.2 percent from a year earlier. San Francisco had the highest price per square foot, at $818, followed by San Mateo County ($775) and Santa Clara County ($591).

(Image: Flickr/Soozums)

Real Estate Executives Forecast More Growth in 2016

June 11, 2015 by Pacific Union • Posted in Market Forecasts
New home sales and prices should rise in the coming year, say recent projections from housing industry executives, while the chance of a downturn over the next three years appears less likely than it did one year ago.

These were a few of the key takeaways from The Summit, a two-day conference hosted by John Burns Real Estate Consulting. Held in early May, the event gathered nearly 80 real estate industry executives — including home builders, land developers, and investors – to gauge where the U.S. housing market is headed in the coming years. As a subscriber of the company’s research, Pacific Union CEO Mark A. McLaughlin attended The Summit, the only executive from a residential real estate brokerage at the conference.

When asked to project home price growth over the next year, 69 percent of attendees felt that prices will rise by 2 to 5 percent. Last year, the majority of attendees called for 5-percent appreciation, and the company’s Burns Home Value Index indicates that prices actually rose by 4.1 percent. JBREC predicts price of growth of 5 percent in 2015 and 4.5 percent in 2016.

Conference participants also expect new home sales to increase by about 10 percent from 2015 to 2016, down from JBREC’s current forecast of 12 percent. Fifty-three percent of attendees believe that new home sales will rise by 5 to 10 percent, while 38 percent predict sales gains of 10 to 20 percent.

This year, real estate industry executives are more optimistic about the overall state of the nation’s housing market. Attendees put the chance of a housing downturn at 17 percent, compared with 22 percent at last year’s event.

Along with home prices and sales volume, most conference participants also think that mortgage rates will increase over the coming year, with 59 percent predicting gains of between 0.25 and 0.75 percent. Another 36 percent believe that rates will remain essentially flat. Currently, JBREC projects that mortgage rates will rise by 0.3 percent over the next year.

According to the company, a key area of disagreement involved investment location. The majority of participants felt it was preferable to invest in more expensive markets with plentiful jobs — such as downtown San Francisco — because even if greater costs mean lower returns, such areas will always be in demand. Others indicated a willingness to venture into outlying areas because they feel the risk/reward proposition outweighs the high prices of real estate in urban centers.

JBREC says that attendees also were split on homeownership rates amongst millennials. Some feel that fewer millennials will own homes due in part to affordability conditions, while others believe that ownership rates will be about the same as with previous generations – just delayed.

In November, Pacific Union and JBREC will team up for the second consecutive year to deliver the San Francisco Bay Area Real Estate and Economic Forecast 2018, which will offer our clients an exclusive, in-depth look at what to expect in Northern California in the coming three years.

(Image: Flickr/Mark Moz)

San Francisco Area Sees Largest Monthly Home Price Gain in the U.S.

May 5, 2015 by Pacific Union • Posted in Home Price Conditions
Home prices in the San Francisco metro area recently jumped month over month, according to the latest numbers from a prominent real estate index. And on an annual basis, the region saw the second-largest price gains in the country.perk_up

According to the most recent S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Indices, single-family home prices in the San Francisco metro area grew by 2.0 percent on a nonseasonally adjusted basis from January to February, the largest monthly increase of the 20 U.S. regions included in the report. Month-over-month price growth was four times higher than the index’s 20-city composite of 0.5 percent and 20 times the national average of 0.1 percent.

On an annual basis, San Francisco home prices were up by 9.8 percent in February, second only to Denver. San Francisco topped the S&P Case-Shiller index for annual home price appreciation in November and December before dropping to No. 4 in January. Across the 20-city-composte, home prices grew by 5.0 percent year over year while increasing 4.2 percent nationwide.

U.S. home prices have grown on an annual basis for 34 consecutive months, and all 20 cities have seen year-over-year gains since the end of 2012. In a statement accompanying the report, David M. Blitzer, managing director and chairman of the Index Committee at S&P Dow Jones Indices, said that home prices are outstripping both inflation and wage growth and that construction of single-family homes remains slow.

Despite the price gains, only two U.S. metro areas – Dallas and Denver – have eclipsed their housing boom price peaks as measured by the index. “If a complete recovery means new highs all around,” Blitzer said “we’re not there yet.

“A better sense of where home prices are can be seen by starting in January 2000, before the housing boom accelerated, and looking at real or inflation-adjusted numbers. Based on the S&P/Case Shiller National Home Price Index, prices rose 66.8% before adjusting for inflation from January 2000 to February 2015; adjusted for inflation, this is 27.9 percent or a 1.7 percent annual rate.”

(Image: Flickr/Ryan Heaney)

Articles and photos sourced by: www.pacificunion.com

Golden State Real Estate Investors Optimistic About Price Growth

May 12, 2015 by Pacific Union • Posted in Industry Surveys & Studies
An overwhelming majority of California real estate investors believe that property prices will grow in the coming years, according to a recent survey, and they’re anticipating handsome returns.thumbs_up

In its 2015 Investor Survey, the California Association of Realtors (CAR) found that 75 percent of investors believe that real estate prices in their neighborhood will increase over the next five years, while 70 percent expect appreciation in one year. Investors project that their property prices will grow by 27 percent during the period of ownership, an average of 6.1 years in 2015. In both 2013 and 2014, investors said they would keep their homes for an average of about eight years.

And if recent home price gains are any indication, California real estate investors have just cause for the sunny outlook. According to CAR’s survey, the median sales price paid for an investment property increased from $292,000 in 2013 to $375,000 in 2015.

Overall, the number CAR real estate professionals who reported closing a transaction with an investor over the past 12 months declined from 39 percent in 2013 to 26 percent this year. Survey respondents said they had an average of 5.4 investor clients in 2015, essentially unchanged from last year but down from seven in 2013.

California investors still far prefer single-family homes, with 72 percent buying that type of property. Multifamily property purchases by investors grew from 14 percent in 2013 to 21 percent in 2015, a trend that CAR attributes to the depletion of distressed housing inventory on the market.

The survey found that two-thirds of investors financed the transaction in all cash, virtually identical to the previous two years. About half of investors funded the purchase with profits from a previous investment, while 42 percent tapped their personal savings.

Two-thirds of investors also plan to become landlords – with the average monthly rent pegged at $1,850 — while about one-quarter intend to flip the property. California investors tend to gravitate toward homes that are already in excellent shape, with 69 percent purchasing properties that needed no or minor improvements. Those that did have to renovate spent a median of $10,000, down from $15,000 last year.

Southern California is still the preferred locale for investors in the state, accounting for 46 percent of transactions in 2015. However, investor activity in Northern California is rising, up from 15 percent in 2014 to 24 percent this year.

(Photo: Flickr/Sarah Reid)