April 2017 Real Estate Market Update

Here are just a few of the headlines about what’s happening in Bay Area real estate:

• Bay Area tops nation in home buying bidding battles – The Mercury News
• San Francisco named one of the unhealthiest housing markets – CNBC
• San Jose, Fremont & Oakland ranked healthiest homeownership markets – Silicon Valley Business Journal
• Tight home supply keeps driving up prices in the Bay Area – Silicon Beat

The Data Behind the Headlines

There’s more to the story than deliriously happy sellers and despondent would-be buyers. Let’s take a look at what’s really happening in Santa Clara County.

Single Family Homes in Santa Clara County

• Compared to March 2016, the number of months to sell dropped from 2.3 to 1.7, representing a 26% reduction.
  More closed sales occurred in March 2017 than the previous year — 818 compared to 745.
• It’s no surprise that median home prices increased year over year, from $1.06M to $1.13M.
• The average percentage over list price remained steady at a healthy 5%.
• The number of homes available in Santa Clara County — called active inventory — rose from December’s low point of ~400. March saw an uptick of inventory approaching 800 homes.

However, there’s a story you don’t see when studying the above numbers. Specifically, more expensive properties with larger footprints (the top quartile representing ~2,600 sq ft homes on larger lots) stay on the market slightly longer at 22 days. Conversely, those properties priced near $700,000 average 32 days on the market. Modest properties — approximately 1,500 square feet on smaller lots — took a bit longer to close.

Condos & Townhomes in Santa Clara County

The condo and townhome market also saw improvements year over year.

• Compared to March 2016, the number of months to sell dropped from 1.5 to 1.3, representing a 13% reduction.
• Closed sales were relatively flat, 372 in March 2017 compared to 366.
• Home prices rose at more modest levels, gaining 3.4% to $700K.
• Interestingly the average days on the market increased from 17 to 20. However, sellers still received an average of 4% over list price.
• The number of homes available is rising but at a slower pace than single-family homes. Fewer than 250 condos and townhomes were available for sale in March.

There’s always more to the story than stats. Buying and selling a home is a personal transaction. I’ve helped hundreds of Bay Area individuals find the right place to call home.