Burt Tsuei

No other city in San Mateo County has seen a greater depreciation in home value in the last year than Daly City. Back in September 2007, the average sales price of Daly City was $730,000, as compared to $565,000 in September 2008. This is a depreciation of almost 23%. The most common question is whether or not this is the bottom of the market. In this blog, I will share with you my expert opinion, as to why the bottom has come to Daly City, and this might be your last chance to get a great value.

According to Data Quick, the volume of sales in California went up by 6.1% in September 2008 compared to that in August 2008, and went up even more so by 64% when compared to sales in September 2007. Initial lines of thought among Real Estate professionals were that these sales were coming from high end neighborhoods. These were the neighborhoods that were supposed to be economy-proof. However in actuality, the increased volume of sales is coming from the first-time buyer neighborhoods, such as Daly City. In September 2007, there were a total of 10 closed sales for Daly City, and in September 2008, there were 31. This translates to an increase in sales of 210%!

What does this all mean? Likely, the bottom is near. This last year, there was a historically high number of Short Sales and Bank Owned Homes on the market, and this drove the prices down quickly. The financially distressed homes were and currently are being bought up at bargain prices. As soon as these types of sales are cleaned out of the market, future sellers will no longer have to compete against these homes, and will be able to sell their houses at a more competitive market price. All in all, with the increased number of sales, there is a clear indication that we have seen the bottom. As a buyer, this might be your last chance to buy a house in Daly City at a bargain price.

Since I am a full time Realtor working in Daly City, I have seen this first hand. From my personal experience, there is a huge push from the banks to sell these financially distressed homes because the banks would like to show these financial losses in 2008; from an accounting stand point, the banks do not want to carry these losses over to 2009. As an example, from January 2008 to October 2008, I had 8 outstanding offers for Short Sales that were awaiting bank approval. After the first week of October, 4 of the 8 offers had gotten an approval from the bank, and they are scheduled to transfer title by the end of November. Hence, there is more motivation from the banks to sell these houses quickly.

From a buyer perspective, it would behoove you to strongly consider buying a house in Daly City prior to 2009. Once the banks are able to rid themselves of the financially distressed houses, there will be less inventory for you to choose from, and less leverage for you to negotiate the thing we all want…Real Estate at a bargain.

In the near future, I will be blogging about other cities in San Mateo County. Please be sure to come back and visit soon. If you are trying to find out the value of your home, please visit my website at www.RealEstateBurt.com