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Luba Muzichenko, San Francisco REALTOR®

Got San Francisco Real Estate Tools?

Are you looking to buy a house in San Francisco? Or maybe you're pondering selling that little SF condominium or TIC?

Whether buying a house, condo or TIC, investment property,etc. or looking to sell any of the above in the City, you want TOOLS!

I'm not talking hammers, table saws and drills - I'm talking about tools that provide you with HONEST and UNBIASED information about the San Francisco Real Estate Market!

So - you want to know what kind of tools you can get your hands on?

The City Update(TM) - The Best San Francisco Real Estate Newsletter Ever!

The City Update(TM) is a little SF real estate newsletter delivered straight to your inbox (almost) every Friday. It has ALL sorts of awesome features including:

  • San Francisco Market Reports from the Altos Research folks
  • All of the NEW San Francisco real estate listings from the previous week
  • All of the SOLD San Francisco real estate listings from the previous week
  • Links to SF Open Houses, SF Foreclosure Listings, and more
  • Commentary about the SF Real Estate market from yours truly
  • SF Property "Pocket Listings" that I hear about (properties that AREN'T available to the general public!)

You can SIGN UP HERE or you can check out the site (just keep in mind that frankly, the site sucks - but I created it myself and since my HTML skills are LACKING, I'm just happy I got THAT far with it!)

SF Real Estate Market Updates

If you just can't get enough San Francsco real estate market updates between this blog and The City Update(TM), you now have one more option when it comes to getting the latest deets on what the market is doing.

Again, brought to you by the Altos Research folks, you can narrow down your reports by zip code or property type AND you can sign up for as few or as many zip codes as you like (you just have to reenter your info for each new zip code/property type).

Go ahead, get your SF real estate data fix on! You can SIGN UP HERE.

100% Complete Access to the San Francisco MLS

Know everything that's on the San Francisco market in real time. Just like a REALTOR, you'll get access to ALL of the listings in the MLS.

Unlike other Real Estate search sites, Zephyr MLS Direct gives you the most complete, accurate and up-to-date listing information available, which lets you find properties as soon as they hit the market.

It also lets you save your searches and new listings that match your criteria emailed to you as soon as they hit the market! And you can save your favorite properties, watch them go into escrow, and if they're in your "favorites" folder, you can even see the price they sold for (which we all know is super secret data.) You also get notified of any changes that occur to the property listings that match your criteria AND Friday Open House reports. Cool or what?

You'll have to give up some personal info, and "agree" to work with me as your REALTOR (it's a technicality that the MLS requires), but I NEVER EVER EVER hold you to it. To really build a client/agent relationship, we have to meet in person to decide if we're a good fit to help you achieve your real estate goals. And you'll have to CONTACT ME to make it happen. WHY? Because I'm just not into stalking and I'm easy to find.

Want your own MLS access? You can SIGN UP HERE.

So, go ahead, sign up for one, two or all three of the San Francisco real estate tools above! And if you think you'd like me to represent you in the sale or purchase of a property, call me at 415-307-1392 or shoot me an email. I'm happy to schedule a free consultation with you to see if we'd work well together.

Oh, and as a reminder, should you sign up for any of the tools above, as always, your info will not be sold, rented, shared, abused, danced on, or in any other way misused. Just thought you'd like to know.

San Francisco Home Sales Data - April 2008

Do you realize that it's MAY??? I mean, a third of 2008 is now but a memory. Winter is over (though I couldn't really tell by today's weather) and Spring isn't far from being over too.

Other things that typically happen this time of year is that San Francisco Real Estate Sales pick up - and this year is no less typical (in this regard at least) that others. With that being said - I went ahead and ran the sales from the MLS as I do every month and found some interesting stuff.

Notables from April 2008 sales figures:

  • Median sales price rose across the board from last month.
  • The selling price vs. listing price percentage increased in single family homes and TIC's, but dropped in condos.
  • Days on market decreased across the board.
  • In terms of sales volume, single family home and condos increased drastically over last month, but we had just 2 more TIC sales than we did in March.

Last month I had a theory about TIC buyers. And I'm starting to think I was right. I'm also noticing better deals on condos due to less competition. In fact, I was just able to help my client negotiate an offer on a condo for $50K under the asking price. We did provide the sellers with other concessions such as a short escrow and free rent back, but we got the price we wanted - so I think everyone is happy. The point is, there are good values out there right now - and if you're hunting for a home right now, you might find a good deal. And sellers, don't be afraid to sell now - but do be prepared to be realistic about the sales price.

So here's this month's summary of home sales pulled directly from the MLS. Remember, these are all closed sales and not pending sales.

Check back monthly to get the latest facts and figures - and if you have any questions about these statistics, or the market in general, feel free to give me a holler! I'm always happy to talk "real estate!" ;-)

Here's a quick snapshot of the market from April 1, 2008 through April 30, 2008:

Single Family Homes

  • 193 Homes Sold
  • Median Sale Price was $935,000
  • Minimum Sale Price was $350,000
  • Maximum Sale Price was $5,625,000
  • Median Selling Price was 104% of asking price
  • Median Days on Market was 30
  • Median Selling Price for homes that sold within 30 days was 105% of asking price

Condominiums, Lofts & Co-ops

  • 184 Homes Sold
  • Median Sale Price was $815,000
  • Minimum Sale Price was $335,000
  • Maximum Sale Price was $4,625,000
  • Median Selling Price was 98% of asking price
  • Median Days on Market was 35
  • Median Selling Price for homes that sold within 30 days was 104% of asking price

TIC's

  • 40 Homes Sold
  • Median Sale Price was $664,000
  • Minimum Sale Price was $263,500
  • Maximum Sale Price was $1,799,000
  • Median Selling Price was 102% of asking price
  • Median Days on Market was 45
  • Median Selling Price for homes that sold within 30 days was 102% of asking price

Renting in San Francisco Becomes an (Even More) Expensive Affair

According to this article in SF Gate, San Francisco rents shot up 14.4 percent from a year ago! So here's my hypothetical question to the renters that can afford to buy - (and I'd love to hear from some of you readers if you feel like answering): If you can afford to buy and aren't planning on moving outside of SF in the next five years, why are you still renting? Now - don't get me wrong - I get it. Buying a home is expensive. Lenders aren't exactly giving money away. In fact, there's all sorts of stuff they want you to do to get pre-approved. They want money in reserves in addition to your down payment. They want good documented income. They want your first born child. (Just checking to make sure you're still following along :-)) But the reasons I hear for not buying real estate just don't make sense to me. Shoot, they don't even make sense to Donald Trump. In fact, the Don's blog says:
Are you the type of investor that waits for a stock price to escalate before you buy? Do you wait for that sale to end before going into the store and purchasing the item you have been dreaming of? Of course not! “Buy low, sell high” is capitalism at its finest. The best times to make money in real estate as well as the stock market, is when you have volatility.
The emphasis at the end was added by me. But it's a damn good point! Now - we're not exactly seeing what I'd call "bargains" right now in the San Francisco real estate market, but we ARE seeing relatively good deals that you can buy without a lot of competition from other buyers. In fact, the people that have the most at stake to lose if the real estate market collapses (that would be REALTORS) are the people that are out there and buying real estate right now! They are "buying low!" or as low as this market will let them buy, that is. So, if you're renting but have good income and a ton of money for a down payment AND aren't planning on moving out of San Francisco in the next few years, get off your behind and buy something. And then you can call me in five years and thank me for telling you to do it!