California Prop 19 At A Glance

This article and update from our own Kelly Vincelette, at Cornerstone Title.

Should you rely on Prop.19 for your own real estate transaction, be sure to double check your own tax situation and talk to a qualified real estate and tax attorney.  

If you like my updates, subscribe to my Blog!  Thank you for reading,

Francis

Silicon Valley real estate
Trends: Local prices and graphs.
How much is your home worth?

Many Home Purchase Offers Are "Sight Unseen"

Nationwide, 45% of surveyed homebuyers said they made a bid on a home without first seeing it in person, up from 28% in 2019. Redfin agents cite health concerns around the pandemic and competition fueled by a worsening housing shortage as reasons more buyers are bidding on homes before visiting them.

See the  Redfin-commissioned survey in May and June of more than 1,400 people across 29 major markets.  Article by Lily Katz.

I have had one experience myself of an offer "sight unseen" on one of my listings, 3 months ago, and several agents have also experienced one of such offers within our Coldwell Banker Los Altos office.

Francis

Silicon Valley real estate
Trends: Local prices and graphs.
A noteworthy local non-profit:  Community Services Agency - in Mountain View

Offshore Buyers Continue to Invest in Bay Area Real Estate

From our Coldwell Banker desk:  

2015 was another very strong year for foreign investment in U.S. real estate, especially here in the Bay Area and particularly from Asian buyers. 

The dollar volume of all foreign investment in the U.S. reached $104 billion for the 12 months ended March 2015, up 13 percent from the same period a year ago, according to the National Association of REALTORS®. More than half of that investment went to California and three other states – Florida, Arizona and Texas.

No one knows for sure exactly how much foreign investment there is in the Bay Area housing market, but anecdotal evidence from our agents and managers in the field tell me it is substantial. And it's probably not surprising, considering the fact that the Bay Area has long been one of the most sought after housing markets for Chinese investors and other offshore buyers.

International investors are attracted by the strength of our local economy, particularly the tech sector in Silicon Valley. They also favor the stability of the U.S. political and financial systems, our strong schools and world-class universities like Stanford and Cal, solid appreciation on homes in the Bay Area, and the relatively affordable prices - yes "affordable" - compared to many other major cities around the world.

If you have any doubt about just how fast Chinese and other Asian investment is growing in the U.S., consider a recent NAR study that found Chinese buyers were the number one international investors in U.S. real estate over the past year with $28.6 billion in sales volume, nearly three times the number two country, Canada. As recently as six years ago, Canadian investment in the U.S. market was more than double China's, which also ranked behind India and the U.K. and was at the same level as Mexico.

In recent years, Coldwell Banker has deployed a very targeted marketing program to reach Asian consumers in a variety of media outlets, both print and digital. We are reaching out to buyers and marketing properties on many of the biggest Asian websites and publications. In addition, our strong international network of offices and agents – the most of any U.S. brokerage – has helped us attract more offshore buyers. Given the interest in the Bay Area housing market from Asian investors and others overseas, I don't see that trend changing anytime soon.

Thank you for reading!

Francis

Silicon Valley real estate specialist

Detailed, local trends etc...

Current mortgage rates

A worthy local non-profit to remember: Community Services Agency in Mountain View.

How sellers have changed over the past decade.

How sellers have changed over the past decade:
a Coldwell Banker Seller Survey - Nationwide.

According to a Coldwell Banker survey of home sellers, today's home seller is notably different than the seller of 10 years ago. The recession not only changed the housing market, but it also changed the way home sellers approach the sale of their home. The Coldwell Banker Seller Survey looks at approximately 1,500 home sellers and analyzes trends from before and through the recession, as well as the initial recovery years and today:

• 2014-2015 - Recent Years (Sellers Today)
• 2010-2013 - Initial Recovery Years
• 2008-2009 - Recession
• 2006-2007 - Pre-Recession
• 2005 and Earlier

Notably, since 2014, more than 1 in 4 home sellers in the US sold their home in less than two weeks.

  Those sellers are twice as likely to choose an offer based on emotion rather than money alone, compared to sellers in pre-recession years.  “There is a notable difference in seller psychology today compared to 10 years ago” says Budge Huskey, president and CEO of Coldwell Banker Real Estate.  “Home sellers often want to feel emotionally connected to the buyer.  These findings should give solace to buyers in highly competitive markets who may present a compelling story as to why they should be the next owners of the home”.   - hint:  think “the Bay Area housing market”…

You can see the whole survey on this Coldwell Banker article.

Thank you for reading,

Francis

Silicon Valley real estate

Trends: Local prices and graphs.
A worthy local non-profit to remember: Community Services Agency in Mountain View

Bay Area at Forefront of a National ‘Rental Crisis’

Bay Area at Forefront of a National ‘Rental Crisis’  - A Zillow report  followed by an in-depth view of the current market in the Bay Area, area by area.

There’s no doubt that Bay Area home prices have been climbing steadily since the recession, but as it turns out rental housing costs are going up even faster and it is creating what Zillow calls a national rental crisis.

Rents all across the country are going up faster than home prices, and they’re going up in our region faster than anywhere in the U.S., Zillow reported in its latest rent index.

In the five-county San Francisco metropolitan area, the Zillow Rent Index soared to $3,162, up 14.9 percent in April from a year ago, the fastest increase in the nation. And who was number two? The San Jose metro area, where the Zillow Rent Index rose to $3,287, up 12.9 percent.

Denver, Kansas City and Portland rounded out the top five rental markets with the greatest price increases. Nationally, the Zillow Rent Index rose 4 percent in April from a year ago to $1,364. The rent index is the median monthly rent “Zestimate” of all properties in a region, not just those for rent.

While home prices have moved up and down over the past decade, Zillow said that rents have been rising steadily during that time. In April, rent increases nationally outpaced home-price appreciation for the first time in years, accelerating what Zillow called a “rental crisis.”

In the San Francisco metro area, rents started rising faster than home values in July 2014, according to the report, and they have been growing faster ever since on an annual basis.

The report added that a slowdown in home-price appreciation will help renters looking to buy a home in much of the nation.

See the rest of the story there:  The "Coldwell Banker Market Watch".

Thank you for reading,

Francis

Silicon Valley real estate

Trends: Local prices and graphs.
A noteworthy local non-profit event:  Community Services Agency

Most parents make home buying decision around kids:

A recent survey by Coldwell Banker Real Estate found that 79% of Millennial parents (between 18 and 34) and 70% of Gen X parents (between 35 and 49) make major purchasing decisions around

their children, stating that they are more concerned about the immediate impact of a move on the emotional well-being of their children than whether moving is a good decision.

Francis

Silicon Valley real estate specialist
Detailed, local trends etc...
Current mortgage rates

Our next E-Waste & Shredding event is on:
Sat. Oct 25, 9am - 2pm (or until truck is full)
at: 161 S. San Antonio Rd
Los Altos, CA

Eye Candy.. Prime properties for sale.

This is the latest edition of our Coldwell Banker Previews International offerings. Most of the properties are pretty close to home, or even right there where we live.  Click on the cover to see the magazine.

Let me know if you have any question about one of these homes!

Francis Rolland
Previews Specialist

Silicon Valley real estate specialist
Detailed, local trends etc...
Current mortgage rates

Our next E-Waste & Shredding event is on:
Sat. Oct 25, 9am - 2pm (or until truck is full)
at: 161 S. San Antonio Rd
Los Altos, CA

Bay Area home prices leveling off.

Prices in the Bay Area at large are leveling off.

Not everywhere, and not all in the same manner.  But DataQuick, the La Jolla-based real estate information services firm, said the median sale price for new and existing homes in the region in July stayed at a 3-month plateau at $617,000.  That was down .2 % from June's median price but up 9.8 % from the $562,000 median in July 2013. 

Complete information along the Peninsula can be found in this Coldwell Banker article, with the following remarks with regards to the area close to Los Altos and Palo Alto, and referred to as "Silicon Valley" (always more competitive):


...... Silicon Valley – The market is a bit spotty, according to our Cupertino manager. The demand for

great houses with Cupertino schools is as high as ever, but certain segments seem to have cooled off. It’s August, after all! Our Los Altos manager reports that there is lower inventory currently in most of the local cities, which is basically seasonal. But the stagers are booked out the whole month of September, so that means some new inventory hopefully. Downtown Mountain View houses often sell within one week. The condos are still getting strong activity with multiples either the next week or following. Palo Alto still has low inventory, but if the house is priced too high, it doesn’t sell. The best sections of town still lack inventory and there are buyers lined up for each one. Last week a house in old Palo Alto sold for more than 1M over list ($6,700,000) with multiple offers. Los Altos Hills with Palo Alto schools attract many buyers and multiple offers. North Los Altos is still in huge demand as is most of the city and Mountain View west of El Camino. Sunnyvale is still occasionally seeing a new all-time high. In Los Gatos, inventory is tightening up even more as school heads back into session. San Jose-Almaden agents are not seeing as many multiple offers in Blossom Valley and Santa Teresa but they are in Almaden and Cambrian. One listing in Cambrian had 20 offers. Our San Jose Main office manager said the local market is seeing another drop in inventory, while buyer demand has pulled back as well. Open houses are well attending with some open houses having 40 groups each day on the opening weekends. Multiple offers are still prevalent, but the sheer number of offers has seemed to decrease. All signs indicate that we will have a strong fall. The local Willow Glen listing inventory remains consistent where it has been the last month. Agents are waiting to see if the post Labor Day weekend will bring a surge of new listings for the fall selling season. With tight inventory and strong buyer demand agents there have seen heavy open house traffic. With this increased demand agents starting to see the pre-emptive offers, multiple offers and aggressive offers way over asking price. The market is getting hot again in Willow Glen. ...

thank you for reading!
Francis


Francis
Silicon Valley real estate specialist
Detailed, local trends etc...
Current mortgage rates

non-profit organization worth noting: Partners for New Generations - now called:
Mentor Tutor Connection.

Eye Candy - our Previews Magazine

Here is our Coldwell Banker Previews Magazine Fall Edition, with many California Jewels,
- always a pleasure to see!

Thanks for reading!
Francis

Local market trends

Current Mortgage rates

Non-profit organization worth noting: Partners for New Generations.

Silicon Valley Luxury Home Prices Jump in December ...

Silicon Valley Luxury Home Prices Jump in December, Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage Reports.

Luxury home prices in Silicon Valley moved higher once again last month as the region’s high-end market continued to gain momentum, according to Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, the South Bay’s leading provider of luxury real estate services.

The median sale price for a million-dollar-plus home in Santa Clara County reached $1,471,000, up 8.9 percent from a year ago and 6 percent from November, when it stood at $1,387,000. ....

....Turley said the challenge for the South Bay’s real estate market continues to be a shortage of homes for sale, not lack of buyers.

“I think it’s important for sellers to get the message that the market is getting better in many areas and there are buyers willing to pay competitive prices for homes,” he said. “If you’ve been thinking about putting your home on the market, you shouldn’t wait any longer. It’s time to jump in.”  .....

See the full article on this Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage Report.

Francis

Silicon Valley Real Estate

Local market trends

useful links

Mortgage rates