Weekly Market Watch

Coldwell Banker Weekly Market Watch
Week of July 8, 2007

With the Fourth of July holiday falling right in the middle of the week, another quiet week was anticipated, but it was actually pretty busy out there. In the outlying areas, Buyers are still more interested in looking than in writing offers. In all areas, including the Peninsula and the City, Buyers are becoming more sensitive to condition and price. With an influx of new inventory hitting the market in many areas, those Buyers will be more likely to find what they’ve been searching for. Several months ago, it seemed the Peninsula was anxious to see new listings in all areas, now some communities are seeing some fresh inventory begin to stack up. In some northern Peninsula markets, the new inventory is definitely not selling as quickly as it did in April. Below are some fast facts on inventory in our markets in the City and Peninsula:

San Francisco has been holding steady all year with approx. 2.3 months supply inventory – June this year at 2.3 months is down from June ’06 when there was 2.7 months supply. In the over $2.5M market however, the City saw a jump which nearly doubled the May rate, now up to 5.5 months supply. This is likely a combination of new June inventory over $2.5M, as well as some existing listings that did not move in June. We’ll watch this one over the next several months to see if the upper end homes will continue a slower rate of absorption.

The Peninsula also remains relatively unchanged this year for all price points combined, at 3.2 months supply. June represents an increase from the 2.6 months supply we saw in June ’06. The upper end, over $2.5M has gone the opposite direction of the City, at least for the month of June, where it decreased from May’s 7.4 months to 4.8 in June. Again, we’ll watch to see where this goes, it takes more than a few months to spot a pattern. Santa Clara County has seen an increase of MSI nearly every month this year, now up to 4.1 months supply, and up from 3.1 months June ’06. Santa Clara’s upper end over 2.5M doubled over the previous month, now at 11 months supply.

No matter the direction the upper end month's supply inventory headed in June, we were fortunate to have a phenomenal 40+ sides close escrow over $5M for May and June - this is strictly our CB offices - a testament to the healthy upper end market, and the talented Coldwell Banker agents working it.

More than 490 homes were held open during the week, and most areas were surprised by the high level of activity. Multiple offer situations increased in some areas with more than 80 occurring during the week. Listing inventory increased for seven offices, remained steady for 12 offices, and decreased in 10. Sales activity remained steady for 15 offices, increased for six and decreased in only eight offices.

Overall, fresh inventory sparks fresh interest from buyers and may push sellers into pricing their homes effectively. Condition, price, and strategic staging will remain key factors all summer in keeping the new inventory moving.
Have a great week.

Rick
Rick Turley
President, San Francisco/Peninsula
Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage