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Luba Muzichenko San Francisco Real Estate

San Francisco SF Realtor

Archives for September 2008

San Francisco 2-3 Units Fast Facts August 2007 vs. August 2008

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San Francisco Association of Realtors District Map

For those of you that like your San Francisco real estate market data without commentary, here ya go.  Take a look, check it out, come to your own conclusions. 

Or – you can always ask me questions. 

fast facts 092308

fast facts 092308

NUMBER OF UNITS is the equivalent of number of sales/transactions. For condominiums, each unit is treated as a sale. For 2- to 4-unit buildings, the “building” is treated as a sale.

NUMBER SOLD is the number of properties in the market segment that closed escrow during the month.

NUMBER FOR SALE is the number of active properties on the market for one day or more during the month.

MEDIAN PRICE (SOLD) reflects the “middle” price point of a group of properties that have successfully closed escrow on a monthly basis, i.e. half sold for more and half sold for less than the median price. Tracking the movement of median prices over time provides a good indicator of the direction market forces are moving.

If the percentage change is positive between the two periods then there is upward pressure on prices in that market segment. If the percentage change is negative between the two periods then there is downward pressure on prices in that market segment.

AVERAGE DAYS ON MARKET (DOM) reflects how long it has been taking (on average) to draw an offer on a reasonably priced property exposed to the market. The AVERAGE DAYS ON MARKET is defined as: The average number of days it took all of the properties that went under contract during the period to accept a first position offer.

MONTH’S SUPPLY OF INVENTORY (MSI) is a measure of how long it would take, in months, to sell the existing inventory at the current sales rate for the specific neighborhood and property type. The MONTH’S SUPPLY OF INVENTORY is defined as: The number of active properties on the market for one day or more during the month, less the number of properties that have been withdrawn or expired, divided by the number of properties that have gone under contract during the month.

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Data provided by Terradatum.

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SF Real Estate Blog Readers Ask about OMI's

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I recently had a client and blog reader ask about doing an Owner Move In on a single family home in San Francisco. 

Typically owner move-ins are allowed, unless the tenant has protected status based on age, disability or is terminally ill.  However, in a single family home or rented condo unit in San Francisco, the tenants lose any protected status that they have.  Here’s the answer to the issue below:

First, a disclaimer.  Please do not take the following as concrete fact.  We live in SF and we ALL know that things are quirky here so do not assume the following will always be true add correct.  ALWAYS check the status of the rent code and ALWAYS consult an attorney for clarification.  The following is not meant to be legal advice about any landlord/tenant/eviction issues in San Francisco and is NOT meant as legal advice!!! 

 That being said – here’s the section of the rent code that applies:

Section 37.9(i)(2) of the Rent Ordinance states: “(2) The foregoing provisions of Sections 37.9(i)(1)(A) and (B) shall not apply where there is only one rental unit owned by the landlord in the building, or where each of the rental units owned by the landlord in the same building where the landlord resides (except the unit actually occupied by the landlord) is occupied by a tenant otherwise protected from eviction by Sections 37.9(i)(1)(A) and (B) and where the landlord’s qualified relative who will move into the unit pursuant to Section 37.9(a)(8) is 60 years of age or older.”

In a nutshell – if the SF building is indeed a TRUE Single Family Residence (ie. NO illegal units, NO in-law units, etc), then there is indeed NO such thing as a protected tenant there.  It appears that if a person owns JUST ONE condominium in a San Francisco building, the same exemption to protected status applies.  It also appears that if the landlord owns more than one unit and ALL are occupied by tenants that would be protected in most cases, but the landlord wants to move in a relative that is over the age of 60, the landlord can do so.

How does this affect you?

Well, it depends on whether you’re a landlord, a tenant or a prospective buyer.  If you need advice about your particular situation, contact me – I can point you in the right direction to get you the information that you really need.

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SF Snapshots: San Francisco Living

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Fort Funston by maisnon.

Fort Funston, originally uploaded on by maison

As you guys know, I’ve put Open Shutter to the Past: San Francisco in Pictures on hold for a bit. 

Also, you’re probably noticed that postings in this SF Real Estate Blog have been pretty light this week.  

I’ve done a bit of a number on my back, and after seeing an awesome SF acupuncturist, I’m just heading on the road to recovery.  I’ve never been a big fan of acupuncture, but after 20 minutes of needles in my back, an infrared light, cupping, massage and then some magical medical plaster that felt like it was burning my back, I’m finally feeling a little better. 

But, I’m not feeling well enough to risk going horseback riding today, which was my original plan for this lovely Friday afternoon.  Instead, I’ll be taking it easy and letting my body finish its recovery.

And whether you’re taking it easy, or riding high this weekend, I hope you have an awesome time. 

And don’t forget to check back next week for another awesome San Francisco photo.

And if you’d like to throw your photos into the pool of candidates for my SF Photo Friday collection, tag your SF Photos from Flickr with LubaSF.

Happy Friday!

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I'm Broken and I Can't Get Up

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So I’m broken. 

I’ve hurt my back something terrible and the right side of my body from the middle of my back on up is in excruciating pain.  I did the heat thing, the massage thing, the lots of (legal) drugs thing and finally today, the acupuncture thing.  I’m still in pain. 

So, I’m not really feeling up to writing about SF Real Estate right now.  In fact, typing hurts, sitting hurts, moving hurts, writing hurts – everything hurts. 

I’ll be taking it easy the next few days to let my body get better – that means I’ll be avoiding the computer.  And once I’m feeling like I’m back in one piece, you’ll see a more regular posting schedule once again.

In the meantime to get your fix of San Francisco real estate stuff (and other stuff I happen to find interesting) check out these sites that you can find in my blogroll to the left:

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San Francisco Real Estate Sales Data – August 2008

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As I do every month, I ran the latest San Francisco real estate sales figures from the month of August for you.  I’m a little late this month since the weather was soooo nice at the beginning of September, and frankly, I really didn’t want to deal with pulling reports from the MLS (if you’ve ever had the opportunity to witness any sort of MLS search, you know it’s easier and less painful to pull teeth out with a pair of tweezers.)  But here it is, raw and unfiltered, just how you like it.

This month, as is common for August, volume is down from July across the board.  But the median figures – price, days on market and list price vs. sale price – didn’t change enough to make me think the market is changing in any particular direction.  TIC median price did drop a little drastically compared to July 2008, however, the sampling of TIC’s that close each month is rather small, and I tend to think that the drastic swings in price in this category have to do with the bigger extremes you’re likely to see in a smaller sample of data.  (This is about the only thing I remember from my college statistics class.)

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 August 1, 2008 through August 31, 2008:

Single Family Homes

  • 196 Homes Sold
  • Median Sale Price was $843,000
  • Minimum Sale Price was $409,000
  • Maximum Sale Price was $5,300,000
  • Median Selling Price was 102% of asking price
  • Median Days on Market was 35
  • Median Selling Price for homes that sold within 30 days was 103.5% of asking price

Condominiums, Lofts & Co-ops

  • 161 Homes Sold
  • Median Sale Price was $770,000
  • Minimum Sale Price was $250,000
  • Maximum Sale Price was $6,250,000
  • Median Selling Price was 98% of asking price
  • Median Days on Market was 46
  • Median Selling Price for homes that sold within 30 days was 102.5% of asking price

TIC’s

  • 40 Homes Sold
  • Median Sale Price was $543,500
  • Minimum Sale Price was $345,000
  • Maximum Sale Price was $1,312,500
  • Median Selling Price was 99% of asking price
  • Median Days on Market was 70
  • Median Selling Price for homes that sold within 30 days was 105% of asking price

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SF Snapshots: San Francisco Living

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Biker on Bridge by pup ajax.

Biker on Bridge, originally uploaded on by pup ajax

Those of you that stop by often know that here on my San Francisco real estate blog, Friday’s are typically my historical SF photo post. 

But those that know me well know that I’m not very good at routines or schedules or doing the same things over and over.  Frankly, I get bored quite easily.  Which is why I love being a Realtor – it’s the one profession where every day is completely different. 

  • No two houses are the same.
  • No two transactions are the same.
  • No two clients are the same.
  • No two loans are the same.
  • No two days are the same. 

And so, because I’ve been lucky enough to be a San Francisco Realtor, I never get bored. 

In fact, I often say that I’ll be doing this (helping people buy and sell SF real estate) for at least another 50 years, which means that I’ll be helping my client’s grandchildren buy their first homes!    I may need to have my (future) robot assistant carry me up and down the stairs when I look at properties, but I can’t imagine life without doing what I love for a living. 

But I digress – I guess where I started this whole post is by saying that I’ll be putting the Open Shutter to the Past: San Francisco in Pictures on a little hiatus. 

In its place, at least for the time being, I’ll be throwing in some SF Photos from Flickr. Why?  Because I like to do things a little differently from time to time. 

Will the Open Shutter to the Past be back?  Check back often to find out  and to see some awesome SF pictures. 

Happy Friday!  Hope you have a great weekend!

(A quick UPDATE – a brilliant comment from Maisnon below prompted me to add this note: If you’d like to share your photos with other blog readers, tag them with “lubasf” – I’ll be on the lookout for those first!)

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August 2008 San Francisco Home Sales Data is Here!

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The latest market report is here. (You can also view previous market updates by selecting the archives on the upper right portion of the screen).

Here’s a little glimpse of the report:

Sales of single-family, re-sale homes fell 10.1% last month compared to July, and were off, year-over-year, by 2%. Year-to-date, home sales are down 7%.

Loft/condo sales were down 24.1% from July, and were off 25.3% compared to August 2007. Year-to-date, loft/condo sales are off 22.8%.

The median price for single-family, re-sale homes fell 0.5% from July, and it was down 8.6% year-over-year. The average price was off 2.3%, and it was down 2.2% compared to last August.

The median price for loft/condos in San Francisco dropped 6.7% from July, but was flat year-over-year. The average price for condos fell 6.3% from July.  The average price was down 1.4% year-over-year.

Read on for full details.

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SF Real Estate Blog Reader Comments: Loan Failures

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I few days ago, I wrote about escrow failures and a reader wrote in with more anectodal evidence that lenders have tightened up standards.

Here are two new ways to fail to get a loan.
1) If you have an open building permit not marked as COMPLETE on the DBI web site on a property the loan app can be rejected.
Reason given by lender was that some people begin a project like a kitchen remodeling then walk away from their mortgage leaving the lender with an unfinished and un-saleable house.   Of course, that assumes everyone in S.F. takes out building permits for remodeling work. Nonsense.
2) If your name has not been on the title for less than six months a refinancing can be rejected.
Neither of these two “rules” were mentioned on the loan application documents or in face to face meetings with the bank until after we paid for the loan application package.
 
Thanks kind blog reader!  It’s true.  Lenders have all sorts of new restrictions they’re throwing into the mix.   I recently had an FHA loan fall apart because one person in the building owned more than 10% of the units (one person owned 3 units which put it at 14% for the building.) 
 
Do you have San Francisco real estate stories you’d like to share with others?  Questions you’d like answered?  Holler.  Other readers can (and want to) learn from you. 
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San Francisco Single Family Homes – Fast Facts August 2007 vs. August 2008

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San Francisco Association of Realtors District Map

For those of you that like your San Francisco real estate market data without commentary, here ya go.  Take a look, check it out, come to your own conclusions. 

Or – you can always ask me questions. 

Fast Facts

Single_Family_8-2008.pdf

 

NUMBER OF UNITS is the equivalent of number of sales/transactions. For condominiums, each unit is treated as a sale. For 2- to 4-unit buildings, the “building” is treated as a sale.

NUMBER SOLD is the number of properties in the market segment that closed escrow during the month.

NUMBER FOR SALE is the number of active properties on the market for one day or more during the month.

MEDIAN PRICE (SOLD) reflects the “middle” price point of a group of properties that have successfully closed escrow on a monthly basis, i.e. half sold for more and half sold for less than the median price. Tracking the movement of median prices over time provides a good indicator of the direction market forces are moving.

If the percentage change is positive between the two periods then there is upward pressure on prices in that market segment. If the percentage change is negative between the two periods then there is downward pressure on prices in that market segment.

AVERAGE DAYS ON MARKET (DOM) reflects how long it has been taking (on average) to draw an offer on a reasonably priced property exposed to the market. The AVERAGE DAYS ON MARKET is defined as: The average number of days it took all of the properties that went under contract during the period to accept a first position offer.

MONTH’S SUPPLY OF INVENTORY (MSI) is a measure of how long it would take, in months, to sell the existing inventory at the current sales rate for the specific neighborhood and property type. The MONTH’S SUPPLY OF INVENTORY is defined as: The number of active properties on the market for one day or more during the month, less the number of properties that have been withdrawn or expired, divided by the number of properties that have gone under contract during the month.

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Data provided by Terradatum.

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When the Feds Party with Fannie & Freddie, SF Real Estate Reaps the Benefits

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So by now, I know you’ve heard all about the fact that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have been rescued by the federal government. 

What you may not realize is the impact that it’ll have on the San Francisco real estate market. 

We (as in SF real estate agents) got the word that interest rates fell today – not just once, but TWICE!

What does this mean to you???

Well, historically, the week after Labor Day, at least in SF, means that real estate sales pick up speed faster than a boulder rolling down a mountain (not a witty analogy, but a good one, none the less.)  Inventory increases, buyers come out of hiding and the next month or two means that most SF REALTORS (including yours truly) will not be taking a day off.

The combination of the usual seasonal upswing in the SF Housing market with dropping interest rates add up to (in my humble opinion) a SWEET time to buy or sell a house (at least in comparison to the last few months that weren’t, by any means, ugly, but weren’t pretty either.) 

And when you combine lower interests rates with the fact that as of January 1st, 2009, the amount of a conforming loan drops from it’s current level of $729,750 to $625,500 (which will take a decent chunk of purchasing power away from buyers) it appears that those home buyers that have been on the fence about buying a home don’t have a worthwhile reason to wait any longer (assuming they are buying for the LONG term, have good income and a strong down payment, of course!)  Oh, and prices in SF have remained relatively stable.  While there have been some decreases across the board, they have not been what can be called drastic by any measure. 

Just a reminder, if you read this blog, you know that I’m not the one to be ever cheerful.  Yes, I believe the SF Real Estate market is strong, especially compared to the rest of the country. 

So why am I screaming that NOW is a good time to buy a home in San Francisco (and therefore a decent time to sell as well)?

  1. Rates are going DOWN!
  2. Prices are staying STABLE!
  3. Loan limits will soon be going down and BUYERS WILL LOSE PURCHASING POWER!

If you’ve been on the fence about buying real estate in San Francisco (again, assuming they are buying for the LONG term, have good income and a strong down payment, of course!) , might I suggest you get off your behind and do something about it.  And while you’re doing something about it, find yourself a fabulous San Francisco REALTOR to work with.    Give me a holler to see if I’m the right SF real estate agent to help you achieve your buying or selling goals!

 

 

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