Occasionally I get a question from a reader of the blog that’s worthy of sharing with the world – I thought this one was worth sharing. Hope you think so too…
You probably need a little background on this question since it picks up in the middle of a conversation… I was going back and forth with a contact that emailed me through the blog about a property he was very interested in. He knew that the property was very desirable and realized that there would be competition (and, yes – there is still competition in San Francisco for good homes that are priced well). So – here’s his question……Â
Q. …..I have done a bit of analysis on the house sales data you sent me. Since Oct. 1, 2007, houses that listed above $1.1m and sold above listing, the average sale price was 7% over asking. There were some outliers that broke 15% and less that broke 20%. In March the average in this category was 5% over asking. We are thinking of coming in at 9% over asking ($1,280,750) with about 30% down. We really love the place and want to make sure we are in the range to solicit counters if there is a “round two”, but yet not over pay. Any thoughts?
T.S.
A. That is an incredible analysis!  I know people love statistics, but that analysis is incredibly thorought. I think 9% over asking puts you in the right ballpark for getting your offer accepted. But the reality is that there’s no real formula for asking vs. selling price.
What I usually tell my clients is that a second round might not come. Some sellers choose to take the best offer in a multiple offer situation (for fear of losing it if a buyer doesn’t want a counteroffer) or they accept the best offer with some minor changes in terms, so I usually suggest putting your best foot forward the first time so that if they DO take the best offer – you have no regrets about not paying more when you were willing to do so. (Now – when they’re not expecting multiple offers, you have more flexibility and have the luxury of leaving room to go up if need be by starting with a lower offer.)
So how do you get to that magic number?
My suggestion is to decide at what price you are willing to let someone else have it. I call it the “I won’t have any regrets if someone wants to pay more†price. This is just my 2 cents, so please, do take it with a grain of salt. But I’ve seen a lot of people regret passing up the home of their dreams because they let someone else beat them by a few thousand dollars.Â
One other thing to keep in mind is that the sellers want more than money in this case – they also have some terms that are imporant to them. They want a short escrow and a rent back as well. If there are two similar offers that come in, the one with the most favorable terms is much more likely to be accepted.
Let me know if you have any questions. I know this is a lot to digest! It’s exciting and scary all at the same time! So shoot any questions, concerns, etc. my way!!! 🙂
SF Real Estate Blog
San Francisco Real Estate Fast Facts: 2-4 Unit Building Sales March 2007 vs. March 2008
Here’s the latest Fast Facts update from the SFAR. Updates are provided almost weekly and each week is a different sector of the market (ie. Condos, Single Family Homes, 2-4 unit dwellings, etc.).
Check back next week for more statistics.
Â
| Fast Facts | Â | Â |
| Â | Â | Â |
| 2-4 Units |
 |
 |
| Â |
 |
 |
| District 1 |
March 2007 |
March 2008 |
| Number of Sales |
15 |
4 |
| Median Selling Price |
1,340,000 |
1,262,500 |
| Average DOM |
57 |
49 |
| Â |
 |
 |
| District 2 |
March 2007 |
March 2008 |
| Number of Sales |
4 |
3 |
| Median Selling Price |
1,454,500 |
1,050,000 |
| Average DOM |
178 |
69 |
| Â |
 |
 |
| District 3 |
March 2007 |
March 2008 |
| Number of Sales |
0 |
0 |
| Median Selling Price |
 |
 |
| Average DOM |
 |
 |
| Â |
 |
 |
| District 4 |
March 2007 |
March 2008 |
| Number of Sales |
0 |
0 |
| Median Selling Price |
 |
 |
| Average DOM |
 |
 |
| Â |
 |
 |
| District 5 |
March 2007 |
March 2008 |
| Number of Sales |
19 |
5 |
| Median Selling Price |
1,435,000 |
1,325,000 |
| Average DOM |
43 |
56 |
| Â |
 |
 |
| District 6 |
March 2007 |
March 2008 |
| Number of Sales |
7 |
2 |
| Median Selling Price |
1,375,000 |
1,487,500 |
| Average DOM |
50 |
18 |
| Â |
 |
 |
| District 7 |
March 2007 |
March 2008 |
| Number of Sales |
5 |
5 |
| Median Selling Price |
2,195,000 |
2,125,000 |
| Average DOM |
70 |
31 |
| Â |
 |
 |
| District 8 |
March 2007 |
March 2008 |
| Number of Sales |
3 |
2 |
| Median Selling Price |
1,888,000 |
2,492,500 |
| Average DOM |
55 |
23 |
| Â |
 |
 |
| District 9 |
March 2007 |
March 2008 |
| Number of Sales |
3 |
7 |
| Median Selling Price |
1,118,000 |
1,125,000 |
| Average DOM |
54 |
57 |
| Â |
 |
 |
| District 10 |
March 2007 |
March 2008 |
| Number of Sales |
3 |
2 |
| Median Selling Price |
900,000 |
787,500 |
| Average DOM |
65 |
13 |
| Â |
 |
 |
| District 11 |
March 2007 |
March 2008 |
| Number of Sales |
0 |
1 |
| Median Selling Price |
 |
680,000 |
| Average DOM |
 |
151 |
Â
How Can Buying a Home Save You Money?
Homeownership can provide some amazing tax benefits! The IRS enables you to deduct the interest on a first-time home purchase or home equity loan in the year the loan is made. Another way to save is to consolidate debt via a home equity loan because interest from a home equity loan is tax deductible, but interest paid on credit card debt is not. You can also deduct the interest on any purchase or improvement for your first or second home from your tax return. The IRS allows you to deduct the interest paid on mortgage debt up to $1 million, provided that your home is the collateral used to secure the loan.
Property taxes are offer yet another upside at tax time – you can deduct state and local property taxes from your federal return in the year that they were paid. If you bought a home in California in 2006 at the-then median price of $556,650, your property taxes would be approximately $5,570 for the year, and are fully deductible. Property taxes are increased on an annual basis, and as your property tax goes up, so does the amount you can deduct each year.
The return on yOur investment when you sell is also protected. You are able to keep up to $250,000 for an individual or up to $500,000 for a couple in profit tax free when you sell your home. No other investment allows you that kind of tax shelter.
And keep in mind, one more bonus that isn’t tax related is that you are no longer paying rent to someone else! Instead, you are paying yourself! A home can allow you to build yourself up financially, and in San Francisco, your investment is safe from the fluctuations that have occurred as housing bubbles “burst” all over the country.
To learn more about how purchasing San Francisco Real Estate can provide you with great tax advantages, consult a tax professional. If you don’t have one you trust, call or email me, and I can refer you to a tax professional that can help.
Hell Yeah! – I'm a Native San Franciscan!
So – I was browsing the blog-o-sphere like I often do, looking for fun stuff about San Francisco and about SF Real Estate when I ran across FriscoVista’s “Top Ten Classic Frisco tunes”.Â
And as one thing often leads to another, I found one of FriscoVista’s older posts where he (the blog author) took a SF Bay Area Native Test at okcupid.com – and he (the blog author) did a hell of a job by scoring a whopping 17 out of 18!Â
Partially because I’m competitive as hell, and partially because I claim to be an “almost native” San Franciscan (I was born in the former Soviet Union, a.k.a. today’s Ukraine, but came to San Francisco when I was just two and a half years old), I decided to take the test and….
I scored a 16 out of 18 which puts me at:
16-18 correct – You’re a true Bay Area native – and you even got some of the EXTRA CREDIT questions! Impressive. Feel free to look down on Los Angeles with pride. (You probably already do.)
Yes – I admit, FriscoVista beat my score, but I’m human. And I took the test late at night (um, or is it early morning?) and I didn’t eat my Wheaties today (that whole low carb thing doesn’t allow for Wheaties). But it still called me a “True Bay Area Native” – I done good! 🙂
I often tell people that I’m as close to being native as I can get without actually being born here. I’ll spare you the full story (you can check out the about me page if you like) – but I have to say that I’m ridiculously lucky to not only live in the only City I’ve called home (or ever wanted to, for that matter), but to also be able to do what I love for a living (sell real estate) in the best City in the world!
If you have questions about the City or about SF Real Estate, contact me – I love the City and am happy to help you call it “home” too – even if you’re not a native. 😉
Weekend Blog Linkage
Here’s the weekly collection of the internet’s greatest hits (so to speak) from the past week. Some have something to do with San Francisco Real Estate, and some don’t even come close to being SF Real Estate related. Expect these to pop up sometime during the weekend – as my time permits. Enjoy!
Los Angelian Talks Smack About SF – Could She Be Right? [Curbed SF]
Coconuts in the Sunset District [SF Metblogs]
Golden Gate Park Rocks (As if You Didn’t Already Know!) [ABC News]
Happy Alive Day [Bad Rap]
San Francisco, Marin and San Mateo Counties Just Won’t Give Up (& the Chronicle is Full of Crap) [Daily Pundit]Â Untalented Realtors Suck [thefrontsteps]
Might the Tenderloin be the Next “It” Nabe? [Curbed SF]Â
The Bay Area is the Fountain of Youth [ Burbed]
MUNI vs The Great White [SF Metblogs]
I’ve Only Fed Them Peanuts [The SF Citizen]Â
Open Shutter to the Past: San Francisco in Pictures – Cabrillo Elementary School (1926)
Welcome back to Photo Friday – my little way of taking a break from San Francisco Real Estate and instead blogging about our great City’s past instead. All photos are published with permission from the San Francisco History Center and San Francisco Public Library.
This week’s post was inspired by the upcoming Navigating Public Schools Seminar sponored by Zephyr Real Estate and yours truly. Â
The free seminar will be held at the Contract Design Center (600 Townsend Street ) on Saturday, May 3rd from 10am-12noon.
The two-hour session will offer information about the recent improvements and advancements in the San Francisco Unified School District. The speakers of the day will be SFUSD spokes woman, Gentle Blythe and Hydra Mendoza, founding member and former ED of SF Parents for Public Schools and Education Advisor to Mayor Gavin Newsom.
You will need to RSVPÂ to attend the event.
So why did I pick Cabrillo Elementary School for this week’s Photo Friday? A few reasons:
-
The school is closed now – which is a good enough reason all on its own (that makes it a part of SF History.)
-
I lived a block away in the Richmond District until I started high school.
-
I attended Kindergarten and First Grade there (that means I learned my ABC’s, how to add and subtract and that Tater Tot day at lunch was the best day ever!)Â
-
I used to play hopscotch and “Chinese Jumprope” during recess and lunchtime.Â
-
I loved my First Grade teacher Ms. Grist (and I found a picture I drew in First Grade to prove it.)
-
I just found an old class photo. I’m in the top row in the purple and white shirt and showing off my missing front tooth. (Coincidentally, there’s another Zephyr Real Estate Agent that happened to be in my class with me and is in the photo too – not sure if it’s coincidence or fate!?)
Anyhow – while this week’s Photo Friday post was short and I let the Western Neighborhoods Project do all the talking about Cabrillo Elementary School’s history, I’m hoping you enjoyed it nonetheless (along with the bonus footage of your San Francisco Realtor when I was 6 years old!)
I hope you have a great weekend! And get out there and enjoy the sunshine – I hear the weather’s gonna be NICE! 🙂
San Francisco Home Sellers – It's Time to Get Serious!
So I was just surfing the San Francisco real estate blog-o-sphere after a long hard day of looking at properties that are currently on the market – and I noticed an interesting trend. I noticed that there are properties on the market right now that have had offer dates come and go – and they haven’t received offers.
Now – you’ve heard me say that I think now is a great time to buy San Francisco real estate. If you check out my last few posts about mortgage rates or the rising cost of SF Rents, you’ll get my drift. And I’m sticking to that point of view.
And I just read a post that further solidified my belief that NOW is a great time to buy! I read on the Daily Pundit that not only are buyers out there making low-ball offers on properties, but when sellers try to counter those low-ball offers, buyers just walk the hell away. I’m hearing the same things from agents that I work with also. I’m also seeing that with some of my own clients.
Why? Because smart buyers know that RIGHT NOW – they will be able to find a decent property at a decent price and they don’t need to get into a bidding war to get it!
Don’t get me wrong – there are still rockstar properties out there that will get a ton of offers and go way over asking. But (and I am surprised about this) I am seeing properties that a year ago would have commanded at least 5 offers not getting a single one come offer date.Â
In fact, I recently told a client of mine that I was convinced that a San Francisco condo she was interested in would sell for at or a little over asking, and it ended up selling for below asking – $16K under asking to be exact. OK – so we’re not talking $100K, but shoot – $16K can get you most of the furniture you need for a 2BR condo if you know where to shop! Oh – and yes – I just admitted in public that I was wrong. It doesn’t happen often though folks – so don’t get used to it! 😉
So what’s my point? The title of this post has something to do with sellers and I haven’t mentioned them yet. So here it goes…
Sellers – it’s time to get realistic about selling your home in San Francisco.Â
You might have a great place, but unless you have a rockstar property, you likely will not get 10 offers. Right now – you just need to get one good solid offer that doesn’t have shaky financing or some other quirk. One good offer is all it takes to get your place sold.
I’ve mentioned many times that I don’t take listings that I don’t think will sell, and I’ve had to turn down many sellers in the past because their expectations of what the market was going to bring them just weren’t realistic.Â
Some have delusions that their property appreciated $100K or more from a year ago for no reason. Others are convinced that the improvements they made added hundreds of thousands of dollars in value, when the improvements they made actually took away from the value. Others still think they are living in 2004 or 2005 when you stuck a for sale sign in your yard and your property sold before it even hit the MLS. I’m not saying that’s every seller – but I’ve met a lot of those, turned them down and their properties are STILL on the market to this very day.Â
A personal note to the San Francisco Home Seller - if you want to sell your home, you need to get realistic about what someone will be willing to pay for it. And if you get a good strong offer, don’t look a gifthorse in the mouth, be happy with the bird in the hand, and know when to hold them and when to fold them – If the cliches didn’t get my point across, let me put it another way - take the strong offer, because even though it might not be what YOU thought your home was worth, but it is what the market thinks it’s worth.
Is it a good time to buy? Yes – if you’re a serious buyer looking for a property at a fair price.
Is it a good time to sell? Yes – if you’re realistic about the market and don’t expect a miracle.
People are buying and selling properties all over San Francisco. If you are trying to buy or sell and you can’t seem to make it happen, it’s time to re-examine your expectations. Feel free to contact me and I’ll be happy to help you set some realistic goals.Â
Got SF Real Estate Questions?
I forget sometimes that people actually read this blog.  In fact, I’m often surprised when I run into people that actually know who I am after reading my thoughts about San Francisco real estate. Usually, the people that recognize me are other agents that read this blog, but sometimes, I run into strangers at open houses or other place that actually recognize my name – and they say that it’s from here!Â
It’s nice to be reminded that people actually read what I write, and even nicer when someone takes the time to write in and ask a question to get my advice! Occasionally, I find the questions (along with my answer) worthy enough to publish (with occasional edits to keep some of the person’s information confidential).
So here’s a question I recently received that I thought I’d share with the rest of you out there in blog land.
Q. I love reading your blogs! Your advice and expertise is awesome, I was wondering if you can give me some advice? I have the opportunity to buy a family home in district 1 for $650,000. It needs approx. $80,000 of work. Is this a good deal in the overall spectrum of the real estate market? Do you forsee the market dropping more, and if so, for how long?Thank you, thank you, thank you for your time.
A. Hi S.M.!
Thanks for the kind words about the blog. It’s always nice to hear positive feedback!Â
First – about the place on (location not being revealved) Avenue. On the surface, it sounds like a great deal for district 1. (How many bedrooms/bathrooms does the place have?) But a lot of other factors can make it a horrible deal – from the neighbors, to the layout of the property, to the fact that the $80K estimate to repair the place can easily double. (Who gave you the estimate for repairs?) So what looks like a good deal on the surface may very well turn into a bit of a nightmare once you actually buy the home. The key is to look for neighborhood comparables, and if the price is good ($650K for District 1 sounds good, but to say for sure, I’d have to see it and see the repair estimate).Â
As for the market in general – there are certain areas where there really hasn’t been depreciation. There hasn’t been any major appreciation to speak of either, but prices in District 1 haven’t gone down (in fact, even with fewer sales, median price has increased slightly). So in my crystal ball – I foresee that the market isn’t really going to be dipping down much further except for a few select neighborhoods in parts of Districts 3 and 10 where values during the “boom†skyrocketed to levels that were out of control, and in my opinion, the dropping values there are more a sign of a market correction (prices there shouldn’t have grown that rapidly) than a sign of the market falling.
A lot of it is also going to depend on your goals. How long do you plan to stay in a place? Are you single? Married? Kids? Dogs? Do you have plans for marriage, kids or dogs? There are going to be more decisions that you’ll need to make to decide whether this home is right for you. For that matter – the size of your down payment as well as cash reserves will make a difference as well. As will who does the repair work – are you handy? Is the work just cosmetic? Or is there structural work?Â
So – sorry for the lack clarity in my answer, there just aren’t any black & white or yes & no answers in real estate. Every buyer/seller/house/neighborhood/lender etc. is different and that makes it difficult to give a cookie cutter answer to any question.Â
If you want to talk more though, I’m happy to help you to try to get to the bottom of whether this place is a good deal for you. My advice is always free and without any obligation to meet in person or to work with me as your agent. However, if you do want to meet in person and do need help – well, I’m available for that as well. Just let me know how I can help and I’ll be happy to accommodate!Â
Please don’t hesitate to call me or email me if you want to talk further.   Hope my answers helped a little – even if they were just food for thought!Â
Best regards,
Luba Muzichenko
Â
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San Francisco Real Estate Fast Facts: Single Family Home Sales March 2007 vs. March 2008
Â
Updates are provided almost weekly and each week is a different sector of the market (ie. Condos, Single Family Homes, 2-4 unit dwellings, etc.).
Here’s the latest Fast Facts update from the SFAR.
Check back next week for more statistics.
Fast Facts
| Single Family Homes |
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
| District 1 |
March 2007 |
March 2008 |
| Number of Sales |
18 |
14 |
| Median Selling Price |
1,121,750 |
1,600,000 |
| Average DOM |
43 |
28 |
|
|
|
|
| District 2 |
March 2007 |
March 2008 |
| Number of Sales |
42 |
32 |
| Median Selling Price |
827,000 |
819,000 |
| Average DOM |
50 |
40 |
|
|
|
|
| District 3 |
March 2007 |
March 2008 |
| Number of Sales |
12 |
8 |
| Median Selling Price |
733,500 |
566,000 |
| Average DOM |
50 |
61 |
|
|
|
|
| District 4 |
March 2007 |
March 2008 |
| Number of Sales |
25 |
23 |
| Median Selling Price |
999,999 |
980,000 |
| Average DOM |
34 |
41 |
|
|
|
|
| District 5 |
March 2007 |
March 2008 |
| Number of Sales |
35 |
29 |
| Median Selling Price |
1,205,000 |
1,675,000 |
| Average DOM |
23 |
36 |
|
|
|
|
| District 6 |
March 2007 |
March 2008 |
| Number of Sales |
2 |
1 |
| Median Selling Price |
1,405,000 |
1,775,000 |
| Average DOM |
15 |
37 |
|
|
|
|
| District 7 |
March 2007 |
March 2008 |
| Number of Sales |
10 |
1 |
| Median Selling Price |
3,781,500 |
4,700,000 |
| Average DOM |
74 |
54 |
|
|
|
|
| District 8 |
March 2007 |
March 2008 |
| Number of Sales |
2 |
2 |
| Median Selling Price |
2,537,500 |
1,472,500 |
| Average DOM |
60 |
32 |
|
|
|
|
| District 9 |
March 2007 |
March 2008 |
| Number of Sales |
14 |
12 |
| Median Selling Price |
877,500 |
888,750 |
| Average DOM |
49 |
28 |
|
|
|
|
| District 10 |
March 2007 |
March 2008 |
| Number of Sales |
45 |
27 |
| Median Selling Price |
688,000 |
550,000 |
| Average DOM |
50 |
67 |
|
|
|
|
| District 11 |
March 2007 |
March 2008 |
| Number of Sales |
26 |
22 |
| Median Selling Price |
720,000 |
562,500 |
| Average DOM |
51 |
73 |
|
|
|
Open Shutter to the Past: San Francisco in Pictures – Tax Collector's Office Force at the New City Hall (1887)
Welcome back to Photo Friday – my little way of taking a break from San Francisco Real Estate and instead blogging about our great City’s past instead. All photos are published with permission from the San Francisco History Center and San Francisco Public Library.
Postings have been light this week because I have procrastinated and waited till the very last possible minutes to take care of my taxes. I had good reasons to procrastinate – my clients needed me. A few want to buy a home and a few want to sell a home, and they all need fairly urgent assistance. So, my taxes have gone untouched and my 2007 receipts are still stuffed into a giant manila envelope that exploded on my desk when I finally opened it.Â
So, while I hide in in my cave and take care of the stuff that Uncle Sam needs from me this year – I give some thought to those people/machines at the IRS that are eagerly awaiting my 2007 tax return. I don’t imagine any of them are very nice, or very pleasant and today’s Photo Friday picture seems to confirm my suspicions – people that work as Tax Collector’s just aren’t happy.Â
The caption on the photo reads:
“TAX COLLECTOR’S OFFICE FORCE AT THE NEW CITY HALL, MCALLISTER AND LARKIN STREETS IN 1887; MR. TIM O’BRIEN, COLLECTOR. Back row, Left to Right: 1-W.D. Kane, 2.-Police Officer Sullivan, 3-H. Curran, 4-Unknown outsider, 5-R. Jackson 6-John Boyle, 7-M. Burk, 8-S. Neil, 9-Wm. Jones, 10-Wm. Gallatin, 11-P. Holland 12-Wm. Harrington, 13-T. Wilson, 14-Jake Rudolph. Front Row, Left to Right: 1-Reardon, 2-P Krause, 3-D. Levy, 4-Tim O’Brien, the Collector, 5-Chris Buckley, the Blind Boss, 6-S. Strause, 7-Lin Guion, 8-M. Fallon. The man with the beard in the background is Supervisor J. McDonald.”
Just take a look at this photo and tell me if there’s even one smiling face?!?!?!? I see what looks like a smirk in the bottom left corner, but the rest almost seem like scowls. I feel like they are all looking at me and silently thinking that there’s no way in hell I’ll get all of my receipts organized and my tax return submitting in time, less than 4 days from now.Â
But they’re wrong! I’ll make it. I’ll get my receipts added up, and while I might not get much blogging done in the meantime (or much sleeping for that matter), I WILL get my tax return filed on time and nothing can stop me!
I hope you all aren’t in the same time crunch as I am in – but if you are – get to work, none of us procrastinators have any right to be enjoying this weekend! We have tax forms to fill out!
To the rest of you – enjoy the sunshine, it’s finally feeling a bit like spring in San Francisco!
