Silicon Valley Real Estate Market Trend Report:

Santa Clara County (SCC): Prices Set New All-Time Highs, Again

Prices for both single-family, re-sale homes and condos jumped by double-digits in November to set new all-time highs for the second month in a row.

That’s the sixth month in a row the median price has been higher than the year before by double-digits. The average price was up by double-digits for the fifth month in a row.

The median price for homes jumped 27.6% over last November. At $1,288,500, the median price surged over the previous high of $1,220,000 set in October.

This is also the 69th month in a row the median price has been higher than the year before.

The average price for homes rose 25.9% to $1,619,100.

Condominium prices also set new highs in November. The median price for condos gained 15.7%. Notably, the median price for condos has been higher than the year before every month since July of 2011!

The average price for condos was up 16.1% over last November.

Multiple offers continue to be the norm. The sales price to list price ratio, or what buyers are paying over what sellers are asking remains at triple digits: 108.5% for homes and 108.1% for condos.

The ratio has been over 100% for homes since March 2012 and for condos since April 2012.

Homes and condos are flying off the shelf. It is taking only twenty-two days to sell a home, on average. Condos are taking fourteen days.

All of this is due to an incredible lack of inventory. Since January 2000, Santa Clara County has averaged 94 days of inventory. Last month it was seventeen.

Condos have averaged 87 days since 2000. Last month it was eight.

November 2017 Sales Statistics (SCC)

* Total inventory is active listings plus pending listings. Active listings do not include pending.

More information is available in our on-line report at http://avi.rereport.com/market_reports

5 SURPRISINGLY SMART REASONS TO BUY A HOME DURING THE HOLIDAYS (SCC & SMC)

By: Cathie Ericson

Turkeys and tinsel, dreidels and pumpkin pie. Yes friends, the holidays are here again, and it’s the perfect time for … house hunting? OK, we know you’re busy enough planning family feasts and much-needed vacations while dealing with blustery weather, but hear us out. While it might seem counterintuitive to put a big-ticket item like a home on your holiday shopping list, it really does make sense.

Don’t believe us? Check out these surprisingly smart reasons to let everyone else hit the mall to buy half-off sweaters while you make the purchase of a lifetime: a new house to ring in the New Year.

1. Less competition from home buyers

Most buyers take the month off to celebrate the holidays, attend parties, host out-of-town guests and, quite frankly, avoid trudging around in inclement weather to look at houses. Or, maybe they’ve heard that this is a lousy time to buy a house. Whatever the reason, shopping for real estate at a time when fewer buyers are in the market can pay off big.

That’s because competing with multiple offers is one of the most stressful parts of the home-buying process, says Brian Wasson, a real estate broker with Center Coast Realty in Chicago.

2. Motivated (OK, desperate) home sellers

The December seller is likely to be serious and motivated—and therefore more open to negotiation. So, what you might lack in choice of available homes could be balanced out by dealing with a more flexible seller.

Most sellers have a compelling reason for putting their house on the market during the holidays. (Let’s face it: It’s no holiday party for them to have strangers wandering through their house.) They might be facing a relocation and want to get their kids settled before the new term. Or they might just be feeling some stress if they listed their home in the fall and it’s still languishing post–Turkey Day, making them just a little more desperate and anxious to deal.

Many sellers might also want a contract in hand for tax advantages. If it’s a rental property on which they incurred a loss, they are likely to want to take the deduction this calendar year, Wasson says.
Another tax-related reason: If sellers are likely to make a hefty profit and have a salary raise set to kick in on Jan. 1, they might be subject to a higher capital gains tax on their home sale in the coming year. In this scenario, sellers may want to unload a property before the new year.
Sellers are exempt from paying capital gains tax on the first $250,000 in proceeds from a home sale for a single person, or $500,000 for a couple. After that, the capital gains tax kicks in, based on their income bracket.

3. Tax advantages

In case you weren’t aware, the tax benefits go both ways, notes REALTOR® Al Cannistra with Texas Premier Realty in San Antonio. Buying now can help you save in April and beyond. Homeownership brings numerous tax perks, from deducting mortgage interest to property taxes. (Update: As of publication, the House of Representatives passed its version of the GOP proposed tax plan, which would cap the property tax deduction at $10,000. The House bill also would only allow homeowners to deduct the interest on mortgages up to $500,000, down from the current $1 million.)
Some states also might have a homeowner’s tax exemption, says Cannistra: “If your state does, closing the deal by Dec. 31 rather than waiting for the first week of the new year can make a year’s difference in whether or not you get that valuable tax savings.”
Also, many closing fees are tax-deductible if you itemize—although you should always double-check with your accountant about any tax questions.

4. A realistic picture of the house

What house doesn’t look amazing in the typical spring buying season, with newly planted flowers and plenty of sunlight streaming through the windows? Checking it out during the miserable winter season, on the other hand, might give you a more accurate idea of what you might be living with the rest of the year. In addition to seeing the house, warts and all, you can check for issues that you’d notice only during cold weather.
“Maybe there’s a bedroom in the home that doesn’t get sufficient heat, or the front door gets jammed in icy conditions,” says Wasson. “Inspectors are less likely to catch these issues with the home when they check them out of season.”
Of course, don’t forget that issues that crop up more during summer will be less accessible—such as how well the air conditioning works or what the roof really looks like under all that snow and ice—so make sure that your home inspector does a thorough job on those fronts, too.

5. Greater accessibility to professionals

“Since December is usually a slower month all around, you will have easier access to movers, inspectors, and mortgage brokers,” says Jennifer Sommers with Sotheby’s International Realty in Boca Raton, Fla. In addition, motivated real estate agents will bend over backward to provide service with fewer client demands and will share your desire to get it done and in the books before the new year rolls around. Ditto on your mortgage broker, who is bound to speed your closing through.

Call or email me if you have any questions.

For further details and a city-by-city breakdown statistics, go to http://avi.rereport.com/market_reports.

Real estate related Articles

California homeowners interested in building accessory dwelling units on their property just caught a break, potentially shaving off thousands of dollars in fees and permits.
In a move proponents say will help ease the Bay Area’s housing crisis, Gov. Jerry Brown on Tuesday signed Senate Bill 1069, making the so-called “granny units” easier and less expensive to build throughout the state.

For more read California eases restrictions on ‘granny units’
and http://www.hcd.ca.gov/policy-research/AccessoryDwellingUnits.shtml

Helpful resource for home owners

Many new home owners or owners who consider remodeling or rebuilding their homes should take advantage of their county Tax Assessor web site. These web site and their respective city building departments web site typically have vest information regarding the process for applying for permits, the impact on their taxes and many other resources that home owners should be aware are available for them.

For the San Mateo County Tax Assessor office visit http://www.smcare.org/default.asp

For Santa Clara County Tax Assessor visit https://www.sccassessor.org/index.php

The Silicon Valley 150 Index Corner

The Silicon Valley’s Real estate market is a derivative of the local economy–it prospers and withers depending on how well the local innovation-based sector performs. The San Jose Mercury News tracks the performances of the largest 150 publicly traded companies headquartered in Silicon Valley through an index called the SV150, which may be found at www.mercurynews.com. Stocks are valued based on several criteria, but one of the more important criteria is a company’s future earnings. Therefore, I see the SV150 as a leading indicator for Silicon Valley’s real estate market.

Investors Corne

SEPTEMBER S&P CORELOGIC CASE-SHILLER NATIONAL HOME PRICE NSA INDEX UP 6.2% IN LAST 12 MONTHS

NEW YORK, NOVEMBER 28, 2017 – S&P Dow Jones Indices today released the latest results for the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Indices, the leading measure of U.S. home prices. Data released today for September 2017 shows that home prices continued their rise across the country over the last 12 months. More than 27 years of history for these data series is available, and can be accessed in full by going to https://goo.gl/Lw2kvA

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San Mateo County (SMC): Condo Prices Set New All-Time Highs

Prices for condominiums set new highs in San Mateo County in November.

The average price for condos went over $1,000,000 for the first time ever: $1,007,220. The median price went over $900,000: $920,000.

The median price for single-family, re-sale homes backed off the all-time high set in October. It fell a whopping $10,000 to $1,500,000.

Prices of both homes and condos were up by double-digits compared to the year before.

Sales, meanwhile, continue to be impacted by the lack of inventory. Home sales were off 0.5% year-over-year, while condo sales were off 0.9%.

Multiple offers continue to be the norm. The sales price to list price ratio, or what buyers are paying over what sellers are asking remains in the triple digits: 108.4% for homes and 106.3% for condos.

The ratio has been over 100% for homes since April 2012 and for condos since June 2012.

Homes and condos are flying off the shelf. It is taking only twenty-one days to sell a home or condo, on average.

All of this is due to an incredible lack of inventory. Since January 2003, San Mateo County has averaged eighty-four days of inventory. Last month it was twenty-one. The number of homes for sale as of the fifth of October were 267. The average is 1,287.

Condos have averaged ninety-four days of inventory since 2000. Last month it was twelve. The number of condos for sale as of the fifth of September was forty-five. The average is 350.

November 2017 Sales Statistics (SMC)

Call or email me if you have any questions.

For further details and a city-by-city breakdown statistics, go to http://avi.rereport.com/market_reports.