FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Contact: Jim Fabris
San Francisco Association of
REALTORS®
301 Grove Street
San Francisco, CA 94102
415-431-8500 x132
Market Tightens in San Francisco but Median Home Sale Price Dips
SAN FRANCISCO, CA, March 16, 2010 – A jump in residential real property sales in San Francisco
in February 2010 has led to a significant decline in for-sale inventory levels and a tight real
estate market in the city, according to the latest Market Focus report, issued jointly by the
Rosen Consulting Group of Berkeley and the San Francisco Association of REALTORS®. For the
month of February, the months of supply inventory now stands at the lowest level in more than
a year.
The median home sale price for the month, however, declined 2.5 percent to $695,000 for both
single-family homes and condominiums after increasing 18.4 percent in January. During the
month, 113 sales were closed, nearly matching sale activity in the same month the previous
year. But 217 units went into contract, a 65 percent increase over last year. With only 571
single-family homes on the market at the end of February, the jump in pending sale activity
reduced the months of supply inventory to 2.6 in February, compared to 5.3 months of supply
for the same month last year.
With longer lag times between contract signing and closing in the current environment, the
median sales price figure is more likely to reflect contracts signed in late 2009.
Condominium sales continue at a rapid pace, though much of the sale activity has come at the
cost of reductions in asking price and increasingly attractive concessions. Completed sales
totaled 137 units in February 2010 up from 90 units in February 2009, while pending sales
reached 228 units from 116 units during the same time period last year.
The jump in sales activity for condominiums brought down the for-sale condominium inventory
to 848 units from more than 1,000 the same month last year. The condominium median sales
price was $650,000, an increase from recent months, but 8.9 percent less than the median sale
price in February 2009.
“The problem for buyers right now is that there is an absence of choice in the marketplace. It’s
a shame because the months of March, April and May are traditionally strong months for real
estate sales. If a greater variety of properties were available, the likelihood is that they would
find buyers in less time than any other part of the year,” says John Lee, president of the San
Francisco of REALTORS®.
Going forward, the Rosen Consulting Group believes that, despite anticipated bumps in the
road, the San Francisco housing market has turned a corner and should continue to improve
through 2010. The reasons it cites for its positive outlook are rising household net worth,
improving—though limited—job prospects, and a potential extension of some governmentfacilitated
home-buying programs.
“As companies begin rehiring after severely cutting payrolls through 2009,” the group says, “the
net increase in jobs across the metropolitan area in 2010, and more so into 2011, should
accelerate the housing market’s recovery. While the market will surely face hurdles in the form
of continued job cuts, higher mortgage rates, and distressed property sales during its path to
recovery, 2010 is still expected to be a positive year for the San Francisco housing market.”
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Real estate data in Market Focus is provided by Terradatum. Market Focus is written by the
Rosen Consulting Group. For additional information on the real estate market or Market Focus,
please contact:
San Francisco Association of REALTORS®
301 Grove Street
San Francisco, CA 94102
415-431-8500 x132
www.sfrealtors.com
Rosen Consulting Group
1995 University Ave., Ste. 550
Berkeley, CA 94707
510-549-4510
www.rosenconsulting.com