Menlo Park Ca REal Estate Market Update 2/16/2014

As a Menlo Park Real Estate Agent I am always being asked, "How's the market in Menlo Park?" The answer is simple:

 

Not enough inventory, plenty of buyers.

 

There are currently 26 single family Menlo Park homes for sale up from 25 last week.

 

There are currently 3 Menlo Park town homes/condos the same as last week.

 

There are currently 19 pending sales of Menlo Park single family homes the same as last week.

 

There are currently 6 pending sales of Menlo Park homes/Condos  the same as last week.

 

This week there were 7 new Menlo Park single family home listings and 1 new Menlo Park condo listings. Not nearly enough to satisfy demand but it is aholiday week-end so I will take this as a victory.

 

In January of 2014 there were 12 single family Menlo Park homes sold ranging in price from $255,000 to $3,000,000. For a Menlo Park home with Menlo Park schools the prices ranged from $1,510,000 to $3,000,000.  In January of 2013 there were 2 Menlo Park Town Homes/Condos sold.   The prices ranged from $1,160,000 to $1,168.000. 

 

Of the 14 Menlo Park sales in January of 2014 only 4 were sold with all cash, the other 10 were financed. This is a very good number of financed offers because it means that the buyers actually live in this country and the houses will be occupied by either home owners or tenants. There have been a number of homes that are bought with cash by people from other countries and are often left vacant. This does not help the current housing crunch with our huge need for both owner occupied and rental properties.

 

The inventory of single family homes for sale in Menlo Park is still at historically low levels and shows no sign of geting better. Hopefully now that we are past Super Bowl, and more importantly Puppy Bowl, there will be more homes coming on the market.  If you would like to search for homes for sale please click here.

 

If you have any questions about buying or selling a home in Menlo Park please feel free to contact me.

 

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

Ca B.R.E. 01191194

650-619-9285

Palo Alto Ca Real Estate Market Update 2/16/2014

As a Palo Alto Real Estate Agent I am always being asked, "How's the market in Palo Alto?" The answer is simple:

Not enough inventory, plenty of buyers. Only the problem, like the drought is getting worse.

 

There are currently 18 single family Palo Alto homes for sale, up from 14 last week

.

There are currently 5 Palo Alto town homes/condos for sale, down from 7 last week.

 

There are currently 16 pending sales of Palo Alto single family homes down from 17 last week.

 

There are currently 8 pending sales of Palo Alto Town homes/Condos up from 6 last week.

 

Last week there were 6 new Palo Alto single family home listings and 3 new Palo Alto condo listings. Considering that this is a holiday week-end I will take this as a pretty good sign. Many holiday week-ends see a drop in new listings not an even keel.

 

In January of 2014 there were 11 single family Palo Alto homes sold.  The prices ranged from $1,601,444  to $4,100,000. A low of 1.6 million is a historic high for Palo Alto single family home sales. Of the 11 sales only 4 were all cash which is a healthy sign that the sales of Palo Alto homes are not being purchased by foreign investors.

 

In January of 2014 there were 2 Palo Alto Town Homes/Condos sold,   The prices ranged from $740,000 to $1,150,000. Both of these sales were also financed.

 

Traditionally the market picks up after Super Bowl week-end and we are seeing flickers of that. Anything between 40 and 60 is typical seller's market for Palo Alto and over 90 is a buyer's market.   As you can see, the chances of a buyer's market in the near future look slim, but if we could just have enough inventory that all the serious buyers could eventually win a bid I would be happy and seller's would still reap their appreciation.   If you would like to search for Palo Alto homes for sale please click here.

 

If you have any questions about buying or selling a home in Palo Alto please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

Ca B.R.E. 01191194

650-619-9285

Ms Seller You Should Not Accept an Emerald Hills Non Contingent Offer

Emerald Hills is a beautiful neighborhood of homes in the hills above Redwood City. There are both older and newer homes that stud the Emerald Hills hillside. Many have beautiful views, many are relatively newly built, and the area is blessed with great weather and great schools.

The real estate market in Emerald Hills is often not as robust as in some of the flatter neighborhoods, but due to the many newer homes it is still popular. On average the sales to list price ratio in Emerald Hills is less than 5% for the last 6 months which is considerably lower than in communities like San Carlos, Palo Alto and Menlo Park.

This being true for the last 6 months, but the market is even tighter now than it was last year. As a result, there are more demands for homes for sale in Emerald Hills than ever before.

I recently had a buyer make an offer in a multiple situation for a hillside home in Emerald Hills. There were 3 offers. The seller had done property, roof, and termite inspections. She disclosed there was a drainage problem with water from homes from behind her, up hill, dumping excessive water into the yard. There was no soil or drainage inspection.

My client made an excellent offer with the only contingency being 7 days for a drainage inspection. I thought we had a great chance to get it.  The first evening we were told the seller was deciding between my client's offer and one other. The seller wanted some time to think it over. 12 hours later we were told that the seller decided to take another offer which was lower, but had no contingencies. So the seller left money on the table because we wanted more information of a known defect on a Hillside Emerald Hills the house.

This of course is the seller and successful buyer's right, but they are both putting themselves in potentially very expensive jeopardy. We had no way of knowing if the drainage was keeping the water away from the house. We had no way of knowing if the extensive retaining walls were doing what they were supposed to do. They might be. 

But without knowing for sure the cost to the new buyer could be hundreds of thousands of dollars. Do you think the seller will be off the hook just because she said there was water in the back yard from neighbor's property? I don't.

So a word to the wise. If you are selling a hillside home in Emerald Hills get the land inspected not just the house. That way if someone gives you a non contingent offer,  you can accept it with more more confidence that you have disclosed all you can.

If you have any questions about selling a hillside home in Emerald Hills please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

Ca BRE 01191194

650-619-9285

Menlo Park Ca Real Estate Market Update 2/8/2014

As a Menlo Park Real Estate Agent I am always being asked, "How's the market in Menlo Park?" The answer is simple:

Not enough inventory, plenty of buyers.

There are currently 25 single family Menlo Park homes for sale up from 22 last week.

There are currently 3 Menlo Park town homes/condos down from 5 last week.

There are currently 19 pending sales of Menlo Park single family homes up from 14 last week.

There are currently 6 pending sales of Menlo Park homes/Condos up from 4 last week.

This week there were 6 new Menlo Park single family home listings and 2 new Menlo Park condo listings. Not nearly enough to satisfy demand. Hopefully this week will be better.

In January of 2014 there were 12 single family Menlo Park homes sold ranging in price from $255,000 to $3,000,000. For a Menlo Park home with Menlo Park schools the prices ranged from $1,510,000 to $3,000,000.  In January of 2013 there were 2 Menlo Park Town Homes/Condos sold.   The prices ranged from $1,160,000 to $1,168.000. 

Of the 14 Menlo Park sales in January of 2014 only 4 were sold with all cash, the other 10 were financed. This is a very good number of financed offers because it means that the buyers actually live in this country and the houses will be occupied by either home owners or tenants. There have been a number of homes that are bought with cash by people from other countries and are often left vacant. This does not help the current housing crunch with our huge need for both owner occupied and rental properties.

The inventory of single family homes for sale in Menlo Park is still at historically low levels and shows no sign of geting better. Hopefully now that we are past Super Bowl, and more importantly Puppy Bowl, there will be more homes coming on the market.  If you would like to search for homes for sale please click here.

If you have any questions about buying or selling a home in Menlo Park please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

Ca B.R.E. 01191194

650-619-9285

Palo Alto Ca Real Estate Market Update 2/8/2014

As a Palo Alto Real Estate Agent I am always being asked, "How's the market in Palo Alto?" The answer is simple:

Not enough inventory, plenty of buyers. Only the problem, like the drought is getting worse.

There are currently 14 single family Palo Alto homes for sale, up from 12 last week

.

There are currently 7 Palo Alto town homes/condos for sale, up from 3 last week.

There are currently 17 pending sales of Palo Alto single family homes up from 12 last week.

There are currently 5 pending sales of Palo Alto Town homes/Condos the same as last week.

Last week there were 6 new Palo Alto single family home listings and 5 new Palo Alto condo listings.

In January of 2014 there were 11 single family Palo Alto homes sold.  The prices ranged from $1,601,444  to $4,100,000. A low of 1.6 million is a historic high for Palo Alto single family home sales. Of the 11 sales only 4 were all cash which is a healthy sign that the sales of Palo Alto homes are not being purchased by foreign investors.

In January of 2014 there were 2 Palo Alto Town Homes/Condos sold,   The prices ranged from $740,000 to $1,150,000. Both of these sales were also financed.

Traditionally the market picks up after Super Bowl week-end so my hopes are pinned on that. First week Post Superbowl did show a flicker of activity in single family homes listing and a nice bump in condo listings. Anything between 40 and 60 is typical seller's market for Palo Alto and over 90 is a buyer's market. As you can see, the chances of a buyer's market in the near future look slim, but if we could just have enough inventory that all the serious buyers could eventually win a bid I would be happy and seller's would still reap their appreciation.  

If you would like to search for Palo Alto homes for sale please click here.

If you have any questions about buying or selling a home in Palo Alto please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

Ca B.R.E. 01191194

650-619-9285

San Francisco Bay Area Housing Snapshot

Housing Inventory Snapshot January 31, 2014   Average List Price for active listings Median List Price for active listings Average DOM: for active listings/ for sold listings Santa Clara County, CA Single Family under $1M $690,675 $698,000 41  / 34 Single Family over $1M $2,879,982 $1,899,000 66  / 23 Condo/Townhome under $600K $413,425 $409,500 39  / 34 Condo/Townhome over $600K $855,255 $784,000 26  / 23 San Mateo County, CA Single Family under $1M $690,456 $679,000 41  / 31 Single Family over $1M $4,499,167 $2,100,000 76  / 22 Condo/Townhome under $600K $402,740 $425,000 36  / 35 Condo/Townhome over $600K $932,942 $846,275 36  / 6 Santa Cruz County, CA Single Family under $1M $637,981 $649,000 69  / 35 Single Family over $1M $2,117,319 $1,750,000 111  / 138 Condo/Townhome under $600K $393,327 $359,000 85  / 51 Condo/Townhome over $600K $849,182 $739,000 152  / 87 Monterey County, CA Single Family under $1M $564,867 $499,000 71  / 54 Single Family over $1M $3,531,699 $2,295,000 116  / 145 Condo/Townhome under $600K $303,856 $249,000 80  / 66 Condo/Townhome over $600K $933,776 $725,000 83  / N/A** San Benito County, CA Single Family under $1M $533,637 $488,800 61  / 81 Alameda County, CA Single Family under $1M $513,633 $498,000 44  / 83 Single Family over $1M $2,061,946 $1,478,888 84  / 84 Condo/Townhome under $600K $374,727 $365,000 48  / 75 Condo/Townhome over $600K $768,324 $697,280 39  / 69 Contra Costa County, CA Single Family under $1M $484,078 $425,000 49  / 89 Single Family over $1M $2,484,534 $1,599,000 91  / 100 Condo/Townhome under $600K $311,574 $295,000 37  / 73 Condo/Townhome over $600K $707,300 $695,000 17  / 68

What I find most interesting about these stats is that in Alameda, San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties, the more expensive homes and condos sold have a shorter days on market than the less expensive Silicon Valley homes sold.

This shows that the good economy, low unemployment rate, high stock market values, as well as foreign money are all contributing to a booming market in Silicon Valley luxury real estate sales. It is also an indication that we saw high levels of appreciation in 2013 in Silicon Valley home sales (20-40% in many areas) so it is harder to find single family homes under a million dollars or condos under six hundred thousand dollars in the more popular neighborhoods.

So what does this mean for buyers in 2014? Homes are more expensive and sell quickly. You should study the market seriously for a while before jumping in so you know what values are and where they are going. Make intelligent offers that will most likely need to be very aggressive to win in a multiple offer situations.

For sellers, hire a great agent who can help you price your home to get the best terms for your yourself, and exposure that emphasizes the Silicon Valley home you are selling, not the agent who is selling it.

If you have any questions about buying or selling a home in the Silicon Valley please feel free to contact me.

If you would like a real time search of homes sale in the Silicon Valley click here.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

Ca BRE 01191194

650-619-9285

Menlo Park Trust Sale Sellers Be Careful Your Realtor Knows How

As a Menlo Park Real Estate Agent I can tell you the market is hot and listings are few and far between. The California drought does not just refer to out lack of rain.

If you are the executor of a Menlo Park estate with real estate to sell you may be thinking this will be an easy job. In some ways it is, because there is little competition and many buyers. This makes for huge jumps in appreciation which is great for the estate. Buyers will make offers way above current market with no contingencies. This can be a blessing or a curse for a Menlo Park Trust sale. 

When the market turns south, which it will inevitably do, or if the buyer believes he/she made a mistake, the buyer who made such a great offer may turn around and try to get the estate to compensate him/her for the perceived wrong doings.

The best way to protect the Menlo Park estate is to make sure that the paper work is totally in order. While you may think that any experienced real estate agent can do this, that is not true. I was just involved in transaction where the very successful and "experienced" agent made every mistake in the book when it came to Menlo Park Trust Sales.

1. First mistake: No trust advisory was signed. The trust advisory is a document which spells out which disclosures the estate must provide the buyer and which ones are exempted. Without the trust advisory the executor would have no way of knowing what she was supposed to and not supposed to sign.

2. Seller filled out and signed disclosures that should not have been provided. The seller filled out the transfer disclosure statement and the seller's supplemental disclosure. This should not have been done because now if the buyer discovers something that was on the disclosure or more importantly left off the disclosures there is an opening to claim that the disclosures were wrong. Since the executor did not live in the house these should not have been filled out.

3. Seller signed the Natural Hazard Disclosure instead of just providing it. By signing they vouch for the company. See the same problems as #2.

My buyer did not get her offer accepted on this Menlo Park trust sale and I hope the buyer who does loves the house and has no problems. But, if you are going to hire a real estate agent to sell your Menlo Park trust sale, make sure that person does not make these amateur mistakes. You will sleep much better.

you have any questions about Menlo Park trust or Probate sales pleas feel free to contact me. I provide free staging for all my Trust and Probate listings and have a proven system for clean out and cosmetic upgrades to help your home sell for a higher price with no out of pocket expenses.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty Palo Alto

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

Ca BRE 01191194

650-619-9285

Menlo Park Ca Real Estate Market Update 2/2/2014

As a Menlo Park Real Estate Agent I am always being asked, "How's the market in Menlo Park?" The answer is simple:

Not enough inventory, plenty of buyers.

There are currently 22 single family Menlo Park homes for sale. this is a very low number but almost twice as many as in Palo Alto.

There are currently 5 Menlo Park town homes/condos for sale which is really low, but more than in Palo Alto.

There are currently 14 pending sales of Menlo Park single family homes.

There are currently 4 pending sales of Menlo Park homes/Condos down from 8 last week.

This week there were 6 new Menlo Park single family home listings and 1 new Menlo Park condo listings. Not nearly enough to satisfy demand.

In January of 2014 there were 12 single family Menlo Park homes sold ranging in price from $255,000 to $3,000,000. For a Menlo Park home with Menlo Park schools the prices ranged from $1,510,000 to $3,000,000.  In January of 2013 there were 2 Menlo Park Town Homes/Condos sold.   The prices ranged from $1,160,000 to $1,168.000. 

Of the 14 Menlo Park sales in January of 2014 only 4 were sold with all cash, the other 10 were financed. This is a very good number of financed offers because it means that the buyers actually live in this country and the houses will be occupied by either home owners or tenants. There have been a number of homes that are bought with cash by people from other countries and are often left vacant. This does not help the current housing crunch with our huge need for both owner occupied and rental properties.

The inventory of single family homes for sale in Menlo Park is still at historically low levels and shows no sign of geting better. Hopefully now that we are past Super Bowl, and more importantly Puppy Bowl, there will be more homes coming on the market.  If you would like to search for homes for sale please click here.

If you have any questions about buying or selling a home in Menlo Park please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

Ca B.R.E. 01191194

650-619-9285

Palo Alto Ca REal Estate Market Update 2/2/2014

As a Palo Alto Real Estate Agent I am always being asked, "How's the market in Palo Alto?" The answer is simple:

Not enough inventory, plenty of buyers. Only the problem, like the drought is getting worse.

There are currently 12 single family Palo Alto homes for sale, down from a high of 46 last year

.

There are currently 3 Palo Alto town homes/condos for sale, down from a high of 15 last year.

There are currently 12 pending sales of Palo Alto single family homes.

There are currently 5 pending sales of Palo Alto Town homes/Condos.

Last week there were 6 new Palo Alto single family home listings and 2 new Palo Alto condo listings.

In January of 2014 there were 11 single family Palo Alto homes sold.  The prices ranged from $1,601,444  to $4,100,000. A low of 1.6 million is a historic high for Palo Alto single family home sales. Of the 11 sales only 4 were all cash which is a healthy sign that the sales of Palo Alto homes are not being purchased by foreign investors.

In January of 2014 there were 2 Palo Alto Town Homes/Condos sold,   The prices ranged from $740,000 to $1,150,000. Both of these sales were also financed.

Traditionally the market picks up after Super Bowl week-end so my hopes are pinned on that. Anything between 40 and 60 is typical seller's market for Palo Alto and over 90 is a buyer's market.   As you can see, the chances of a buyer's market in the near future look slim, but if we could just have enough inventory that all the serious buyers could eventually win a bid I would be happy and seller's would still reap their appreciation.   If you would like to search for Palo Alto homes for sale please click here.

If you have any questions about buying or selling a home in Palo Alto please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

Ca B.R.E. 01191194

650-619-9285

The Channing House In Palo Alto Continuing Care Retirement Living

Previously I wrote about The Hamilton in downtown Palo Alto which is a 36 unit condominium for those 55+ that provides independent living situations.  http://actvra.in/49WQ Today I want to discuss a different type of Silicon Valley retirement option, continuing care, which can be found at the Channing House, also in downtown Palo Alto. 

The continuing care option for Palo Alto retirement living allows a person to move into a development while they are still able to live independently, but if in the future they need assisted living or skilled nursing care that is done on site and the resident never needs to move again.

There are age and health requirements to move in. They want you to spend some years there while you are healthy before you need the more expensive services. To move into Channing House you must be between the ages of 65 and 83 and be able to live independently. There is a fee to move in and a monthly fee based on the size of your apartment. The monthly fee includes all your meals and will not go up if you need assisted living or nursing care. However, the monthly fee does go up over time. The entrance fee is refundable on a declining basis over the first 6 years that you live there. You must pass their financial requirements to be admitted as well, but if you run out of money they will not kick you out.

Channing House was founded in 1961 by Dr Lee who was the head of the Palo Alto medical foundation. He wanted a Palo Alto retrement home where seniors could live out their lives in Palo Alto and still be part of the community. It was a continuing care facility long before they were popular starting in the eighties.

Today Channing House houses 250 residents, most of who are still active, healthy and contributing to retirement life in Palo Alto.

If you have any questions about retiring in Palo Alto please feel free to contact me.

If you would like to know the value of your current home click here.

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty Palo Alto

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

Ca BRE 01191194

650-619-9285