Friday, May 28, 2010

Zibibbo is closed?

I was walking around downtown Palo Alto yesterday and I noticed that the typically crowded Zibibbo is closed. Not sure if it's temporary or what, but it looked pretty permanent. Does anyone know anything about this?

I've always heard great things about Zibibbo--it has over three hundred reviews on Yelp (most of them positive) and a few years ago it was one of Gourmet Magazine's twenty best American restaurants. Which I guess doesn't mean so much anymore, considering Gourmet's sad fate earlier this spring.

Like Gourmet, Zibibbo may have just been too stranded in an earlier time--a time when people were willing to spend exorbitant amounts of money on dinner, when restaurant splurges weren't limited to special occasions. Whatever happened, it's sad to see that pretty restaurant with dark windows.

What do you think about Zibibbo closing? And didn't Spago, another expensive (Wolfgang Puck I believe) downtown restaurant close recently too?

I wonder what the closing of these high-end restaurants says about the real estate market, and Palo Alto's economy in general.

Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Palo Alto Market Update, May 25th: Single Family Homes


As of today this is the snapshot of the Palo Alto single family home market:
89 Active listings
62 Pending sales

Breakdown of Price Points:

Under 1 million: 7 Active Listings / 12 Pending Sales
1 to 2 Mil: 41 Active Listings/ 37 Pending Sales
2-3 Million 25 Active listings/ 9 Pending Sales
3+ mil: 16 Active Listings/ 4 Pending Sales

What does this mean? Active to pending ratio is stagnant in all categories from last week, with the exception of the 2-3 million price point. It was 18 to 8 and is now 25 to 9. If this is a trend we may have seen a peak in recovery, or it may just be a blip. At this price point the stock market is often involved in the down payment and with this month’s stock problems we may be seeing a slow down. My only predication is that this is the segment to watch to see if the crazy multiple offer market in PA is going to slow down or continue.

If you need anything else please feel free to contact me. I am here to help you.

Marcy Moyer Keller Williams Realty
650-619-9285
DRE 01191194

Monday, May 24, 2010

Follow Me!


I did it. I finally joined Twitter--and I have to admit that it's sort of, well, FUN. Follow me, marcyagent!

Thursday, May 6, 2010

Palo Alto Market Update, May 5th: Single Family Homes

As of today this is the snapshot of the Palo Alto single family home market:
69 Active Listings
65 Pending Sales
Price Point Break Down:
Under 1 Million
5 Active Listings
21 Pending Sales
1 mil to 1.5 mil
25 Active Listings
24 Pending Sales
1.5 to 2 mil
11 Active Listings
24 Pending Sales
2-3 mil
17 Active Listings
9 Pending Sales
3mil +
12 Active Listings
4 Pending Sales
This time last year:
148 Active listings
47 Pending sales
Things have really changed since last year. There is half the inventory as last year, which goes along with the recent California Association of Realtor Stats that report that in Ca. homes over 1 million last year had a 21 month supply of inventory and now there is a 10 month supply of inventory. So, at this moment in time the market is better, even in the over 3 million dollar price point when last year the ratio of active to pending was 40 to 1 over 2 million. 3 to 1 is much better, but I do not know if we have really hit bottom for this segment. My guess is no, but I will have more knowledge about that in the coming months.
If you need anything else please feel free to contact me. I am here to help you.
Marcy Moyer Keller Williams Realty
650-619-9285
www.marcymoyer.com

What is a Trust Sale?

As some of you may have noticed, I've been selling a lot of trust sales recently. The question frequently comes up: What is a trust sale? What does a trust sale involve? Here is a brief overview of the process:

1. 1. The short answer to this is that a trust sale is the sale of a property that is held by a trust where the original trustee is either under a conservatorship due to an inability to handle his/her affairs, or the original trustee has passed away.

2. 2. There is an executor of the estate of the deceased property owner or a conservator who is acting as the trustee for the estate.

3. 3. The trustee picks a realtor to represent the estate in the sale of the property.

4. 4. The property is marketed and offers are received. The offers must be “As-Is” and the estate is exempt from several disclosures. In Ca. the exempt disclosures include the transfer disclosure statement, the seller’s supplemental or seller’s questionnaire, smoke detector disclosure and installation, and signature on the Natural Hazard Disclosure Statement, but the report must be provided.

5. 5. Although the trustee is exempt from some of the standard disclosures anything that is known by the trustee or realtor must be disclosed.

6. 6. Once the trustee accepts an offer on a deceased estate the heirs must be given 45 days to sign the notice of proposed action. If anyone objects the estate needs to go to court to get the right to sell the property. If there are no objections the sale goes through.

7. 7. If the home is under conservatorship the trustee does not need to give a notice of proposed action because the profit is any, stays in the estate and is not distributed to multiple heirs.

8. 8. Trust sales can be a good option for a buyer. They are often owned by long time sellers and therefore the estate often has enough equity to withstand the downturns in the market. If property is being sold the trustee has usually determined that the estate needs to sell the property and will sell it at the price the market will bear, as opposed to a price that someone wants. This is not always true, but often is.

9. 9. If you are a trustee and need to sell a property it is a good idea to hire a realtor who understands the duties and responsibilities involved in selling a property held in trust and who is able to work well with the estate’s attorney.

I hope this is a clear overview of the process. If you have any questions please feel free to ask.
Marcy Moyer
Keller Williams Realty
650-619-9285