Mountain View Ca Real Estate Market Update 7/27/2013

There are currently 12 single family Mountain View homes for sale,  down from 15  last week.

There are currently 14 Mountain View town homes/condos for sale,  down from 19 last week.

There are currently 31 pending sales of Mountain View single family homes,  up from 28 last week.

There are currently 34 pending sales of Mountain View Town homes/Condos, the same as last week.

In June, 2013 there were 31 single family Mountain View homes sold ranging in price from $765,000 to $1,510,000. 

The volume was up 30% from May.  The prices ranged from $770,000 to $2,498,000. this does not include sales in the new development in Waverley Park.

In June, 2013  there were 35 Mountain View Town Homes/Condos sold ranging in price from $351,000 to $1,215,000. These numbers are very similar to May. Are we starting to level off in appreciation? I think so. 

The inventory is down this week in single family home listings as well as condos. I would like to see at least 40 single family homes for sale and at least 60 condos for sale at any given week, but that is not happening. One problem with so few single family homes for sale is that there are not as many single family homes in Mountain View as there are condos. With few homes and more buyers it is a difficult market for buyers.  I think as the summer goes on it may still be possible to get a healthier number on the market, but the structural problem of not enough single family homes is not going to be solved this summer. In some communities such as Palo Alto and Menlo Park there are many empty nestors who would be selling, but do not because their grown children come back to live with them; this is not the case for a Mountain View condo. Many condo owners who would have sold to move up were not able to when prices were below their original purchase price. Appreciation has wiped out that problem so hopefully we see more condo sellers soon.

If you would like to search for homes for sale please feel free to visit my website for a custom search.

http://marcymoyer.com/OnlineSearchRequest2?operation=choose_mls&timestamp=1359953266454

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

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

D.R.E. 01191194

650-619-9285

Palo Alto Ca Real Estate Market Update 7/27/2013

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.

There are currently 29 single family Palo Alto homes for sale, down from 35 last week.

There are currently 6 Palo Alto town homes/condos for sale, down from 9 last week.

There are currently 45 pending sales of Palo Alto single family homes, up from 42 last week.

There are currently 7 pending sales of Palo Alto Town homes/Condos, the same as last week.

In June of 2013 there were 29 single family Palo Alto homes sold, a big drop from April and May sales. The prices ranged from $1,141,400 to $5,750,000. No homes under a million is significant. This is getting to be a common occurance in Palo Alto.

In June of 2013 there were 15 Palo Alto Town Homes/Condos sold, a nice increase from earlier in the spring. The prices ranged from $535,000 to $1,521,000. This is not a high starting price point for condos in Palo Alto, but it was ony one bedroom. 

We had decrease in single family homes for sale, as well as condos. We were in the 40 home range for a few weeks and I hope we get back there again this week. 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 homes for sale please feel free to visit my website for a custom search.

http://marcymoyer.com/OnlineSearchRequest2?operation=choose_mls&timestamp=1359953266454

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

D.R.E. 01191194

650-619-9285

Mountain View Ca: How Much Over List Price Are Homes Selling?

Anyone trying to buy a home in Moutain View right now knows that it is tough out there. There are many more buyers than sellers and many Mountain View homes sell with multiple offers way over list price. Some homes go as much as 30% over asking, but some do not. How does a buyer make the decision about how much to offer to have the winning bid in a Mountain View home multiple offer situation and not overpay?

The answer is not simple, and sometimes it is not a question of price, but terms, like contingencies, length of escrow, length of rent back, etc.

But for right now, let's just discuss price. Here are some things to keep in mind when you make an offer on a Mountain View home in a multiple offer situation.

1. In my opinion the most important thing is, how much is this condo worth to you? In other words, what price would you offer so that if it sold for $1000 more you would not be sorry because you do not want to pay that much. It may be that you would pay more than your offer if you could, but you can't so you are just doing your best. But if that is not the case you need to decide how much the house is worth to you so that if you do not get it you will not have regrets.

2. How is the asking price of this home compared to market value? If the condo is listed low it will get multiple offers and sell for much more. If it is listed at or above market value it will not. This is not rocket science. Figuring out market value can be a little tricky since there are many variables, and the market is a moving target, but a good Mountain View real estate agent should be able to help you analyze comps. Once you know the market value you will have to offer more in an appreciating market like we are in now. Sorry, but that is the truth. the good news is the amount over asking seems to have peaked is is now down a little from the 12% over average in March.

3. What is the style of the listing agent? Does he or she like to list homes very low to get as many multiple offers as possible on their Mountain View listings? Does the agent over value a home to try to get more money for their client, or just try to win out on a competitive listing? Does the agent like to work with multiple counter offers, or accept the the first best offer?  Your agent should be able to give you insight into what other Mountain View real estate agents like to do.

In the end, the final offer price and terms will be your decision, but if you have a great Mountain View real estate agent he or she can help guide you through the murky waters of Mountain View home multiple offers.

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

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty 

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

D.R.E. 01191194

650-619-9285

Palo Alto Ca How Much Over Asking Do I Need to Pay?

Anyone trying to buy a home in Palo Alto right now knows that it is tough out there. There are many more buyers than sellers and many Palo Alto homes sell with multiple offers way over list price. Some homes go as much as 40% over asking, but some do not. How does a buyer make the decision about how much to offer to have the winning bid in a Palo Alto multiple offer situation and not overpay?

The answer is not simple, and sometimes it not a question of price, but terms, like contingencies, length of escrow, length of rent back, etc.

But for right now, let's just discuss price. Here are some things to keep in mind when you make an offer on a Palo Alto home in a multiple offer situation,

1. In my opinion the most import thing is, how much is this home worth to you? In other words, what price would you offer so so that if it sold for $1000 more you would not be sorry because you do not want to pay that much. It may be that you would pay more than your offer if you could, but you can't so you are just doing your best. But if that is not the case you need to decide how much the house is worth to you so that if you do not get it you will not have regrets.

2. How is the asking price of this home compared to market value? If the house is listed low it will get multiple offers and sell for much more. If it is listed at or above market value it will not. This is not rocket science. Figuring out market value can be a little tricky since there are many variable, and the market is a moving target, but a good Palo Alto real estate agent should be able to help you analyze comps. Once you know the market value you will have to offer more in an appreciating market like we are in now. Sorry, but that is the truth.

3. What is the style of the listing agent? Does he or she like to list homes very low to get as many multiple offers as possible on their Palo Alto listings? Does the agent over value a home to try to get more money for their client, or just try to win out on a competitive listing? Does the agent like to work with multiple counter offers, or accept the the first best offer?  Your agent should be able to give you insight into what other Palo Alto real estate agents like to do.

In the end, the final offer price and terms will be your decision, but if you have a great Palo Alto real estate agent he or she can help guide you through the murky waters of Palo Alto multiple offers.

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

D.R.E. 01191194

650-619-9285

Anyone trying to buy a home in Palo Alto right now knows that it is tough out there. There are many more buyers than sellers and many Palo Alto homes sell with multiple offers way over list price. Some homes go as much as 40% over asking, but some do not. How does a buyer make the decision about how much to offer to have the winning bid in a Palo Alto multiple offer situation and not overpay?

The answer is not simple, and sometimes it not a question of price, but terms, like contingencies, length of escrow, length of rent back, etc.

But for right now, let's just discuss price. Here are some things to keep in mind when you make an offer on a Palo Alto home in a multiple offer situation,

1. In my opinion the most import thing is, how much is this home worth to you? In other words, what price would you offer so so that if it sold for $1000 more you would not be sorry because you do not want to pay that much. It may be that you would pay more than your offer if you could, but you can't so you are just doing your best. But if that is not the case you need to decide how much the house is worth to you so that if you do not get it you will not have regrets.

2. How is the asking price of this home compared to market value? If the house is listed low it will get multiple offers and sell for much more. If it is listed at or above market value it will not. This is not rocket science. Figuring out market value can be a little tricky since there are many variable, and the market is a moving target, but a good Palo Alto real estate agent should be able to help you analyze comps. Once you know the market value you will have to offer more in an appreciating market like we are in now. Sorry, but that is the truth.

3. What is the style of the listing agent? Does he or she like to list homes very low to get as many multiple offers as possible on their Palo Alto listings? Does the agent over value a home to try to get more money for their client, or just try to win out on a competitive listing? Does the agent like to work with multiple counter offers, or accept the the first best offer?  Your agent should be able to give you insight into what other Palo Alto real estate agents like to do.

In the end, the final offer price and terms will be your decision, but if you have a great Palo Alto real estate agent he or she can help guide you through the murky waters of Palo Alto multiple offers.

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

D.R.E. 01191194

650-619-9285

The Green elephant In Palo Alto is still Fantastic!

The Green Elephant is a combo Chinese/Burmese Restaurant on Middlefield Rd. in the Piazza Shopping Center at the corner of Charleston. I’ve never actually eaten in the restaurant, but get take out from there all the time.  There are many wonderful dishes, but I just want to give you my person favorite.

Nutty, fruity, shrimp.  This dish is so good it deserves its own blog post. This is the most wonderful combination of shrimp, mangos, pineapple, papaya, peppers, cashews, and some kind of sauce. You can order it with brown rice, white rice, or pineapple fried rice. This is my comfort food.

Also available are nutty fruity chicken or nutty fruity tofu. If you are in south Palo Alto it is worth a try. I have never seen this dish anywhere else, but I don’t get out much, so maybe it’s available in lots of places. If so, trust me, try it!

I wrote this blog in 2009 and it is as true today as it was then. But there are some updates to my obsession with this fabulous restaurant.

First of all The Green Elephant has just instituted a new way to obtain this delicious food. They have a new website: http://www.greenelephantpaloalto.com where you can order your food from your computer or smart phone.

Another change is my favorite dish. While I still love nutty fruity shrimp, I have recently discovered my new favorite dish, 

Tea Leaf Salad	$10.25
		Salad prepared with imported Burmese tea leaves, tomatoes, lettuce, fried garlic, Fried onion, fried split peas, sesame seeds, and peanuts

Forget what you know about salads from any American menu and try this fabulous concoction! You will not be dissappointed.

Recently one of my neighbors passed. We had a goup of neighbors go to the Green Elephant for a mini memorial dinner. He would have been happy to see if his close friends and neighbors remember him at his favorite restaurant.

Bon Appitite!

Marcy Moyer

Keller Williams Realty Palo Alto

www.marcymoyer.com

marcy@marcymoyer.com

BRE 01191194

650-619-9285

Santa Clara County Real Estate Market Update 7/21/2013

As a Santa Clara Real Estate Agent I am always being asked, "How's the market in Santa Clara?" The answer is simple:
Not enough inventory, plenty of buyers.

There are currently 46 single family Santa Clara homes for sale, the same as last week.
There are currently 39 Santa Clara town homes/condos for sale, up from 34 last week.
There are currently 61 pending sales of Santa Clara single family homes, up from 59 last week.
There are currently 59 pending sales of Santa Clara town homes/Condos, up from 51 last week.

In June of 2013 there were 61 single family Santa Clara homes sold, up from 47 in May, ranging in price from $420,000 to $1,240,000. This shows a decrease in price range of 10% for the lowest priced home sold in May, but it was a short sale that took a long time to close so the market at time of sale was lower. The lowest price traditional sale was $550,000 which is $100,000 higher than the lowest price in May.

In June of 2013 there were 33 Santa Clara Town Homes/Condos sold, the same as in May.  They ranged in price from $230,000 to $790,000. This is 20% lower than the lowest price in May and 5% lower than the highest price in May. Has the appreciation started to slow down? I think so.
Santa Clara single family home listings are not up from before the holiday.  Condos are up antoher 10% from last week.  Hopefully as more homeowners come out from being underwater (owing more on their home than it is worth) more sellers will be able and willing to sell. However, there was not an increase in condos for sale and this is important as there are so many young people trying to buy their first homes and so few condos for them to buy.

If you would like to search for homes for sale please feel free to visit my website for a custom search.

http://marcymoyer.com/OnlineSearchRequest2?operation=choose_mls&timestamp=1359953266454

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

Marcy Moyer
Keller Williams Realty
www.marcymoyer.com
marcy@marcymoyer.com
D.R.E. 01191194
650-619-9285

Menlo Park Ca Real Estate Market Update 7/21/2013

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 39 single family Menlo Park homes for sale down from 42 last week..
There are currently 7 Menlo Park town homes/condos for sale the down from 8 last week.
There are currently 29 pending sales of Menlo Park single family homes down from 30 last week.
There are currently 7 pending sales of Menlo Park homes/Condos down from 10 last week.

In June of 2013 there were 33 single family Menlo Park homes sold down from 47 in May.  The prices ranged from $540,000 to $4,375,000. The lowest priced home in Belle Haven is up $100,000 from May. I thought we may have been leveling off but this number does not prove it. If you look at just the Menlo Park homes with Menlo Park schools the lowest price in June was $975,000 up a little from May but the only home with Menlo Park schools sold under a million. In June of 2013 there were 10 Menlo Park Town Homes/Condos sold. The prices ranged from $395,000 to $1,800,000.

This is a high starting price point for condos, but not as high as Palo Alto. The lowest price condo that is not senior only housing was $551,00 for a 1 bedroom in Sharon Park which is similar to a one bedroom condo in Palo Alto.

The inventory of single family homes for sale in Menlo Park is still at historically low levels, and unlike Palo Alto, Mountain View and Santa Clara down from last week, again. I am hoping that as the summer progresses we will have more inventory and that this week is not a trend

If you would like to search for homes for sale please feel free to visit my website for a custom search.

http://marcymoyer.com/OnlineSearchRequest2?operation=choose_mls&timestamp=1359953266454

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
D.R.E. 01191194
650-619-9285

Mountain View Ca Real Estate Market Update 7/20/2013

There are currently 15 single family Mountain View homes for sale,  down from 20  last week.
There are currently 19 Mountain View town homes/condos for sale,  up from 17 last week.
There are currently 28 pending sales of Mountain View single family homes,  up from 24 last week.
There are currently 34 pending sales of Mountain View Town homes/Condos, up from from 31 last week.

In June, 2013 there were 31 single family Mountain View homes sold ranging in price from $765,000 to $1,510,000.  The volume was up 30% from May.  The prices ranged from $770,000 to $2,498,000. this does not include sales in the new development in Waverley Park.
In June, 2013  there were 35 Mountain View Town Homes/Condos sold ranging in price from $351,000 to $1,215,000. These numbers are very similar to May. Are we starting to level off in appreciation? I think so.

The inventory is down this week in single family home listings and up in condos. I would like to see at least 40 single family homes for sale and at least 60 condos for sale at any given week, but that is not happening. One problem with so few single family homes for sale is that there are not as many single family homes in Mountain View as there are condos. With few homes and more buyers it is a difficult market for buyers.  I think as the summer goes on it may still be possible to get a healthier number on the market, but the structural problem of not enough single family homes is not going to be solved this summer. In some communities such as Palo Alto and Menlo Park there are many empty nesters who would be selling, but do not because their grown children come back to live with them; this is not the case for a Mountain View condo. Many condo owners who would have sold to move up were not able to when prices were below their original purchase price. Appreciation has wiped out that problem so hopefully we see more condo sellers soon.

If you would like to search for homes for sale please feel free to visit my website for a custom search.

http://marcymoyer.com/OnlineSearchRequest2?operation=choose_mls&timestamp=1359953266454

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

Marcy Moyer
Keller Williams Realty
www.marcymoyer.com
marcy@marcymoyer.com
D.R.E. 01191194
650-619-9285

Palo Alto Real Estate Market Update 7/20/2013

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.

There are currently 35 single family Palo Alto homes for sale, down from 40 last week.
There are currently 9 Palo Alto town homes/condos for sale, up from 7 last week.
There are currently 42 pending sales of Palo Alto single family homes, up from 32 last week.
There are currently 7 pending sales of Palo Alto Town homes/Condos, down from 7 last week.

In June of 2013 there were 29 single family Palo Alto homes sold, a big drop from April and May sales. The prices ranged from $1,141,400 to $5,750,000. No homes under a million is significant.

This is getting to be a common occurance in Palo Alto.
In June of 2013 there were 15 Palo Alto Town Homes/Condos sold, a nice increase from earlier in the spring. The prices ranged from $535,000 to $1,521,000. This is not a high starting price point for condos in Palo Alto, but it was ony one bedroom.

We had decrease in single family homes for sale, but an increase in condos. We were in the 40 home range for a few weeks and I hope we get back there again this week. 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 homes for sale please feel free to visit my website for a custom search.

http://marcymoyer.com/OnlineSearchRequest2?operation=choose_mls&timestamp=1359953266454

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
D.R.E. 01191194
650-619-9285

San Jose Ca. Sellers, How to Price Your Home This Summer?

Are you going to sell your home in San Jose this summer or fall? Are you wondering how to price your home? Have you been getting conflicting advice about the market in San Jose? Are you confused about the San Jose real estate market?

It is not surprising if you are confused about the best strategy to price your home to get the best price in the fastest time. The market is going through a change. Inventory is up a little, although not anywhere near buyer's market range. The big issue could be the rising interest rates. For homes under a million dollars the increase in interest rates does make homes less affordable for those buyers who are buying at or near the maximum they can afford. On top of that is a decrease in investors who will want to buy the San Jose home you are selling. Price have appreciated so much that many investors no longer see a good return on their dollar and are looking elsewhere for a place to buy rental properties

I am not trying to imply that this is a bad time to try to sell your San Jose home, because it is not, It is just a slightly different market than last spring, and as such you need to take this small shift in account when deciding on a strategy to sell your San Jose home.


Here are the recommendations I give my San Jose sellers when they ask me what price they should list their San Jose home for:

1. Look at the most recent closed sales in the immediate neighborhood and the condition of the homes at that price as well as the lot size and location.

2. Adjust for things like remodeling, noise, structural issues, lot size, and square footage.

3. After adding and subtracting for the differences take an average of at least 3 comps.

4. List just slightly below the average, maybe 1-2%


In this market I would not suggest listing very low in order to generate multiple offers as it may not happen.  I would also not suggest to list high to see if someone will pay. I believe if you list close to market you will sell your home in San Jose for the best price in the fastest time period.

If you have any questions about selling a home in San Jose please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer
Keller Williams Realty
www.marcymoyer.com
marcy@marcymoyer.com
BRE 01191194
650-619-9285

Santa Clara County Real Estate Market Update 7/14/2013

As a Santa Clara Real Estate Agent I am always being asked, "How's the market in Santa Clara?" The answer is simple:
Not enough inventory, plenty of buyers.

There are currently 46 single family Santa Clara homes for sale, down from 49 before the July 4th Holiday.
There are currently 34 Santa Clara town homes/condos for sale, up from 30 before the July 4th Holiday.
There are currently 59 pending sales of Santa Clara single family homes, down from 69 last week.
There are currently 51 pending sales of Santa Clara town homes/Condos, down from 54 last week.

In June of 2013 there were 61 single family Santa Clara homes sold, up from 47 in May, ranging in price from $420,000 to $1,240,000. This shows a decrease in price range of 10% for the lowest priced home sold in May, but it was a short sale that took a long time to close so the market at time of sale was lower. The lowest price traditional sale was $550,000 which is $100,000 higher than the lowest price in May.

In June of 2013 there were 33 Santa Clara Town Homes/Condos sold, the same as in May.  They ranged in price from $230,000 to $790,000. This is 20% lower than the lowest price in May and 5% lower than the highest price in May. Has the appreciation started to slow down? I think so.
Santa Clara single family home listings are not up from before the holiday.  Condos are up 10% from before the holiday.  Hopefully as more homeowners come out from being underwater (owing more on their home than it is worth) more sellers will be able and willing to sell. However, there was not an increase in condos for sale and this is important as there are so many young people trying to buy their first homes and so few condos for them to buy.

If you would like to search for homes for sale please feel free to visit my website for a custom search.

http://marcymoyer.com/OnlineSearchRequest2?operation=choose_mls&timestamp=1359953266454

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

Marcy Moyer
Keller Williams Realty
www.marcymoyer.com
marcy@marcymoyer.com
D.R.E. 01191194
650-619-9285

Menlo Park Real Estate Market Update 7/14/2013

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 42 single family Menlo Park homes for sale down from 43 before the July 4th Holiday.
There are currently 8 Menlo Park town homes/condos for sale the down from 9 before the July 4th Holiday.
There are currently 30 pending sales of Menlo Park single family homes down from 35 before the July 4th Holiday
There are currently 10 pending sales of Menlo Park homes/Condos down from 11 before the July 4th Holiday.

In June of 2013 there were 33 single family Menlo Park homes sold down from 47 in May.  The prices ranged from $540,000 to $4,375,000. The lowest priced home in Belle Haven is up $100,000 from May. I thought we may have been leveling off but this number does not prove it. If you look at just the Menlo Park homes with Menlo Park schools the lowest price in June was $975,000 up a little form May but the only home with Menlo Park schools sold under a million. In June of 2013 there were 10 Menlo Park Town Homes/Condos sold.   The prices ranged from $395,000 to $1,800,000. This is a high starting price point for condos, but not as high as Palo Alto. The lowest price condo that is not senior only housing was $551,00 for a 1 bedroom in Sharon Park which is similar to a one bedroom condo in Palo Alto.

The inventory of single family homes for sale in Menlo Park is still at historically low levels, and unlike Palo Alto, Mountain View and Santa Clara down from last week. I am hoping that as the summer progresses we will have more inventory and that this week is not a trend.  If you would like to search for homes for sale please feel free to visit my website for a custom search.

http://marcymoyer.com/OnlineSearchRequest2?operation=choose_mls&timestamp=1359953266454

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
D.R.E. 01191194
650-619-9285

Mountain View Ca Market Update 7/14/2013

There are currently 20 single family Mountain View homes for sale,  down from 21  before the July 4th Holiday.
There are currently 17 Mountain View town homes/condos for sale,  up from 12 before the July 4th Holiday.
There are currently 24 pending sales of Mountain View single family homes,  down from 35 before the 4th of July Holiday.
There are currently 31 pending sales of Mountain View Town homes/Condos, down from from 37 before the 4th of July Holiday.

In June, 2013 there were 31 single family Mountain View homes sold ranging in price from $765,000 to $1,510,000.  The volume was up 30% from May.  The prices ranged from $770,000 to $2,498,000. this does not include sales in the new development in Waverley Park.
In June, 2013  there were 35 Mountain View Town Homes/Condos sold ranging in price from $351,000 to $1,215,000. These numbers are very similar to May. Are we starting to level off in appreciation? I think so.

The inventory is stable this week in single family home listings and up from the holiday in condos. I would like to see at least 40 single family homes for sale and at least 60 condos for sale at any given week, but that is not happening. One problem with so few single family homes for sale is that there are not as many single family homes in Mountain View as there are condos. With few homes and more buyers it is a difficult market for buyers.  I think as the summer goes on it may still be possible to get a healthier number on the market, but the structural problem of not enough single family homes is not going to be solved this summer. In some communities such as Palo Alto and Menlo Park there are many empty nestors who would be selling, but do not because their grown children come back to live with them; this is not the case for a Mountain View condo. Many condo owners who would have sold to move up were not able to when prices were below their original purchase price. Appreciation has wiped out that problem so hopefully we see more condo sellers soon.

If you would like to search for homes for sale please feel free to visit my website for a custom search.

http://marcymoyer.com/OnlineSearchRequest2?operation=choose_mls&timestamp=1359953266454

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

Marcy Moyer
Keller Williams Realty
www.marcymoyer.com
marcy@marcymoyer.com
D.R.E. 01191194
650-619-9285

Palo Alto Ca Real Estate Market Update 7/14/2013

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.
There are currently 40 single family Palo Alto homes for sale down from 42 before the 4th of July holiday.
There are currently 7 Palo Alto town homes/condos for sale, the same as before the 4th of July holiday.
There are currently 32 pending sales of Palo Alto single family homes, up from 29 before the 4th of July holiday.
There are currently 7 pending sales of Palo Alto Town homes/Condos, up from 6 before the 4th of July holiday

In June of 2013 there were 29 single family Palo Alto homes sold, a big drop from April and May sales. The prices ranged from $1,141,400 to $5,750,000. No homes under a million is significant.

This is getting to be a common occurance in Palo Alto.
In June of 2013 there were 15 Palo Alto Town Homes/Condos sold, a nice increase from earlier in the spring. The prices ranged from $535,000 to $1,521,000. This is not a high starting price point for condos in Palo Alto, but it was ony one bedroom.

We had a nice little increase in inventory this week after a drop down to 24 during the July 4th holiday. I believe this trend will continue as more sellers seem to coming into the market. Now 40 homes for sale is still a strong seller's market, but it is not a ridiculous seller's market. 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 homes for sale please feel free to visit my website for a custom search.

http://marcymoyer.com/OnlineSearchRequest2?operation=choose_mls&timestamp=1359953266454

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
D.R.E. 01191194
650-619-9285

San Jose For Sale By Owner A Lot Can Go Wrong

The real estate market in San Jose is hot! Homes are "flying off the shelf." As the owner of a San Jose home you may think it is such a strong seller's market why should I pay so many thousands of dollars to a San Jose real estate agent when I can find the buyer myself.

Well, I can tell you a story about just one of the things that can happen when a San Jose home owner decides to try to do it herself. These are not all the things that can possibly go wrong, just what happened to one poor San Jose for sale by owner seller.

So Ms For Sale by Owner from Blossom Valley in San Jose inherited a home from her mother a few months ago. Mom was ill at the end of her life and dies with no money, just a home with a mortgage. The mortgage was 6 months past due when Ms For Sale By Owner decided she would try to preserve what equity was left so she decided to try to sell the house herself.

Ms For Sale by Owner put the home on Zillow and found a buyer. After Ms For Sale By Owner agreed to the price and terms with the Mr Buyer with No Agent a friend of Ms For Sale By Owner who works at a law firm advised her to call me to handle the paper work. Now this is not something I normally do, but I agreed since it was a referral from a law firm that I work with a lot. I agreed to write up the contract and provide the disclosures for the seller, but not to represent the buyer.

So I wrote up a contract which gave the Mr Buyer Without an Agent 17 days to do any additional inspections he desired, 17 days for his loan approval, and a very clear addendum saying I was not his agent. I explained nothing to him.
At the end of 17 days I gave Mr Buyer Without an Agent a contingency removal to sign which he did.

A week later when I asked his lender when the loan docs would be drawn I was told that Mr Buyer Without An Agent had to sell his mobile home to get the down payment to buy Ms For Sale By Owner's Blossom Valley house. The first buyer backed out but he had an all cash back up buyer so we were just waiting for the mobile home park to approve the buyer for the open house. Guess what, that buyer backs out also.

So Ms For Sale By Owner has to cancel the contract with Mr Buyer Without An Agent. Mr Buyer Without An Agent had breached his contract. The contract was never written with a contingency on the sale of another property. Mr Buyer without an Agent signed a contingencies removal removing all contingencies. If he had an agent he would not have done that. He may lose his deposit now.

Ms For Sale By Owner has now lost 6 weeks of time that the mortgage is past due and not paid off. The bank has been patient, but there is nothing from stopping the bank from recording a Notice of Default which will cost her even more money.

Ms For Sale By Owner has learned her lesson. We are signing a new listing agreement and the new buyer will have an agent or their offer will not be accepted.

So in this case, no one won by trying to do a "for sale by owner" in San Jose. This is just one example on how trying to save some money can make you lose more than you thought you could save. In other words, friends don't let friends buy or sell houses without a good agent.

If you are looking for a good real estate agent in the Silicon Valley please feel free to contact me.

Marcy Moyer
Keller Williams Realty
www.marcymoyer.com
marcy@marcymoyer.com
DRE 01191194
650-619-9285