We’ve put together a chart that pits four of San Francisco’s most prestigious neighborhoods against one another… Russian Hill, Nob Hill, Pacific Heights, and the Marina. Median condominium values were plotted over a 14 year history, dating back to 1995 (this is as far as MLS will go). We adjusted the median prices to account for inflation so we could isolate market appreciation.
And around the final corner, it's Nob Hill in front... Nob Hill in front!
How did they fare?
It’s time to narrow in on a San Francisco neighborhood again! This time we’ve chosen Potrero Hill and are putting the condo market under the magnifying glass. We looked at median sales prices for condos over a 14-year history and have compiled the findings here for your convenience.
The City as seen from Potrero Hill
To see all the stats and trends, continue reading –> Read the rest of this entry ?
Ever been curious about how much of our local condo market is comprised of studios? 1 bedroom units? 2 bedroom units? Well this post is for you.
How many bedrooms do YOU need?
We took a good look at the San Francisco condo market and calculated what percentage of condo sales were taking place at each bedroom level, and plotted them on a chart to see if any trends were identifiable. For example, are 2 bedroom units becoming more popular? Less? Unchanged? Let’s find out.
Continue reading to see the trends –> Read the rest of this entry ?
A fairly common question we come across in everyday business is “How do 1-bedroom condos perform when compared to 2-bedroom condos?“
It’s an interesting question, and we set out to identify some trends. We looked at all condo sales in San Francisco dating back to 1995, and separated them out by number of bedrooms into four groups: Studios, 1-bedroom, 2-bedrooms, and 3-bedrooms. What we found was somewhat revealing about the condo market in general. *Please keep in mind, we have adjusted the median values for inflation to get a more accurate view of the market.
Can the number of bedrooms keep your property value afloat?
South Beach is an interesting part of the City to analyze. There has been so much development occurring in the past couple decades to make it a poster-child for urban renaissance. However, with rapid change comes big gambling. Big winners and in some cases, big losers.
"I've got a pair of South Beaches and a pair of Nob Hills... what 'chu got?"
We took a close look at the South Beach condominium market (which includes lofts) to see what types of trends are going on in the ‘hood. We’ve looked at trends here before, but we’ve taken the analysis a step further by 1) inflation-adjusting the values to account for the changing value of the dollar, and 2) overlaid the neighborhood trend with that of the entire City to gain a sense of relation.
Before we take a look at the trends, a few points about the data must be made. First, the data comes from MLS (like all of our analysis). Developers who are selling brand new condos (for example, at the Infinity) do not put their sales prices in the MLS. This is kept secret so they can adjust their sales prices on the fly, based on demand. You can thank them for that… it’s not our doing! Even though new development sales are left out of the analysis does not render the data useless, however. Resales (sales from one person to another) are tracked in the MLS, and it’s the resale market owners should be most concerned with.
With that said, here’s a look at what’s going on with South Beach condos on the whole: Read the rest of this entry ?
We’ve been busy. Very busy. We have been putting together our first post called “Market Check-Up”, in which we’ll delve deep into a local micro-market and give you all the stats, trends and analysis you could ever hope for. This is like our Getting Granular series on steroids. In this series you’ll see:
And we're underway!
Let’s get things started, shall we? The first neighborhood we’ve chosen is Pacific Heights and the property type is condominiums. Even if you’re not interested in this market segment, take a peek at the article so you can see all the glorious analysis that’s in store for your neighborhood soon.
We’re excited about our new series here at Inside SF Real Estate called “Building Profiles“. From time to time we’ll pick a random building to spotlight and give you all the stats, trends and scoops.
So… where do we begin? We figured it would be best to kick things off with the building Mayor Gavin Newsom calls home, Bellaire Tower.
Stats and Scoops
Bellaire Tower sits atop Russian Hill, just northwest of San Francisco's financial district (click to enlarge)
For more fun info, real estate trends, and lots of pics, continue reading –>
Lower Pacific Heights used to be called “Upper Fillmore”. With increasing property values over the past 20 years the area grew in affluence and wealth. The name “Lower Pacific Heights” became more and more popular and now the term “Upper Fillmore” is rarely used. San Francisco’s Japantown is located within Lower Pacific Heights.
Cherry blossoms bloom in Japantown
Since condominiums are common in the area, we took a look at condo price trends in Lower Pacific Heights since 1995. What we found was an average of 51 sales taking place in the ‘hood each year, and a trend of steady upward growth with a few requisite bumps and bruises along the way. Here’s a look at the chart:
It’s time for one of our favorite games again! We looked at all condo sales from 2008 in North Beach and are here to show you what your money buys at the low end, the median, and the high end. There were 23 condo sales in North Beach last year. The median value was close to $800K, at $796,800. Lets kick it off with the low sale and work our way up:
33 Vandewater #201 hit the market in April of 2008 and was pending sale just 19 days later. The one bedroom, one bath condo has hardwoods, a fireplace, open floorplan, and one car deeded parking. Listed at $525,000, the home sold for just a smidge under at $512,000. The last time it sold? 2003, for $389,000.
33 Vandewater
33 Vandewater #201
To see the median and high sales, keep reading –> Read the rest of this entry ?
Welcome to the Top 10 Condominium Countdown! We ranked condo sales from 2008 based upon dollar per square foot. The numbers are hefty hefty hefty, unless you’re from a city like Hong Kong, in which case they’re wimpy wimpy wimpy.
Imagine a stack of bills like this on EACH SQUARE FOOT of your home.
Here’s a look at the top 10: Read the rest of this entry ?
Diamond Heights is located in the central part of San Francisco. Condos and townhomes sprinkle the steep slopes of this neighborhood. Jaw-dropping views can be had in pretty much every direction. The neighborhood has a shopping center on Diamond Heights Boulevard which provides area residents with essentials. Interestingly, Diamond Heights was San Francisco Planning and Urban Research Association’s first project, “…intended to use redevelopment powers to use land on the hills in the center of the city to be developed with, rather than against, the topography. Few existing residents needed to be relocated for the redevelopment program, which included housing for a range of incomes, churches, schools, parks, and a commercial center”, according to Wikipedia.
View from Diamond Heights (courtesy of sfphotorama)
Since condos abound in the area, we wanted to take a look at median sales price trends over time. What we found was pretty neat.
Fannie Mae sent a memo (no, it wasn’t about TPS Reports) out on Tuesday advising lenders that new guidelines for condos are taking effect, particularly in Florida. The bullet points are:
Did you get that memo?
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To would-be condo purchasers in Miami, sorry, the developer gets to keep your deposit. An article published yesterday cites cases where condo speculators in Florida put deposits on condominiums, but out of fear of losing money, rescinded their sales contracts. The earnest money deposits were kept by the developers, and a battle over the money ensued. The developers came out on top, with the court ruling that they were under no obligation to return the money.
Click HERE to read the full article.
I'll take my condo with a side order of speculation, please. Photo by Chris Dahlen
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Ever been curious as to how high HOA (homeowner’s association) fees can get? We ran a search to see what condo in the City, that is currently for sale, has the highest monthly HOA fees. Any guesses? $3K per month? $4K per month?? Try almost $5K per month for Penthouse B that is currently for sale at 1170 Sacramento in Nob Hill! (the exact figure is $4,716 per month)
Keep in mind, this is just for all condos that are currently on the market. We shudder to think about possible figures for condos that are not for sale. But hey, riches are relative, right? $5K a month in HOA’s is chump change to a lot of people, and if you’re from NYC, London, or Hong Kong, you’re probably smirking at how cheap it is here.
Here are some shots of the current “winner” of our HOA Fee contest:
1170 Sacramento
More pics –> Read the rest of this entry ?
Because San Francisco is home to many wealthy people and attracts investors, real estate transactions paid for with all cash are more common here than in say, Wichita, Kansas. But just how common are they? And better yet, what sort of trends have all cash transactions seen over time in the City?
How many people are paying all cash these days?
We queried the MLS for the answers to these questions, and the results were very interesting. First, we limited the search to the city of San Francisco only (no outlying areas), and tallied up the number of all-cash transactions occurring from January 1, 2008 through December 18, 2008. We included single family homes, condominiums, tic’s, lofts, and stock cooperatives in our query. Next, we ran this same query for each year back to 1995 between the exact same dates. We then compared the total cash transactions of each year to the total number of ALL transactions during that same period of time to give us the percentage of transactions paid for with all cash. All figures are per the MLS.
Here’s the chart: Read the rest of this entry ?
