I track these market numbers consistently over the year, and these are the lowest inventory numbers I have ever seen for San Francisco.

What it means to me is that sellers are not hearing the kind of prices they need to hear to sell their property, even though they may want to. One would think with lower home prices and historically low interest rates this should be good for buyers. But with low inventory nowadays, more than ever San Francisco buyers need a knowledgeable local agent to help them find properties to buy, which can often be off market.

This is a period of great opportunity for buyers, if they can find the right property to buy at a price a seller will accept. It also points to higher home prices coming in San Francisco, especially if interest rates stay low.

San Francisco Market Data as of Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Currently there are 304 Single Family Homes and 612 Condos/TIC/Lofts and 133 2-4 units listed for sale on the Multiple Listing Service in San Francisco in Districts 1-9.

Last 30 Days:

152 Single Family Homes sold after an average of 72 days on the market.

• Average Listing Price was $953,637
  
• Average Selling Price was $920,441

199 Condo/T.I.C/Loft sold after an average of 99 days on the market.

• Average Listing Price was $739,621
  
• Average Selling Price was $749,837

47 2-4 Unit Buildings sold after an average of 89 days on the market

• Average Listing Price was $1,025,222
• Average Selling Price was $1,007,157

Same 30 day period one year ago:

107 Single Family Homes sold after an average of 72 days on the market.

• Average Listing Price was $1,075,723
  
• Average Selling Price was $1,037,242

133 Condos/TIC/Lofts sold after an average of 105 days on the market.

• Average Listing Price was $715,045
  
• Average Selling Price was $695,233

25 2-4 Unit Buildings sold after an average of 82 days on the market.

• Average Listing Price was $1,161,988
• Average Selling Price was $1,135,120
  

The information is based on: A 3 bedroom 2 bath home of approximately 1824 square feet; a 2 bedroom 1.5 bathroom Condo of approximately 1,188 square feet; and a 2-4 unit building of approximately 2,810 square feet.

All data subject to ERRORS, OMISSIONS, or REVISIONS and is NOT WARRANTED. – Copyright: 2006 by San Francisco Assoc of REALTORS Copyright ^©2007 Rapattoni

Posted by:  Bill Wygant

It’s that time of year again!  June is the kick-off month for festival season in the Bay Area.  From Santa Rosa to Carmel, Half Moon Bay to Livermore there are scores of Art, Wine and Music festivals to be found.  Each one seems to have a distinct ambience and focus, but they all share in showcasing creative arts, crafts and music from far and wide.

Strolling the vendor booths, while enjoying a premium glass of wine, a cold microbrew or fresh squeezed lemonade, is a fun way to spend a summer afternoon.  Most festivals have free concerts, offering a variety of music and entertainment for the whole family.  And if you like to sample different foods, you are in the right place!  You can usually find B.B.Q sausages, kabobs, roasted corn and delicious fare from around the world.  I can never leave without a bag of warm kettle corn.

I have marked my calendar for a couple of favorites: The Los Altos Art and Wine is held the second weekend in July.  It is touted as the largest mid-summer event in the Bay Area.  It offers a juried show with contemporary fine art and one-of-a-kind crafts.  The Danville Fine Arts Faire is a wonderful East Bay event drawing some of the area’s finest artists.   Later in the summer,  I hope to visit  The Mountain View Art and Wine Festival, which also offers a tremendous variety of arts, crafts, music and of course great food.

Finding an Art Festival is very easy; there are dozens of sites that list upcoming events.

Posted by:  Tom Smyth

This is the Market Data handout I use in my open houses to help people understand the broad picture of the San Francisco market. In order to get enough data to present a meaningful snap-shot of the market, I use data taken from the San Francisco Multiple Listing Service for the nine areas of San Francisco I serve. I also use averages as opposed to median data, because I feel it is not only more accurate, but less influenced by the effect of short-sale and foreclosure transactions, of which there are fewer in San Francisco than in some other areas of California and the United States. In recent weeks I have seen the amount of inventory increase, the sales prices increase slightly and the days on market in all categories decrease. This is most likely a seasonal fluctuation as we enter the prime selling part of our year here in San Francisco.

San Francisco Market Data as of Sunday March 20, 2011

Presently there are 501 Single Family Homes, 1017 Condos/TIC/Lofts and 202 2-4 units listed for sale on the Multiple Listing Service in Districts 1-9 in San Francisco.

Last 30 Days:

197 Single Family Homes sold after an average of 58 days on the market.
~ Average Listing Price was $1,187,756
~ Average Selling Price was $1,212,927

287 Condo/T.I.C/Loft sold after an average of 74 days on the market.
~ Average Listing Price was $777,879
~ Average Selling Price was $761,840

34 2-4 Units sold after an average of 87 days on the marke
~ Average Listing Price was $1,348,116
~ Average Selling Price was $1,407,405

Same 30 day period 1 year ago

149 Single Family Homes sold after an average of 60 days on the market.
~ Average Listing Price was $1,113,321
~ Average Selling Price was $1,109,902

178 Condos/TIC/Lofts sold after an average of 66 days on the market.
~ Average Listing Price was $756,314
~ Average Selling Price was $740,178

29 2-4 units sold after an average of 101 days on the market
~ Average Listing Price was $1,135,772
~ Average Selling Price was $1,091,397

The information is based on:

A 3 bedroom 2 bath home of approximately 1,992 sq ft. and a 2 bedroom 1.5 bathroom Condo of approximately 1,183 sq ft and a 2-4 Unit Building of approximately 3,042 sq ft. All data subject to ERRORS, OMISSIONS, or REVISIONS and is NOT WARRANTED. – Copyright: 2006 by San Francisco Assoc of REALTORS Copyright ©2007 Rapattoni

Posted by:  Bill Wygant

San Francisco is re-instating its DALP Program August 1st. DALP stands for Down Payment Assistance Loan Program. It is a mortgage assistance program unique to San Francisco that helps first-time home buyers buy houses and condos. They do this by offering a second loan on the property with no interest or monthly payment. When the buyer sells their home the principal and interest on loan is repaid with a share of the appreciation.

This is a great loan program for entry level buyers with less than 20% down. The second loan the city program provides allows buyers to avoid mortgage insurance and keeps their payments more affordable since they are only paying a monthly payment on the 1st mortgage. Many times this type of arrangement works out to have the monthly payment being less than what people are currently paying for rent.

There are some guidelines and restrictions for this program. Please visit their website for more infomation.

This program typically runs out of funding pretty quickly. If you are in the market for a home in San Francisco and would like more information on this program and how the home buying process works please give me a call.

Posted by:  Bill Wygant

Below are some market statistics I regularly use when working with clients to help us get a picture of the market in San Francisco. What is surprising about this last 6-months compared to other years is the amount of property that is selling and the attractive pricing. This 6-month period does not show the successive price drops in the past several years when the average price of a 3-bedroom home was more in the neighborhood of $1,400,000 than $1,190,000. In recent months there also have been some substantial increases in inventories in all categories and many again at very attractive prices. In the last week there has also been a nice interest rate drop and conforming 30-year loans are available well below 5% with a 20% down payment. Attractive financing and pricing as well as substantial inventories make this a great time to look for a home in San Francisco. Please call me if I can help you.

San Francisco Market Data as of Sunday June 30, 2010

Currently there are 609 Single Family Homes and 1319 Condos/TIC/Lofts listed for sale on the Multiple Listing Service in Districts 1-9 in San Francisco.

Last 180 Days:

937 Single Family Homes sold after an average of 58 days on the market.

• Average Listing Price was $1,199,382
• Average Selling Price was $1,189,344

1223 Condo/T.I.C/Loft sold after an average of 74 days on the market.

• Average Listing Price was $763,484
• Average Selling Price was $753,080

Same 180 day period 1 year ago

645 Single Family Homes sold after an average of 62 days on the market.

• Average Listing Price was $1,161,767
• Average Selling Price was $1,141,317

777 Condos/TIC/Lofts sold after an average of 76 days on the market.

• Average Listing Price was $821,168
• Average Selling Price was $853,149

The information is based on:

A 3 bedroom 2 bath home of approximately 2,000 sq ft. and a 2 bedroom 1.5 bathroom Condo of approximately 1,200 sq ft.

All data subject to ERRORS, OMISSIONS, or REVISIONS and is NOT WARRANTED. – Copyright: 2006 by San Francisco Assoc of REALTORS Copyright © 2007 Rapattoni

Posted by:  Bill Wygant

I want the people I work with to know in writing the scope of services I’m committed to providing my clients looking for homes is San Francisco:

• Explain agency relationships in the State of California as required by state law.
• Outline the home buying process and provide a clear calendar timeline of the escrow process once your offer is accepted.
• Agree on a way of continuing our ongoing communications in a way that fits your lifestyle i.e. phone, e-mail, SMS.
• Review the costs involved in a home buying purchase.
• Using my experience help you create a picture of the property you are looking to call home.
• Provide a free home buying tool called Clean Offer that provides the most up to date information on properties available for sale in San Francisco as well as other utilities that will make your online home search more efficient.
• Make available a weekly market snapshot of San Francisco to show how home prices are trending on a city wide basis.
• Organize and coordinate property tours on your schedule whenever possible. I normally only show 5 properties at a time to allow you to absorb what you are seeing.
• Provide resources to obtain information about the area you are moving into, such as location of health studios, gyms, places to walk your dog, schools, or nearby recreational facilities.
• Help you write your offer to obtain the best possible price and terms.
• Use e-signatures and a secure transaction website for all paperwork when it meets your needs and preferences.
• Negotiate strongly for you as your representative on all offers. I present all offers to the seller if possible, something not all agents are comfortable doing.
• Read and review all documents, contracts, disclosures and inspection reports prior to asking you to sign them. Answer all of your questions about the property. In certain cases I may as a result refer you to other professionals to obtain a clear picture of the property you are purchasing.
• Schedule and attend all property inspections and appraisals.
• Monitor your loan approval process and advise you of your options.
• Accompany you on the property walk-through inspection prior to closing as provided in the contract.
• I provide all clients with a 1-year Home Warranty at close of escrow.

Posted By: Bill Wygant

Union Street runs east-west through the classically San Franciscan neighborhood of Cow Hollow. Rather than large chain stores, the street is full of small merchants who treat customers with the wonderful personal quality San Francisco is famous for and very familiar to people who live in the north part of the city.

Ricky Fishman has operated an integrative healing center there called ChiroMedica for over 20 years. He’s a widely regarded specialty chiropractor and has gathered around him a team of Acupuncturists, Massage Therapists and Medical Doctors all under one roof. The effect is a cutting edge personal healing practice that also reflects the intimate personal quality of the area it is located in.

Here’s just one of his Yelp reviews:

“Ricky comes highly recommended so I made an appointment and went to see him today. He’s a very skilled, informative, passionate and professional chiropractor who made my back feel better on the first visit. He asks good questions and is a very genuine guy. I recommend Ricky with enthusiasm!! Oh and a good location too.” Ally G. from San Rafael

Here’s a short YouTube Video where Ricky talks a bit about his work:

There’s some more information on him on his website too: RickyFishman.com

Here’s the google map show the location of his practice at 1700 Union St. in San Francisco.

Dr. Fishman is extending a 50% discount on an initial visit that includes a history, exam and first treatment if you mention my name, Bill Wygant, when making the appointment.

Posted By: Bill Wygant

A National Geographic article in 2006 talked about dogs in San Francisco’s Marina District having appointments with masseurs, acupuncturists, sitting on command to have their portraits taken and of course having their star charts read by their astrologers.

It was estimated that San Francisco at that time had 745,000 residents and 110,000 dogs packed into a 49 square mile area of land.

If you have just relocated to San Francisco and have a dog it is safe to say that San Francisco is still just as dog-friendly as it was in 2006. The North side of town made up of Pacific Heights, Cow Hollow and the Marina has several off-leash dog parks and dog play areas that may be of interest to you if you already have a dog, or plan on joining the crowd now that you are in town.

• Crissy Field – located at the end of Mason St in the Marina has 100 acres of walkable terrain that offers seacapes and also some unique views of this city by the bay at nearby Ft. Point.
  Note: California beach areas have some restricted access due to endangered species- click here for more information
• Mountain Lake Park – Located at 9th and Lake St.and built in 1875 by Willliam Howard Hall the architect of the Golden Gate Park, the dog walking area is located at the east end of the park. The park is home to small birds and ducks and at one time housed a white alligator someone once took for a walk there and left behind.
• Alta Plaza Park – a former rock quarry that was built in 1888. It is bordered by Clay St., Steiner, Jackson St and Scott St. and has 12 acres of dog walking area, public restrooms and is very popular with people who live in the area.
• Also located nearby, but not an off leash dog walking area is Lafayette Sq park that is popular with dog walkers. During some parts of the day in the tall Eucalyptus trees at the east end of the park you can find the famed “Parrots of Telegraph Hill” who were featured in a movie by Judy Irving, a well known San Francisco filmmaker.

On a sunny day in the Marina, Cow Hollow, or Pacific Heights you will find dog’s not only in the parks chasing frisbees, but also lounging in cafes along Union, Fillmore, or Chestnut street, because for a lot of San Franciscan’s dogs are really part of the family.

Posted By: Bill Wygant

The annual Easter parade festivities along Union St. will begin at 10 am on April 4th. The parade begins at 2 pm along Union St. between Gough and Fillmore. Besides the parade there will be live music, a petting zoo, outdoor dining, pony rides, vintage cars on display between 10 am and 4 pm. Awards for the best hat will be given out at 3:30 pm.

Many merchants along Union St. have special promotions during this time of year:

Jest Jewels – 1869 Union St., 415-563-8839: 30-70% off selected items. They sell an eclectic mix of jewlery and accessories. The Union St. store is one of 3 stores the owner Elenor Carpenter operates.

Lucy Active Wear – 1974 Union St, 415-292-6274: 30-50% off selected items. Lucy’s sells active wear that make women feel good about themselves while exercising. The store also offers FREE yoga classes the first Friday of every month.

Fog City Leather – 2060 Union St, 415-567-1996: 20-50% off selected items. Fog City sells handmade leather jackets. Many of the coats and leather accessories are made by Peter the owner in his Union St. store. Very unique products that can be personally tailored to the customer.

Bar None – 1980 Union St, 415-409-4469: on Thursday’s $2 Coronas and $1 Sliders. This is one of San Francisco’s world famous watering holes.

Posted By: Bill Wygant

Hot off the presses. Governor Schwarzenegger has signed new legislation for a new tax credit for California residents. Please spread to the word to anyone you know who could benefit from up to a $10,000 Tax Credit on their California State Taxes.

The credit is for up to $10,000 and is for both new AND existing homes. The California credit takes over May 1 right after the Federal Credit expires on April 30.

It’s similar to the state credit from last year but the budget has been doubled to $200,000,000. Last year’s budget of $100,000,000 was used up 8 months before its expiration so buyers should hurry and buy their home before the entire $200 Million is used up.

Click here for full details.

Posted By: Bill Wygant

This morning I was talking with Jennifer Marshall from First Capital Group Inc and she mentioned that the HARP (Home Affordable Refinance Program) had been extended until June 2011. Jennifer has used this program successfully over the last year to lower the interest rate for homeowners who have less than 20% equity in their property and subsequently unable to refinance their home loan. The HARP program is part of the Stimulus Recovery package and it allows a homeowner to refinance their loan up to 125% of the appraised value IF the current loan is a Fannie Mae, or Freddie Mac loan. Without this program homeowners were left with few options, most of which could lead to foreclosure and loss of their home. If you want to know if your loan is owned by Freddie, or Fannie, please call me 415-593-8622 and I can show you how to look it up.

Posted By: Bill Wygant

While shopping at the Marina Safeway near my home I talked with a recruiter for the U.S. Census Bureau looking for people to help with the 2010 Census. They had hoped to have 300 people signed up by the end of March. Currently they have only 30 people from the Pacific Heights area of San Francisco signed up to take these jobs that pay between $22-$25 an hour.

The census is of course essential to determine how federal monies are spent for many things that matter most to people including:

• Health Care
• Education
• Jobs
• Home ownership
• Community Safety
• Community Services
• Aid for children and seniors

So it is important that San Francisco be fully and accurately represented in the 2010 census. Perhaps if census taking is not your cup of tea you could pass this information along to someone else?

You can get more information at www.2010censusjobs.com or the toll-free hotline 1-866-861-2010.

Posted By: Bill Wygant

The easiest OPEN HOME guide around! No need to log onto any other site for your local open houses than our new website open.apr.com. Alain Pinel is one of the leading real estate firms in the Bay Area and as a market leader we have developed a one stop shopping Open Home Guide. This includes all open homes, not just from our firm. No need to look any further than the new Alain Pinel guide. Alain Pinel prides itself on their technology tools and this is just one more example of the dedication of our firm in helping all new, prospective and current homeowners.

Posted By: Celeste Pacelli

The 3rd quarter of this year showed that more than 70% of homes sold were considered to be affordable and therefore now is a good time to buy. The affordability of homes along with the $8000 home buyer tax credit helped to drive many home buyers into the market last quarter.

The President and Congress extended the original Nov. 30 deadline for the Federal tax credit which will continue to help stimulate the housing market. As reported by the National Association of Home Builders, a typical American family with the average median income could afford to buy 70.1% of all the homes sold in the U.S. during the 3rd quarter of this year which is quite a leap from the 56.1% in the third quarter of 2008.

So with the extension of the “new home buyer” tax credit of $8000 along with the $6500 “existing home buyer” tax credit, the outlook for continued affordability of homes is looking good. Now is the time to buy!

Posted By: Jeff Barnett

As a result of the number of my transactions I seem to be on everyone’s e-mail list for flyers and notices of status changes of properties in San Francisco. I began to think about what I could be doing with this flow of information and how it might work for my clients and others. Recently I began experimenting with forwarding price reductions of properties to my Twitter account. These price-tweets provide a quick, easy way to be notified of recent trends in the market. In fact I’ve begun encouraging agents to send this type of information to me to be forwarded as tweets. If you would like to receive this type of updated San Francisco price information you’re welcome to follow on my account billwygant at Twitter.

Posted By: Bill Wygant

Although a little windy it’s a beautiful day here in San Francisco.

Charlene Attard (415-608-8585 caattard@aol.com), on of our agents just finished giving our Alain Pinel office a tour of the Albion Castle, a very unique part of San Francisco. It was fun! How often do you get to tour a castle? With Parking!

Located at 881 Innes Drive in the Bayview section of the city, the Albion Castle is built over a natural spring that provides 200 gallons of fresh water daily. The property sits over several underground caves containing reservoirs. The quality of the spring water is pure enough that from 1895-1917 the Albion Ale and Porter company produced beer and ale and for a time also served as an early bed and breakfast inn.

Today the property, which is priced at $2.9 million waits for a new owner with a vision of what a very cool property could be. The access into the area on Evans Boulevard would certainly support tourist traffic coming for tours, or to sample a revitalized micro-brewery. A destination brew-pub, or B&B Inn might fit in well with future plans for a revitalized Candlestick.

Although Charlene has no plans to hold an open house, the underground caves would be a great place to tour on Halloween.

(Here’s a picture of Charlene with Tim Murray Vice-President and Regional Manager for Alain Pinel at the front of Albion Castle.)

Posted By: Bill Wygant

This week several areas of San Francisco real estate show relative gains in price and number of sales as compared to a year ago at the same time.

More Single Family Homes were sold this month and only at slightly lower prices. The San Francisco market saw increased Condo/TIC/Loft sales at about a 15% price discount. 2-4 unit sales also showed an increase in the number of sales and at a 15% gain compared year to year.

The one constant remains that days on market are faily long, mostly due to a more rigorous environment for obtaining financing.

San Francisco Market Data as of Sunday October 25, 2009

Currently there are 567 Single Family Homes, 1207 Condos/TIC/Lofts and 241 2-4-unit buildings listed for sale on the Multiple Listing Service in Districts 1-9 in San Francisco.

Last 30 Days:

225 Single Family Homes sold after an average of 56 days on the market.

• Average Listing Price was $1,104,332
• Average Selling Price was $1,158,747

283 Condo/T.I.C/Loft sold after an average of 84 days on the market.

• Average Listing Price was $731,285
• Average Selling Price was $727,276

48 2-4 Unit Buildings sold after an average of 88 days on the market

• Average Listing Price was $1,415,556
• Average Selling Price was $1,508,690

Same 30 day period 1 year ago:

135 Single Family Homes sold after an average of 48 days on the market.

• Average Listing Price was $1,151,614
• Average Selling Price was $1,164,114

182 Condos/TIC/Lofts sold after an average of 60 days on the market.

• Average Listing Price was $862,780
• Average Selling Price was $854,841

27 2-4 Unit Buildings sold after an average of 66 days on the market

• Average Listing Price was $1,307,111
• Average Selling Price was $1,307,926

The information is based on:
A 3 bedroom 2 bath home of approximately 1817 sq ft., a 2 bedroom 1.5 bathroom Condo of approximately 1,249 sq ft. and a 2-4 unit building of approximately 3,133 sq ft.

· All data subject to ERRORS, OMISSIONS, or REVISIONS and is NOT WARRANTED. – Copyright: 2006 by San Francisco Assoc of REALTORS Copyright ©2007 Rapattoni

Posted by: Bill Wygant

This last week I was working with a client getting ready to sell his large condo in Pacific Heights. Due to his particular tax situation he needs to have it close after the first of the year in 2010. Since he has no immediate time pressure to sell he was interested in what type of market indicators he could use to determine the optimal time to sell his condo. Would it be seasonal? Or when prices show an upward trend? Or he asked what would I as his agent, suggest? He knew that in other parts of California home sales were increasing. However I told him a lot of that type of data does not reflect very accurately the home sales activity in a high value area of town like Pacific Heights. Indeed in the past year there have been several months where there were no sales of condominiums in his price range in the north part of town. Most of the lack of sales activity appears to be due to the lack of available jumbo-loan financing. In fact most of the slowing in sales activity in the $1,500,000 to $2,000,000 price range all over San Francisco may be due to banks tightening underwriting standards for jumbo loans (+$729,750) and fewer banks making those kinds of loans. This is important to a seller in San Francisco where according to the California Assn of Realtors 41% of the property sales here required jumbo loans since it means that fewer buyers are qualified to purchase their higher value properties.

So I spent several hours thinking about his particular situation and the San Francisco market. And what I came up with was that if he was set on trying to time the market, which is not a very reliable strategy, and to answer his direct question, he should wait until we have several weeks of declining Days On Market figures in his property’s price range as shown on a city wide basis. I felt that of all the indicators I track on a weekly basis, the Days on Market are the most susceptible to being affected by the ability of a buyer to obtain a loan. When that number begins to decrease it will mean that more money is becoming available, or lending standards have been loosened for jumbo loans and a greater number of buyers will be able to purchase his property. I felt The Days On Market indicator would actually precede increasing sales prices or decreasing levels of inventory and using it as a market timing indicator would put his property on the market when there is an increasing supply of money for loans available and yet lower inventory to compete against for a sale. I actually have no idea if I’m technically correct, but since he has some time available anyway, he and I are watching the situation for a few weeks to see if we can develop any additional correlation as a way to add to his market knowledge. If you have other thoughts on the subject, I’d love to hear from you. You can email me at bwygant@apr.com.

San Francisco Market Data as of Sunday September 20, 2009

Currently there are 598 Single Family Homes, 1153 Condos/TIC/Lofts and 251 2-4-unit buildings listed for sale on the Multiple Listing Service in Districts 1-9 in San Francisco.

Last 30 Days:

182 Single Family Homes sold after an average of 55 days on the market

• Average Listing Price was $1,084,222
• Average Selling Price was $1,106,666

244 Condo/T.I.C/Loft sold after an average of 78 days on the market

• Average Listing Price was $805,492
• Average Selling Price was $827,817

41 2-4 Unit Buildings sold after an average of 82 days on the market

• Average Listing Price was $1,158,688
• Average Selling Price was $1,181,492

Same 30 day period 1 year ago

147 Single Family Homes sold after an average of 44 days on the market

• Average Listing Price was $1,217,269
• Average Selling Price was $1,221,873

195 Condos/TIC/Lofts sold after an average of 72 days on the market

• Average Listing Price was $803,165
• Average Selling Price was $781,123

36 2-4 Unit Buildings sold after an average of 71 days on the market

• Average Listing Price was $1,334,717
• Average Selling Price was $1,344,861

The information is based on:
A 3 bedroom 2 bath home of approximately 1795 sq ft., a 2 bedroom 1.5 bathroom Condo of approximately 1,306 sq ft. and a 2-4 unit building of approximately 3206 sq ft.

All data subject to ERRORS, OMISSIONS, or REVISIONS and is NOT WARRANTED. – Copyright: 2006 by San Francisco Assoc of REALTORS Copyright ©2007 Rapattoni

Posted By: Bill Wygant

For over a year I’ve kept my eye on a 4-unit building in the Mission District of San Francisco. It is located on a small street between two vibrant corridors of the area, Valencia St and Guerrero St. The present owner has always used a property management company, the rents for the one-bedroom apartments are near market-rate and the building is well maintained.

Several days ago the price dropped $175,000 to $875,000. This is a great buy! For one thing, one-bedroom units are great rentals for an investor because there is turnover in tenants, which in San Francisco with its rent control laws means that the property can produce an adequate return for someone to be able to buy and maintain the property properly. It is also located in an area of town in which people are looking for places to rent.

If an individual or partners put 30% down the monthly payment is $4,776. The building is producing $5,600 a month in income. The GRM for the property is 13, most smaller buildings in this area of town sell at GRMs below 14.

This will make a great initial investment for a real estate investor, or real estate investment partnership. Please call me if you would like more information.

Posted By: Bill Wygant

The first I had heard of Appraisal Management Companies (AMCs) was after reading an article in the July 5, 2009 Sunday San Francisco Chronicle, written by Kenneth Harney. As outlined in the article, AMCs are a by-product of the Home Valuation Code of Conduct and a New York lawsuit. Now appraisers are selected by AMCs rather than in the past being selected by mortgage companies, or loan officers. On the surface it seems that this might be a needed solution to preventing appraisals being unduly influenced by the loan industry in order to just get a deal done. However, it’s application in real life is more dramatic and personal and shows a need for Congress to make some additional changes.

When I read the article, I was representing a first-time home buyer in a purchase with a partner of a duplex in San Francisco. The lender was requiring an additional appriasal and we were sent an appraiser from Concord California, a city located approximately 25 miles to the north. The property was a remodeled duplex, or 2-unit building. The upper unit had a partial view of Stow Lake, one of the few on the block that had this amenity, it had 3 parking spaces. In San Francisco a parking space alone is worth $20,000 to $40,000. The appraiser used recent comparable sales that included a short sale that was unremodeled and in need of repair, a sale in which the selling agent had not taken a commission, and then added a further decrease in value for California being in a declining market. Not all areas of San Francisco reflect this decline. In San Francisco, duplexes can be entered into the fast-track condo lottery, which if successful can result in immediate equity increases if a condo permit is obtained. For this reason duplexes should sell at a premium related to other multi-unit sales.

The result of this appraisal is that it came in $50,000 lower than expected and was the one the lender used to determine funding for the loan. Since the appraiser had included the remark that California was in a declining market it resulted in a further decrement to the loan amount available to my client. Okay, so what’s the problem? Well both parties had to find other funds to complete the sale that they should not have had to do, since in all parties’ opinion the value was artificially low and the appraisal flawed. The buyers had to come up with additional money on short notice, since they were not able to borrow the amount the lender had initially promised. The seller had to lower their price, which affected how much a newly married couple were planning on spending on a new home purchase to start a life together in another city. Believe me, the effect is a lot more dramatic than this description when you see it up close with real people filling in the blank spaces. It also required that both agents communicate clearly to all parties what was happening to keep lines of communication open and the relationships strong.

During his visit to the property I asked the appraiser about the article I had read in the Chronicle. He said the AMCs had affected his business dramatically, in part because they took almost 1/2 his fee, so he was working harder to make the same money. He also said that no appraiser, if they wanted to continue working, wanted to be seen as providing over-valuations and were now more likely to provide an artificially low-ball value, which of course has some predictable results on the transaction.

The Chronicle’s summation was perhaps best: “Be aware of this issue because it affects your equity whether your buying, or selling. And watch to see if Congress fixes the problem.”

Posted By: Bill Wygant

I’ll be holding an open house at one of San Francisco’s smaller spaces this weekend. These small, typically 1 bedroom places offer a family helping a son or daughter through college, medical student, nurse, someone who works in the south bay but wants the amenities of a larger city, etc. a great lifestyle experience from a smaller space. Currently there are a number of these properties located near UCSF Medical Center, USF, Kaiser hospital, close to municipal transit and easy freeway access. Below is a video of where I’ll be on Sunday…or call me and I can arrange to show you a number of smaller, well priced properties in the city that are currently available.

Posted By: Bill Wygant

Each month I generate San Francisco market data that I publish in my free e-newsletter and also use in presentations to clients. I track the current average listing and sold prices of homes, condos and 2-4 unit buildings over a 30-day period to give a historical perspective and compare those prices to what they were a year ago. It gives a pretty good generalized picture of the market in San Francisco.

What develops over time is a backdrop snapshot of the market that can be focused when needed to a specific area of a town.

A problem develops when you attempt to focus the data because the MLS uses averaged data, which is accurate only when a large number of data plots are available. The alternative is to use median data. Many newspaper reports are generated using median data, which reflects the middle number of a set of values. The problem is that the outlying numbers in a series of sold prices could be the artificially lower prices of a foreclosure sale. This affects the result and in certain cases shows a much lower value that could give a false impression of current sale prices to a client.

So, if averaged data is inaccurate without enough data points and median data can be artificially affected by foreclosure sales, what do we do? Give up? Not so fast silly rabbit! What I do is use my monthly San Francisco sales data figures as the background for what the larger market is doing. Then when I price a home in say Pacific Heights, I use the same procedure, but if I find I don’t have enough sales or data points, then I actually use a median figure, or the middle value in the set of recent sold prices. To verify the generalized picture, I then search for a recent comparable Sold property, as a true test of the figures I come up with for a client.

Here is the current monthly data I will be using in this month’s newsletter. You can always receive it for Free by going to my website BillWygant.com and signing up.

San Francisco Market Data as of Monday August 31, 2009

Currently there are 494 Single Family Homes, 1059 Condos/TIC/Lofts and 236 2-4-unit buildings listed for sale on the Multiple Listing Service in Districts 1-9 in San Francisco.

Last 30 Days:

195 Single Family Homes sold after an average of 58 days on the market

• Average Listing Price was $1,013,236
• Average Selling Price was $1,070,768

257 Condo/T.I.C/Loft sold after an average of 87 days on the market

• Average Listing Price was $835,433
• Average Selling Price was $825,310

44 2-4 Unit Buildings sold after an average of 75 days on the market

• Average Listing Price was $1,065,085
• Average Selling Price was $1,065,429

Same 30-day period 1 year ago:

161 Single Family Homes sold after an average of 52 days on the market

• Average Listing Price was $1,273,806
• Average Selling Price was $1,273,231

219 Condos/TIC/Lofts sold after an average of 68 days on the market

• Average Listing Price was $819,242
• Average Selling Price was $819,273

35 2-4 Unit Buildings sold after an average of 61 days on the market

• Average Listing Price was $1,494,363
• Average Selling Price was $1,469,986

The information is based on: A 3 bedroom 2 bath home of approximately 1761 sq ft., a 2 bedroom 1.5 bathroom Condo of approximately 1,265 sq ft. and a 2-4 unit building of approximately 2,928 sq ft.

• All data subject to ERRORS, OMISSIONS, or REVISIONS and is NOT WARRANTED. – Copyright: 2006 by San Francisco Assoc of REALTORS Copyright©2007 Rapattoni

Posted By: Bill Wygant

Buyers looking to purchase a home in San Francisco in the $500,000-$650,000 range can have a difficult time finding a suitable property. Not only is there a lot of competition in this price range, but even a 2 bedroom, 2 bath condo with parking in most sections of town can be in the $750,000 price range-even in this market.

One strategy I’ve used successfully with several buyers recently is to have 2 people get together and buy a duplex, or what we call in the city a 2-unit building. Generally I am looking for two partners who are pretty much at the same stage in life, have a desire to own their own home in a cost effective manner.

Let’s look at the advantages.

• Buildings can often be purchased using an FHA loan with as little as 3 ½ % down.

• 2-unit buildings are eligible for inclusion in the Fast Track Condo conversion process, which provides immediate equity appreciation upon completing the city condo process.

• Currently there’s a nice supply of these type properties in the city providing a cost effective way for purchasing a 2 bedroom, approximately 1,000 sq ft place with parking in San Francisco for between $500,000-$650,000.

Here’s just one example:

Right now there is a 2-unit property on the market located in the Inner Richmond. It is near Golden Gate Park, the beach and other recreation areas, close to good shopping and dining. The building has been extensively remodeled, newer kitchens, plumbing, electrical systems. Each space has 3 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, parking, nice back yard. These are large spaces in a good neighborhood. One of the unique features of this property is that each space has 2 master suites. The top unit should sell for around $650,000 and the bottom unit for $625,000.

If you have any questions about using this perspective to acquire a place to live in San Francisco, you can send me an e-mail and I’ll provide a prompt answer.

Posted By: Bill Wygant

The City of San Mateo, ideally located between San Francisco and Silicon Valley, is experiencing a robust real estate market according to Ron Gable, Manager of Alain Pinel’s San Mateo office. A large percentage of first time home buyers are finding homes in the $400,000 – $500,000 price range which was unheard of in the past in this area. A mild climate all year round, access to transportation and shopping and highly rated schools, make San Mateo a great place to live.

For more information about San Mateo watch this video and also go to APR.com.

Posted By: Michi Olson

Bill Lewis, Manager of the Los Altos office discusses the Los Altos real estate market. Los Altos sits about 40 miles south of San Francisco, in the heart of the Silicon Valley. Bill discusses how the market is gaining in activity with multiple offers on homes under a $1 million. Lewis says highest pending sales in May since August of last year.

Watch the video below to find out why it is a great time to buy in Los Altos. Also for more information visit: APR.com.

Posted By: Michi Olson

Larry Knapp, President and COO of Alain Pinel Realtors, discusses the San Francisco Real Estate market and whether it is a good time to purchase a home. Larry discusses how the Bay area has several different markets with homes ranging in price from the very expensive luxury homes to mid price homes. Watch the video below to learn why Larry thinks it’s a good time to buy:

If you are relocating to the San Francisco area and need help, please feel free to contact me at michi@apr.com or 925-935-1271.

Posted By: Michi Olson

The city of San Francisco is famous for many things; the Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz, the NFL’s San Francisco 49ers, cable cars, and Chinatown—to name just a few. More than 15 million tourists from all over the world flock to the city every year, making it one of America’s most popular vacation destinations.

But because there are so many wonderful things to see and do in San Francisco, people often find that a short one week vacation in the city is just not enough, and they start to look at all the beautiful San Francisco Bay-side homes or condos with serious intent to buy. Although there are many reasons to relocate to San Francisco, one aspect of the city that allures home buyers from all over the world is its collection of stylish, one-of-a-kind neighborhoods. From charming Victorian historic districts to modern cosmopolitan locales, the City by the Bay offers a scene for every lifestyle. For this reason, the search for homes in San Francisco can be an exciting adventure, a true exploration into what makes the city a great place to live.

Boasting more than 40 unique neighborhoods, 11 historic districts, and a population of over 800,000 people, San Francisco is a veritable melting pot of cultures, sights, and sounds. Here are a few of the city’s most beloved areas, and what they are known for:

SoMa
The vibrant district referred to as SoMa (“South of Market”) is a treasure trove for homebuyers looking for converted warehouse lofts in San Francisco. A contradiction of sorts, this neighborhood is home to the headquarters of several major software and technology companies such as Wired, CNET Networks, and Advent Software, boasts a variety of trendy, modern nightclubs, and yet also has a softer side with an artsy Bohemian atmosphere. One of San Francisco’s major attractions—the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art—is located in SoMa, as well as the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts and a collection of smaller museums and performing arts theaters.

Nob Hill
Nob Hill, a neighborhood adjacent to Downtown and the San Francisco Financial District, has its roots in the city’s wealthy Gold Rush heritage as the residence of 19th century railroad tycoons and entrepreneurs who wanted to distance themselves from the vulgar waterfront. Today Nob Hill continues to maintain an air of urban luxury, backed by the grand historic hotels and buildings that surround Huntington Park, such as the Fairmont Hotel and the Flood Mansion. Other notable landmarks in Nob Hill that contribute to its prestige are the Grace Cathedral, modeled after the Notre Dame in Paris, the architecturally fascinating Nob Hill Masonic Center, and Huntington Park’s “Fountain of the Tortoises,” a replica of one in Rome.

Pacific Heights
The Pacific Heights neighborhood, located adjacent to the San Francisco Presidio, is enjoyed by visitors and locals alike for its clear, sweeping views of the Bay and the Golden Gate Bridge. The neighborhood offers some of the most beautiful parks and recreation facilities in the city, as well as sophisticated shopping and dining along Fillmore Street. Homes in Pacific Heights range from ultra-sleek condominiums to elegant, Victorian mansions that have garnered Hollywood’s attention for decades.

Haight-Ashbury
Haight-Ashbury is one of San Francisco’s most famous neighborhoods due to its role during the 1960’s as a center for hippie culture. Although the area has undergone many changes throughout the decades, the intersection of Haight-Ashbury continues to radiate the feelings of peace and love through the windows and doors of its independently owned restaurants, cafes, head shops and boutiques, including The Booksmith (now Haight Booksmith LLC) and Amoeba Music, which are iconic cultural hubs even today. The neighborhood’s casual atmosphere and overall humankind-ness attracts many newcomers who are seeking the classic San Francisco experience. Additional perks, such as the 36-acre Buena Vista Park, the postcard-perfect row of Painted Lady Victorian homes at Alamo Square, and the annual Haight-Ashbury Street Fair just make it that much easier to call Haight-Ashbury home. Real estate in Haight-Ashbury largely consists of beautiful Victorian and Edwardian row houses, detached single family homes, as well as renovated condominiums and lofts with charming architectural details.