Hello My Favorite People:Yesterday, our ‘brain trust’ of Realtors at Paragon met again to discuss market conditions and review sales statistics. We also talked about the market anecdotally, and discussed “what’s hot and what’s not.” Here’s a recap:

As always, location is everything. Buyers are more aware of where a property is located now. In San Francisco, with its tiny micro-neighborhoods, this means that identical properties just a block away from each other can be worth significantly different amounts. This is different from how the market was last summer when appreciation covered a multitude of sins and buyers were much less location-sensitive.

Buyers are now less willing to overlook a property’s ‘warts and pimples.’ This means that Sellers and Realtors have to start thinking out of the box when dealing with a property’s awkward floor plan, or drawbacks like a lack of parking or view. To broaden the market for their home, some Sellers might want to set up their home office or play room as a third or fourth bedroom. Staging is also more important as properties compete with one another for the buyers’ attention.

Segments of the market that remain strong—the 11 neighborhoods of District 5 - Buena Vista, Corona Heights, Clarendon Heights, Duboce Triangle, Eureka Valley/Dolores Heights, Glen Park, Haight Ashbury, Mission Dolores, Noe Valley, Parnassus/Ashbury Heights, and Twin Peaks.

Also selling briskly are big homes in yummy neighborhoods, like Presidio Heights or the Marina District. So are condos in premium buildings on Nob Hill and other North side neighborhoods.

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One issue of concern is the new “Peskin Amendments” passed by the Board of Supervisors last month. This new law prohibits condominium conversion for buildings with more than one owner eviction and for buildings which have Ellis evictions. Buildings that can’t be converted to condos may become less valuable as a result. The full text of the legislation is on my website at www.sfrealestatebuzz.com.

This new challenge to home ownership in the City is an interesting twist. I have some very definite opinions about how I think the market will respond to this new legislation. Please call me if you want to pick my brain on this topic or anything else real estate-related.

(Getting ready to sell? I have a stellar list of trade people who can do everything from hauling and heating, to windows and waterproofing. Just call me for a recommendation!) And remember, there’s no such think as a stupid real estate question!

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Hello My Favorite People!Every two weeks Paragon does a market review of how much inventory has moved. Here is what has sold in the past two weeks and for how much:

27 Single Family Home Sales:
6 sold for over the listing price
15 sold for below
6 went right at asking.

105 Condominium Sales:
58 went for over asking
30 went for a shade below
17 sold right at asking.

24 Residential Income Sales (2-4 Units):
17 for over the asking price
6 for under
1 right at the asking price.

My plan is to deliver this data every two weeks as it becomes available. Please call me if these stats provoke questions. I’ll answer them as best I can.

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