Marin Real Estate Sales Statistics

Trends at a Glance
(Single-family Homes)
	Jan 09	Dec 08	Jan 08
Median Price:	$765,000	$697,000	$1,050,000
Average Price:	$874,786	$1,078,094	$1,456,780
Home Sales:	69	91	81
Sale/List Price Ratio:	94.9%	91.0%	95.4%
Days on Market:	106	103	97

If you would like to see all of the recent home sales (by address) in Marin my Real Estate company (Vision Real Estate) publishes these here: http://westbayre.com/frame_main.htm

Sales of single-family, re-sale homes fell for the sixth month in a row in January. The 69 homes sold are the lowest monthly total since we've been keeping track: January 1998. Year-over-year, sales were off 14.8%. That's seventeen out of the last eighteen months home sales have been lower than the year before.

After dropping below $700,000 in December, the median price for single-family, re-sale homes bounced back in January, rising 9.8%. Year-over-year, the median price is down 27.1%.

Condo sales were up 118.8% year-over-year. The median price for condos in Marin County fell 24.7% from December, a drop of 62.1% compared to January 2008.

The analysis of sales by city gives an indication of the direction of the market and the current state of affairs. The average price of a home in Marin fell 38.6 % from Jan 08 to Jan 09. In addition, the total number of homes sold for the month of January fell 15.7% as compared to the same month a year ago.

In some cities the number of homes sold are very low for the month of January so take into account those small numbers when looking at the percentage changes and the average sale price change. Once thing to note is the total number of units being marketed as compared to the total number under contract.

At the end of January we were at 20.2 % in contract which by itself is not a bad number. When you look at that by city you see a trend where the number of homes under contract in cities that have a high average sale price is much lower than the average ( Belvedere at .008%, Mill valley at 15.7%, Corte Madera at 15.7%, etc).

It is also interesting to take a look at the average list price. Those prices as compared to the average sale price are very high. The average list price of a home in Marin at the end of January was $1,544,280. The average sale price of all homes sold in January was $868,360. This tells you that the lower priced homes are moving, especially those that are in a distressed condition.

Here is a recap by city to make your review a bit easier:

	Average Sale Price			Number of Units Sold			Number of Active Units	Number of Pending Units	Average List Price
City	Jan 08	Jan 09	Change	Jan-08	Jan 09	Variance	Jan 09	Jan 09	Jan 09
Belvedere	$3,578,950	$2,375,000	-33.6%	1	1	0.0%	23	1	$5,699,000
Corte Madera	$850,000	$941,667	10.8%	2	3	50.0%	19	3	$1,260,180
Fairfax	$643,500	$540,000	-16.1%	4	1	-75.0%	33	4	$855,538
Greenbrae	$1,922,500	$956,333	-50.3%	2	3	50.0%	12	4	$1,155,425
Kentfield	$1,045,000	NA	NA	2	0	-100.0%	24	6	$2,626,500
Larkspur	$1,929,500	$817,750	-57.6%	2	2	0.0%	25	5	$1,322,326
Mill Valley	$1,494,396	$986,967	-34.0%	13	12	-7.7%	89	14	$1,505,956
Novato	$703,643	$621,558	-11.7%	14	21	50.0%	208	68	$757,949
Ross	$2,200,000	$1,997,500	-9.2%	2	4	100.0%	13	3	$4,255,588
San Anselmo	$1,251,086	$754,950	-39.7%	9	2	-77.8%	63	15	$1,202,952
San Rafael	$1,438,000	$662,806	-53.9%	15	18	20.0%	170	40	$993,068
Sausalito	$1,815,340	$1,550,000	-14.6%	5	1	-80.0%	22	0	$2,711,130
Tiburon	$4,515,000	$2,175,000	-51.8%	4	1	-75.0%	66	6	$4,197,700
ALL MARIN	$1,414,135	$868,360	-38.6%	83	70	-15.7%	846	171	$1,544,280

The sales price to list price ratio for homes gained 3.9 points to 94.9%, while days on market dropped 22 days to 69 days.

Complete monthly sales statistics for Marin County are below. Monthly graphs are available for each city in the county.

January Sales Statistics
(Single-family Homes)
	Prices		Unit				Change from last year
	Median	Average	Sales	DOM	SP/OLP	SP/LP	Median	Average	Sales
Marin	$765,000	$874,786	69	106	86.0%	94.9%	-27.1%	-40.0%	-14.8%
Belvedere	$2,375,000	$2,375,000	1	134	79.3%	93.1%	-100.0%	-100.0%	-100.0%
Corte Madera	$975,000	$941,667	3	79	90.0%	97.0%	-100.0%	-100.0%	-100.0%
Fairfax	$540,000	$540,000	1	222	73.7%	91.7%	-6.3%	-16.3%	-30.0%
Greenbrae	$899,000	$956,333	3	120	86.3%	99.8%	-53.2%	-50.3%	50.0%
Kentfield	-	-	-	-	-	-	n/a	n/a	n/a
Larkspur	$817,750	$817,750	2	200	66.8%	93.5%	-57.6%	-57.6%	0.0%
Mill Valley	$812,500	$986,967	12	138	82.5%	93.8%	-35.3%	-34.0%	-7.7%
Novato	$581,000	$631,386	20	104	89.1%	95.5%	-8.8%	-8.0%	66.7%
Ross	$1,882,500	$1,997,500	4	30	92.2%	94.9%	-14.4%	-9.2%	100.0%
San Anselmo	$754,950	$754,950	2	83	91.6%	97.5%	-24.5%	-39.7%	-77.8%
San Rafael	$694,250	$662,806	18	88	90.5%	95.4%	-22.9%	-53.9%	20.0%
Sausalito	$1,550,000	$1,550,000	1	249	57.5%	81.8%	-16.2%	-14.6%	-80.0%
Tiburon	$2,175,000	$2,175,000	1	68	91.6%	96.7%	-21.8%	-51.8%	-75.0%

SP/LP = Sales price divided by the listing price at the time of sale

SP/OLP =Sales price divided by the price for which the property was originally listed

January Sales Statistics
(Condos/Townhomes)
	Prices		Unit				Change from last year
	Median	Average	Sales	DOM	SP/OLP	SP/LP	Median	Average	Sales
Marin	$232,000	$279,246	35	96	93.6%	100.3%	-62.1%	-60.7%	118.8%
Corte Madera	$670,000	$670,000	1	9	100.0%	100.0%	n/a	n/a	n/a
Greenbrae	-	-	-	-	-	-	n/a	n/a	n/a
Mill Valley	-	-	-	-	-	-	n/a	n/a	n/a
Novato	$265,000	$262,521	13	105	94.9%	101.2%	-39.1%	-49.0%	333.3%
San Rafael	$185,875	$213,991	18	96	90.2%	100.1%	-63.2%	-56.3%	200.0%
Sausalito	$492,000	$492,000	2	63	95.2%	99.5%	n/a	n/a	n/a
Tiburon	$855,000	$855,000	1	138	98.3%	98.3%	-46.7%	-46.7%	-50.0%

Below you will find a break down by city and price range of how many homes are in contract compared to how many homes are listed. Overall Marin is in a “Buyers Market” category, but this is a bit misleading. The very low end of the market is actually close to a “Strong Sellers” market, which tips the overall averages. I think if you took out the low end of the market (condo sales) the market would be in an overall “Strong Buyers” market. We are seeing more homes being put on the market every week, and unless the number of houses going into escrow increases, the market will tip even stronger into the Strong/Extreme Buyer’s Market categories.

MARIN HOME (CONDO + SFR) SALES STATISTICS - BY CITY AS OF 2/18/2009
City	Total	Active	Number in Contract***	Percent in Contract*	Type of Market* (See Key)
Belvedere	24	21	3	13	Strong Buyers
Corte Madera	33	30	3	9	Extreme Buyers
Fairfax	34	30	4	12	Strong Buyers
Greenbrae	17	16	1	6	Extreme Buyers
Kentfield	27	20	7	26	Buyers
Larkspur	27	23	4	15	Strong Buyers
Mill Valley	106	89	17	16	Strong Buyers
Novato	296	189	107	36	Sellers
Ross	15	12	3	20	Strong Buyers
San Anselmo	73	56	17	23	Buyers
San Rafael	285	201	84	29	Buyers
Sausalito	44	43	1	2	Extreme Buyers
Tiburon	82	74	8	10	Extreme Buyers
Others	73	66	7	10	Extreme Buyers
Total Marin 2/18/09	1136	870	266	23.42	Buyers
Total Marin 1/22/09	1037	819	218	21.02%	Buyers
Total Marin 1/22/08	1037	819	218	21.02%	Buyers
Total Marin11/24/08	1244	965	279	22.43%	Buyers
Total Marin10/29/08	1377	1096	281	20.41%	Strong Buyers
Total Marin 6/16/08	1586	1220	366	23.08%	Buyers
Total Marin 5/21//08	1582	1226	356	22.50%	Buyers
Total Marin 4/15/08	1375	1085	290	21.09%	Buyers
Total Marin 3/16/08	1157	913	244	21.09%	Buyers
Total Marin 2/18/08	949	742	207	21.81%	Buyers
Total Marin 1/17/08	802	674	128	15.96%	Strong Buyers
Total Marin 12/18/07	932	757	175	18.78%	Strong Buyers
Total Marin 11/17/07	1,146	904	242	21.12%	Buyers

MARIN HOME SALES STATISTICS - BY PRICE RANGE AS OF 2/18/09
Price	Total	Active	Number in Contract***	Percent in Contract*	Type of Market* (See Key)
$100,000-$499,999	288	163	125	43	Sellers
$500,000-$749,999	269	201	68	25	Buyers
$750,000-$999,999	181	149	32	18	Strong Buyers
$1,000,000-$1,499,999	157	135	22	14	Strong Buyers
$1,500,000-$1,999,999	76	69	7	9	Extreme Buyers
$2,000,000-$2,499,999	54	51	3	6	Extreme Buyers
$2,500,000-$2,999,999	33	31	2	6	Extreme Buyers
$3,000,000-$3,999,999	31	27	4	13	Strong Buyers
Over $4,000,000	44	42	2	5	Extreme Buyers
Total Marin 2/18/09	1133	868	265	23	Buyers

Key to market type:*
0% - 10% of Homes in Escrow: Extreme Buyers	36% - 45% of Homes in Escrow: Sellers
11% - 20% of Homes in Escrow: Strong Buyers	46% - 55% of Homes in Escrow: Strong Sellers
21% - 30% of Homes in Escrow: Buyers	56% - 100% of Homes in Escrow: Extreme Sellers
31% - 35% of Homes in Escrow: Balanced Market

**Based on information from Bay Area Real Estate Information Services, Inc. (BAREIS). Information has not been verified, is not guaranteed, and is subject to change and is based on one period of time.”

***Includes all: Sale Pending & Contingent properties

The real estate market is very hard to generalize. It is a market made up of many micro markets. For complete information on a particular neighborhood or for an evaluation of your home's worth, call me. If I can help you devise a strategy, call or click the buying or selling link in the menu to the top.

If you know of anyone who would like to receive this monthly newsletter or is thinking of either buying or selling a home please let me know. I’d love your referrals!

FREE…..You can search for Marin listings directly on BayAreaRealEstateSales.com: Search for Homes

STIMULUS PACKAGE UPDATE – HOW WILL IT AFFECT THE HOUSING MARKET?

James Liptak, 2009 President, CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®

On February 18^th, 2009, President Obama unveiled the Homeowner Affordability and Stability Plan, which will offer assistance to as many as 9 million homeowners, while attempting to prevent the destructive impact of foreclosures on families and communities.

The plan contains three main components, and only applies to primary residences. The loans referenced in the plan cannot exceed Freddie Mac/Fannie Mae conforming loan limits. I’ve outlined the plan in greater detail below.

The first component is directed toward homeowners suffering from falling housing prices who still have equity in their homes, but no longer have the 20 percent equity needed to refinance. Under the plan, homeowners who have conforming loans owned or guaranteed by Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae will be allowed to refinance their homes, even if they do not have 20 percent equity left in the house. The U.S. Treasury Dept. estimates that about 5 million homeowners will be helped by this portion of the program.

The second component, known as the Homeowner Stability Initiative, is designed to assist homeowners who are “underwater” on their mortgages. The $75 billion initiative will bring together lenders, servicers, and the government so that all stakeholders share in the cost of the modification. Primary mortgages would be reduced to monthly payments that do not exceed a 38 percent debt-to-income ratio, with the costs of doing so borne by the lender. The government and lender then would split the costs of further reducing the monthly payments until they were at a 31 percent debt-to income ratio. An important aspect of the initiative is that homeowners do not have to be delinquent to participate.

The Homeowner Stability Initiative also will create incentives for servicers, mortgage holders, and homeowners. Servicers would receive an up-front fee of $1,000 for every eligible modification meeting the initiative’s guidelines. Guidelines are scheduled to be released by March 4. Mortgage holders will receive an incentive payment of $1,500, and servicers $500, for modifications made on loans that are current but at risk of imminent default.

The final aspect of the Homeowner Stability Initiative is creating clear and consistent guidelines for loan modifications. The Obama Administration plans to work with federal agencies, banking and credit union regulators, and the private sector in order to develop loan modification guidelines that can be implemented across the entire mortgage market. While adoption of the guidelines will be voluntary for the private sector, all financial institutions receiving Financial Stability Plan assistance going forward will be required to implement the loan modification guidelines.

The government estimates that between 3 and 4 million homeowners will benefit from the Homeowner Stability Initiative component of the plan.

The third component of The Homeowner Affordability and Stability Plan is supporting low mortgage rates by strengthening Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The Treasury Dept. plans to increase their Preferred Stock Purchase Agreements with both Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac from its current $100 billion in both entities to $200 billion in each. The Treasury Dept. also will continue to purchase Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac mortgage-back securities in order to help promote stability and liquidity in the marketplace. Additionally, the Treasury Dept. will increase Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s portfolios by $50 billion, for a total of $900 billion. The Obama Administration will work with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to support state housing finance agencies in serving home buyers, such as CalHFA. Funding for this will not come from TARP money but from the Housing and Economic Recovery Act.

While some of the details still are being developed, such as the modification guidelines, the Obama Administration plans on using programs and funding already allocated for The Homeowner Affordability and Stability Plan and will need little legislative approval for programs under the plan.

Here is a great article by CNN Money.com

Obama - Aid to 9 Million Homeowners

STATE BUDGET SENT TO GOVERNOR TODAY

James Liptak, 2009 President
CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®

February 19, 2009 - Following several months of debate and delays, our state representatives in Sacramento delivered a 2009-2010 budget to Governor Schwarzenegger today. The governor is expected to sign the budget as presented. Although details are sketchy, the budget appears to raise existing sales tax levels by 1 percent, and places a 0.25-percent income tax increase across the board. Under provisions included in the new budget, the vehicle license fee will increase from 0.65 percent to 1.15 percent of a vehicle’s value.

The budget also includes: a tax credit (equal to the lesser of 5 percent of the purchase price, or $10,000) for the purchase of a single-family residence that has never been occupied, as a principal residence, between March 1, 2009, and March 1, 2010; and a 90-day additional delay in foreclosure sales, intended to force lenders to implement a proactive workout program that rewrites loans in default.

The state budget package also includes a limit on future spending as a trade-off for new taxes; this would have to be approved by voters in a statewide ballot at a special election on May 19. This approach also contemplates $5.5 billion in short-term loans and voter approval of a plan to borrow $5 billion this year against future lottery revenues at the same statewide ballot election.

Fearful that special interests may try to derail the effort at the ballot box, a provision has been included in the budget to extend the major new taxes by one to three years if the spending cap is approved by the voters. Voters also would have to approve some shifting of existing special funds for mental health services and child development programs to help balance the budget.

Should California receive more than $9.2 billion in federal aid, the income tax increase would fall from 0.25 percent to 0.125 percent, and $950 million in planned spending cuts to several programs, including in-home care and Medi-Cal, would be eliminated.

At the demand of Senator Maldonado (R-Santa Maria) -- who cast the final vote needed to pass the budget -- three additional propositions will be placed before the voters. If approved, these would institute an open primary system, prevent legislators from getting paid if the budget is not passed on time, and will stop salary increases to legislators if the state is operating in the red.

Although both the process and the result have left a lot to be desired, having a balanced budget in place is critical for our state in these challenging times. Our Sacramento staff and our member volunteers will continue to monitor, advocate, and report on the actions of our elected representatives in Sacramento. We’ll keep you apprised of additional information as it becomes available.

Read the story from the SF Chronicle:

WHAT DID YOUR NEIGHBORS’ HOUSE SELL FOR?

Are you Curious to know what the Median home price is in your neighborhood?

The Neighborhood Homes Sold listing is a weekly reader feature of the Sunday San Francisco Chronicle. The data posted here is typically recorded a few months after the property officially sold. This is the public data available in the published tax records. The home addresses, sales price, number of bedrooms, square footage and the year the homes were built are based on information supplied from Bay Area counties' property transaction records which, in some cases, may not be complete.
Previous editions of Neighborhood Homes Sold

Click on the following links to see what price homes sold for in your neighborhood:

Feb 15 Marin Home Sales (not ready at newsletter release date)

Feb 8 Marin Home Sales

Feb 2 Marin Home Sales

Jan 25 Marin Home Sales

I can also send you a link to view ALL of the current and past home sales in Marin. I am not allowed to publish this data publicly, so you’ll have to email me and I’ll send you the link. Just click here to send me an email automatically: email

SEARCH THE MARIN MULTIPLE LISTING SERVICE

The following links will take you to home searches for different cities in Marin.
All search results are displayed from the highest price to the lowest price. You can scroll through pages at a time.

Belvedere homes for sale: Belvedere Homes For Sale
Corte Madera homes for sale: Corte Madera Homes For Sale
Fairfax homes for Sale: Fairfax Homes For Sale
Greenbrae homes for sale: Greenbrae Homes For Sale
Kentfield homes for sale: Kentfield Homes For Sale
Larkspur homes for sale: Larkspur Homes For Sale
Mill Valley homes for sale: Mill Valley Homes For Sale

Mill Valley condos for sale: Mill Valley Condos For Sale
Novato homes for Sale: Novato Homes For Sale

Novato Condos for Sale: Novato Condos
Ross homes for sale: Ross Homes For Sale
San Anselmo homes for sale: San Anselmo Homes For Sale
San Rafael HOMES for sale: San Rafael Homes For Sale
San Rafael CONDOS for sale: San Rafael Condos For Sale
Sausalito homes for sale: Sausalito Homes For Sale
Tiburon homes for sale: Tiburon Homes For Sale

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THE BAY AREA REAL ESTATE NEWSLETTER IS PROVIDED TO YOU BY:

If you would like to have Liz help you sell your Marin home or help you find a home, or you know of someone that could benefit from her services, just send her an email: liz@BayAreaRealEstateSales.com or give her a call: 415-250-4929

“High-Touch through High-Tech”: Did you know that Liz McCarthy is ePro Internet Certified by the National Association of Realtors and that 70 percent of home buyers today use the internet in their home search? Why are you still working with a Realtor who isn’t a technology expert?

What this means to you:

Home Buyers: Liz is an expert in helping save you time by using the internet, email and other technology resources to help save your valuable time and money. She knows how busy you are!

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FREE…..You can search for Marin listings directly on BayAreaRealEstateSales.com: Search for Homes

Be sure to check out all the other great content & features of my website:

www.BayAreaRealEstateSales.com

Liz McCarthy

“High-Touch through “High-Tech”

Real Estate Broker, e-PRO certified

Vision Real Estate

Liz@BayAreaRealEstateSales.com

415-250-4929

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