(Writing this from Prague, possibly one of the most beautiful cities in Europe.) Our mid-year report is out and it reflects nothing less than a sizzling seller’s market for single family homes, one that has re-ignited after something of a two-year lull — if that’s the word for a market that’s “only” been increasing by 6 to 7 percent per year.
Year to date, median prices for single family homes have increased by 14.5% over 2017. The median price is now $1.62 million (see next two charts). ...
A report by the U.S. Geological Survey includes a list of buildings that are potentially vulnerable to a large quake. Some of San Francisco’s most prominent high rises are on the list.
This modest 2 BR/1 BA Glen Park home, a mere 1,030 SF per tax records, listed in late March for $1.295 million and sold four days later for a whopping $2.105 million. Lovely garden and pleasant views, but no easy means of expansion and on a street that can be challenging. My jaw dropped when I read the sale price. No wonder it made the news.
“49 % of Bay Area residents were looking to move out.”
Business Insider
“San Francisco is such a boomtown that people are leaving in droves.”
Wall Street Journal
“Silicon Valley is over…. In the last three months of 2017, San Francisco lost more residents to outward migration than any other city in the country.”
New York Times
“San Francisco is so expensive that more people are leaving than moving in – and it could mean disaster for the nation’s tech capital.”
SFGate
As our oft-quoted Chief Market Analyst, Patrick Carlisle, says in his recent report, “That sounds really bad.” It turns out that the sensational headline stories quoted above were largely based on questionable and selective data and then amplified in the media in the ways that we’ve all become accustomed to. This month, I’m reposting an abbreviated version of Patrick’s report. The bottom line: if everyone’s leaving the Bay Area in droves, you’d think it would be showing up in real estate prices. It’s not – on the contrary, Bay Area prices, including San Francisco, continue to hit new highs. Read on! ...
We all know about Millennium Tower’s 14″ lean, but did you know that California’s building code standards for a five story building are the same as those for a fifty story sky-scraper? That’s according to today’s front page New York Times article about the city’s downtown sky-scraper boom, the most visible emblem of which is the 1070′ tall Salesforce Tower, now the tallest building in the Western states. With many of the buildings constructed on sandy soils South of Market, the US Geological Survey says there’s a high likelihood that that the ground will liquefy in an earthquake. That’s not the kind of sand I want to have my head buried in when the next Big One strikes. I can only hope that local building code standards are stronger than the state’s and that Smart People are thinking about these things. ...
A piece in last Thursday’s New York Times investigates growing calls for rent control in cities across California, along with repealing the Costa-Hawkins Act, which limits the ability of cities to enact rent control ordinances. But as the article points out, “Economists across the ideological spectrum have found that rent control protects entrenched tenants but raises prices for future renters.”
It’s easy to blame “greedy landlords” but in my opinion housing affordability will only improve when the supply side of the equation is also addressed. And that means making it easier and for developers to build denser housing. Not surprisingly, most people are NIMBY’s when it comes to that prospect. ...
Today’s NY Times article discusses solutions the most unaffordable city on the planet is considering to its housing shortage. Solutions include living in a drainpipe, adding new floors to existing high-rises, and converting cruise-ships.
Every year we publish an in-depth look at San Francisco and the Bay Area told almost exclusively in charts. The focus is not on real estate but rather on who we are, what we do, what we believe in. While some of the charts simply confirm widely-known data– for example, that Asians as a group represent the largest minority in San Francisco (33.5%) — others reveal the most obscure and amazing things. For example, did you know that there are almost as many dogs in San Francisco as there are trees? Coincidence you say? You can find all 32 charts, with links to dozens more, here. I’ve cherry-picked some of my favorites below (Click the charts to expand them). ...
