|
|
|
|
|
|
Marin Independent Journal
Jennifer Upshaw
December 20, 2007
Single-family home values continued to rise in Marin, although slumping sales are the order of the day, analysts said Thursday.
Home sales figures for Marin were down more than 25 percent in November compared with last year, dropping to 160 from the 214 homes sold a year ago.
Marin's $975,000 median price, however, continued to climb - up 6 percent from $920,000 last year, according to La Jolla-based real estate research firm DataQuick Information Systems.
Hesitation among lenders in the jumbo market has done Marin no favors.
Between January and July, an average 79 percent of Marin borrowers took on jumbo loans - notes over $417,000. That figure slid to 59 percent in November, said Andrew Le Page, an analyst with DataQuick.
"That's still almost 20 (percentage) points below normal," he said. "But, it's not getting a lot worse."
The lending market appears to be stabilizing somewhat, although scrutiny of borrowers with high loan-to-value ratios or those seeking stated-income loans is still intense, said Lee Aubry, a broker with Wells Fargo and in-house lender for Corte Madera-based Vision Real Estate.
"The market is still changing but hopefully over time some of this will settle," she said.
Marin real estate officials trumpeted the silver lining.
"If you are an investor or a buyer, now is the time to leap into the Marin County real estate market," said Valerie Castellana, president of the Marin Association of Realtors. "The median and sales numbers only reflect part of the story," she said. "The fact is that over the last 40 years, Marin County real estate has continued to appreciate, with just a few years where the market remained flat instead of appreciating. With the exception of the high-end luxury market, we are now in a buyer's market. But it won't last."
The Bay Area's housing market remained chilly in November, when sluggish demand kept sales at a two-decade low for the third month. Prices continued to hold up best in core markets, close to the coast or large job centers.
A total of 5,127 houses and condos sold in the Bay Area in November, down 6.5 percent from 5,486 in October, and down 36.2 percent from 8,042 in November 2006, DataQuick said.
Sales have slumped for 34 months. Last month was the slowest November in DataQuick's statistics, which go back to 1988. Until last month, the slowest November was in 1990, when 6,015 homes sold.
The median price for a Bay Area home was $629,000 last month, down from $631,000 in October, but up from $620,000 in November last year.
|
|
|
|
|
