HOME ~ our safe harbor, sanctuary, place of rest and relaxation. Now it’s also the place where we work, attend school, go to the gym, worship and virtually socialize with our friends and family. It has become the center of our lives, our everyplace. The place we lay our heads at night and cook our meals plays so many other roles. How will we look at our abodes once we are allowed to move freely about. What will we want our homes to look like in the future?

Interestingly, the market through the first week of April in Marin continued to perform well. Since the end of March, 45 homes have sold with most closing quickly and selling over asking and many of these closed well after SIP. There have been several homes that have been placed in the new “Coming Soon” category in the MLS with good interest from Buyers requesting disclosure packages.

We don’t know what the future brings, but now, more than ever, homes will hold even more significance for us. We WILL get through this and recover. And, when we do, I am here to help you find your place, whether it’s transitioning to that new chapter or finding a place to call your home. During these shifting times, reliable real time data can be helpful so attached is our April market report.

As we enter into the hopefulness of Spring, there is much to be grateful for. Living in such a beautiful, bountiful and spacious place with such a strong sense of community is immensely gratifying. I wish you happiness, health and positivity and look forward to seeing you in person soon.

Marin County Real Estate & the Coronavirus

April 2020 Report

The first thing to remember is that there is a time lag - usually 3 to 6+ weeks - between a new listing coming on market, an offer being negotiated and accepted, and when the transaction actually closes sale. This means that almost all of the sales price data we have, as of the first week of April, still reflects the market BEFORE the shelter-in-place rules went into effect. In virtually all Bay Area counties, March median sales prices were quite strong.

This report will look at the effect of the crisis on supply and demand by reviewing week by week statistics, at sales price trends reflecting the market before the crisis, and longer-term trend data to give context to how the market typically performs at this time of year. Spring is usually the most active selling season and often sees the highest median sales prices of the calendar year, due to both the level of buyer demand and the seasonal surge in the luxury home market. (A higher percentage of luxury home sales pulls up the overall median sales price.)

We do not know how the crisis will ultimately play out, depending as it does on so many, rapidly changing, socio-economic factors.

Median Sales Price Trends

These first 3 charts review median sales price trends in the short, medium and long-term. March and first quarter prices generally reflect the pre-crisis market.

Link to Bay Area home price map

Shelter-in-Place Effect on Inventory & Dealmaking - by Week

The following 4 charts detail the plunge in listing and accepted-offer activity, and the surge in listings being pulled off the market by sellers, over the past 4 weeks. Typically, at this time of year, the first 3 charts would be seeing steady climbs over February numbers, and the 4th chart would have a very low, flat trend line. Though the numbers are way down, some listings have still been going into contract.

Average Days on Market by Month

Those listings that did go into contract in March - a much lower number than normal - apparently did so quite quickly after coming on market, presumably seizing the attention of buyers despite the crisis. Or the buyers and sellers may already have been in the midst of negotiations when shelter in place rules began.

The Luxury Home Market

The luxury market is fiercely seasonal, and typically spring (Q2) sees the peak in annual sales volumes. Higher-price home sales are often more deeply affected by financial-market crises since affluent households tend to have more wealth tied up in the markets, and watch their movements more closely.

Normal Market Seasonality Trends

These 2 charts illustrate how seasonality typically affects supply and demand, both climbing rapidly from the beginning of the year through late spring.