It seems that everyone in the San Jose area asks, "How's the Silicon Valley real estate market doing?"
The answer is cagey, but true. It depends.
Median prices are up in Campbell by 4% year over year. They're down in Los Gatos by 26%. They are up in Los Altos, but down in Los Altos Hills. Palo Alto, which had been among the strongest markets, is down. The Los Gatos Mountains, which are often "soft", are up a surprising 6.4% over last year.
City by city, or district by district in sprawling San Jose, it varies. Sometimes it varies within a city or district by price point or type of home (condo/townhouse vs single family home). We had been calling this a bifurcated market. But that's when it was fairly cleanly divided between the expensive and more affordable areas of the valley. Now it appears that the lines have blurred. Bifurcated might still be the case, or maybe it's just settling down and the market hot spots are dispersing a bit.
What about overall trends? Generally, days on market are increasing, prices are slipping (in most of Silicon Valley), and it continues to be a buyers' market. On the flip side, though, there's more than just a glimmer of hope because one key indicator has changed. The number of sales - that is, the number of units sold - is rising. It rose in July and it rose again in August. You might not get excited about a two month trend, but it breaks a 43 month streak of straight year-over-year declines. So it's a big deal.
Have buyers decided that it's just too tempting to wait any further? Maybe. And with the loans being helped through the end of the year only, this might be the best window we'll see for awhile which favors buyers so strongly.
For information on the many parts of Silicon Valley (Saratoga, Cupertino, Sunnyvale, San Jose), please visit my Valley of Heart's Delight site, www.SanJoseRealEstateLosGatosHomes.com, and view the post with great information on the valley as a whole: Silicon Valley Real Estate Trends Update.
For a very detailed look at the Los Gatos real estate market in particular, please visit my Live in Los Gatos blog's post, How's The Los Gatos Real Estate Market Doing Now?
If you'd like personalized information for your situation, neighborhood, and plans, please call or email me today.
Cheers!
Mary
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