Traditionally, August is among the slowest months in San Francisco Real Estate. Buyers take off on holiday in search of warmer weather while sellers hold off if possible until putting their home on the market for the Fall selling season. Over the past several years, buyer demand has kept the market aloft during summer months, but this year there did seem to be a slight cooling. Prices for single family homes actually decreased slightly (though condo/ loft prices were up), and while the majority of homes sold for over their asking price buyers weren't willing to pony up as much as they have in the past.
Still, it remains a seller's market. Inventory stayed dismally low with the fewest new listings in an August in 10 years, and homes were scooped up quickly. Months supply of inventory is under 2 months for both single family homes and condos. A more balanced market would be 5-6 months of inventory.
Looking ahead, September brought an onslaught of new inventory to the market. It will be interesting to see if it's enough to quench buyers' thirst and balance the market a bit. In the meantime, the August statistics are below.
Median Sales Price:
Median sales price for single family homes was up 16% compared to the same month last year, but actually dipped slightly compared to last month. Condos and lofts, on the other hand, were up compared to last month as well as up almost 7% compared to August of last year.
New Listings:
Very few new listings hit the market in August compared to years past. In fact, both single family homes and condo/ lofts had the lowest number of new listings in any August in the past 10 years. Single family homes listings were off almost 24%, whicle condos and lofts were down 35% compared to August of last year.
Active Listings:
Active Listings, the number of listings available for sale at the end of a given month, were also down significantly in August. Only 315 listings were active for sale by the end of August, a 17% decrease compared to August of last year. Condo and loft active listings were down a whopping 36% compared to last year.
Percentage of Properties Sold Over List Price:
Given the limited inventory it's not surprising that 82% of single family homes sold for over their list price in August. That's up 4% compared to the same month last year. Almost 60% of condos and lofts sold for over their list price, slightly less than the same month last year.
Average Percentage of List Price Received:
While the majority of homes last month sold for over list price, the percentage that they sold over decreased when compared to last month. Single family homes averaged about 15% over list price, lower than last month and down a half percentage point from the same month last year. Condos and lofts sold for an average of 6.5% over list price, up just one percent compared to the same month last year. It will be interesting to see if this trend continues into the fall, which could be an indicator of buyer exhaustion at bidding so much over list price. Or perhaps refreshingly, properties are starting to be more properly priced.
Month's Supply of Inventory:
MSI, or the absorbtion rate of inventory, again plunged in August as homes spent less time on the market before going into contract. Inventory for single family homes was just 1.7 months, down 15% compared to the same month last year and also down compared to last month. Condos and lofts inventory decreased more than 42% compared to last year, coming in at only 1.5 months.
Average Days on Market:
On average, single family homes spent just 23 days on the market before going into contract. This is down almost 15% compared to the same month last year. Condos and lofts spent just 31 days on the market on average, a decrease of over 24% compared to August 2017.
The fine print: All information deemed reliable but not guaranteed or warranted. Data comes from MLS so does not include off-market and most new construction condo sales. The San Francisco real estate market is dynamic so statistics can change on a daily basis. These statistics are meant to be a snapshot of the day and time they were pulled.
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