🎇🎆 2022 Year in Review 🎆🎇

Wishing you a Happy New Year! May it be filled with new adventures and good fortune. Cheers! Maggie marketingcenter-sfbayarea-sfcityproper

Celebrate the red, white and YOU

The first half of 2022 has come to and end.....6 months defined by roaring inflation, equity market drops, soaring interest rates, anxiety, energy price spikes, war, deeper political divisions, diminished rights, recession chatter, you name it. Thankfully we have Independence Day to celebrate and lift our mood.   Below are a few options for this holiday weekend: "So Happy Together" is the them of this year's Marin Country Fair, running now through Monday, from 11AM - 11PM daily. This year's fair features unicyclists, jugglers, stilt-walkers, carnival rides, animals of the Barnyard, Global Marketplace, fireworks over the Civic Center’s Lagoon Park, live concerts, and more!  Throughout the weekend, free concerts will also be held at Stern Grove, San Francisco Giants Stadium and Oakland Athletics Stadium. San Francisco Hot Dog Contest While waiting for the main event, enjoy the free live music concert at the Aquatic Park at 6 PM or drop by the Fourth of July Pub Crawl on Austin Street, next to El Lopo on Polk Street where the San Francisco Hot Dog Contest will take place at 7:30 PM. Where to watch fireworks Fisherman’s Wharf Fisherman’s Wharf will host a fireworks event beginning at 9:30 p.m. for approximately 90 minutes. Crissy Field With the Golden Gate Bridge to your left, fireworks show to your right, the SF bay in front, and the rest of the city at your back, Crissy Field is the spot to catch the fireworks show with serene views surrounding you. Twin Peaks Twin Peaks offers high-elevation views of both the city and San Francisco Bay, including a view of the fireworks display with the city lights shining right before it.  Cruises If you'd rather watch fireworks from the water, there are several cruise options. Or you may prefer to just stay home Regardless of how you choose to celebrate, here's to Independence Day and the rest of 2022! 🥂 Cheers, Maggie marketingcenter-sfbayarea-sfcityproper

To many more years to come!

I'm so honored to be included in the 2022 Real Trends America’s Best Real Estate Professionals, honoring the top 1.49% (top 1000) of real estate agents from all across the country.  I couldn't do it without my clients and the support of colleagues and loved ones. Thank YOU. To many more years to come! marketingcenter-sfbayarea-sfcityproper

Happy Father’s Day!

I hope you have a fun-filled day! Cheers! Maggie marketingcenter-sfbayarea-sfcityproper

A long-awaited window of opportunity has opened

Sellers in SF have had the upper hand since 2012. However, in May we started seeing heavy volatility and declines in the financial markets. Interest rates climbed above 6%. There are worries about inflation and mumblings about tech layoffs. Whatever the reason, a cooling demand is beginning to show up in the real estate market, and it’s manifesting strongly in pending home sales data.  Here are the latest trends: These trends show that supply is beginning to build, sellers are reducing prices, and the number of homes going into contract is significantly down. Although the market is heading into the typically slow summer season, the inventory is historically high for May (the latest numbers available). While there may not be a single reason behind the drop in activity and increase in inventory, one thing is clear: After 10 years of getting battered and bruised, a long-awaited window of opportunity has opened for buyers.  So, what does this mean for sellers? Market changes are often uneven in the early months of transition, with one home selling in days at huge overbid price, while next door, the seller has to reduce their price to get an offer.  Prices follow deal volume, so a slowing market means prices have most likely peaked in Q1. However, a slowdown does not mean that the market is weak by any normal standard. People will continue to have personal and financial reasons to buy and sell homes. Contrary to what you may read in the news, a slowdown does not suggest that prices are in for a freefall. Instead, the market will most likely slip from a seller’s market to a neutral market this summer.  As the market cools, buyers become more discriminating, negative conditions previously ignored are noticed, more negotiating occurs, multiple offers and overbidding decline.  Listings that are well prepared, staged, show well, and are priced right, will have an increasing advantage over the competition.  What does this mean for buyers?  After the largest and most dramatic upcycle in the financial and housing markets over the past 2 years, a slower market means a break from the bidding wars and sellers more willing to negotiate.  To take advantage of this window of opportunity, buyers should have their financials buttoned up, understand the inventory, and not ignore stale properties (often times these will have more motivated sellers willing to negotiate).  Sellers tend to withdraw their listings when they cannot sell at the price they command. In this case, supply may be squeezed again. Therefore, the next few months may offer both choice and negotiation for buyers who are less sensitive to rate change and financial market fluctuations. Complete market report Is someone you know, ready to move? Let me know - I can help Keep well, Maggie marketingcenter-sfbayarea-sfcityproper

Thinking of Buying or Selling.......but you're on the sideline?

In such an unusual year, many of you are still trying to figure out if now is the right time to make a move. For those of you who are sitting on the sidelines, here are a few things to consider: For Buyers-in-Wait 1. Its likely prices will go up because of inflation. After an unprecedented government stimulus, expect inflation sooner or later. Investing in real estate is a great hedge against that. 2. Interest rates are at historic lows — but don’t take that for granted. Requirements and rates will worsen at some point. 3. There’s real value in comfort and security right now. What matters more to you: trying to time the bottom of the market, or finding the right home that’ll make you feel comfortable and safe during this time? 4. Try to avoid the “wait and see” mentality. Nobody buys at the bottom — and knows it. Focus on quality as your priority: the best deal on the best match that meets your needs for years to come. For Potential Sellers 1. Selling in a down market means you can buy in a down market. If you list now, you might sell a bit lower but you can buy so much more with it. Think of the home — and that balcony or home office — you can now buy at a discount. 2. Active buyers are more serious than ever before. People have spent the last 5 months realizing the inadequacies of their home. The buyers who are looking right now, in the middle of Covid-19, are very motivated to get a transaction done and take advantage of the historically low mortgage rates. 3. Price so that the market chases you. If you don’t price correctly, chances are buyers will not bid — and they may not even view. 4. We don’t know what the future holds. Don’t take this buyer demand for granted. This unprecedented year is far from over — the election and ongoing pandemic could freeze real estate activity again, making it harder to sell afterward.  As Always If you'd like a more tailored look at how the market is playing out in the City, just let me know.  Keep well, Maggie Maggie Visser Top 4% SF Realtor DRE #: 01925742 M: 415.793.3470 maggie@maggievisser.com © Compass 2020 ¦ All Rights Reserved by Compass ¦ Made in NYC Compass is a real estate broker licensed by the State of California operating under multiple entities. License Numbers 01991628, 1527235, 1527365, 1356742, 1443761, 1997075, 1935359, 1961027, 1842987, 1869607, 1866771, 1527205, 1079009, 1272467. All material presented herein is intended for informational purposes only and is compiled from sources deemed reliable but has not been verified. Changes in price, condition, sale or withdrawal may be made without notice. No statement is made as to accuracy of any description. All measurements and square footage are approximate. Equal Housing Opportunity.

"Mad Rush" out of SF?

"Mad Rush" out of SF? You may have seen this article from Bloomberg earlier this week, trumpeting a “mad rush” from San Francisco as residents flee from the city to surrounding suburbs, desperate to spread out. Suffice to say, the article fails to include some rather important details. Here’s what the article does not mention: The SF market had a herculean rebound in May. The number of homes being purchased picked up rapidly, bouncing back from the steep plunge following shelter-in-place.  Based on the trajectory, it is fully expected the recovery will surge and normalize in the coming weeks. While it's true SF hasn’t rebounded as well as the surrounding markets, our circumstances have been very different. SF has been more deeply affected by COVID-19 and instituted stricter SIP measures for a longer period of time. Densely populated urban areas have been hit significantly harder by the crisis, and SF is the second-most densely populated city in the country. It’s just not apples to apples. People are buying in wine country, BUT…. Surrounding areas in Marin, Napa, Sonoma, and regions to the south have seen a surge in interest from residents of San Francisco – many of them, however, are purchasing second homes.  Those that are relocating will have various reasons for doing so, but one factor that can’t be ignored is that so much of what people love about living in the city has, for the time being, disappeared.  Relocation may be the balm some people need right now – we are still in this crisis. It is simply too soon to say that this is a trend or will continue after the crisis. We’re learning more about prices and home values. Median sales prices in SF dropped in May, but those figures are based on a very low volume of closed sales in the month.  The sales and prices mostly reflect the huge impact of COVID-19 in March and April. Based on the large jump in purchase activity in May, the next few months will be a better indicator of whether or not changes in home values will occur. I can say, however, that buyer demand has come surging back in some segments, so that is a positive signal for home values. The outshot is that it is too soon to proclaim anything about an exodus or a mad rush or anything else for that matter! We're still feeling the effects of shelter-in-place shake out, not just in the real estate market but in our own behaviors and plans. And hey! That's okay. Please stay safe and strong, everyone. Let me know if there's anything I can do for you this week, real estate-related or otherwise.  Maggie Visser Top 4% SF Agents DRE #: 01925742 415.793.3470 maggie.visser@compass.com © Compass 2020 ¦ All Rights Reserved by Compass ¦ Made in NYC Compass is a real estate broker licensed by the State of California operating under multiple entities. License Numbers 01991628, 1527235, 1527365, 1356742, 1443761, 1997075, 1935359, 1961027, 1842987, 1869607, 1866771, 1527205, 1079009, 1272467. All material presented herein is intended for informational purposes only and is compiled from sources deemed reliable but has not been verified. Changes in price, condition, sale or withdrawal may be made without notice. No statement is made as to accuracy of any description. All measurements and square footage are approximate. Equal Housing Opportunity.

April 2020 Real Estate Market Update

San Francisco 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, first quarter and 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, 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.  Shelter-in-Place Effect on Inventory & Deals  - 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. 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.  These next 2 charts look at weekly trends in the markets for homes of $2.5 million+ and of $5m+. 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.  Maggie Visser DRE #: 01925742 415.793.3470 maggie.visser@compass.com © Compass 2020 ¦ All Rights Reserved by Compass ¦ Made in NYC Compass is a real estate broker licensed by the State of California operating under multiple entities. License Numbers 01991628, 1527235, 1527365, 1356742, 1443761, 1997075, 1935359, 1961027, 1842987, 1869607, 1866771, 1527205, 1079009, 1272467. All material presented herein is intended for informational purposes only and is compiled from sources deemed reliable but has not been verified. Changes in price, condition, sale or withdrawal may be made without notice. No statement is made as to accuracy of any description. All measurements and square footage are approximate. Equal Housing Opportunity.