With three quarters of the year behind us, the market has surprised many. Sales are up. Median Sales Price is up. Inventory remains lean. Interest Rates have remained remarkably low but now rather suddenly seem on the move. Rates are up .25% from the beginning of September – half that quarter point increase was this week – Mortgage News Daily – As rates go up, it impacts what buyers can afford.

Total Sales volume for 2017 has been robust and is on pace to finish 5% above 2016 levels, whereas 2016 saw a 7% drop in total sales year over year. 2017 seemed to begin a little softer but bounced early and hasn’t paused since – the one area of noticeable softness this year is the higher end market – properties initially priced above $6M are typically slow to sell and/or are often times selling at deep discounts.

The combined median home and condo sales price continues to rise. Year to Date the Median Sales Price stands at $979,000, which nearly matches the peak of the last market cycle in 2006. That is a 4.5% increase over last year.

There continues to be a significant number of all cash purchases. Of September’s sales 45% were all cash; that is a large percentage for a single month in any market cycle and especially noticeable now, given where prices are – that’s a lot of cash moving around in the local economy.

There are a large number of buyers in the market today, but they are more selective than a few years ago. “Value” seems to be the key, which of course is always subjective! “What’s it worth to you?”

September Market Highlights

September ’17 Highest Sale
926 Buena Vista Dr
4 BD / 7 BA / $7.200.000

Sept. ’17 Lowest Home Sale
5061 Alvarado Rd
2 BD / 1 BA / $550.000

Newly Listed

Mesa, Modern, Updated & Bright
1419 San Miguel Ave
3 BD / 2 BA / $1.395.000