We’ll do a quick re-cap of the Belmont housing market for April 2013, since by now unless you’ve been living under a rock you’ve heard that the Peninsula housing market is back in full swing; and some would argue the swing is becoming dangerous to ride.
We’re probably a few years away from that precipice and we seriously doubt that the current run up of home values will continue at the frenetic pace we’ve seen in the last year. If the rate of appreciation settles down to sub double digit increases year-over-year the market will be more sustainable.
If you are some place where you can hear our audio accompaniment, we’ve recorded a short piece which helps explain some of the perplexing numbers for Belmont home values in April of 2013.
That’s a long way of saying we’ll be brief in our analysis this month. We’ll start with the big news which is probably not what you’d expect to hear…
[click on the sales for a full size chart]
SALES
Sales year-over-year dropped 30% in the month of April. In April of 2012 24 homes traded hands while in 2013 only 17 homes closed escrow.
New Listings
New listings were up 40% in 2013 over 2012 for the month of April.
Current Inventory
The inventory of homes available for sale in April of 2013 dropped 27% over last year at the same time.
Months of Inventory
The time it would take to sell off the entire current inventory of homes at the current rate of sales was virtually unchanged from 1.78 months of inventory last April to 1.76 months this year.
Do some of these numbers seem paradoxical? More new listings and fewer sales—is the market cooling off? If you’d like a more detailed discussion you may visit our blog page for a short podcast where we explain the correlation these numbers have to each other.
MEDIAN PRICE
The median home price in Belmont increased around 12% to $955,000 over last April when the median price was $849,500.
Reading between the lines—we see that the size home that sold in 2012 though was also 2,070 square feet as opposed to the homes which sold this April which were only 1,520 square feet. Effectively this means in 2013 you get a home in Belmont that is 26% smaller but cost you 12% more. That’s a serious increase in prices in just one year which we discuss more in the audio portion.
PRICE REDUCTIONS
Another indication of the hot Belmont housing market is reflected in the number of price reductions—or lack thereof. There were no price reductions in April for any Belmont home which sold.
In April of 2012, out of the 24 sales 10 homes sold above the asking price, 4 sold at the asking price and 10 sold below. In 2013 all but one home sold over the asking price.
PERCENT RECEIVED
Sellers in Belmont received on average 111% of their asking price in April of 2013 as compared to 99.6% last April.
If you are a seller who has been waiting for the market to rebound, it just did.
Data from the Multiple Listing Service for San Mateo County – MLS Listings, Inc.
Disclaimer:
The information contained in this article is educational and intended for informational purposes only. It does not constitute real estate, tax or legal advice, nor does it substitute for advice specific to your situation. Always consult an appropriate professional familiar with your scenario. Drew & Christine did not participate in all of these sales.
Thank you for that rundown on values that was a very insightful article keep up the good work.