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The sale of single-family homes in Noe Valley came to a virtual standstill in April, as only three properties closed escrow during the month. Condominium sales also were modest.

The listless activity was unusual for an April. Over the previous decade, at least 10 single-family homes were sold during the month, reaching a zenith of 23 sales in April of 2004.

The dramatic decline -- from nine sales in March -- surprised Randall Kostick, general sales manager for Zephyr Real Estate, whose firm supplies monthly sales data to the Voice.

"I don't know how to explain that," Kostick said, adding that the three sales might have been an anomaly. "Nothing happened that would have dropped the volume by one third."

Statistical fluke or not, the data showed a continuing slowdown in housing activity in the neighborhood. Buyers took far longer to close escrow -- an average of 99 days in April '09, contrasted with 17 days a year earlier. And buyers typically paid 2 percent under the sellers' asking price. In 2008, they bid prices up 4 percent more than the original price.

The most expensive home sold in April was a $2,400,000 Victorian/modern hybrid, which had sat on the market for 172 days (with a price tag of $2,850,000). The home, five bedrooms with 5.5 baths and 3,200 square feet of living space, is located in the 300 block of Duncan Street between Church and Sanchez streets.

The four condos that changed hands in April were considerably cheaper, averaging around $900,000. But condo deals typically took four months to complete--far longer than a year ago, when buyers picked up the keys to their new homes in about one month. Condo buyers in April also did not feel compelled to overbid--paying 98 percent of the asking price. A year earlier, they paid 5 percent more than the list price.

Buyers paid $1,155,000 for the most expensive condo, a two-bedroom, 2.5-bath unit with 1,400 square feet, located in the 900 block of Elizabeth Street between Hoffman and Grand View.

Noe Valley Home Sales*

	Total Sales	Low Price ($)	High Price ($)	Average Price ($)	Average Days on Market	Sale Price as % of List Price
Single-family homes
April 2009	3	$875,000	$2,400,000	$1,828,333	99	98%
March 2009	9	$575,000	$1,850,000	$1,204,889	77	94%
April 2008	10	$935,000	$2,200,000	$1,534,000	17	104%
Condominiums
April 2009	4	$665,000	$1,155,000	$911,000	124	98%
March 2009	5	$435,000	$859,000	$634,600	43	99%
April 2008	7	$800,000	$1,700,000	$1,174,000	31	105%
2 to 4 unit buildings
April 2009	2	$1,048,000	$1,550,000	$1,299,000	147	99%
March 2009	1	$730,000	$730,000	$730,000	27	94%
April 2008	3	$1,500,000	$1,575,000	$1,550,000	37	105%
5+ unit buildings
April 2009	0	-	-	-	-	-
March 2009	0	-	-	-	-	-
April 2008	0	-	-	-	-	-

*Sales figures include all Noe Valley home sales completed during the month. In this survey, Noe Valley is defined as the area bordered by Grand View, 22nd, Guerrero, and 30th streets. The Voice thanks Zephyr Real Estate (www.zephyrsf.com) for supplying the data.

Noe Valley Rents**

Type of Unit	Number in Sample	Range of Rents, May 2009	Average Rent, May 2009	Average Rent, April 2009	Average Rent, May 2008
Studio	9	$1000-$1995	$1335	$1494	$1499
1 bedroom	25	$1350-$2200	$1853	$1916	$1953
2 bedrooms	44	$1800-$5500	$2776	$2754	$3016
3 bedrooms	18	$2799-$9500	$4158	$4330	$4234
4+ bedrooms	6	$3995-$6500	$5532	$6800	$5940

**These rent averages are based on a sample of 102 Noe Valley rental listings appearing on www.craigslist.com from April 30 to May 8, 2009.