Noe Valley Voice October 2002
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The Cost of Living in Noe:
Buyers Still Eager

By Corrie M. Anders

Noe Valley's home shopping marketplace, which is one of the most expensive in San Francisco, had 10 well-heeled customers in August. That's how many shoppers closed escrow on single-family homes -- at an average cost of nearly $925,000.

The buyers were so eager to own a Noe Valley address that they paid an average of 6 percent more than the original asking price. The August deals represented a slight increase over the eight sales posted in August a year ago, but were five fewer than the 15 homes sold in July of this year.

Condominium sales were less robust. Only two units changed hands in August, compared to five in July and eight in August 2001. The condo prices averaged $740,000, and even with less competition, the two buyers paid 10 percent more than the asking price.

"The thing that surprised me was how many homes sold above asking price in Noe Valley," said Randall Kostick, 24th Street office manager at Zephyr Real Estate, which supplied the sales data.

"I know it seems that things have slowed down citywide, but Noe Valley is going great," he said. "We're just a popular place to be."

Two single-family homes sold for more than $1 million. The most expensive, at $1.4 million, was a four-bedroom, 3-1/2-bath home in the 600 block of 28th Street. Top-dog condo for the month was a two-bedroom, two-bath unit in the 4400 block of 25th Street that sold for $840,000.

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
August 2002 10 $715,000 $1,410,000 $924,200 38 106%
July 2002 15 $525,000 $1,375,000 $865,267 26 102%
August 2001 8 $664,500 $1,293,000 $843,312 35 99%
Condominiums
August 2002 2 $640,000 $840,000 $740,000 27 110%
July 2002 5 $340,000 $925,000 $563,200 10 109%
August 2001 8 $454,000 $1,450,000 $818,500 45 101%
2 to 4 unit buildings
August 2002 3 $1,218,000 $1,500,000 $1,337,667 18 100%
July 2002 8 $660,000 $1,420,000 $1,046,875 64 101%
August 2001 3 $585,000 $1,080,000 $838,333 64 101%
5+ unit buildings
August 2002 0
July 2002 0
August 2001 1 $1,375,000 $1,375,000 $1,375,000 36 97%

Noe Valley Rents**
Size of Apartment Average Rents
April-June 2002
Average Rents
one year ago
April-June 2001
% increase (+)
or decrease (-)
Studio $1112 $1376 -19.2%
1 bedroom $1561 $1766 -11.6%
2 bedrooms $2185 $2651 -17.6%
3+ bedrooms $2665 $3358 -20.6%

*Information provided to the Noe Valley Voice courtesy of Zephyr Real Estate (www.zephyr-re.com) and based on all Noe Valley home sales (closings) recorded during the month. "Noe Valley" in this survey is defined as the area bordered by Grand View, 22nd, Guerrero, and 30th streets.

**Data courtesy of Rent Tech, Inc (www.renttech.com)