December-January 2005 RETURN TO HOME PAGE FEEDBACK

Noe Valley homebuyers closed escrow on 21 single-family properties in October--and the sales marked the first time that every home sold during the month cost at least $1 million.

"I think we have a new record here," said Randall Kostick, general sales manager at Zephyr Real Estate. "Every single property was in excess of $1 million.

The total included a spectacular Duncan Street home (see page 1), which a buyer purchased for $5.3 million, and a newly constructed dwelling that cost $2.6 million, according to monthly sales data Zephyr provides to the Voice.

October sales bounced back strongly from the previous month, when only six homes changed hands. Twelve homes were sold in October one year ago.

Kostick described Noe Valley's real estate market as "still obviously very strong"--even as rising mortgage interest rates make ownership more expensive.

The October stats showed that anxious buyers competing to get an address in the neighborhood paid an average 11 percent more than the sellers' asking price and took only three weeks to complete their transactions.

"Three weeks' closing, start to finish, that's pretty amazing," said Kostick. "A 45- to 60-day closing would be normal."

Kostick said if the sales prices continue to dwarf the list prices, Noe Valley is "going to [stay] a hot market."

The $5.3 million property, a newly constructed hillside home in the 500 block of Duncan Street, was an anomaly. It sold for $50,000 less than the asking price. The home has five bedrooms and four baths tucked into its 5,689 square feet of living space.

The $2.6 million runner-up is located on a cul-de-sac in the 500 block of Valley Street between Castro and Diamond streets. The 4,000-square-foot home, built this year, has four bedrooms, 41/2 baths, Jacuzzi, and solarium.

Homebuyers purchased six condominiums in October, one more than in September and two more than in October of last year. Buyers gave condo sellers a premium that averaged 13 percent above the asking price. The most expensive condo was a 1,900-square-foot, two-bedroom, 21/2 -bath unit in the first block of High Street near Clipper Street. Buyers paid $1.1 million.

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
October 2005	21	$1,125,000	$5,300,000	$1,657,857	22	111%
September 2005	6	$825,000	$1,325,000	$1,103,501	41	115%
October 2004	12	$800,000	$2,100,000	$1,283,833	28	111%
Condominiums
October 2005	6	$677,500	$1,100,000	$839,083	23	113%
September 2005	6	$750,000	$1,179,000	$924,167	15	111%
October 2004	4	$580,000	$1,100,000	$828,750	16	104%
2 to 4 unit buildings
October 2005	5	$1,150,000	$1,805,000	$1,595,800	31	118%
September 2005	2	$1,100,000	$1,200,007	$1,150,004	23	119%
October 2004	8	$900,000	$2,100,000	$1,269,000	42	103%
5+ unit buildings
October 2005	0	-	-	-	-	-
September 2005	0	-	-	-	-	-
October 2004	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.

A Snapshot of Noe Valley Rents**

Type of Unit	Number in Sample	Range of Rents, November 2005	Average Rent, November 2005	Average Rent, October 2005
Studio	3	$995-$1400	$1131	$1082
1 bedroom	14	$1250-$1985	$1513	$1692
2 bedrooms	16	$1850-$3750	$2489	$2213
3 bedrooms	9	$2750-$3850	$3378	$3269
4+ bedrooms	2	$3950-$5000	$4475	-

**These rent averages are based on a sample of 44 Noe Valley rental listings appearing on www.craigslist.com on October 29 - November 9, 2005. The previous sample of 51 listings was collected October 5-12.