July-August 2005 RETURN TO HOME PAGE FEEDBACK

The summer months of July and August generally sap some strength from Noe Valley's housing market, as homebuyers and sellers focus on family vacations.

"What will be interesting is whether this summer will be a normal, seasonal summer, or whether it will be a summer where we don't see any slowdown," says Randall Kostick, sales manager at the 24th Street office of Zephyr Real Estate.

Noe Valley's housing market has been robust for the past five years, summers included. And there was little evidence of a slowdown in May of this year, according to Zephyr's monthly sales data. The Zephyr report showed that 15 single-family detached homes closed escrow in May, three more than in the previous month but below the 19 sales recorded in May 2004.

Eleven of the 15 homes sold for more than $1 million. Buyers typically paid 13 percent more than the sellers' asking price. The overbidding helped push the average price of a Noe Valley detached home to nearly $1.3 million.

The area's most expensive sale took place in the 500 block of Diamond Street. That's where buyers purchased a remodeled Victorian with five bedrooms, 31/2 baths, and a two-car garage--for slightly less than $2.25 million.

Condo prices also continued to creep higher, reaching an average in May of $914,000.

The price leader for the month was a two-bedroom, one-bath unit in the 1000 block of Dolores, between 23rd and 24th streets. Buyers paid more than $1.1 million for the 1,500-square-foot home.

The nine condominiums that were sold in May equaled the number of transactions in April.

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
May 2005	15	$907,000	$2,245,000	$1,297,553	29	113%
April 2005	12	$900,000	$1,855,000	$1,188,625	22	116%
May 2004	19	$699,000	$1,805,000	$1,093,158	25	108%
Condominiums
May 2005	9	$525,000	$1,114,000	$914,110	21	116%
April 2005	9	$675,000	$1,200,000	$861,889	27	119%
May 2004	6	$430,000	$1,175,000	$812,500	24	114%
2 to 4 unit buildings
May 2005	7	$1,215,000	$1,750,000	$1,431,943	36	104%
April 2005	2	$1,195,000	$1,218,000	$1,206,500	37	101%
May 2004	10	$650,000	$1,857,000	$1,210,500	29	107%
5+ unit buildings
May 2005	2	$1,550,000	$1,890,000	$1,682,500	39	102%
April 2005	0	-	-	-	-	-
May 2004	0	-	-	-	-	-

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

Noe Valley Rents**

Type of Unit	Number in Sample	Range of Rents, June 2005	Average Rent, June 2005	Average Rent, May 2005
Studio	10	$895-$1425	$1099	$1092
1 bedroom	20	$1150-$2295	$1549	$1489
2 bedrooms	18	$1550-$3200	$2104	$2286
3 bedrooms	3	$2500-$2900	$2650	$3147
4 bedrooms	1	$6500-$6500	$6500	-

**These rent averages are based on a sample of 52 Noe Valley rental listings appearing on www.craigslist.com on June 13-16, 2005. The previous sample of 30 listings was collected May 24-26.