February 2011 RETURN TO HOME PAGE FEEDBACK

Condominiums outsold single-family homes in Noe Valley in November and December, as buyers opted for the relatively more affordable alternative in one of San Francisco’s most expensive neighborhoods.

Local shoppers purchased 22 condos as the year came to an end—more than triple the seven condos sold during the same period a year earlier, according to sales data supplied to the Voice by Zephyr Real Estate.

The condo haul edged out house sales, which totaled 21 for November/December 2010 (and 19 for the year before).

Home shoppers generally consider houses more desirable than condos. But some buyers can pay only so much for residential real estate, notes Randall ­Kostick, Zephyr’s general sales manager.

“Condo prices are less than single-family as a rule,” he said. “So if you have a limited budget, you buy within your budget.”

Also, in this tight economy, “people are watching their pocketbooks, and they’re not as anxious to spend the money required to purchase a single-family home,” Kostick said.

Average $1 Million

The typical condo in Noe Valley cost about $1 million in December, while single-family homes averaged nearly $1.4 million.

Those are lofty numbers, no matter how you look at them. Still, buyers showed their willingness to do business by paying 98 to 100 percent of the sellers’ asking price.

House buyers closed escrow in under two months, a little quicker than during the same period a year ago. Condo buyers picked up the pace by a considerable margin, closing in 79 days as compared to 147 in December 2009.

Run on Two-Flat Buildings

Rising sales of small apartment buildings also reflected buyers’ desires to obtain a Noe Valley address without paying penthouse prices.

Two buildings in the two- to four-unit category changed hands during November and five in December, a total of seven sales compared to four during the last two months of the previous year.

Kostick said all five sales in December involved two-unit buildings, the kind that partners generally purchase as tenants-in-common (TICs) and inhabit as separate units.

Two-unit buildings are “especially desirable,” he said, because fewer partners mean fewer complications and the units may later be converted into condos.

The Biggest Price Tags

December’s top-priced house was a five-bedroom, 3.5-bath residence in the 200 block of Chattanooga Street between 23rd and 24th streets. The 3,500-square-foot property was on the market for 105 days before it sold for $2,125,000—a $110,000 drop from the original asking price.

There were two single-family homes with sales tags above $2 million in November, including a four-bedroom, 3.5-bath house with 3,124 square feet that went for $2,780,000. The renovated home, located in the first block of Fountain Street between 24th and 25th streets, traded for $19,000 below the asking price.

Condo sales also pressed toward the $2 million mark.

In December, a condo in the 400 block of Elizabeth Street, between Noe and Sanchez streets, sold in 82 days for $100,000 below the original $2,095,000 list price. The brand-new unit had four bedrooms, 3.5 baths, 3,113 square feet of living space, and two-car parking.

The month before, a four-bedroom, 2.5-bath condo with 2,900 square feet was the top attraction. On the market for a brief 28 days, it sold for $2,025,000—$27,000 above the asking price. The modern-style unit is located in the 100 block of Chattanooga Street between 22nd and 23rd streets.

 

Noe Valley Home Sales*

	Total Sales	Low Price ($)	High Price ($)	Average Price ($)	Average Days on Market	Sale Price as % of List Price
Single-family
Dec 2010	10	$940,000	$2,125,000	$1,397,250	54	98%
Nov 2010	11	$679,000	$2,780,000	$1,486,636	57	100%
Dec 2009	7	$756,217	$1,710,000	$1,300,888	76	97%
Nov 2009	12	$700,000	$2,925,000	$1,262,917	46	100%
Condominiums
Dec 2010	13	$581,500	$1,995,000	$976,177	79	100%
Nov 2010	9	$580,000	$2,025,000	$1,010,333	43	99%
Dec 2009	3	$755,000	$796,500	$770,500	147	98%
Nov 2009	4	$675,000	$903,000	$807,000	69	99%
2-
Dec 2010	5	$669,000	$1,600,000	$1,202,800	79	98%
Nov 2010	2	$1,075,000	$1,300,000	$1,187,500	40	100%
Dec 2009	2	$1,375,000	$1,425,000	$1,400,000	47	98%
Nov 2009	2	$921,500	$1,056,500	$989,000	117	99%
5+-unit
Dec 2010	0	—	—	—	—	—
Nov 2010	1	$2,025,000	$2,025,000	$2,025,000	69	97%
Dec 2009	0	—	—	—	—	—
Nov 2009	0	—	—	—	—	—

*‑ ‑Sales include all Noe Valley home sales completed during the month. Noe Valley in this survey 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 sales data.   NVV 2/11

 

Noe Valley Rents**

Unit	No. in Sample	Range Jan. 2011	Average Jan. 2011	Average Nov. 2010	Average Jan. 2010
Studio	6	$1,200 – $1,900	$1,495 / mo.	$1,568 / mo.	$1,278 / mo.
1-bdrm	24	$1,475 – $3,725	$2,200 / mo.	$1,807 / mo.	$1,810 / mo.
2-bdrm	28	$1,685 – $5,600	$2,745 / mo.	$2,906 / mo.	$2,709 / mo.
3-bdrm	13	$2,850 – $5,500	$3,972 / mo.	$3,933 / mo.	$4,210 / mo.
4+-bdrm	7	$3,250 – $9,500	$6,142 / mo.	$6,156 / mo.	$5,805 / mo.

** ­‑Survey based on a sample of 78 Noe Valley listings appearing on Craigslist.org from Jan. 3 to 22, 2011.  NVV 2/11